If ye shall ask anything in My name, I will do it. John 14 v 14

A letter was pushed into my hand at the end of a Gospel meeting in Westfield Hospital. I was asked to read it later. The writing was very scrawly and only just legible. The envelope was addressed to the Band Leader!.

Dear Sir and Madam

Excuse my writing but I’ve had a stroke. Do you believe in the power of prayer? I believe you do. So please help me. Pray for me. I might be having a hysterectomy at 85 years. Please try and help me. I am badly in need of help. So please try and help me.

Very sincerely Alice Pearson.

As you can imagine we were greatly moved and prayed in earnest for her. We met Alice the following Sunday and I told her that we had been praying for her, Alice was very ill but the necessary operation was not possible as she was overweight and her blood count was not right. I remember her saying “Do you think God could?” I said “Yes, I’m sure God could” . Another letter arrived.

“Forgive me bothering you again but the surgeon has arranged to see me next  Tuesday at the New Hospital. So please pray for me. The operation will change my whole life if, Mr Wrexham agrees to do it. I am so scared, I keep reading your little book ‘The Daily Word’. Please forgive me bothering you again.

Yours very sincerely Alice Pearson

We prayed for her blood count to be right. Then praying for the anesthetist to give his permission and then praying for the operation to be soon. Each week we would pray for a specific thing and “Praise the Lord”, each week the Lord answered each prayer. The following Tuesday the operation took place. The day the operation was carried out, there was some industrial dispute taking place. the result was that only emergency operations were completed. Alice’s operation was the last completed. The doctor who operated on her, promptly flew off to India. When we visited Alice she was sitting up in bed, wonderfully better. She told us “If I could walk, I would walk right out of here “. We prayed with her at the bedside and rejoiced for Gods answers to our prayers. Oh it was so wonderful.

Alice was not looking forward to going back to Westfield hospital. “I’m dreading it” she said. But there was no choice, for she could not walk. A few weeks later we were back in Westfield Hospital, I was kneeling beside Alice’s wheelchair. “Oh I do wish I could go home, I would love to be at home for Christmas but I can’t walk”. Yes that was it, she could not walk. She had been in a wheelchair for nearly 5 years now. She looked at me “Do you think God could?” I must confess that at that moment, my faith failed me. I knew she could not walk. I was thinking there is no way. “Well, my voice faltered “we will have to trust God won’t we”. “Yes. Alice looked me in the eye but you will pray won’t you” ?. “Yes I’ll pray “ I replied.

On Tuesday Sheila answered the phone. It was John, “You had better sit down”. Sheila prepared herself for the worst. “I’ve got some news for you”. Alice is home. Praise the Lord. How it had happened we don’t know. But there it was. We were so thrilled. We all rejoiced. How great is our God.

On the following Sunday, we visited Alice and John at home. It was such a thrill to see them together after almost 7 months in hospital. John had been terrific. At age 90 he had visited everyday and helped other patients, taking them out into the garden. Now they were at home again. How we enjoyed sitting at home with them talking. You could feel the love of God. We chatted about this and that, Alice remarked how much she had enjoyed that song “Something beautiful, Something good” . She shared with us how she had kept saying the Lords prayer over and over, how she had read that little booklet Daily Word. She had taken it everywhere with her. Sheila and I sang some of the chorus’s she loved so much. Alice wept. The time flew by “Lets have a little prayer shall we?” We all bowed our heads and gave thanks to the Lord.

On the next occasion their son Clifford was with them. Clifford was very depressed. Alice said this caused her much heartache. He had lost his wife and had turned to drink. We shared together as usual and when the time had gone, I again suggested we pray. Alice said Tony ask the Lord if I could walk”. her request was direct and simple. We prayed together. I asked the Lord to heal her and help her to walk in Jesus name. After the prayer I stood up to say goodbye to Clifford and as I was shaking his hand, Alice got up out of her wheelchair and walked. We were amazed. I think our mouths dropped open. Alice had walked over to the window. Sheila said “What are you going to do now?” “Walk back of course”. Praise the Lord. We were so shocked we could not take it in. We hugged her and said our goodbye’s and before we knew it we were on our way home. When we arrived home we were so excited, we telephoned around and told everyone the news. On our next visit, a summers evening, we found Alice doing some gardening. We stood and looked in amazement. It always gave me a thrill in the following months and years, to see her walk. I will always remember the question. “Do you think God could?” With men it is impossible but “with God all things are possible”.