ost of my adult life has been involved in helping people experience healing. Board Certified in Forensic Medicine, I have crossed the country attempting to help people cope with tragic losses in their lives. Some of the stops, I'm sure, are familiar to you: the Oklahoma City bombing, Ground Zero, Columbine High School, and United States Postal Service shootings. Each stop resulted in my prayers that God will help me use my clinical skills so that others can grieve genuinely and heal effectively from the tragedy. Each critical incident debriefing took a little piece out of me and reminded me of my own need for healing. Although a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ, I was raised in a church that did not believe that God could heal today. The signs and wonders, miracles and healings, were reserved to the first century. Most of the faith healers I heard about seemed to be frauds and if there was any healing, it was nearly always psychosomatic. Frankly, I was disappointed that I did not have the opportunity to see the Church alive with God's almighty power through the apostles. Now the twenty-first century Church needed to resort to intellectual apologetics to convince the post-modern world about the truth of the gospel. I thought the lack of power in the churches were normal. I found myself trusting in my intellect and my skills more than in an Almighty God. Until I saw first hand an elderly lady I knew for years (crippled and barely able to move) experience complete healing and mobility of limbs. I began to read the works of Agnes Sanford and listen to her tapes on healing. Francis MacNutt became a mentor as I tried to devour everything on the subject of prayer and healing. I could identify with his academic credentials and his even personality. But I was still a skeptic because my life was not experiencing the kind of healing I read in Scripture or heard about from speakers. I was a believer, but I needed help in my unbelief. Sound familiar? My discernment process into Holy Orders provided me an opportunity to spend time for intensive prayer at Christian Healing Ministries in Jacksonville, Florida. There I was touched so deeply by the power, love, and presence-of God. For the first time in life, I was able to experience God's love and forgiveness. The heavy weight of my past choices and difficult circumstances were unburdened through powerful healing of memories. As a clinician, I have seen tremendous healing BUT NOTHING LIKE THIS! I witnessed the power of the Holy Spirit in profound ways and wanted to share this gift to my family, friends, and fellow sojourners in Christ. Years have passed since then and God has been gracious in using me as His instrument for spiritual and physical healing. But I will-never forget my roots. I too was skeptical. I too was in great pain emotionally, spiritually, and physically. I too wondered if God really loves me. Now, everywhere I travel during a healing mission, I am reminded that the Father loves everyone as much as He loves His Son Jesus (See John 17) and wants everyone to experience His grace, mercy, and healing touch. I invite you to take the next step of faith by calling the Christian Healing Center. The risk is your vulnerability. The necessary ingredient for success is your transparency. The process for our staff will be to "listen, love, and pray" and the results of the prayers will be healing, transformation, and greater intimacy with God. Not a bad deal, is it? In His Grace, Love, and Mercy, Fr. Tony Baron, Ph.D., Psy.D. Founder and Executive Director, Christian Healing Center, Inc.