Story 2

Urpo Pärssinen: Drinking was not worth losing all this.

Urpo Pärssinen was retired in 2005 from his work as a policeman. From that on he started to take alcohol, first little but then larger and larger amounts. This lead into withdrawal treatment in 2008. After five months his drinking was again such that he had to go to withdrawal treatment. This time he was referred to a treatment center where the clients are among things confronted by the consequences of drinking. Urpo came face to face with the fact that he was losing his home, marriage and grand children. Drinking was not worth losing all this. Today Urpo helps others to become and stay sober.Urpo’s becoming sober can be partly attributed to the prayers of Pirkko Jalovaara who had prayer evenings in the local church. Also the friends of Urpo’s wife prayed a lot for him.

""I have read widely on spiritual topics, but it is not really from these books that I have learned to do this work of prayer. My teaching and training have come directly from God. Many years ago, I heard God urging me in

the middle of the night: "Pray more!". I had to answer that I did not know how to. Then came the first phone call from a distressed person asking for prayer. I promised to intercede for him, but at the same time I cried to God that I did not even know what this kind of prayer meant. God simply said: "Trust in Me!". When the first sick person came to me asking for prayer, I again asked God for guidance. "Pray that whatever is causing the sickness and the pain will go away!", was the answer I got. I sensed the Holy Spirit advising me. I am continually being trained by the Holy Spirit in the school of prayer."

"Part of my personality and character is to live life to the full. I want to give God all that is needed. I am a person who never has two choices: I only have one. Living with Jesus has both narrowed, and at the same time deepened my every day life. The last time I read a newspaper was in 1986, and the last time I had time to knit a sweater was in 1979. My time is better spent with my nose glued to the Bible, in reading letters and e-mails with prayer requests from people, or in various writing tasks."

"Every year I minister in over 150 intercessory prayer sessions in Finland and abroad and I receive about 10 000 prayer requests annually. I often visit hospitals to pray for those patients who are bedridden. The countries, were I have visited for healing ministry are e.g. Sweden, Eastonia, Poland, Germany, Canada, USA, Spain, Israel, Latvia, Lithuania, Russia, India, Austalia, Taiwan. Many of my friends worry about me and ask me whether I grow weary when I see so much suffering. The secret of the perseverance is in the joint communion with the other person and Jesus that gives so much through prayer, I participate in your suffering, in prayer I carry you for a short while, in praying I am part of your life, and while praying I am so very close to Jesus."

... I am the Lord who heals you (Exodus 15:26)

Some new testimonies:

"I have worked 24 years for the healing ministry. I never imagined how wonderful healings God wants to do while we - quite ordinary people - want to pray. Many people write me back and tell their testimonies about healing by prayer. Many of them are beyond medical healing and many of them are those, for whom all medication is finished. Some of the written testimonies I have put aside and this time there are almost one thousand of those. During every prayer evening I hear people tell if they still have the pain or if it´s gone during the prayer. Here we have a few testimonies:

Samuli Saarinen: "When you pray for others God blesses you"

Samuli Saarinen had a disease in which blood coagulates too easily resulting in thrombosis. Once he was hospitalized for thrombosis of deep calf vein. He was admitted into hospital and ordered bed rest. Samuli had the opinion that the hospital visit was too long. God had, however, other plans. In his room was brought a man who had attempted suicide. Samuli had good opportunity to tell about Jesus and this suicidal man was born again. As a bonus Samuli himself was at the same time healed from pollen allergy he had suffered since childhood. One of the important things Samuli has learnt in life is the necessity of intercessory prayer for others. One too easily concentrates only on own problems. When you pray for others God blesses you..

Juhani Piispa: "Lord concretely healed my physical illness"

Juhani Piispa learned to believe in God already in childhood. He had the knowledge what to do when life became really difficult. A major difficulty appeared in the form of prostatic cancer found in 2003. This was operated and for three years there was no sign of it but then it started to grow aggressively. Juhani received radiation therapy but this did not help and peroral medication was started. Doctors believe that the cancer has spread not only locally but elsewhere in the body. It has, however, proved to be difficult to localize it.
The cancer has given fundamentally different priorities in Juhani’s life. He feels every day as extra time. He thanks for every morning he wakes up and he has found in abundance reasons for thanking the Lord. Juhani feels that in life he has been given new cards with which he does not afford to play wrong. Getting the cancer has not been a curse but God’s guidance through which God has wanted to draw Juhani to go along His roads.
Juhani participates actively prayer evenings because they give more strength. In one occation Lord concretely healed his physical illness.. He had very difficult backpain in which even strong painkillers did not help. When Pirkko Jalovaara prayed for him he fell on the floor and a strong feeling of warmth moved from head to feet. The pain disappeared and has not returned.