When God Doesn’t Heal
Mike Weaver’s Honest Story of Grief and Grace
“I watched my brother pray over a guy… and then go get on the bus and do dialysis.” For years, Big Daddy Weave experienced a season of the miraculous. Mike remembers night after night of seeing God move in ways that defied explanation.
Mike Weaver of Big Daddy Weave spoke to us about one of the deepest struggles in his faith journey—the tension between witnessing God perform miracles for others while watching his own brother, Jay, continue to suffer.
Jay, the beloved bass player for Big Daddy Weave and Mike’s best friend, had long battled severe health issues. But what made his journey especially difficult was that, despite his own suffering, Jay faithfully prayed for others—and saw them healed.
“Before Jay died, for about seven years, we just saw miracles. I’m telling you, like, every night… Cancer runs off in Jesus’ name. Kidneys that are failed, restored in Jesus’ name.”
And Jay, even in his own sickness, was right in the middle of it. One night, Jay prayed over a man whose kidneys had failed. A week later, they got a call—the man’s kidneys were completely restored. And yet, after the show, Jay himself got on the tour bus, hooked up his dialysis machine, and continued to battle his own kidney failure.
“I watched my brother pray over a guy, and his kidneys had failed. Get a call a week later that he has 100% working kidneys, and then Jay go get on his tour bus and do dialysis.”
For Mike, this was one of the hardest things to process.
Why did God heal others but not his brother?
“I feel like I’ve got fewer answers than ever.”
Mike was brutally honest about the questions that haunted him. “I’ve seen seasons where we would ask the Lord, and He would move in undeniable ways. And I’ve seen seasons where we begged for a miracle but didn’t see what we asked for in the way we asked for it.”
And when his brother passed away in January 2022, those questions only deepened. “The three most important people in my life outside of my wife and kids—my dad, my mom, and my brother—all passed away. And we prayed and believed for healing every time. I was there for each of them in their final moments, watching as they took their last breaths.”
“I know You can do it, God. I feel You here. But what gives? Why not this time?”
Mike isn’t afraid to admit that he still doesn’t have the answers. “The truth is, it’s above my pay grade. I don’t get to make the rules. I don’t get to demand those kinds of things from God.”
“My answers all lead to one person: Jesus.”
Despite the heartache and the lingering questions, Mike has come to realize his faith isn’t in the outcome; it’s in the person of Jesus. “I don’t have all the answers, but I know this—God has never, for a moment, left me.”
Even when prayers go unanswered. Even when miracles don’t happen the way we want them to. Even in grief. “And I’m not telling you that I believe perfectly all the time. But He’s where I try to run to when I don’t have answers.”
Mike shared how one scripture has carried him through the hardest seasons of his life. “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths” (Proverbs 3:5-6 NKJV).
Faith That Doesn’t Require Answers
We pray, we believe, and sometimes, we see miracles. Other times, we don’t. Yet, in the middle of the mystery, Mike encourages us to hold onto the truth that God is still present, still working, and still good.
Even when the miracle doesn’t come.
Even when the answer is silence.
Even when we don’t understand.
“I don’t know why God heals some people and not others. I don’t know why Jay had to suffer while others walked away healed. But I do know this—Jesus is still faithful. And at the end of the day, that’s enough.”
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