When I was at Milton Keynes last month, I met Denis Martin. I have cut and pasted below, in his own words, Denis’s own account of his physical healing in 2007. I had no involvement in Denis’s remarkable recovery, but hearing him tell his own story was a great encouragement that God does heal today. I have reproduced it below . . .

 

“Around the summer of 2005 I noticed prolonged tiredness and went to the doctors for a check up, having experienced periods of pneumonia, from time to time. A series of blood tests showed I had a high white cell count, I was told not to worry, and continued to have tests through the rest of the year.

After CT scans and a bone marrow test, the removal of a lymph node, confirmed the diagnosis of chronic lymphatic leukaemia, on the 21st February 2006. Around this time I received some counselling from a Macmillan nurse and was told that I had something like 7 to 10 years to live.

On the 8th of March I was admitted to hospital with pneumonia, and again on the 28th of March, I collapsed and was returned to hospital. Blood tests continued, and I was again admitted on the 28th of April, things where slowly getting worse. Around Christmas time I was really in a bad way I was told to retire straight away and the estimate of my life span was considerably reduced to 2-3 years.

On the 14th January 2007 I was back in the oncology ward with pneumonia and yet again on the 5th of Feb. Staff at the hospital later told me that they were convinced I would not survive for more than two days but somehow I did and was allowed home.

The morning of April 2nd 2007 I awoke to intense pain in my feet with a rash that seemed to be creeping up my legs, back to hospital, this was something called vasculitis. The treatment was steroids and morphine there is no cure, and my wife and I were told that if it reached my upper calf, my legs would have to be amputated at the knee. The steroids seemed to work and I was discharged 7 days later in a wheelchair and using crutches. The medication seemed to be holding things at bay and tests continued.

On the 11th of May 2007 there was a healing meeting at our church, Ian Andrews was the speaker. He said to me that I was being flippant with my life and that I seemed not to value it as God did. Did I want to die?

I spent the weekend 12th & 13th May praying and repenting of my attitude, they were two very bad days physically, but I was determined to spend time with God. My mind was fixed on asking God for a glimpse of his glory. I’m not sure but seem to remember, waking on Monday morning, knowing that God himself was there with me. The sense of his presence was so overwhelming, Words are inadequate to describe what I felt, and was aware of at that moment. I was consciously reaching out towards the very person of Christ in my little room that I had spent so much time on my own in. Here was my God who came to me.

On Wednesday 16th I started my first course of chemo it was in pill form and reduced from 5 days to 3 because the doctors were convinced I was so ill the full course would do more harm than good. My wife Becky prayed over each pill one by one that they would do good and not harm. I had no reaction to them at all, no sickness or side effects. On the evening of Friday 18th at 9.15pm we got a phone call from a chap named Jim White, who was conducting a healing meeting somewhere up north, he said that our pastor had told him I had a form of cancer. He wanted to pray for me, he asked me to put my hand on my chest while he did so. Both Becky and I were aware of something happening right there and then, I began to shake uncontrollably; it felt like 4000 volts going through me. The rest of that weekend was really bad and I was unable to get out of bed, but I knew something had happened and kept petitioning God. On the Monday morning I got out of bed, threw my crutches down the stairs and ran down to my mother in law who was shouting, “your healed”, over and over.

Tuesday the 22nd I returned to hospital for a check up, they were amazed that I could walk in, I was told that I should not be that well.  Blood tests were carried out and to their shock all was back to normal. They asked if I had actually taken the chemo as there seemed to be no adverse effects. Progress with the damage to my legs was slow, and the doctors would not let me stop the treatment, but God said trust him.

By the 13th of June I was so well, I went fishing for the first time in over two years, continuing with the chemo by the side of the lake. Lots more tests were carried out over the next few months. Following another bone marrow test and CT scan on the 27 November 2007, I was told as Leukaemia cells showed in clumps and they could not see any, that there was less than 1% chance of CLL cells in my body.

Many words, and much prayer was given for me, by many people, most of which I will never know. I thank them for their support, but most of all I praise God, for all he has done and is yet to do in my life.  If, I have learnt only one thing it is that God loves me so much.

Denis Martin, New Life Church North, Milton Keynes.

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