Benjamin Brown Miraculously Healed of Affliction Through Joseph Smith's Blessing

After moving to Nauvoo, Benjamin Brown experienced a serious affliction that troubled him greatly. When Joseph Smith learned of his condition, the Prophet administered a blessing to him. Through this blessing, Brown was miraculously healed of his affliction. This direct healing through Joseph Smith himself became a powerful personal testimony to Brown of the Prophet's divine calling and the reality of priesthood power in the restored Church. The experience strengthened Brown's faith and his commitment to the gospel of Jesus Christ and the leadership of the Prophet Joseph Smith.

Fuller account of this event (in the witness’s own words):

It was frequently declared that the persecutions in Missouri were small matters compared to the miseries endured at this period in Nauvoo. My family, with myself, were also taken sick, and I laid so for two or three weeks. I was so far gone that I was quite senseless, and all thought I was dying. Doubtless I should have died, but one day Joseph Smith was passing by my door, for I had managed to procure a house, and was called in, and, as I was afterwards informed, laid his hands upon me, and commanded me to rise and walk in the name of the Lord. The first thing I knew was that I found myself walking on the floor, perfectly well, and within ten minutes afterwards I was out of the house visiting my daughter, whom I had not seen for nearly a month. I felt so full of joy and happiness, that I was greatly surprised that everyone else was not as full of praise as myself. This was the second time that I had been healed instantly by the power of God, through his servants.