Today was a good day in the Kingdom. Both the United Kingdom and the Kingdom of God. I woke up feeling pretty good and went to a combined church service of three congregations in town.
The worship was solid and then we did one of our "sketches" as they are called here. Then we shared some testimonies. Instead of preaching as had been the plan, the pastor decided to just move straight into ministry time. After we prayed for those who came forward and saw several of them get healed, I asked the pastor if we could give some words of knowledge so we did.
I must say that having an increased measure of faith to see deaf ears open makes it much easier when giving a word of knowledge. I used to be pretty scared to pray for people who were deaf, and now I love it. I said to the congregation, "God made it clear to me that He is going to heal people who are deaf, partially deaf, or have ringing in their ears, so please come forward if you have any of those."
Before the next person was finished giving their words a man had already came forward for healing. He took his hearing aids out and he didn't put them back in. Then after another word of knowledge his back was healed as well.
Another woman came forward for healing from deafness and thought that she could feel some heat and that they might have opened up some. Probably 30 minutes later she came back to me and said how ever since she recieved prayer everything has been much louder and that she keeps telling people how everything is louder. Praise God!
At least one other person with deafness was healed too through Wes, who is the only other current BSSM student on the trip. I was talking with another man and suddenly got a word of knowledge for him as well. However, with the noise in the room he didn't notice any difference although he wasn't aware of any hearing loss to begin with, but rather too much ear wax.
So we have a deaf count of at least 3 so far and I have 2 of them. I want to personally see at least 35 healed of deafness on the trip and at least 50 for the whole team. I can't wait to get into another meeting or just into a place where I am around a bunch of people. The people of Rugby are ready for Jesus to come and take over, whether they know it or not!
This afternoon we went to a big reservoir, or man-made lake, where sailing is quite popular. On the way there we drove by several buildings that were over 300 years old and even a few that were 400 years old. It was very beautiful with the countryside, the narrow roads, and partly sunny weather. It was still chilly though. Well, I am going to go to bed now as it is quarter past eleven, and we have a full day tomorrow starting out in the schools. Over and out from the expanding Kingdom of God in the United Kingdom.
Sunday, September 30, 2007
Wednesday, September 26, 2007
Stumbling upon the Will of God
There are times in life where things just don't seem to be happening the way you want them to. Why would God seem to keep you from doing something that is obviously good? Well, sometimes He just has something better in store for you if you are open to going where He is going. Tonight I had a great example of being where God wanted me to be even though I didn't think it made sense.
I had a meeting for those who work in the Healing Rooms that included a time of impartation from Beni Johnson. I was thinking that I should go to that instead of of Youth since it is only every other month. However, late Monday night I was informed that I had to be at Youth to perform the skits that we will be doing in England next week for Jesus Culture. Finally, I told one of the people in the skits to send me a text message when we were about to start and I went to the Healing Rooms meeting. Beni spoke for a little while and then prayed for us and I then went over to the sanctuary to the youth meeting.
I didn't know what was going on, but Linda was talking to the kids and all of the sudden she calls me out and tells me to come up on stage. She has me share some of the testimonies of what happened in Canada this past weekend. As I am sharing about getting a word of knowledge and someone getting healed, God shows me that He wants to heal someone's tailbone right then so I interrupt myself and call it out. All of the sudden I am leading a healing service, instructing the kids to go pray for each other. Some of the kids come up and give more words of knowledge.
It just broke open! There were at least 20 healings, including several tailbones, necks, backs, wrists, knees and sore throats. One kid shared how he felt electricity all over his body when the kids were praying for the hole in his heart. After I handed it back over to Linda we went into worship which all of the sudden seemed like worship! Why can't we always remember that God is so good? After worship I went to the back to get ready for my skit and asked one of the guys who has problems with his left ear if he got any breakthrough. He said something to the effect of, "I feel something going on, but it hasn't broken open yet." I laid my hands on him and commanded it to open. I started to feel some supernatural activity and then he says, "I think it just opened!"
I talked with Linda later and she said that she had been looking for me and thinking, "Why isn't David here? He needs to be here for some reason." Interesting how God moves. I didn't want to be there, yet God did, and because I came over right after Beni prayed for me instead of waiting for a text message, I didn't miss out on how God wanted to use me to release the youth to heal the sick.
Last night I went to the hospital to pray for someone from school. We were unable to go into her room to see her, yet as we were praying for the family member of some women in the waiting room, God showed me that someone had a problem with the front left side of the head. I asked if it was their mom, who was in the ICU, and they said no. I then asked if it was any of them. One of the women then said that her son-in-law has a very large cancerous tumor on his brain in that exact location. I was able to pray for him and hope to hear a report from them. Then I prayed for a man with hearing aids because hours earlier I had received a word of knowledge for deafness and had yet to find a person who was deaf.
Don't discount what seems to be an abnormal circumstance, it could be the Holy Spirit trying to see if you are paying attention to what is going on. In fact, be on the lookout for opportunities that will arise after unexpected detours. God will use any hand that is given to Him if we are open to followed His lead.
I had a meeting for those who work in the Healing Rooms that included a time of impartation from Beni Johnson. I was thinking that I should go to that instead of of Youth since it is only every other month. However, late Monday night I was informed that I had to be at Youth to perform the skits that we will be doing in England next week for Jesus Culture. Finally, I told one of the people in the skits to send me a text message when we were about to start and I went to the Healing Rooms meeting. Beni spoke for a little while and then prayed for us and I then went over to the sanctuary to the youth meeting.
I didn't know what was going on, but Linda was talking to the kids and all of the sudden she calls me out and tells me to come up on stage. She has me share some of the testimonies of what happened in Canada this past weekend. As I am sharing about getting a word of knowledge and someone getting healed, God shows me that He wants to heal someone's tailbone right then so I interrupt myself and call it out. All of the sudden I am leading a healing service, instructing the kids to go pray for each other. Some of the kids come up and give more words of knowledge.
It just broke open! There were at least 20 healings, including several tailbones, necks, backs, wrists, knees and sore throats. One kid shared how he felt electricity all over his body when the kids were praying for the hole in his heart. After I handed it back over to Linda we went into worship which all of the sudden seemed like worship! Why can't we always remember that God is so good? After worship I went to the back to get ready for my skit and asked one of the guys who has problems with his left ear if he got any breakthrough. He said something to the effect of, "I feel something going on, but it hasn't broken open yet." I laid my hands on him and commanded it to open. I started to feel some supernatural activity and then he says, "I think it just opened!"
I talked with Linda later and she said that she had been looking for me and thinking, "Why isn't David here? He needs to be here for some reason." Interesting how God moves. I didn't want to be there, yet God did, and because I came over right after Beni prayed for me instead of waiting for a text message, I didn't miss out on how God wanted to use me to release the youth to heal the sick.
Last night I went to the hospital to pray for someone from school. We were unable to go into her room to see her, yet as we were praying for the family member of some women in the waiting room, God showed me that someone had a problem with the front left side of the head. I asked if it was their mom, who was in the ICU, and they said no. I then asked if it was any of them. One of the women then said that her son-in-law has a very large cancerous tumor on his brain in that exact location. I was able to pray for him and hope to hear a report from them. Then I prayed for a man with hearing aids because hours earlier I had received a word of knowledge for deafness and had yet to find a person who was deaf.
Don't discount what seems to be an abnormal circumstance, it could be the Holy Spirit trying to see if you are paying attention to what is going on. In fact, be on the lookout for opportunities that will arise after unexpected detours. God will use any hand that is given to Him if we are open to followed His lead.
Sunday, September 23, 2007
Quick update from Canada
The woman we came to Calgary to pray for saw significant breakthrough yesterday. There is still one area that we are wanting to see breakthrough in, but she already had numbness leave her feet, pain leave her leg, arthritis leave her hand, the ability to breathe easily, and the ability to fully lift her arms in the air.
Last night I preached at the church that they go to. It was supposed to be the youth service but one of the worship leaders got married, causing most of the young people to be at the wedding. No worries, the average age at the meeting was probably 45-50 - I wonder what this morning will look like! It turns out that a lot of the people who were there were from other churches. Praise God! They heard about understanding the authority we have in Christ to heal the sick and the ones who stayed long enough received healing.
Since it is just Chris and myself I didn’t want to just call people forward, as they would be waiting in line for probably two hours, so I just had the people around them laying hands on them as I called out words of knowledge. A few people experienced a touch from God in that manner, but the real miracles started to happen after at least half of the people left.
Several people who were deaf quickly regained their hearing. A young woman with mild cerebral palsy no longer limped as she walked, which shocked the friend she was with. After one man’s ears opened up, I still felt that he had a problem that was caused by the inner ear and it turns out he has had a problem with his equilibrium for over 25 years. I prayed for him and he tested it out, now able to walk in a straight line with his eyes closed! Praise God! One woman had a problem with the tendons in her feet and she was now able to walk on her tip-toes without any pain. The same woman had cancer in the exact location of where I had a hand print on my upper chest when I woke up yesterday morning. As I prayed I felt it go and she is excited to go to the doctor to see the good report. Another woman has been troubled for years with pain which has manifested as a demon. The manifestations stopped after I rebuked them and commanded the spirit to leave and the pain left her back, neck and head.
God is in a good mood and the temperature is in the 30s!
Last night I preached at the church that they go to. It was supposed to be the youth service but one of the worship leaders got married, causing most of the young people to be at the wedding. No worries, the average age at the meeting was probably 45-50 - I wonder what this morning will look like! It turns out that a lot of the people who were there were from other churches. Praise God! They heard about understanding the authority we have in Christ to heal the sick and the ones who stayed long enough received healing.
Since it is just Chris and myself I didn’t want to just call people forward, as they would be waiting in line for probably two hours, so I just had the people around them laying hands on them as I called out words of knowledge. A few people experienced a touch from God in that manner, but the real miracles started to happen after at least half of the people left.
Several people who were deaf quickly regained their hearing. A young woman with mild cerebral palsy no longer limped as she walked, which shocked the friend she was with. After one man’s ears opened up, I still felt that he had a problem that was caused by the inner ear and it turns out he has had a problem with his equilibrium for over 25 years. I prayed for him and he tested it out, now able to walk in a straight line with his eyes closed! Praise God! One woman had a problem with the tendons in her feet and she was now able to walk on her tip-toes without any pain. The same woman had cancer in the exact location of where I had a hand print on my upper chest when I woke up yesterday morning. As I prayed I felt it go and she is excited to go to the doctor to see the good report. Another woman has been troubled for years with pain which has manifested as a demon. The manifestations stopped after I rebuked them and commanded the spirit to leave and the pain left her back, neck and head.
God is in a good mood and the temperature is in the 30s!
Monday, September 10, 2007
Sign Language
Jesus tells His disciples in John 14:11 that they should believe Him based on the miracles from His ministry. He didn't just come saying that He was the son of God and the Messiah, but He preached the Kingdom with demonstration of the King. When John the Baptist was having an internal struggle in prison he sent his own disciples to ask Jesus if He was the Messiah even though John himself had said that Jesus was the Lamb of God. The response Jesus gave in Matthew 11:5 was that "the blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor."
If that was the standard that Jesus carried then why shouldn't we do the same? In John 14:12 He tells the disciples that they will do greater works than He did. Jesus made it clear to the disciples that their mission was not to preach at people and get them saved but rather it was to preach that the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand, heal the sick, raise the dead, cast out demons, and cleanse lepers (Matthew 10:7-8). Jesus never intended for us to argue with people and try to convince them with our words. We are simply to preach the gospel and do the stuff.
Jesus even said in Mark 16:17-18 that "these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well." Are the signs accompanying you? Since I am not about lowering standards so that I can pass them I will use the example of Matthew 11:5. Do the blind see, the deaf hear, the lame walk, the dead come back to life, and those with skin conditions healed?
While in Michigan I realized that the more breakthrough I get in healing, the more I become hungry for greater breakthrough. Many deaf people were getting healed but there were others that had not gotten healed. There was a blind woman at one of the meetings but I didn't get to pray for her and I don't believe she regained her sight. The lame did walk, but not all of them. I prayed for one man who hasn't had legs in many years and he did not receive a miracle. Do we really believe that these signs will accompany us if we believe? I think sometimes we forget to uphold the standard.
(Someone has a problem with their left ear. Open in the name of Jesus!)
Sometimes we struggle to speak the language the others need in order to receive the gospel - and I don't necessarily mean that they don't understand English. They may have arguements that we don't always have answers for but when signs follow you it is a language that all understand. When they experience the power of God it speaks their language and confronts them with the truth. I am becoming much more proficient in sign language so that in all circumstances signs follow me. I rejoice in the man who took out his hearing aids yesterday morning and said that he didn't need them any more, but I know that if I can't communicate every sign then the language of the Kingdom may not be expressed.
If that was the standard that Jesus carried then why shouldn't we do the same? In John 14:12 He tells the disciples that they will do greater works than He did. Jesus made it clear to the disciples that their mission was not to preach at people and get them saved but rather it was to preach that the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand, heal the sick, raise the dead, cast out demons, and cleanse lepers (Matthew 10:7-8). Jesus never intended for us to argue with people and try to convince them with our words. We are simply to preach the gospel and do the stuff.
Jesus even said in Mark 16:17-18 that "these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well." Are the signs accompanying you? Since I am not about lowering standards so that I can pass them I will use the example of Matthew 11:5. Do the blind see, the deaf hear, the lame walk, the dead come back to life, and those with skin conditions healed?
While in Michigan I realized that the more breakthrough I get in healing, the more I become hungry for greater breakthrough. Many deaf people were getting healed but there were others that had not gotten healed. There was a blind woman at one of the meetings but I didn't get to pray for her and I don't believe she regained her sight. The lame did walk, but not all of them. I prayed for one man who hasn't had legs in many years and he did not receive a miracle. Do we really believe that these signs will accompany us if we believe? I think sometimes we forget to uphold the standard.
(Someone has a problem with their left ear. Open in the name of Jesus!)
Sometimes we struggle to speak the language the others need in order to receive the gospel - and I don't necessarily mean that they don't understand English. They may have arguements that we don't always have answers for but when signs follow you it is a language that all understand. When they experience the power of God it speaks their language and confronts them with the truth. I am becoming much more proficient in sign language so that in all circumstances signs follow me. I rejoice in the man who took out his hearing aids yesterday morning and said that he didn't need them any more, but I know that if I can't communicate every sign then the language of the Kingdom may not be expressed.
Saturday, September 8, 2007
God is so good!
I am in Petoskey, Michigan right now on a Firestorm. For those of you who don't know what that is, it is simply a ministry trip led by a pastor from Bethel where students from the school of ministry can get hands on experience. So far this has been an amazing trip! Leading up to this trip I began to contend for breakthrough that every person who comes to the meetings would get healed. With all the healings that have taken place over the past two evenings I believe we are well on our way to reaching that goal. I want to share with you just a few of the testimonies of what God has been doing.
A man with diabetes was prayed for on the first night. He walked up to the front carrying his cane to testify that God had healed him. He was there again last night without his cane sharing again how God had healed him. Towards the end of the meeting he brought me to another man saying that he really needed prayer. God showed me there was something wrong with his feet and he said they were numb. After praying once his feet were tingling and then after praying again all of the numbness was gone and all of the feeling had returned. The man then started to laugh and then cry - something that several people told me they had never seen him do (laugh or cry!). I then asked him if anything else was going on and he told me that his stomach can't digest food. I prayed once and he said that he was feeling less nauseous than before. As I prayed again I felt as though I was squeezing his body in the spirit. He started shaking a lot and after I said, "be healed in Jesus' name," I released the peace of Heaven over him and he immediately stopped shaking. I asked him how he felt now and he said that it was completely gone! God is so good!
On the first night I called out scoliosis as being something that God was going to heal. Last night a woman grabbed me and said that she got healed. She told me and then testified to the whole church of how she went to her chiropractor that morning and told him that she didn't need an adjustment because she got healed. The chiropractor then was amazed that he couldn't find the curve in her spine. He asked her, "what really happened to you?" to which she answered, "I went to church last night and God healed me!"
Last night Kevin shared a testimony from last Saturday in Turlock, CA when he called out a word of knowledge for Rhonda with Lupus. It turned out to be the wife of somebody in the church. Kevin talked to her on the cell phone during the service and God healed her! She then came to both services the next day to testify that all of her pain and fatigue was gone! Well, last night Kevin asked if there was a Rhonda who has Lupus and a woman raised her hand saying that it was her daughter. So as 200+ people watch on, Rhonda, who was in another state, got healed of Lupus over the cell phone! Over the next 10 minutes, two more people with Lupus were healed over the cell phone. Talk about the power of the testimony!
I gave a word of knowledge last night that not only was God going to heal deafness, but that somebody's ears were going to open right now. I was surprised when only two people stood up for that word. The first one didn't even have deafness, but ringing in his ears. Within a few minutes of giving the word I went to find the other person who stood up. She wasn't standing anymore because God had already healed her without anyone praying for her!
After hearing of her healing I started to pray for an 86 year old woman. As I had her test out her hip she said that while she was able to walk better, she was still in pain. I then asked her what was wrong with her feet and she said they were fine. I told her that I was feeling burning on the bottom and she said, "Oh, my feet do feel like they are burning on the bottom!" I told her that this was just a sign from God that He is going to heal her whole body (she told me she was skeptical that God would heal her) and sure enough within a minute the burning in her feet had stopped - Praise God!
Later I went to pray for an 89 year old woman who had a stroke and was constantly dizzy for four years. I prayed for her a few times and nothing happened. An hour or two later I came back to release the joy of the Lord over the woman and her son. I was pleased to see that she started to laugh. She is 76 years older than me! I have never made someone that old laugh! After a few minutes of laughing I asked her if she was still dizzy and she said that it completely went away. She was so happy because she has been constantly dizzy for four years until someone laughed on her! God is so good!
There were so many more healings both last night and the night before. One of the great things is that each night about half of the crowd has been from other churches in the city. I am praying that when we get to the last meeting we will fully exhaust the supply of sick people in the church! Yesterday we got to speak at a Christian school. We prophesied over students and teachers, gave words of knowledge, and healed the sick. That hour could have just changed the lives of those students. God is so good!
A man with diabetes was prayed for on the first night. He walked up to the front carrying his cane to testify that God had healed him. He was there again last night without his cane sharing again how God had healed him. Towards the end of the meeting he brought me to another man saying that he really needed prayer. God showed me there was something wrong with his feet and he said they were numb. After praying once his feet were tingling and then after praying again all of the numbness was gone and all of the feeling had returned. The man then started to laugh and then cry - something that several people told me they had never seen him do (laugh or cry!). I then asked him if anything else was going on and he told me that his stomach can't digest food. I prayed once and he said that he was feeling less nauseous than before. As I prayed again I felt as though I was squeezing his body in the spirit. He started shaking a lot and after I said, "be healed in Jesus' name," I released the peace of Heaven over him and he immediately stopped shaking. I asked him how he felt now and he said that it was completely gone! God is so good!
On the first night I called out scoliosis as being something that God was going to heal. Last night a woman grabbed me and said that she got healed. She told me and then testified to the whole church of how she went to her chiropractor that morning and told him that she didn't need an adjustment because she got healed. The chiropractor then was amazed that he couldn't find the curve in her spine. He asked her, "what really happened to you?" to which she answered, "I went to church last night and God healed me!"
Last night Kevin shared a testimony from last Saturday in Turlock, CA when he called out a word of knowledge for Rhonda with Lupus. It turned out to be the wife of somebody in the church. Kevin talked to her on the cell phone during the service and God healed her! She then came to both services the next day to testify that all of her pain and fatigue was gone! Well, last night Kevin asked if there was a Rhonda who has Lupus and a woman raised her hand saying that it was her daughter. So as 200+ people watch on, Rhonda, who was in another state, got healed of Lupus over the cell phone! Over the next 10 minutes, two more people with Lupus were healed over the cell phone. Talk about the power of the testimony!
I gave a word of knowledge last night that not only was God going to heal deafness, but that somebody's ears were going to open right now. I was surprised when only two people stood up for that word. The first one didn't even have deafness, but ringing in his ears. Within a few minutes of giving the word I went to find the other person who stood up. She wasn't standing anymore because God had already healed her without anyone praying for her!
After hearing of her healing I started to pray for an 86 year old woman. As I had her test out her hip she said that while she was able to walk better, she was still in pain. I then asked her what was wrong with her feet and she said they were fine. I told her that I was feeling burning on the bottom and she said, "Oh, my feet do feel like they are burning on the bottom!" I told her that this was just a sign from God that He is going to heal her whole body (she told me she was skeptical that God would heal her) and sure enough within a minute the burning in her feet had stopped - Praise God!
Later I went to pray for an 89 year old woman who had a stroke and was constantly dizzy for four years. I prayed for her a few times and nothing happened. An hour or two later I came back to release the joy of the Lord over the woman and her son. I was pleased to see that she started to laugh. She is 76 years older than me! I have never made someone that old laugh! After a few minutes of laughing I asked her if she was still dizzy and she said that it completely went away. She was so happy because she has been constantly dizzy for four years until someone laughed on her! God is so good!
There were so many more healings both last night and the night before. One of the great things is that each night about half of the crowd has been from other churches in the city. I am praying that when we get to the last meeting we will fully exhaust the supply of sick people in the church! Yesterday we got to speak at a Christian school. We prophesied over students and teachers, gave words of knowledge, and healed the sick. That hour could have just changed the lives of those students. God is so good!
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