The Healing Touch of Jesus

Women in Osaka Seek the Touch of Christ

October 24, 2010 - When Mitsuae Nakamura heard Dr. Robert Cunville speak about the woman with a bleeding disorder in the Gospel of Mark, tears sprung to her eyes. She was thinking of her mother who has suffered for the last 20 years with viral hepatitis from a blood transfusion.

by Janet Chismar

Nakamura was among more than 3,200 women—and men—who gathered for a special Ladies Service that was part of the Kansai Franklin Graham Festival. By the end of the morning, 115 people prayed for a touch of Jesus, many for the first time.

Dr. Cunville, an Associate Evangelist with the BGEA, told of the woman who never lost hope in the midst of her suffering, and how her life changed when she met Jesus Christ. “The Bible says she was confident that with just one touch, she would be healed.”

”Many of you are here today because you are suffering,” said Cunville. “You have come here in the midst of all you are facing to seek God. Today, if you reach out your hand to Him, you’ll experience peace and joy in your life. Your sins will be forgiven. Say ‘yes’ to Jesus.”

Emcee Mori Yuri, whose parents had accepted Christ at a Billy Graham Crusade many years ago, also spoke of God’s healing touch. “I lost many family members in the Kobe earthquake and lost my voice. But God changes everything. He loves us, understands us, and encourages us.”

Many women at the service were visibly moved. Hitomi Sumito said she found Dr. Cunville’s message “very tender and I was not afraid to meet Jesus anymore.” She described how sad she is that she cannot meet a husband at the age 36. “Many men do not want to get married. A lot of them just focus on their jobs or stay too close to their parents and don’t leave.”

Putting her hand over her heart, Sumito said, “But now I have a home with Jesus in here.”