The word spread like wildfire through the church community. Nina Brooks had died.

    The news was no surprise, but it was a great disappointment. Her illness had been long and exhausting. While Nina had awaited a liver transplant, the church had prayed for her literally around the clock. “Please God, heal our sister, our friend,” they cried out. But God has his own ways. Instead of healing Nina on a hospital bed, God’s healing took place at the gates of heaven.

    Nina first showed signs of illness as a sophomore in college, and her liver began to slowly deteriorate from that point on. She lived with the condition for twenty-three years, and in that time, she married and had two children. She worked and cared for her family, enjoying what most would consider a normal life, until the strain on her liver and other organs became too much.

    Eventually it was obvious that only two things could save Nina’s life: a liver transplant or a miraculous healing by God. So while waiting for a liver, Nina’s friends and church family began to pray for a miracle.

    Of course, Nina’s friends knew they couldn’t heal her — only God could. They couldn’t assure her that a liver would be made available in time to save her. So they did what they could do to bring comfort and healing to Nina’s spirit.

    Her sister Wanda appreciated their efforts — especially the prayer support. She shares, “When Nina would have rough times, when we thought she wasn’t going to make it, the church held twenty-four-hour prayer vigils, praying every moment of the day.”

    Wanda recalls many other ways women who were close to Nina ministered to Nina and her family. “There were a number of Nina’s close friends, like Gail and Sondra, who were good about being there for her, coming to visit, talking on the phone,” Wanda says. “Sondra organized a huge garage sale to help pay for medical expenses. Another friend, Karen, was at the hospital often and was with Nina when she died. These friends were there through the rough times with her.”

    Another group of women prepared meals, and one who lived near the hospital offered her home to any of Nina’s friends or family members who needed a place to stay. The youth group held fund-raisers.

    “Nina was crazy about praise songs,” Wanda remembers. “She loved praise and worship. Her favorite song was ‘Shine Jesus Shine.’ Katie, the church worship leader, made tapes of praise songs so Nina could listen to them on her cassette player. “That really raised her spirits,” Wanda recalls.

    Colleen, a doctor in the church, was there to answer medical questions. She was able to talk with Nina’s doctor, get more detailed information than others could, and then explain what was happening to the family. She was an advocate for Nina’s care, insisting that Nina receive attention when she was suffering.

    But despite all these efforts, Nina left her earthly home for heaven in 1994, just one month before she would have turned forty-two. She left behind her husband, Jeff, and two children, ages fifteen and eleven. Now these three, along with other family members, were the ones who needed a healing touch.

“Please God, heal our sister, our friend,” they cried out.

    “If it had not been for my church CARE group, I don’t know how I would have made it through,” Wanda admits. “They were there for us. You talk about healing — when a person dies so young, the survivors need that healing touch too.”

    Meals were brought to family members. A concert was held and dedicated to Nina’s memory. The spring after Nina died, the women of converged on Jeff’s house and did a top-to-bottom spring-cleaning: washing windows, scrubbing baseboards, organizing cupboards, and more.

    These women were grieving, too. They had suffered along with the family during Nina’s illness and after her death. But, they never stopped doing all they could to bring hope, comfort, and a healing touch — first to Nina, then to Nina’s husband and children, sisters, and parents.

    Notice that no one person tried to do everything for Nina. Rather, each woman did what she could — whether it was to bring a meal, to sing praise songs, to talk to doctors, to clean her house, to pray, or to simply to be there as a friend. Each of these women offered her gifts, and each gift ministered to Nina and her family in a unique way.

    The Bible tells us of countless times Jesus healed those who were sick. Several times he even raised the dead. We don’t know why God heals some and not others. What we do know is that we can offer touches of love and mercy to those in need.

    Have you experienced this kind of touch on your life? If so, what was the impact it had on you and others?

    What touch can you offer?

    Lord, thank you for the healing you bring in the midst of pain. Show me how to reach out and touch the sick and hurting in practical ways.

Praise the LORD.
Praise the name of the LORD;
praise him, you servants of the LORD,
you who minister in the house of the LORD,
in the courts of the house of our God. (Psalm 135:1-2)