Dallas Jenkins, the creator of The Chosen, recently shared his perspective on the importance of praying for healing amid his wife’s and daughter’s ongoing health struggles. During a recent episode of Nick Vujicic’s podcast, No Limbs No Limits, Jenkins reflected on the nature of prayer, suffering, and healing, offering a unique insight that many might not expect. His comments provided a powerful message, especially for those going through their own hardships or praying for others’ recovery.

In the podcast, Jenkins explained that the most common desire when people pray for others who are suffering is often for physical healing. However, he believes that there is a deeper, more essential aspect of healing that people overlook. He acknowledged the well-intentioned prayers of those who ask for healing but added, “The thing that I think people need to hear, and this is why your film is so important, is that they think that the biggest miracle would be the healing.” He continued by emphasizing that people often think the best possible outcome of any situation is healing, yet there’s something equally powerful in the suffering itself.

The Jenkins family has faced significant health challenges in recent years. Amanda Jenkins, Dallas’s wife, was diagnosed with breast cancer, and her treatment required a double mastectomy. Though her journey has been difficult, it is reported that she is doing well now. However, their daughter’s battle is ongoing. She suffers from Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, a connective tissue disorder that causes chronic pain. She has lived with this pain for the past seven years, and it has taken a profound toll on the family. Yet, despite these trials, Dallas Jenkins has found peace in a different kind of healing—a spiritual one.

Jenkins reflected on how many people have reached out to pray for his wife and daughter. While he appreciates these prayers, he encourages a broader perspective on what should be prayed for. “Of course, they’re well-intentioned, of course, it’s beautiful, and of course, they should pray for healing,” he stated. However, Jenkins emphasized the importance of praying not just for physical healing but for a more profound transformation that comes through the suffering itself. “Praying for life change because of the suffering. Praying for faith in the midst of suffering,” he explained. He expressed a desire for people to understand that true healing isn’t always about the body but about how one’s spirit evolves through hardship.

Jenkins underscored that if healing doesn’t come in the way people expect, it doesn’t mean they are distant from God. “That’s the thing that I wish people were more willing to accept, is that if the healing doesn’t come, can I still be close to God, can I still trust Him?” He shared that physical healing, although important, isn’t necessarily the greatest miracle one could receive. He said, “Physical healing isn’t always the best thing. It’s not always the number one miracle. It’s not always the thing that will impact the most people or change the most hearts.” His words reflect a deep understanding of faith, one that transcends the immediate and material.

Dallas Jenkins also touched on the theological implications of suffering, particularly in the context of his show The Chosen. He has long believed that spiritual warfare plays a significant role in both personal and collective struggles. Reflecting on the challenges his family faced, he shared, “I believe spiritual warfare is real. The enemy does not want this show to succeed. But I also believe God has His hand in it.” Jenkins views the obstacles his family has encountered not as signs of God’s abandonment but as part of a bigger plan, one that ultimately leads to spiritual growth.

He also challenged the common saying, “God never gives you more than you can handle.” Jenkins explained that in his experience, this saying isn’t entirely accurate. “God oftentimes intentionally gives you more than you can handle so that you can lift your hands to Him and say, ‘I need you.’” In other words, God allows people to go through trials that exceed their capacity so that they might turn to Him for help and find their strength in Him.

Amanda Jenkins also spoke about their daughter’s chronic illness and the impact it has had on their family. “We have a daughter who’s chronically ill. And so it’s really a double whammy of suffering,” she shared. She admitted the difficulty of watching her daughter endure pain, especially since she couldn’t stop it. “It’s hard for me that I’m watching her suffer, and I can’t stop it. And [God’s] not stopping it.” Amanda went on to express that while her maternal instinct tells her to stop the pain, God’s choice is sometimes different. “What seems loving to me as her mom is not the thing He’s choosing, but He is love,” she said.

Amanda’s thoughts on grief and suffering further reinforced the message that sometimes, the path God chooses for us isn’t the one we would choose for ourselves. “Ultimately, when you’re stuck in grief for a long enough period of time, it takes a long time to start seeing His choices as being better than ours,” she explained. “It takes a long time to see the fruit of His choices sometimes.”

Together, Dallas and Amanda Jenkins remind us that healing isn’t always about the absence of pain or illness. Sometimes, it’s about growing through the suffering, finding faith in the midst of hardship, and trusting that God’s plan is ultimately greater than our own understanding. Their reflections challenge us to rethink our approach to suffering and healing, reminding us that the greatest miracles often come not in what we receive but in how we are transformed through life’s challenges.