The Healing Presence: Curing the Soul Through Union with Christ [Paperback]

Leanne Payne (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 1995

Leanne Payne writes first and foremost of healing of mind and spirit. Holiness, the God of light and truth and purity, is central, with an urgent warning against the false gods that seek to deceive, corrupt, and cripple us. She also explains the basis of her counseling ministry--Christ's indwelling presence that brings the power of the incarnation into wounded lives.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Leanne Payne has ministered to thousands through her Pastoral Care Ministries (PCM) seminars. Her books have sold over 100,000 copies and have been translated into several languages.

Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Baker Books (August 1, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 080105348X
• ISBN-13: 978-0801053481
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.9 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #118,300 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Leanne Payne is the founder of Pastoral Care Ministries, which promotes the ministry of healing prayer. She earned her masters degrees from Wheaton College and the University of Arkansas and is the author of seven books.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A very balanced and bold book, November 19, 2001

By 

Tiina Rekula (Espoo Finland) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Healing Presence: Curing the Soul Through Union with Christ (Paperback)

I consider Leanne Payne's book Healing presence as an exceptionally good book. Because it has much truth, it divides opinions. That is the nature of truth. Some like,it some don't. While reading it, it especially struck me what she said about wrong fantasies, how they kill the real imagination and prevent us to be "fertilized with the reality" - this really hit me but because I accepted it, it set me free! All happened in an instant! Payne has great insight about what it means to be human, a created being, called to fullness, creativity and into all truth in Christ. Read it with prayer and apply it!

26 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars For those who've experienced healing through Christ, July 13, 2000

By A Customer

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Healing Presence: Curing the Soul Through Union with Christ (Paperback)

Only those who have experienced healing in Christ will fully appreciate Ms Payne's insight. For that reason alone, it cannot be counted as a how-to book. Also, it is generally acknowleged that Christ heals persons in vastly different ways. This book is primarily for those who have over-intellectualized their lives, who have experienced ill effects from the teachings of straight psychology, or who have found self-hood in their talent or art or personal beauty. I agree that more attention needs to be given to the more common long-term healing in addition to the rare instant miracle healing. Some of us have spiritual cancer rather than a spiritual broken bone.

81 of 98 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Worth Reading, But Not Exactly What It Promises To Be, November 15, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Healing Presence: Curing the Soul Through Union with Christ (Paperback)

This goal of this book, as the title states, is to show Christians how they can receive emotional healing from Christ. The problem is that the book isn't very direct in this regard. It is possible to read this entire book yet still not really know how to pray for healing. Basically, the book is not down-to-earth and practical enough. While it plumbs the theological depths and comes up with some penetrating insights and arguments, it doesn't really give you a handle on what you most need/want to know. Even at its high points, Ms. Payne's writing tends to be a bit flowery as well, which might not sit well with the average reader. Unlike the Bible, this book is just not that straightforward.

From her writing, it is easy to tell that Ms. Payne is an optimist, and at times her outlook is contagious. At other times, it is cloying, and you wish she'd take *off* the rose-colored glasses for a moment or two. Her accounts of an extended period of demonic harassment and other struggles notwithstanding, you get the impression that she has not led a horrendously difficult life (compared with many other people anyway), which would help provide an explanation for some of her viewpoints.

At various places in the book, Ms. Payne does come across as quite judgmental. For instance, when describing Richard, a man who struggled with homosexuality, at times her assessment of his situation seems very harsh. [To make myself clear here, I am not referring to her belief that homsexual behavior is wrong as "judgmental" (because I agree that it is wrong), but rather to her description of Richard's emotional condition, etc. Her portrayal is just not very sympathetic in my opinion.] Also, when recalling a time that she was ministering to a young man who had various introspective habits, Ms. Payne flatly states: "I told him in no uncertain terms what he was doing..." This and other statements give one the impression that there is quite a bit of subtle (and not so subtle) condemnation in the way Ms. Payne ministers.

One major concern I have about the book is the way it treats listening prayer. In general, I think listening prayer is a lost art and woefully neglected in the Church. On the other hand, Ms. Payne seems to go a bit too far with it. She even includes in her book various words she has received from God. There is nothing wrong with this per se, but she never really gives out any warnings in regard to listening prayer. That is, she never really tells you how to know if what you heard is actually from God, and she never warns you about acting on what you've "heard" without good wisdom, sound judgment, etc. Many people "hear" things from God and end up doing some very misguided things as a result. Plus, she doesn't really address the fact that you can listen try to listen "too much" to God, which can be just as unhealthy as not listening enough.

Another problem I have with the book is that it focuses too much on "quick" healings. Even though Ms. Payne does mention that not every healing will be instant, overall she does tends to emphasize dramatic, "from night to day" healings in her writing. Unfortunately, this detracts a bit from the book's relevance to real life, because most Christians do not experience healings that are so dramatic.

I've focused more on the drawbacks of the book above. The book does present many wonderful truths, and speaks to a lot of topics in a very Christian way. Certainly, it is extremely difficult to read this book and not feel uplifted. The things that the book does well, it does *really* well. It's just that the book doesn't completely fulfill its stated mission.