This article is for those wondering the following: “Since God promises us health and healing, should we have medical insurance?  Since God promises to protect us and bless the home of the just, should we have house insurance?  Since God promises us long life, should we have life insurance? Since Psalm 91 says that no accident shall befall us, should we have car insurance?”

The thinking behind these question is: “If we trust God to stay healthy, medical insurance is a waste of money.  If we trust God to protect our home and rebuke the devourer for our sakes, home insurance is a waste of money.  If we trust God for long life, there is no need for life insurance. Since we won’t have accidents, we don’t need car insurance!”

Aside from the legal aspects (car and house insurance are mandatory for some), what should our attitude as Christians be?

I would be the first to encourage you to believe God, not the human medical system, for your healing. However, I do carry medical insurance and have done so all my adult life – despite the fact that I don’t think I’ve ever cost the insurance companies anything in claims over my deductible!  The issue for me would be, “What if someone wants to whack me one when I’m handing out tracts?” I’ve only been threatened once this year, but what if someone really did something? I’d want to get decent medical care. Having said that, I carry a huge deductible so that I can get cheap rates; my main reason for carrying medical insurance is just so that I don’t lose my house if something crazy happens.

Now take Rosie’s case. She was hit with a golf ball and spent about 13 hours in the ER at Pen Bay Medical Center; they weren’t even sure she’d survive.  I was glad we were covered. Even though the deductible limit wasn’t reached, some providers take big percentages off the bill if you’re insured, so that helped.  [Testimony since this was first published in our bulletin:  ALL expenses related to the accident are being paid for us, so we’re not even out any deductible amount. God truly does rebuke the devourer for the sake of those who tithe.]

I’m not concerned that I’m going to drive into a telephone pole if there’s no one on the road. Yet we’ve had some close calls with people who don’t know how to stay on their own side of the road.  Personally, I’d rather be covered.  Rosie got hit a couple years ago while at a standstill because someone else wasn’t paying attention; I’ve had the same thing happen to me.

I suppose if we were all perfect in faith, we would not need insurance.  But I’m not there yet and I don’t know anyone else who is, either. People I respect have died well before their time. Others have ended up in the hospital, and that can be a disaster if you’re uninsured.

I don’t sell insurance, so I’m not soliciting for the insurance industry.  I dislike the ever-increasing medical premiums as much as anyone.  However, some uninsured Christians have lost their homes because of a one-week stay in the hospital for an operation.  It adds up REALLY quickly!  And I’d rather not be just one operation or one accident away from losing everything I’ve worked for my entire life!

I cringed when I heard a “faith” preacher proclaim that he never carries insurance and won’t take medicine; he even belittled others who do.  Joel Osteen’s dad went in the hospital for a bypass operation when he was alive; I heard him explain (live and in person) that he didn’t want to “die proving his doctrine!”  We all have a certain threshold where it is too much for our faith; some of us have higher thresholds than others because we’ve developed our faith to different degrees. But I don’t think I’m there yet where I could handle any amount of pain and any serious condition and not want a doctor. Are you? (If so, please share your great faith secrets with me!)

So let’s address this concern: Does it offend God if you buy insurance?  Does it mean that you are anti-faith and full of wicked doubt and unbelief in the promises of God? I don’t think so.  I would still urge you to trust in God rather than in “the arm of the flesh,” but for me, I’d rather know that if for some reason my “believing” wasn’t perfect, I wouldn’t lose everything.  That’s my position; others may feel free to disagree.