So last week we had healing evangelist Craig Marsh and his wife Jenny, with us in our local churches for a week. I have to admit I wasn’t hugely looking forward to his visit. He came last year and I just didn’t ‘get him’ (wrote partly about his visit here). Plus the fact that our church community has just lost a dear friend, who we really felt God would heal. So you can see I wasn’t really in the mood for a week of healing mission…
So there I was Saturday morning heading off to help set up for his first engagement, a teaching session of how to pray for healing. I spent the entire car journey repenting of my ill-feeling towards him and asking God to fill me with faith, an open-mind and a heap of joy. Thankfully He did (love God like that, so faithful :) ). And what’s more, Craig Marsh was brilliant.
Not only was the teaching good and sound, but he was humble too. He talked about how God had spoken to him about how to pray, but that was just what he was taught, not the only way or necessarily the best way. He talked about God using doctors and medicine and that he would never tell people to come off medicine without being medically checked first.
He gave some great testimonies of people that had been healed, including pictures. (For the cynnical of course there was no proof, these could be pictures of anyone, but I cannot counteract that, except to say that I found him totally genuine.) At the end of the session, he prayed for a healing annointing on everyone present. Personally I found this very powerful, even after he had let go of my hands it felt like someone was physically holding them for quite some time. So much so, that I had to open my eyes to check they weren’t ! and yet I still felt it afterwards.
On Sunday morning he preached at our church and gave a great talk, especially in light of what our church is going through, about perplexity and not undertsanidng why God doesn’t appear to act in some situations. He had a great line: ‘perplexity is an ingredient for maturity’.
On every occasion I have seen him speak he prays for everyone. Even if that means staying for hours, he still stays and he prays. In fact last year we were even supposed to be out of the hall we had hired and all the clearing had been done and he was still there praying for people in an empty hall!
Half way through the week he did a session for our church staff in the office which again was very powerful. Again at the end he wanted to pray for us all. I clearly felt God telling me to repent in front of everyone about the way I had felt about him. That was hard but it was one of those moments where you just know God is telling you to do something. He was perfectly lovely about it, and then when he prayed I felt a real touch fromnt he Holy Spirit, I personally felt that if I hadnt been obedient that wouldnt have happened for me. Like I had a choice to be obedient to God and in doing so I opened the door to the Holy Spirit.
I didn’t go to all the sessions last week so I don’t know if there were lots of people healed. I heard a few testimonies from people who had had minor healings and I certainly prayed for people who felt better after prayer. It’s fair to say I don’t think it was the huge outpouring we were hoping for, and turn out was not as high as hoped for, but it has had an impact on our local churches and I pray that will be something that continues.
People have accused Craig Marsh of being rude and arrogant and of being untruthful. All I can say to those people is that I didn’t experience anything like that. I found him both funny and engaging, and he spoke with passion, humility and honesty. No, I didn’t see hundreds healed, but plenty came forward to give their life to the Lord or to recommit themselves
to him. His preaching and teaching were great, biblically based, profound at times and he clearly understood where we were at as a church.
18 Comments
Paul Baird
June 27, 2012 at 9:06 pmWhen this first came up alot of us skeptics were very pleased to have found Craig.
We thought we had a live one – as in someone whose testimony could be verified one way or the other.
The reason that so many people are disappointed with Craig is that no verification has been possible.
The only evidence provided is his own anecdote. No medical notes submitted, no pre-op scans, no post op scans, no test results.
In short, we have nothing to verify that either a miracle was needed or occurred other than Craig says it happened.
It's really that simple.
Jules
June 28, 2012 at 1:42 pmHi Paul, thanks for your comment. I know people have said this about Craig before and I believe his response is that it wouldnt make any differnce, that if people don't want to believe it doesn't matter what they see, they still won't believe it.
I can't comment on Craig as I don't know his reasons for not showing the medical evidence but I know that Randy Clark (american evangelist) has started a programme to gather medical evidence from miraculous healings. This would then avoid the situation you describe.
blessings…
red :)
Anonymous
August 10, 2012 at 1:33 amCraig Marsh was an AOG Pastor in New Zealand and was stripped of his credentials for Serious Misconduct. Why do you think he is half way across the world and not doing this in his own country??? Red, you fell for his charisma and not the Holy Spirit.
Jules
August 10, 2012 at 9:14 amHI anoymous, thanks for the comment. Hsve you got any further info on that? I'd be interested to know more.
thanks
red
Anonymous
August 25, 2012 at 3:07 amCheck out the anonymous comment at the bottom of this post…….
http://geoffsshorts.blogspot.co.nz/2012/06/craig-marsh-and-anonymous-performance.html
Craig Marsh
September 6, 2012 at 3:01 pmHello everyone,
I am new at this whole blogging thing and
i have just come across these posts. You know what Geoff Shorts (which is not his real name!!)makes a living or reputation out of being controversial and is not a believer in j
Jesus Christ in any way. I have had a few discussions with this bloke an all he wants is to increase the traffic to his blog. Lets get a few things straight. There are before and after Xrays and I simply stopped producing them to sceptics because the truth was it didn't matter what was put in front of them they were not about to believe anything!! At the end of the day look at the fruit as scripture says. Many have been healed and come into a saving relationship with Jesus Christ as Lord. I really don't care what sceptics think. I was very sick and underwent 3 major surgical procedures and was very sick as hundreds knew me. Thin, emaciated and dying I was prayed for and had a recreated miracle and felt compelled of God to pray for the sick. I don't care about those of you who doubt – many are being healed and are having an encounter with The living Jesus Christ. It has never been about me but about Jesus who heals SO GET OVER IT !!
Craig Marsh
September 6, 2012 at 3:18 pmYou know I really don't care about the sceptics only about those who are seriously seeking Jesus Christ which Mr Shorts is not. Isn't it interesting that those who are challenging the veracity of what has happened to me (and there are literally hundreds who knew me as a sick and emaciated person taking many, many pills to live) are anonymous hmmmmm Oh and y the way I was NOT stripped of my credentials. Mind you that makes for great reading for those who want to discredit what the Holy Spirit is doing
Craig Marsh
September 6, 2012 at 3:20 pmcome on intelligent believers
Craig Marsh
September 6, 2012 at 3:20 pm?
Craig Marsh
September 6, 2012 at 3:21 pm?
Jules
September 6, 2012 at 5:20 pmHi Craig
If you don't mind I would love to jusy verify that it is actually you who is writing here! Could you email me via julesrmiddleton@googlemail.com please? I'm sure you udnerstand that the online world is fulll of people impersonating others.. sad but true… If it is you, I really appreciate you commenting here and on the older post too, it's always good to allow people to debate these things I feel. Perhaps you would consider writing a guest post for my blog about your testimnony or some of your experiences seeing people healed? Be great to hear from you,
with every blessing
Jules
Jules
September 6, 2012 at 5:23 pmthanks anonymous, but difficult to clarify the claims in that comment, when the person remains anonymous… you can email me as above…
red (Jules)
Andrew Waugh
June 1, 2013 at 3:42 pmhello… my name is Andrew Waugh and I'm a Baptist Minister in the UK. I would have Craig at my church like a shot (had him three times to my previous church and would love him to come to the church where I'm pastoring now.
I found this interesting blog while looking for Craig's own 'site, which I note is down for maintanance.
Jules
June 2, 2013 at 8:35 pmHi Andrew
thanks for your input and welcome to my blog! I know he's over here quite a lot so why not ask him to your new church?
Best Wishes
red :)
Annie
May 3, 2014 at 12:02 amSome of these blogs are now old but I post this in the hope that some of the ones who find it harder to believe than others will read it.
I met Craig Marsh in Australia at a Conference in 2004. My husband had travelled with me but was ill from cancer, he became worse by the end of the conference.
Craig Marsh prayed extensively for him over a period of days and then when we returned to New Zealand Craig flew from Auckland (*AT HIS OWN EXPENSE) to pray for him in our home town of Christchurch NZ.
We found Craig and Jenny a truly compassionate couple, true believers in Christ, and prepared to do anything to help people in similar circumstances to which they once found themselves in.
Folks it is a point of whether you believe or not and whether you will allow the Holy Spirit into your lives or not. Craig should not be on trial here. One day you will meet the Lord face to face and I just hope that you meet him as a believer. I have never met anyone more obedient to the cause.
Blessings
Annette McHugh
Christchurch NZ
Jules
May 7, 2014 at 11:01 amThanks Annie for your comment. I think you said it right – Craig isn't on trial here and I hope that wasn't what my post didn't imply that, it was just a personal reflection of my experiences.
To be honest I think there will always be people who criticise and disbelieve when God moves in power, it's all so beyond our comprehension that we try and rationalise it in whatever way we can – including to tear it apart.
I wrote this post as I felt that I had got Craig wrong the first time I met him and I wanted to set that right, but for what it's worth I don't think I would write about a person like this again. After all, who am I to say who the Holy Spirit moves through – I don't want to sound that arrogant!
I'm so glad that you and your husband were touched by the Lord through Craig and Jenny, what a great blessing.
Thanks for your comment,
Blessings
redx
4th3157
December 18, 2014 at 12:40 pmI don't get all this nonsense about wanting or not-wanting to believe. If you want to believe then you're just going to believe, regardless of the quality and quantity of evidence. If you don't want to believe then you should be bothered about the quality and quantity of evidence presented and it should change your mind, if sufficient. Note that not-wanting to believe is not the same as wanting to not-believe. There's a significant difference.
I have no desire to believe any particular claim. For example, if someone said they had a flying car in their yard then I would have no desire to believe them and no desire to not-believe them. Before believing them I would, however, request that they present sufficient evidence to convince me. If the person then went around saying "I showed people my flying car but they just didn't want to believe" it would sound very, very strange indeed, yet this is exactly what Craig is doing. He has a flying car in his yard but doesn't want to show anyone, claiming that unbelievers didn't believe him when he showed it to them because "they don't want to believe". It's all very pathetic.
Clearly Craig's evidence isn't sufficient. All he's doing is preaching to the converted because he knows his evidence isn't in the least bit compelling to those who actually know when to believe a claim and when not to.
Lawrence O'Grady
April 29, 2015 at 7:42 amI attended Bible College in 1985 with Craig and Jenny Marsh. They are both good people. They opened their home to me in a time of need and accepted me without any judgement. I remember visiting Craig in hospital and he was extremely ill. His present good health is testament to the healing power of God. I have lost contact with Craig and Jenny over the years but I am pleased to see they are active in the ministry. I hope they continue to be a blessing to many for years to come. Kind regards Lawrence O'Grady