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The Christian Healing Mission believes that Jesus still heals today.

The Christian Healing Mission is an organisation dedicated to seeking the presence of God, longing to bring his presence to others, and looking for the healing that flows from an encounter with Jesus. We all bear his presence - his name - and we hope that some of the postings on this page, written by Revd John Ryeland, will help people to take that seriously

03/06/2026

It’s all about Jesus | 6

“. . . and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11.28

We have looked at Jesus’ promise of rest and the continuing availability of his rest for us. He is the source of it but so often we seek a variety of other means to find the rest that only comes from him.

One of the loveliest aspects of this truth is that Jesus will be there for each of us. This is not an invitation to a specific group of holy people who have perfected the ability to leave their problems behind! It is precisely to all who find themselves weary and burdened that Jesus promises
his active presence.

There may well be ways in which we can help ourselves find his presence, but the fact that Jesus doesn’t give any specific instructions means that it can’t be too difficult. The first thing we need to remember is that he is there to help. When we are preoccupied and struggling, the promise is that he is present with help for us. Perhaps all it takes is to recognise our need, acknowledge his presence and simply speak his name, “Jesus”, to invite him into our situation.

Who you are does not matter, nor does it matter how good you have been. What matters is that you call on Jesus and wait to see what happens.

www.healingmission.org | www.encounterprayer.net

© John Ryeland

02/06/2026

The river of rest | 5

“. . . and I will give you rest.” Matthew 11.28

Yesterday we looked at Jesus’ promise to give us rest and how this is based on what he has already done for us. Let’s look a little more at the nature of his gift to us.

The gift of rest to the weary and burdened is not a one-off experience, a single voucher that can only be used once. Rather it is a constant source of his working in our lives. Although many people can look back to singular experiences of the wonder of God’s love, times when they felt his presence in a special way or a touch of his grace and love, God’s rest and peace are not meant to be one-off experiences that we can record in our diaries. Instead, they flow from God in a constant stream to us and Jesus would be delighted if we sought his rest every single hour of every day.

God may have blessed you in the past, but will you go back to him today? God may have assured you of his love for you in days gone by but what if he is seeking to do it again now?

Take a moment to let him give you a fresh sense of his love and touch today. He is waiting, and all you have to do is come to him and ask.

www.healingmission.org | www.encounterprayer.net

© John Ryeland

01/06/2026

The promise of rest | 4

“. . . and I will give you rest. ” Matthew 11.28

After Jesus’ invitation that the weary and burdened should come to him, he promised them rest. Can we trust his promise? Could it be that Jesus may decide after all not to give us rest on this particular occasion? Jesus confidently makes this promise, not just as a promise to be there, looking out for us, but also because of what he went on to do - die for us.

The rest that Jesus promises could be summed up by another phrase in the Gospels, living life ‘to the full’ (John 10.10). Jesus said that he came so that we would experience this. It is interesting to read that in the very next verse Jesus spoke of himself as the good shepherd who laid down his life for his sheep. In other words, the promise of abundant life is linked to Jesus laying down his life for us.

This is why we can be confident about Jesus’ promise of rest, not because it is a promise of what he will do but because it is a declaration of what he has already done. By dying for us, Jesus has opened up the way for us to enter into the presence of God, and our rest flows from being with him.

So it isn’t a matter of Jesus continuing to ponder about whether or not to give us rest, since he took that decision when he died for us. Rest is ours, if only we will come to him. Take a moment to consider the implications of this truth: Jesus laid down his life to give you abundant life.

www.healingmission.org | www.encounterprayer.net

© John Ryeland

31/05/2026

Don’t go away! | 3

“. . . all you who are weary and burdened . . . ” Matthew 11.28

Part of the reason why it is difficult for us to admit our need is that it can be seen as a sign of weakness. If we are spiritual and God is really with us, then surely we feel we should never be sick or lack anything. Certainly, we like to come across that way.

However, Jesus never condemned those who had needs. He had profound compassion for every person, and it was those people who admitted their needs to him who often had the most stunning experiences of his love and grace.

If you sense that you are in need, the wonderful news is that Jesus says, “Come” and not, “Go away.” We can be so quick to tell ourselves that he is not interested in us or that there are others whose needs are much greater than ours, but Jesus says to everyone who sees themselves as laden or burdened, “Come.”

Take a moment to assure yourself of the truth that God loves you so much he gave Jesus for you, then spend a few minutes in his presence and share your needs with him. He cares about you and you matter to him.

www.healingmission.org | www.encounterprayer.net

© John Ryeland

30/05/2026

It’s OK to be in need | 2

“Come to me . . .” Matthew 11.28

It has been said that one of the hardest things to do is to pray. We would much rather try to solve a problem ourselves, or even worry about it, than to bring the issue to Jesus and leave it at his feet.

There may be a number of reasons why we find praying so hard. Part of it may be that to pray is to acknowledge that we need help and we are not self-sufficient, which can be such a difficult thing for us to admit. Yet that is precisely what Jesus invites us to do with these words.

It is very noticeable in the Gospels that Jesus seemed to place a high value on people sharing their needs. It was often those who stepped out of the crowds or approached him who received healing. We may think that seems quite odd. Surely he could see the needs of those around him? If he loved them so much why didn’t he just get on with it and heal them?

We often have the idea that praying for our own needs should come at the end of our prayers for everyone else. We might start with a time of worship, some thanksgiving, a healthy dose of confession and then finally our own requests. However, intercession for our own needs is worship – it is acknowledging that he is the Lord, that we have no power to help ourselves and that we submit to his intervention in our lives. It really is OK to pray for your own needs!

www.healingmission.org | www.encounterprayer.net

-sufficient

© John Ryeland

29/05/2026

There’s nothing you have to do first | 1

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened. . . ” Matthew 11.28

This beautiful invitation from Jesus cuts through any doubts we might have about coming to him. Something inside often prevents us from turning to Jesus until we actively do something, perhaps repent, forgive people, or at least live a godly life. However, Jesus’ invitation is quite the opposite: when we are weary, burdened, feeling the weight of sin upon us and don’t know what to do next – these are exactly the moments to come to him. All the things we need – rest, forgiveness and guidance – come from Jesus, but not until we approach him first.

So how do we come to Jesus? Coming to him begins with knowing that we can, that we are welcome in his presence whoever we are and whatever we have done. The main reason that most of us feel excluded from Jesus’ presence is not because he is doing the excluding but because we do it ourselves.

Jesus stands and makes this invitation today to everyone who is weary and burdened. It is an invitation to you. However distant you feel from him, speak his name with tenderness and meaning. He is waiting for you.

www.healingmission.org | www.encounterprayer.net

© John Ryeland

28/05/2026

It’s so easy to grumble!

‘But the people were thirsty for water there, and they grumbled against Moses.” Exodus 17.3

Time and time again, we read of the Israelites wandering in the desert grumbling about their lot and comparing it with some idealised memory of the past, in which they conveniently forgot the harder parts.

If we are honest, we can probably identify with their grumbling as this is something we can be prone to many times a day. Grumbling often begins when we start to look at what we do not have. Rather than dwelling on what we have in abundance, we tend to focus on what we lack, which can easily lead on to apportioning blame for this and judging others. This is exactly what the Israelites did; they took their eyes off their freedom, their vision of God and his divine provision given to them on a daily basis, and instead recalled a rosy past that conveniently overlooked the slavery, beatings and helplessness of their previous situation.

We may not be slaves or wandering in a desert, but what we do have in common with the Israelites is our propensity to grumble, to take our eyes off what we have and fix them on what we think we lack. Take a moment to pause and thank God for something you do have as you touch each finger of both hands - keep going if you want to, even after your fingers have run out! God always wants us to come to him with our needs, but by beginning to give thanks our awareness of his goodness to us will increase.

www.healingmission.org | www.encounterprayer.net

© John Ryeland

27/05/2026

Catching God’s answers

‘But Naaman went away angry and said, "I thought that he would surely come out to me and stand and call on the name of the Lord his God, wave his hand over the spot and cure me of my leprosy."’ 2 Kings 5.11

Praying for healing is a wonderful ministry that is offered in many churches today. However, it is not without its problems, one of which is our expectation as we seek healing. We often bring our needs to Jesus with quite fixed ideas about how we would like him to answer our prayers. The snag with this is that if he answers in a different way, we may miss the opportunity of recognising him at work.

This was Naaman’s problem: he had a pretty clear idea of how he thought God would bring healing to him, and we are told that he went into a rage when it was suggested that God might do it differently (2 Kings 5.12).

Psalm 5.3 encourages us to lay our requests before God and ‘wait in expectation’. The calling on us is to be open to the many ways in which our creative God brings his answers to us. If we are only looking in one particular direction, we may well miss him altogether.

Take a moment to do just this. Lay out your requests before God, thank him that each of them has been heard, and wait in expectation for what he will do.

www.healingmission.org | www.encounterprayer.net

© John Ryeland

26/05/2026

Physical reactions

‘They drew back and fell to the ground.’ John 18.6

Physical manifestations of a religious experience are fascinating. Some people testify to significant moments when their bodies have physically manifested something of the presence of God. It may be falling over, shaking, laughing, crying, exuberant praise or a variety of other actions. What this particular verse highlights to us is that there can be a marked difference between what is going on with our bodies and in our hearts.

The soldiers who went to arrest Jesus certainly experienced the presence of God – he was standing right in front of them! Their bodies reacted to his presence as they fell down without any prompting. What did not seem to happen, or at least we are not told about it, was any spiritual transformation in their hearts.

This is not in any way making a judgment about physical manifestations – they may happen or they may not. However, if you sense the presence of God in some physical way, let it be an indication that he is nudging you and be quick to open your heart to him as well. If you don’t sense his presence in this way, and many people do not, the truth still stands - God loves you with an unending love and is present with you in every part of your life. Whatever you might be feeling right now, sit with him and enjoy his company.

www.healingmission.org | www.encounterprayer.net

© John Ryeland

25/05/2026

Sticking close to God

‘Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open, and everybody’s chains came loose.” Acts 16.26

Paul and Silas were in prison worshipping God and presumably enjoying fellowship with him when there was an almighty earthquake. The doors to the prison flew open and the prisoners’ chains fell from their bodies.

Put yourself in that situation. Imagine feeling that you had been unfairly imprisoned and suddenly something happened that caused the doors to open and your chains to come loose. What would you do? I imagine that most of us would praise God for his deliverance and run, but not Paul and Silas! What they never seemed to forget was that their relationship with God took precedence over their physical circumstances.

In their difficult situation we find them connecting with God, whom they trusted. When the situation changed dramatically, they made no assumptions about what God was doing but stayed connected to him. Presumably they felt his restraining hand encouraging them to stay where they were. It is a sad fact that many people are closer to God in times of desperation, but when their situation changes they are not so quick to pray and seek the God who loves them. You may feel free or constrained by your circumstances, life may seem good or bad, but stay close to your Father who longs for fellowship with you, however you might be feeling.

www.healingmission.org | www.encounterprayer.net

© John Ryeland

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