Colitis and reflux oesophogitis
By mid 2007 I had been suffering for seven years with a rare form of Colitis; a chronic digestive disease. I was under St Mark's hospital in London, one of the top hospitals in the world and had gone through many tests and drug therapies, at one time taking up to 50 tablets per day. I was put on steroids, probiotics, anti-inflammatories and anti-bacterial medicines, all of which reduced the symptoms but didn't deal with the problem. Furthermore, as a results of all the medication I also suffered with reflux oesophagitis. This meant that my gullet was sensitive to all sorts of things including hot, cold and spicy foods. I couldn't drink wine with a meal because of the effects of the medication and the pain it caused in my stomach.
Some time around June in 2007 someone prayed for me and the reflux oesophagitis was healed. I noticed that my stomach problems reduced and I was able to eat most foods without any reaction. I believed that I should trust God for a complete healing. This I did by reducing and then stopping all medications, including a number that I should have reduced over months, not weeks.
I noticed my health improving and looked forward in great anticipation for my visit to the consultant in November 2007. I planned to tell him what I had done and that I didn't want any more medication. I knew that God had healed me.
When I saw the consultant he read out the list of all the medication he had placed me on. After each one he asked me how much I was taking, and I said "none". When he got to the end of the list he said, "Well, what are you taking?" to which I replied, "Nothing at all!"
"For how long have you taken nothing?" he asked. "About six months". "But you can't just stop taking medication like that - there are consequences!" I just replied with, "Well I did". He asked me a few other questions. Then I explained that I was a Christian, that a lot of people had been praying for me and I believed that God had healed me.
He said, "Let's have a look at your biopsy results, colonoscopy and endoscopy scans." He was quiet for a moment and then said, "This is unusual. All the images show no scarring, no lesions. Absolutely perfect colouring and structure. Biopsy results are 100% clear. There are no signs of infections and your metabolism seems fine. There should be scarring and lesions and discolouration of the intestine wall from this condition - it is a permanent sign of the illness." He told me that according to my notes I was a very ill man when I first went to the hospital. He showed me the original scans and biopsies that looked absolutely awful, showing the damage the disease had caused.
Then he wrote on my file, "This man claims to have been healed by God and I can accept that. Patient discharged with no follow-up required."
