I first heard of the healing-of-the-memories prayer at a retreat a year after my husband’s death. One of the leaders, Mignon Worley, suggested that she lead me through it. I didn’t know what it was but I believed that it might help me. Mignon told me that the idea for it had first come to Agnes Sanford who’d used it with success.

After Ted died, there came to my mind so many acts of unkindness I’d done to him, and there was remorse that I hadn’t done some of the things for him that I could’ve done so easily.

These thoughts nagged at me but after the healing of the memories, the naggings never returned. I was released from the past because Jesus, who is Lord of time past, present, and future — had released me, had cleansed and healed me. What I hadn’t been able to do for myself and what others couldn’t do for me by assuring me that I was forgiven, Jesus did for me one morning when Mignon led me through the steps in the healing of my memories.

Since that time, I’ve helped many people through this simple, beautiful prayer and into creative living, freed from past guilt and pain.

I’ve been amazed at how parallel the lives of people are. We so often think that we alone have problems which are unique, but really we don’t. All of us carry guilt and emotional scars around with us from our past. We may feel very confident that they don’t influence us in the present, but if we look closely we’ll discover that they are precisely what are binding us now.

I’ve come to the conclusion that you don’t have to share your inmost hurts and guilts with any person other than Jesus. Sometimes when we confess to another person, we get little or no relief but find ourselves almost taking pleasure in the recounting of something that’s happened in the past, in hearing the “ohs” and “ahs” and “You poor thing!” from the other person. If someone wants to tell me about his past, I’m willing to listen sympathetically, but I know that I can’t do anything to help that person except to take him to Jesus and let him do the healing.

A young woman came to me and poured her heart out about her fear of men. The fear had started when her father made sexual advances toward her when she was just blooming into womanhood. She’d been so shocked and frightened that she’d become afraid that every boy, every man would make such advances. She lived her teen years in terror. She had no one with whom she could share her experience, not even her mother because the father would never leave her alone with the mother.

She wanted to date, but she was afraid to do so. When she did date, the boy usually wanted to hold her hand or kiss her, and she’d never date him again. Then she met a young man who didn’t even try to hold her hand. They had lots of fun together. She felt that here was a young man she could love. They were married, but she discovered she still had fear of physical contact and was very unhappy.

After she’d shared her experiences with me, I told her that Jesus could walk back in time in her life and take away the fear and shock that she’d had when her father approached her and that she’d then be able to think of the situation without pain and that she’d be free to love her husband without fear. We prayed together and Jesus did walk back in time and healed her. The last time I saw her I asked,

“How are things?” She smiled at me and said, “Things are great, really great!”

Variations of her story could be repeated a lot of times with the same result.

An older woman came to me and talked about her past. I could see that it was binding her to the extent that she was crippled emotionally and physically. I suggested that we try an experiment in prayer and pray for the healing of her memories. She’d never heard of this type of prayer, and after I explained it to her she was eager to try it, even though she didn’t believe in the divinity of Jesus and was concerned that it might not work for her because of her unbelief. I assured her that this didn’t make any difference at all because I’d prayed with other people who didn’t but who’d been helped. I told her that I didn’t understand just how Jesus did this, but I’d found that he did it and because he did, I used it. So I led her into relaxation and into visualizing Jesus in front of her looking at her with understanding and love, and then we went through the years of her life. I was aware that something was happening to her throughout the prayer. The whole time I could visualize the cleansing and healing that was taking place at each point of her life that needed healing.

When I’d finished, she sat quietly for some time, a look of peace on her lovely face, and then when she was able to speak, she said softly, “I’ve never had anything so meaningful before in my life.” Then she went on to tell me that Jesus was very real to her during that time of prayer. I’ve no doubt but that that woman was healed and will be manifesting wholeness in her body.

I could have reached the woman on the mental or intellectual level. I could have used arguments which would have convinced her conscious mind that the past is past and it is better just to go on into the future, but Jesus reached her on the emotional level, and she was convinced not by what I said, but by what she experienced, that she’d been healed.

I shared with her how I’d used the prayer for the healing of the memories with Susan because of the emotional scars I’d left on her by my not wanting to have another child. She asked if I’d do the same for her children, for there were many wounds which she’d inflicted on them. I assured her that I would and that she could rest assured that they’d be healed.

A woman came to me at a prayer lab and said that after the session she’d like to talk with me. I’d helped her so much the year before with a problem she’d faced, but now there was something else that she needed help with. I told her I’d be glad to talk with her. However, during that particular session, I was led to use the healing-of-the-memories prayer with the whole group. There were about twenty women present that afternoon, and although I’d never used this type of prayer with a group before, I knew that what Jesus could do on an individual level he could do in a group.

I explained to the women what the healing of the memories was and gave some examples of how others had been helped by having their memories healed. I said, “Now I’ve never done this with any other group, but it’s come to me that we’re to pray for the healing of the memories this afternoon. So just sit quietly and breathe deeply and relax. Let go of tension and then picture Jesus standing in front of you.

Forget that anyone else is here and just look at Jesus and listen to me as I lead you through this wonderful experience.

We went through the prayer slowly, visualizing each thing as I talked. There was a sense of peace and deep joy in the room when we finished. Many of the women were crying very quietly, and they were tears of release and joy.

It was a deeply moving experience. Some of the women wanted to share what had happened to them and they did. It was very beautiful. And the best part was when the woman who’d wanted to talk with me after the session came up to me, her face simply glowing, and said, “I don’t need to talk with you. Everything is all right!”

You probably have need of the healing of your memories. You may have done things in the past of which you’re ashamed, or you haven’t done things you wish you had. Other people may have hurt you very deeply; there’s been pain or guilt or frustration or unforgiveness in your past. Well, now’s the time in which you can be healed, released, and turned to the future with faith and power if you’ll experiment with me.

In praying the prayer for the healing of the memories, you need to have in mind the whole sequence of the prayer so read the following suggestions carefully. Perhaps you’ll want to put the prayer on a tape and use it that way, or you can have a friend lead you through it, saying the words:

Sit in a comfortable position. Breathe deeply and slowly and regularly for a while —

When you’ve relaxed as completely as you can, visualize Jesus standing in front of you, looking at you with love and understanding as an elder brother would who knows all about you and loves you. Let his love and understanding flow into you and rest quietly —

As I talk to him, picture what I’m saying and imagine each situation being cleansed and healed. Take your time at each point. Don’t hurry. You’ll probably find situations coming to your mind that you haven’t thought of for years. You may feel the tears flowing, and if you do, just let them, they help in the cleansing process —

“Jesus, here is a person who needs your help, who’s willing for you to walk back in time and to stop at each point of pain, each wound or scar, and bring cleansing and healing.

“Walk back, now, to the time when he (she) was a tiny embryo in his (her) mother’s womb.

If there were any feelings on the part of the mother or father or anyone that were negative and hurtful, cleanse those feelings. If there were hurtful words spoken, cleanse those words, take the sting out of them and let that little embryo feel and know your love cradling him (her) —

“Jesus, come in time to the birth of this person. If there was trauma and pain during the birth due to the leaving of the warmth and security of the womb and being thrust suddenly into a cold world, enfold this baby with your warmth and love and melt the shock and hurt and bring healing —

“When this person was just a small baby and child and you see that he (she) was hurt or puzzled, take that baby, that child, up into your arms and love the hurt away or unravel the puzzle and let only good be present —

“Come, Jesus, in time to this person’s boyhood (girlhood) years, and wherever you see there was pain or guilt or frustration or misunderstanding, let your love flow into the situa tion and cleanse and heal —

“Jesus, walk into the teen years of this person’s life. Nothing can escape your glance. You see everything, and you alone can take from every hurt, every fear, every frustration, every hate, the negative energy. Do that right now.

Just transmute from the negative to the positive by letting your love flow into each situation the person faced and bring cleansing and healing —

“And then, Jesus, come on into the years of the twenties, and at each point where there was disappointment, failure, guilt, fear, hurt, put your arms around the person in those situations and take all the pain away and cleanse the person and let your love flow into him (her) and heal him (her) —

“Come then, Jesus, into the thirties and see each situation when this person was hurt or angered or carried guilt or felt failure, and cleanse and bless and bring healing…

“Come then, Jesus, into the forties and see each situation when this person was hurt or angered or carried guilt or felt failure, and cleanse and bless and bring healing…

“Come then, Jesus, into the fifties and see each situation when this person was hurt or angered or carried guilt or felt failure, and cleanse and bless and bring healing…

“Come then, Jesus, into the sixties and see each situation when this person was hurt or angered or carried guilt or felt failure, and cleanse and bless and bring healing…

“Come then, Jesus, into the seventies and see each situation when this person was hurt or angered or carried guilt or felt failure, and cleanse and bless and bring healing…

“Come then, Jesus, into the eighties and see each situation when this person was hurt or angered or carried guilt or felt failure, and cleanse and bless and bring healing…

“Cleanse, bless, heal —

“Thank you, Jesus, for what you’ve done in this person, releasing him (her) from all the past which has been keeping him (her) from being a joyous, creative person. And now as you stand and look at him (her) with love and compassion, help him (her) experience your loving, healing presence right now —

“Help him (her) rest in your love, right now, experiencing the wonderful freedom which only you can give —

“And, Jesus, help this person put his (her) trust in you for the future. If there are worries and concerns about the future, help him (her) now turn them all over to you that you might bring every good and perfect gift to this person in the future. Thank you, Jesus, thank you.”

As the days go by, you’ll probably sense a freedom within which you haven’t had for a long time or which you may never have had before. As you think about past experiences, you can happily remind yourself that Jesus has cleansed and healed them. They will cause you no pain, for he’s taken the sting out of them, and you’ll know they no longer bind you.

It may be that now you’ve experienced the healing of the memories, you’ll be led to people who need the same type of prayer. You now know how to help them. Share with them how it has helped you and ask them if they’d like to try it. That’s the way I did. All you have to do is help the person get to Jesus who does all the cleansing and healing.

If you believe that another person has been deeply harmed by you, you might want to go through the process of subconscious prayer, using the healing of the memories for him.

But do it without telling the other person what you’re doing. He never needs to know.

In order to remain cleansed and released and healed, take time each day to say something like this: “If I’ve been hurt in any way by anyone today, I now forgive that person. I let go of the hurt by giving it to Jesus. Take it, Jesus, cleanse it and heal me. Thank you.”

If you’ve ever had the healing-of-the-memories prayer, you’ll see that I have adapted it into what is for me the most meaningful way.

I always experiment with prayer until I come up with the best way for me. I suggest that you do the same thing. Just because someone has used it in a certain way for a long period of time doesn’t mean that will be the most meaningful way for you. From their particular form of praying, you can add variations which have special meaning for you.

Remember the story about the holy man in India who was bothered by mice playing around him when he meditated? He got a cat and tied it to a stake near him so that the mice would be scared away. He never explained to his disciples why he had a cat staked out in his meditation room, but when they meditated, they thought they had to have a cat staked out beside them.

There is no magic in any form or ritual that I know of, but there is power in whatever holds meaning for you. Experiment until you find what is meaningful.