Wayne
Inmates Pray. Cancer Healed.
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(This is a transcript of Wayne’s story.)
My name is Wayne Edson, I’m a volunteer chaplain in the Texas prison system. I first started prison ministry in 2014. In September 2014, I was diagnosed with squamous cell cancer.
In October 2014, we did a Kairos weekend event, which is a four-day evangelism event with 42 men in attendance. At my particular table, I had six men.
On Sunday evening, after we finished our closing of the weekend, I was driving home by myself and I had a wrestling match with the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit was convicting me that I had spent four days with these six men sharing all about Jesus and His power, but I had neglected to ask them to pray for me about the cancer diagnosis.
Asking the Men to Pray
I got home that night very late, sat down, and wrote six letters in which I asked each of the men to forgive me for not talking to them about the needs that I had. I told them they could help by putting me in their prayers.
Two weeks later, I went back into the unit for another event. We had a couple hundred men gathered for what we call a Kairos reunion. The six men that I had written letters to had spread the word throughout the unit, and by that Saturday morning there were hundreds of men saying, “We’ve heard about what’s going on we are praying for you.” After the event that day, there was a group of men who said, “Wait a minute, before you leave, we want to personally pray over you.” They set me in a chair, gathered around, anointed me with oil, and prayed for my healing.
Miraculous Healing
Three weeks later, on November 18th, is when surgery was scheduled (to remove the cancer.) My wife and I got there around 5:30 in the morning. As they were prepping me for the surgery, the surgeon noticed something not looking right from what the diagnosis in September was. To be safe, they did another little biopsy which took about 45 minutes.
The nurse called me back, and it probably wasn’t more than a 100-foot walk to go from the little waiting area back to the little surgery room where they had me earlier. As I was walking down the hall, Satan was whispering in my ears, ”You see, prayer doesn’t work, they’re going to do that surgery. That biopsy shows you need surgery.” I sat in a chair, and immediately instead of lowering me into position for surgery, the nurse started changing my bandage and said, ”We’re sending you home.”
Prayer Works
The doctor walks in and says, “Mr. Edson, I don’t know how to explain this, but there is no cancer in this biopsy.” Immediately, I showed them a band that I wear around my wrist that says, “Kairos God’s special time.” I shared with them about the experience of how the men in the prison had laid hands on me and prayed that I would be healed. They were both just floored and amazed.
They got me completely ready to go home, and as we were walking out the doctor told my wife and me, “You make sure you tell those men that prayer works.”
The doctor walks in and he says, “Mr. Edson, I don’t know how to explain this, but there is no cancer in this biopsy.”
Sharing The Healing Testimony
It wasn’t planned this way, but November 18 was a Tuesday, and every Tuesday evening we have prayer-and-share in the prison for the Kairos community. I went down that evening, leaving Dallas around two o’clock, and getting there around 4:30.
It’s a cold November day so I have a stocking cap on. As I walk in, I pull the cap off and the men see a bandage on my head. I tell them, “Hey, this is not what you think it is.” They asked me to get up and give my testimony before the whole community – about 200 men. I told all the men how their prayers were heard and how they were instrumental in my healing. God heard their prayers and there was no cancer!
Brandon’s Prophetic Letter
I told them that I was able to witness to the doctors about God’s healing and how God heals today. As I was getting ready to leave that evening, one of the six men that I had written a letter to in October came up to me and said, “Mr. Wayne, did you get my letter?” I said, “Brandon, I haven’t gotten it yet.” That Sunday, the 23rd of November, I got Brandon’s letter which was written on the 14th of November.
In the letter, he quoted scripture in Mark about the woman who touched the hem of Jesus’ garment and was healed. He said, by faith that he joined with me and he said “You will be healed, you will have no cancer, and you will give your testimony about how God healed you.” All that happened on November 18th, and Brandon’s letter, which was written on the 14th, was a prophetic witness of what would happen on the 18th.
Ongoing Impact
Since then, I’ve been able to share this testimony with hundreds and thousands of people. Every time I go into the prison, I get to share my testimony with the men and tell them why I come in week after week. I share it is because Jesus Christ is our higher power.
