You might find it hard to believe that at one time I was not an optimist. Yes, I have to admit that in my teens and early adult life I was a pessimist. Skepticism played a large role in my life as I looked at world events, politics and governments with all their shortcomings and often corruption. In fact, it seemed like the only way to improve the situation was to eliminate the government and start fresh. It’s a nice idea, but not practical and it’s a little hard to implement without a  dedicated army of nut cases with the same dream.

I didn’t go to church in the conventional sense, none of my family or relatives did. Instead we believed in the Latter Day of Litkes where hard work was followed with an equal devotion to enjoying ourselves and that included more than our share of wild  parties. The sad thing is we didn’t get any smarter from all those social gatherings and drinking, except to learn how to avoid the law and cheat death (so we thought).

It was with smug satisfaction that I would occasionally watch a television evangelist if the weather was bad or I was bored. My criticism skills were well honed on such individuals and all the suckers who attended the service. When people asked for healing, it was obvious it was staged and the individuals were actors who knew how to put on a good show, or it was simply the power of positive thinking.

Then I met my future wife and suddenly life changed and got very busy with marriage, children, and responsibilities. Gone were the wild days and the occasions when I had the time or inclination to watch a preacher on TV claim to heal hundreds of people with all kinds of diseases.

Almost three decades passed and suddenly I found our children gone and my responsibilities significantly reduced. I changed careers, took training and definitely didn’t have any desire to watch a healing campaign on television. Then I learned Joan Hunter was coming to Maple Creek and she supposedly was internationally recognized for her phenomenal ability to heal people.

I had never heard of her, but I was curious (and a little skeptical) about all the hype. I went to the first service and sat three rows from the front in order to closely observe all the proceedings. From the start I was totally amazed at Hunter’s down-to-earth approach–no hell-fire or brimstone preaching, only humour and simple, direct prayer to Jesus for the area of pain. Several times I had to ask my wife if she had seen what had just occurred to a person’s body. Each time she confirmed that she too had witnessed it and I was not imagining anything.

 After determining an ailment was related to back or shoulder trauma, Hunter  briefly prayed and we observed the muscles move and contort as the individual stood motionless. In numerous cases, people grew taller when she placed her hands on their necks and commanded healing of discs and vertebrae. In some cases the growth was so pronounced that spectators collectively gasped in surprise. To make it more amazing, many of the people being healed were not strangers. They were friends and acquaintances who live in Maple Creek and the surrounding area.

After the first service, it became clear why people in search of healing would travel to Maple Creek from Calgary, Regina, North Battleford and everywhere in between. While some maladies were rectified so quick and obvious that it was almost unbelievable, more time will be required to confirm the post-healing status of people who suffer from diseases such as cancer.

Did everyone who requested healing receive it? It did not appear so, but the vast majority of recipients seemed to receive substantial to incredible improvement in a matter of one to two minutes. When the third and final service ended, my wife turned to me and with a tear in her eye said, “I had no idea there are so many people with so much pain in their lives.”

Joan Hunter removed any skepticism I had about God using a human being to miraculously heal other people, and it was so much better than anything on TV. I am sure there are fakes out there, but seeing really is believing (when it’s first hand and involves local residents).