Faith and Physical Touch: The Healing Power of Hands
- John D McLaughlin
- Aug 24
- 4 min read
Updated: Oct 11
What Scripture and Fascia Therapy Reveal
About Restoration:
Can the touch of a hand really bring healing?
The Bible shows us, again and again, that it can. From Jesus healing the sick, to Ananias restoring Saul’s sight, to the early church laying on of hands, healing through touch has always been part of how God brings restoration. And today, we’re seeing that design reflected even in fascial therapy.
This post explores the biblical foundation for healing through touch and how that parallels the work we do with the body, especially fascia. Because healing was never meant to be spiritual or physical. It was always both.
If this speaks to you, I go deeper in my YouTube video “Faith & Fascia: The Healing Power of Hands,” linked at the bottom of this post.
Healing Through Touch in the Bible
When Jesus walked the earth, His ministry wasn’t distant. It was hands-on. He touched people physically and intentionally to restore them.
Mark 6:5 says:
“And he could there do no mighty work, save that he laid his hands upon a few sick folk, and healed them.”
Jesus didn’t need to touch people to heal them, He chose to. Because touch is relational. It says “I see you. I’m not afraid of you. I’m with you.”
Matthew 8:3 tells us:
“And Jesus put forth his hand, and touched him, saying, I will; be thou clean. And immediately his leprosy was cleansed.”
He touched the untouchables. Lepers. People that the culture feared and rejected. But Jesus never avoided the broken, He reached out to them.
We also see healing through others, like in Acts 9:17-18, when Ananias lays hands on Saul to restore his sight. That touch wasn’t about power; it was about obedience. And healing followed.
Reflection:
When we think about healing, do we limit it to the spiritual?
What if God also designed physical means like touch to carry out His restoration?
Fascial Therapy: Hands-On Healing in God’s Design
In fascial therapy, nothing happens without touch.
Fascia is the body’s connective tissue web. It wraps, links, and supports every system, from muscles to nerves to organs. And when there’s restriction, trauma, or scarring, healing comes through slow, intentional, hands-on release.
It’s not forceful. It’s responsive. It listens.
And that mirrors how God heals, not with domination, but with compassion.
Fascia is made to respond to touch. That’s not accidental. That’s design.
Romans 12:1 reminds us:
“…present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God…”
The body isn’t a side issue. It’s sacred.
Caring for it through prayer, through therapy, through touch is an act of worship and stewardship.
God’s Power, Through Our Hands
Isaiah 41:10 says:
“Fear thou not… I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.”
God’s hand is strong and present.
And yet He often chooses to work through our hands. That’s not because He needs us. It’s because He invites us to participate.
James 5:14 tells us:
“Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders… and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.”
Healing in Scripture involves both prayer and physical action like laying on of hands and anointing with oil. It’s a reminder that God’s design was never to separate the spiritual from the physical.
So what happens when we step into that same design today?
As therapists, as believers, as parents or friends we get to offer our hands as vessels for His work. When our hands are yielded, they become instruments of compassion, healing, and restoration.
Reflection:
Are your hands available to God?
Are you letting Him work through your care, your prayers, your presence?
Fascial Therapy as Faith in Action
Every time you offer healing touch, whether in therapy or simply in prayer, you’re stepping into a holy space.
You’re honoring the way God created the body.
You’re listening, not forcing.
You’re releasing, not controlling.
That’s not just therapy. That’s ministry.
So let this be your encouragement:
Pray before you lay hands on someone or before receiving care yourself.
Recognize that physical release often triggers emotional or spiritual release.
See your work, your presence, your practice as worship.
Final Encouragement
Mark 16:18 says:
“They shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.”
This isn’t about magic hands. It’s about obedience.
It’s not about technique. It’s about faith.
God still heals. And sometimes, He does it through you.
You are not just a body.
You are a temple.
And the touch of God can reach you through yielded hands, whether in therapy, prayer, or daily life.
🎥 Want to go deeper? Watch the full teaching on YouTube:
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