Doug and Patty Nichols shared a testimony about the prayers that helped Doug overcome a severe stroke.
The Unexpected
After enjoying a stroll along the beach earlier in the day, Doug and Patty Nichols were on holiday in Florida on March 8, 2015. During dinner, Patty realized something was seriously wrong with her husband.
“I looked over at him and I said, ‘Oh gosh, he’s having a stroke.’ His face didn’t look right, and when he spoke, it was all gibberish,” Patty said.
She immediately drove Doug to the emergency room. Shortly after, the doctors informed her that Doug had suffered a mini-stroke and would be kept overnight for observation. Patty returned to their condo to rest—only to receive devastating news.
Severe Stroke
The doctors called to inform her that Doug had experienced a severe stroke while in the ambulance and had been transferred to a different hospital.
“The doctor said, ‘As you can see, he lost two-thirds of the right side of his brain, which affected the left side of his body. We don’t know if he’s going to make it through the night,’” Patty recalled. “It was scary. But I prayed and told God, ‘You know what? It’s in Your hands.’”
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Patty picked up her phone and called everyone she could think of, asking for prayers for Doug. That evening, something unexpected happened.
“As I was lying there, I was worried about not being able to sleep and what was going to happen next,” Doug recalled.
Overcoming a Severe Stroke Through Powerful Prayers
“I felt a presence in the room that I couldn’t explain,” he added. “In hindsight, I believe it was the intercessory prayers happening at that time. It was something from God, that’s all I know. It calmed me, and I eventually fell asleep. The next morning, my wife came into the room. The first thing I said to her was, ‘Remember your promise to God—in sickness and in health, till death do us part.’”
Doctors were working to control Doug’s atrial fibrillation, which had caused the strokes. At that point, he was still unable to move or speak from the left side of his body.
But the prayers continued. And by the eighth day, Doug began to walk, and his motor function started to return.
Completely Healed
After four months of rehabilitation, Doug regained 95% of his motor skills. He returned to driving and working not long after. To complete the journey, Doug and Patty went back to Florida nearly a year later to finish their interrupted vacation.
Today, Doug serves as a peer mentor, offering encouragement and hope to other stroke survivors. He and Patty believe that his recovery was nothing short of miraculous and give full credit to God.
“It still brings me to tears,” Doug said. “Everyone gathering and praying—it was an unbelievable effort to save me and heal me. It’s all God. It’s not me, and it’s all for His glory. Prayer is powerful, and I am living proof of the healing power of God.”
Reference: The 700 Club
Header image: Doug Nichols testifying [The 700 Club]. YouTube, 12 March 2024, https://youtu.be/B4kujEEkB00
