We recently received the following comment, and it brings up some points worthy of clarification.
I believe that Deaf people need deliverance and healing. Jesus said that those who believe in me will place their hands on the sick and the sick shall be healed. Jesus always healed the deaf and the blind, and he still does….
Everyone, deaf or otherwise, needs deliverance from sin and its eternal consequences. Jesus provides a path for deliverance through the sacrifice He made on our behalf and our depending on His grace and integrity to forgive those who trust completely in Him.
As for our physical bodies, He treats us individually in accordance with our best good and His highest glory. When God spoke to Moses in Exodus 4, He spoke of His sovereignty in making people deaf, mute, blind, or sighted. When Jesus healed a blind man in John 9, He said this man’s condition was “so that the works of God might be displayed in him.” In this instance, it meant miraculous healing, but the works of God are also on display in every life that praises Him for grace, protection, provision, and more. When Paul sought healing in II Corinthians 12, God said no. God’s glory was shown through the grace and faith to endure hardships in every dimension of Paul’s earthly experience.
Deafness is a physical reality with associated challenges. So is being unusually tall, unusually short, or having unusual skin colorations. It’s not an illness to be cured or a pox to be shunned — it’s an aspect of whole persons who have a different avenue to display God’s grace and glory.
Yes, there is a struggle in being deaf in an audio-centric world, but there is a beauty in visual expression and the ability to avoid sounds that steal focus and peace. Some days I’m willing to trade my ability to hear nature and music for the serenity of not hearing every beep, bark or argument within 50 yards. Would I trade my experiences among the deaf community and their visual perspectives? Not for anything.
More scriptures suggest that Jesus operated on a case-by-case basis rather than a universal changing of everyone’s circumstances. Villages were not suddenly devoid of lepers, demons, or beggars simply because He met needs everywhere He traveled. He did not come to make everyone comfortable or identical, but to make unique people holy and fit for a relationship with Him. He is always truthful, always loving, always sinless — but not always accommodating to human wishes.
Yes, He still heals, even miraculously. But He follows His will and wisdom — not ours.
Some day no one will have to cope with physical, mental, or emotional challenges. Quadriplegics and amputees will bow on new knees, blind people will see Him with new eyes, deaf people will hear Him with new ears, and all will praise Him with the songs and stories of unique lives. Until then, we look to Him for the grace and strength to live for His glory today.
Can I please have a specific PraYer or action one can pray for a blind or deaf person
Hello Zain, thanks for writing. When we pray to Jesus, it’s not about the words or expressions we use, it’s about the heart that trusts in Him. As we recognize that He is God, able to do anything, and that He is Savior, willing to do what’s best for us, we can tell Him or ask Him anything and expect His best answer. So, when praying for a blind person or deaf person, what is your request? The highest would be that they might have the information, resources, and desire to get to know Jesus as He expresses Himself in the Bible. It’s also good to ask that He grant them the grace and tools to thrive with their differences, to be able and available to minister to others. The most important thing about prayer is to know that Jesus can be trusted with the thoughts of your heart, however you express them.