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On Warts

Concerning warts, love, and prayer: In the early 1950s, I had a large wart on the first finger of my left hand. It was right on the main knuckle and was very annoying. In Sasebo, Japan, I went to the Navy sickbay and had it burnt off. I can still see the scar.

I had two other warts on my fingers. They were not big enough to be visible. In the past when I was stressed or anxious, they would grow and hurt. They have not hurt for at least thirty years, and they have been gone for some time now.

When our family lived in Annapolis, my sons Douglas and Evan were in elementary school. They both had warts on their hands. Bessie asked Douglas if he wanted her to pray that the warts would be taken away. He said, ‘Yes.” Bessie prayed, and his warts were gone.

We asked Evan if he wanted us to pray for his warts to be taken away. He said no, they were his friends. He played with them.

I knew that my warts were the result of anxiety and stress. I figured that Evan’s were the result of insecurity. If that was true, then it was my fault that he was insecure. I decided to pour the love on him. I did, and the warts disappeared.

Years later, when we lived in Ann Arbor, Michigan, my two youngest children each had planter’s warts on the bottoms of one of their feet. They had been there for a long time. One night when putting Gordon to bed, I told him I was going to pray for his warts, and I did.

A few days later when putting him to bed, I asked to see his foot. He showed me. It was smooth as a baby’s foot. He looked at it and said, “I must have shown you the wrong foot,” and showed me the other foot. It was the same; the warts were gone.

I said, “Let’s go show Heather.” We went to Heather’s room to show her the evidence of answered prayer. Then I prayed for Heather. I did not wait for a few days. The very next night, I went into her bedroom to see her feet. The warts were still there. I will let Heather tell you about it. Here are her words: “I remember quite clearly looking at the bottom of my foot with my dad next to me and Gordon looking on and still seeing the warts. I was disappointed. I think we all were. Dad suggested we look a little closer. Then I touched one, and it fell off. So did the others. There was great rejoicing in that room that night.”

Several years later when returning from Logan, Utah, where we had had several days of evangelism, I noticed that the staff member who was driving had a large wart on his thumb. I commented on it. He said that it had been there for years, and he paid no attention to it. I told him I would pray that it be taken away. I prayed. A few days later, he called to tell me that his wife had asked him, “Where is your wart?” It was gone.

I could tell more stories, but I will let it go. I believe that warts are the result of anxiety, stress, and insecurity. Getting rid of the anxiety and stress and providing the security gets rid of the warts. Praying also gets rid of them.

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