The above picture was taken by Carmie from her home. The splendor of this image speaks of God's glory unto us!
I have met Carmie Rowell on Facebook. Something about her made me visit her wall every now and then. When I visited her wall three days back, she had a part of her testimony typed in as a response to her friend's post. I wanted to hear more of her testimony. Here it is as she shared it with me. I was thoroughly blessed by her testimony and I believe it will bless you as well.
I have been a christian for 30 years. We came under a strong word of trusting God not only for our salvation and finances but also for our sicknesses. I came into the walk with chronic colitis which I had since I was 19 years old. I then started to hear teachings regarding God's will that His children be well and that I was no longer under the curse of the law (Deuteronomy 28 lists the curses and the blessings). I learned that while I had this illness it ought not be there. I was new in the Lord then and of course there was much fear. For some reason God allowed the most violent of trials (sicknesses) in the earlier years of my walk with Him. I was newly married. I remember that I wished to trust Him but it was more of a legalistic trust because I do not believe I was fully persuaded of the scriptures regarding His will to heal yet I felt pressure to trust. Nevertheless, He met me. I had suffered in this sickness which got very bad and I remember people at my house praying that I would be healed. I trusted His words "that He would put none of these diseases upon me that he put upon the Egyptians that He was the Lord who healed me" (Exodus 15:26). I tried to ignore the circumstances as best as possible as Abraham who was strong in faith considering the circumstances He was more persuaded of God's word for Him (Romans 4) and what He would do for Him (heal His reproductive organs). One must renew their mind with His word. Get the concordance out and look up all the scriptures on the area you need His promise in. In my case it was healing! I stepped out in faith and also learned to hold fast in spite of what I felt or what the circumstances dictated. This is faith (Hebrews 11). "What things soever you desire when you pray BELIEVE you HAVE RECEIVED and it shall be given” (Mark 11:24). The hard part is not doubting (James 1) because if one is wavering in His faith and does not stop he will not receive. You can repent of doubt and just get up and move on. I learned faith through my struggles with sicknesses.
I walked out tremendous times not wanting to eat but forcing myself as this affected my stomach. It was never as bad as it was when I gave up the medicine in trusting God. He delivered me then after some time. I remember a release of the worse part of this illness. He showed me over the years that whenever I worry or have anxiety it would start in my bowels. As time went on I gained total victory over my mind and thoughts. I could tell when I was in distress and worry and that I was to immediately give the burden to him. "Casting all my care on Him for He cares for me" (1 Peter 5:7). I have not had this problem reoccur again but I must be on guard with my thoughts and the thoughts affect the bodily functions especially if one is in anxiety. God wants us to put on the shoes of peace it is part of our armor (Ephesians 6).
The next trouble was after I had my first child. I did not want children. I lost the first child with a miscarriage and did not get pregnant for three years because I was in such fear of not wanting a child. I used no birth control. When I had my first child and had submitted my will to God's in this area, I developed a black spot on my right leg which got larger and larger and gradually opened to a very large wound which stunk. I did not know what this was. I did not question God. For seven months my leg started to rot and it spread all the way around this leg. I lived in fear not faith. I was afraid to go to the hospital. Every time I looked at it, I was in fear. I wanted to be in faith and not doubt but every time I considered the circumstances, I doubted and feared. Doubt and fear are the devil's biggest tactics against the Christian. I had help with someone coming in to care for my child. I probably could have gone to the hospital looking back but was serving God in a more fearful way then. I would hop painfully to go to the bathroom and getting out of bed was horrible. People would tell me from our church that I needed to go to the hospital because I was not in faith and that I needed to walk to act my faith. This was not right. Acting one's faith must come from within and the fact that I was laying there was acting my faith really. I did what I could do. I was scared to go to the hospital because the wound was large and I didn't know what would happen. I made a decision to have my husband carry me and no longer tried to walk and hop to the bathroom. I stayed on the couch and did not go to bed any longer. I saw the scripture in James 5 that said to call for the elders especially since I was bedridden and that the prayer of faith would heal the sick and that I would be raised. I remember calling them and they came and anointed me with oil and prayed. This was seven months later. I believe I released faith when I called. God honored that.
The next day when the two ladies came to wash the leg which could not be touched for the open wounds when I put the leg down instead of excruciating pain there was no pain! I knew He had touched me and from that day forth it slowly manifested. It took a long time. The people from my church later told me it was gangrene. I did not know. I borrowed a crutch to hop around on once this started to manifest and probably should have used one in the beginning. I also had started to have problems with my joints and started getting arthritis in my joints. It started at this same time. Over time the Lord showed me the cause was bitterness toward my first child because I could not play with Him and felt he did not love me. There was resentment there. It took some time before I realized this was the cause. This illness went on for six years though I believed God to heal me right away but especially when I repented and realized sin was blocking the healing. Still the enemy had a foothold in my life and did not want to give up easily. While this was going on some days better than others, I had a second child. After five weeks I noticed black spots again on my right leg and this time on my left leg too. Oh, I was horrified and knew another trial was about to begin. Oh dear I have two children now. The black spots started to open and the wounds became larger and again it seemed like it would go on perhaps again. This time though the difference was that I believed God and did not understand why it had to happen again though. I remember going over scriptures on doubt and God immediately gave me the grace to not doubt once during the time of this trial. It was His grace. The thoughts would come in and I would pull them down immediately no matter how logical they were. The loins of my mind actually ached with such strong warfare and that is where the battle is won or lost. I had joy this time and knew He heard me and knew He healed me. I was able to ignore the circumstances. I had the same lady to help with my children while my husband went to work. Our small church assembly fasted and prayed for three days for me and I had such an expectation that I would see a change in my body. I thought of Elijah sending his servant to check for rain...it was not in unbelief but in total belief and expectation. I remember the next day looking at my legs and seeing no sign of a change but the following day looking and noticed that there was a change just an overall look that it was turning. It had been a while since this started. I remember it to be some months. This manifested and I became pregnant again. Arthritis got very bad my husband having to cut my meat and dress me. Getting out of the bed was horrific one painful step at a time. He would go to work and I had my two boys home. It was most difficult. I would confess the word in faith thanking Him I WAS healed WHEN I PRAYED many years before. When this started to manifest remember I had repented of sin and it was some time later before it even began to manifest.
One morning I remember I went to sit on the edge of the bed which was very difficult because my knees had been swollen for four years and my joints pained me so. I remember getting up from the bed and my knees did not hurt!!! The pain was gone the swelling was gone! I also kept my confession for my other joints and some would manifest while some had not yet manifested. I remember one arm would manifest and I would just keep thanking Him that I would not give up until all He paid for me to have was mine...it was destroyed at the cross. Jesus paid for the whole man. Isaiah 53 said, "with His stripes we were healed". Matthew 8:17 being a fulfillment of Isaiah 53, "Himself took our infirmities and bare our sicknesses". Mark 10:18 part of the great commission says, "they shall lay hands on the sick and they shall recover."
I had also had all four children at home with two ladies from our small assembly in attendance. This too is by faith. My first labor was 47 hours but He caused me to endure. We need to understand roots of fear and that it is the devil that would bind us with fear. Any fear as a stronghold is from the pit and needs to be overcome by renewal of the mind with His truth in the area you are struggling with. We need to realize this is a ploy and tactic to steal our faith and our inheritance. I also remember nursing trials that I went through believing God would not open my womb and got persuaded of the scriptures in this regard not saying anything to anyone not wanting to hear any negative information of doubt and unbelief from other Christian women. We never used birth control and I believed God to keep my womb closed. This took a real walk of faith and also the devil by fear would tell me I had not enough milk and I would nurse each time crying out to God and learned in a major way that fear was a feeling and not the truth and that I could resist the devil even though my mind was under tremendous assault. This was a major trial.
I remember one night my breast was swollen but would not tell anyone and I would force my child through the pain to nurse anyways and confessed the victory for days until the pain would leave. I had learned of a woman in our church that had a problem with this but did not get the victory. I remember this condition tried to come on me one night and I was awakened and cried out to God that this would not start again and refused to let it get worse; in my spirit I laid hold of God. I remember actually seeing the swelling go down!! I want you to know that the spacing between my second and third child was 3 1/2 years and so it was between my last two!! This was all by faith. I would watch women getting pregnant around me and their children being so close together in birth and hear their lack of expectation and no belief for anything in this area. It does take a great cost and each time I got pregnant I knew I had to endure a daily mental battle with this fight for another three years and what I believed was one of His many promises. It doesn't come cheap. God is faithful if we are not in willful sin and are fully persuaded of His promises. Do not move until you are persuaded. If you know it is His will as revealed in His word then get your minds renewed (Rom 12:1, 2) and please step out a little at a time. God will encourage you in love and not fear. He will never condemn us. This is the devil.
While I was going through the first leg trial my son also was afflicted with hernia and would cry in pain so often my husband holding him and praying. God over the years has delivered our children from much sickness. I remember my second son being sick for five days not eating and just believing God. Even recently my daughter now 17 had serious flu symptoms and some even said if you don't take her to the hospital she could die if it is swine flu. It was several days of prayer and pushing down negative thoughts. She was even aware that when I or my husband would stand against fever that it would go. It would come and it would go. "For all the promises of God in him are yea, and in him Amen, unto the glory of God by us." (IICorinthians 1:20) So be it!!
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