Healing Testimony

The Gift of Healing

My Healing Testimony

By Pastor L. Lynn Beams

November 25, 2008

“I shall not die, but live, and declare the works of the LorD.” Psalms 118:17

Hodgkin’s Disease is a cancer that progressively attacks the lymph nodes of the body. I was first diagnosed with Stage I Hodgkin’s in 1967. After having a swollen node surgically removed, the presence of the disease was found in the biopsy, and I was sent to Houston’s Methodist Hospital for further evaluation. I was there daily treated with cobalt for several weeks and this regimen caused the disease to go into remission. Dr. Phillip Hudgins, released me back into a state of good health a short time later.

But then in the late 1970’s and into the 1980’s the Hodgkin’s came back. In 1981, indeed, the disease had come back with a vengeance.

As time went on I could feel that the disease was growing and consequently becoming very destructive within my body. The systemic symptoms of the disease of night sweats, fatigue, loss of appetite, weight loss, and fatigue began to progressively manifest. Still working a full time job; yet so fatigued each day, I would have to come home mid-morning due to physical exhaustion. At night, often my fever would go up and I would take Tylenol to bring it down. I would then sweat profusely to the point that the bed where I lay would be sodden with my own perspiration. Often this would happen 2-3 times per night. These symptoms continued until the middle of 1985. Now I would like to describe the events that occurred during the evening of June 28^,1985 and the months that followed.

About 8:30pm, as again I was lying on my recliner, I wondered where my wife and daughters were located. Attempting to get out of the chair, I suddenly went paralyzed on my left side. Struggling to find my family, they came to help when they heard my cry. Not knowing exactly what had happened, they called one of my friends who carried me in his van to the Northeast Baptist Hospital in San Antonio, TX.

Upon arrival, I found out that not only was I paralyzed on my left side, but now apparently another stroke had struck me and I was paralyzed from the neck down. Doctor Stephen Cohen, a nationally know Oncologist (Cancer specialist), came in my room and had determined that I had Stage IVB Hodgkin’s disease. (Stage IV is the worst state, with the lymph nodes being massed together in the pelvic area). And upon examination and questioning of my wife and I, announced that I had only 30 days to live. (Later in some of his own notes, he wrote that he didn’t think I would last through the night). His decision was to give me the largest dose of Chemo that he had ever given anyone in his attempt to try to turn the destructive effects of the disease. But his professional opinion was that it probably wouldn’t help.

But my friends, I must tell you what happened when I heard Dr. Cohen’s announcement of “only 30 days to live.” Immediately somewhere down deep inside me jumped the words from Psalms 118:17, “I shall not die, but live, and declare the works of the Lord.”

And the next morning when I woke up, something had changed! Suddenly I was hungry and wanted to eat. Immediately I loved the smell of coffee once again – before just the odor of coffee would nauseate me. I felt so much better, and knew that God had intervened in my physical situation

As Dr Cohen tried to repeat the Chemo treatments, my blood stream would not handle them well at all. Not only did I have terrible vomiting immediately after the treatments, but my white blood count would drop very low. (The white count is the ingredient within the blood stream that fights infection). So even though Dr Cohen wanted to give me Chemo once a month for six months, due to my white count level, he was not able to do so. (As a matter of fact I only had one other Chemo treatment during the six months of being in Dr Cohen’s care).

I remember in November of 1985, going for a test to see what the “mass” or “tumor” in my pelvic area was doing. The test was in the morning and then followed by an appointment with the Doctor at 1:00pm. During my time going to see Dr Cohen, my wife and I had built an acquaintanceship with his receptionist. She was the wife of a Baptist pastor; I will never forget when I walked into the Doctor’s office about 12:45pm for my 1:00pm appointment. For indeed upon my arrival, the receptionist said, “Pastor Beams, Pastor Beams, it is gone, it is gone!” Indeed the tumor mass of lymph nodes had dispersed and I was actually proclaimed as healed.

As of this writing I have been free of Hodgkin’s Disease for almost 23 full years. Thank God forever!

Leslie Lynn Beams – Pastor, Prevailing Word Church – Lytle, TX