God Is Not Powerful In Us, Because We Believe That His Power Died Out After The Original Apostles Died?

 God Is Not Powerful In Us, Because We Believe That His Power Died Out After The Original Apostles Died. This is amazing to me for many reasons.
   First of all, the Bible says that God doesn't change. Throughout the Bible, we see a powerful God doing awesome acts, yet we think that this God is taking a break or doesn't show Himself as powerful anymore.
   We see miracles happen, yet we say that they are counterfeit miracles, because those who perform them aren't perfect in their doctrine, like we are. So we say that they are just counterfeit, or even from the devil. Couldn't that be dangerous to do? What if it really God who did the miracle? That would be a serious sin, and also presumptions on our parts to attribute a possible miracle to the devil.
   Why is the devil so powerful in doing miracles, yet miracles are not relegated to God? I think the reasons are simple. First of all, unless we are humble people, should God do a miracle in our midst, we would be tempted to take pride and glory in the miracle as if somehow we are credited for doing the miracle. But I think there is another reason. I think it is simply unbelief. We really don't expect God to do the miraculous in our midst because that would take faith. Most of us do not have that kind of faith unless we are really open to God and believe that He is who He says He is, and that we have truly been entrusted with the Gospel. We think of the Gospel as some kind of formula to escape hell, and we miss the whole point of salvation which is to be reconciled to God, and to have a personal relationship with Him. Plus, there are other churches, many of who we have differences in doctrines, which experience the supernatural , yet I think we are jealous, because the supernatural isn't happening to us.
  Yes, the devil can do counterfeit miracles. But why would the devil do miracles, yet God doesn't do miracles? It would seem like God would be doing miracles, and the devil would be doing counterfeits, and God would be teaching His church how to be discerning so the body of Christ could determine the difference between God's working and Satan's workings.
   Many believe that the miraculous powers of God died out after the last Apostle died. But the Bible tells us that the same power that raised Jesus from the dead also resides in us! Is God taking a break? Are miracles too hard for Him? I think you know the answer.
   Certainly, our focus should always be on the Cross. We focus on the risen Christ seated at the Father's right hand. He is not taking a break! He is actively working through the church today. If God were to do the supernatural in your midst, what would you do? Would you be ready to handle being in a situation like that? Or would you want to rename it to something else to fit your correct theology?
   There are ways to sin against the Holy Spirit. One of them is by grieving Him, and the other is by quenching Him. Are we careful to allow Him to work in our midst, or do we have Him in a box, shaped by our theology which is based upon our interpretation of current events taking place in the 'church' today? What do you think?

David Wilkerson's Powerful Prayer at Age 12

   I don't know how many of you have ever read 'The Cross and the Switchblade' by David Wilkerson, but he gives an account of how God impressed on his heart to 'go help the boys in the inner city of NYC'. Through a few difficulties, he obeyed and many gangsters came to Christ and were changed forever. I would highly recommend reading this book. Another good one which ties in is 'Run, Baby Run' by Nicky Cruz, a former gangster who had a radical conversion while sitting in a meeting led by David Wilkerson.
   I want to write though about an incident in 'The Cross and the Switchblade' which probably was one of the greatest encouragements to David to live a life of faith in a God who does the impossible.
   When David was 12, his grandfather challenged him to pray believing God would answer. David didn't really understand what the point was until one day he was faced with a choice. It was a matter of life and death for his father.
   David's father had been ill with a chronic intestinal problems for many years. On his way home from school, David heard ambulances and when he got closer to his house, he realized that is where they were headed. He could hear the screams of his father even from far away.
  David got home. He was not allowed in the bedroom where his dad was. His mom came out and David asked her if his dad were going to die. She replied that the doctors give him about two more hours. The sheets and bedding were saturated with blood.
   David remembered what his grandfather told him about prayer. "David, do you dare to pray for help when you are in trouble?"" David, the day you learn to be publicly specific in your prayers, is the day you will learn power." David's grandfather was a man of prayer. What would David do? Would he believe God would heal his dad if he prayed? What if nothing happened? David chose not to pray. At least not out loud. He ran away to the basement and shut himself up in the coal bin. He prayed loud prayers which he felt made up for the lack of faith he had. What David didn't realize was that there were pipes throughout the house from this coal bin. Everyone in the house heard his prayers.
   David's dad called for David. David was brought into the room. David's dad asked David's mom to read a passage from Matthew 21:22 and she read it. Faith welled up in David and he went over to his father and laid his hands on his forehead. "Jesus, I believe what You said. Make Daddy well" David prayed. It was amazing what happened next.
   The doctor came in and analyzed David's dad. He said, "Kenneth, how do you feel?" "I feel like strength is welling up in me" replied David's father. Kenneth Wilkerson was completely healed that day. The doctor was completely amazed. And David no longer doubted God's promises anymore.
    For more works of God in David Wilkerson's life, please read, 'The Cross and the Switchblade' which you can purchase on amazon.com. For an audio version of the book, go to  Christianaudio.com

God Is Still All-Powerful Today And He is At Work!

I'm just grateful that I serve and know a God that is all-powerful and that I don't have to be a Deist or have all my theological ducks in a row in order to grow in my relationship with God. God has many names which describe Him. One of them is Jehovah Rapha, which means the God who heals. Another one is Jehovah Jireh, which means God is my provider. God is not distant from us, but we will not experience a relationship with Him unless we turn away from our sins and trust in Him. He provided an atonement for our sins, by sending His Son to die in our place.
  The Bible describes God as love. We tend to shy away from that because we know that some people abuse His love and make it an excuse for continuing in sin, but God is love, and has shown His great love for us by laying down His life for us, who don't deserve His love. We deserve His wrath and we deserve punishment from Him, but He pursues us and grants us repentance and faith when we turn to Him.
  In the Old Testament, God worked supernaturally through different people. Miracles took place in various places. We see the same thing happening in the New Testament. Miracles still take place today. The Bible tells us that God will never change. When people see the power of God, they are affected. Many turn to Him and are changed forever.
   The Apostle Paul tells about a church that was endowed with spiritual gifts. There is no doubt that God had blessed this church in a supernatural way, but they were very selfish and Paul hollered at them for their behavior. It was totally dishonoring to God. Paul wanted the Corinthians to use the spiritual gifts, but within the boundaries that were set around them. We have the same problem today. When it comes to the spiritual gifts, many use them outside of the parameters and it brings dishonor to God. When it comes to spiritual gifts, they are given to the church in order to minister to one another. If God uses us to raise the dead, we must be careful to give God the credit for the miracle, and not ourselves.
   Yes, God is still at work today. Miracles still take place. People still get radically saved. God miraculously provides many times. Let's trust in this All-powerful, true and living God today!

God Working In Everyday Life

  I am currently listening to an audio book called, 'The Cross and the Switchblade' by David Wilkerson. It is a fascinating story of God's speaking to a man's heart to reach the lost children living in the ghettos of New York City. As I listen, it is interesting to see how God speaks to David's heart, then confirms what He spoke by fulfilling what He had said. This man's whole ministry is based on his absolute trust in and faith in the True and Living God for all he did and accomplished.
  I have to admit, I have gotten away from listening and hearing from God. There are so many counterfeits in the world that you really do have to learn to be discerning to hear clearly from God. But God really does speak to us. We need to pay attention to what He wants to say to us.
  One such time happened to me not to long ago. I am planning to put together (organize) an evangelism booth for our church, which is sponsoring an Arts & Crafts Festival on November 16th. I have a very creative mind and can go a lot of different ways with this. When I was first asked to do this, my first thought was to do what we did three years ago, when I did an evangelism booth back then.
  Let me go back a little bit further. I always thought it would be fun to do an evangelism booth, but there was no way I could do one. I had some ideas, and our evangelism leader had the opportunity to do one at a fall festival our church was doing many years ago. Our evangelism leader moved away, and there really were no more events going on that would provide an opportunity for us to have an evangelism booth. But I really wanted to do one. It was on my heart, so to speak.
  Three years ago, our church put on a fall festival. I got this bright idea to ask if I could do this 'evangelism booth'. Not realizing the expense that was involved, I made a lot of plans and had a lot of ideas, and God provided the money to put it all together! We had shirts made up. I got many to volunteer to work at this booth, which was amazing to me because anytime I have ever tried to do anything that involves people volunteering to help, I get a very low response. But this time, almost everyone I asked, eagerly responded to the invitation. It provided those in our church to branch out and share the Gospel with the visitors to the booth. Our booth really became a hit. People were flocking to it. Lots of conversations came about and the Gospel was presented to many that day.
   Fast forward. A woman in our church is planning on doing an Arts & Crafts Festival. The money from the table rentals will go to the church and the ministries that it sponsors. When we were at a planning meeting for this festival, our financial director asked me if we could do this booth again, to which I didn't hesitate to say 'yes'. In my mind I was thinking we could use all the leftover material from the last evangelism booth event and just go from there. But as I was thinking about the plans, something in my mind was sensing that this time, the evangelism booth would not be the same theme as the last one. The last theme for the evangelism booth was 'Do you have eyes to see with?'. The point was that a person has to be born again in order to 'see' the kingdom of God. We had optical illusions, T-shirts, a carnival mirror, and a host of other things that worked with the theme. Why couldn't I just use the same theme? Maybe God was doing something different this time, maybe something fresh. So, I am open to what He wants, not whatever is convenient and cheap for me.
   I came up with the theme as I was ordering helium balloons. I had thought of helium balloons about a week before I made this order. When I decided I would look into helium balloons, the prices for imprinted ones was kind of high. The lowest quantity you could order was 1,000. I really don't need 1,000 helium balloons, but even more than that, $230 is kind of steep for balloons. Let me think about this more.
   Along with trying to decide about the balloons, I would have to come up with something to imprint on them. What could I put? I know, I will put Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth. Or maybe I could put, 'God is uncreated. He never had a beginning and has always been in existence.' That probably would be too many letters. I was also looking for cheaper helium balloons that I could have imprinted. Finally, in my email box, I received a notice of items available for imprinting that were on sale. I get a couple of these notices every day. I always like to see what is going on sale, and if I had money, I would go to the recommended web page and try to order. Well, I opened up this email and it said that the offer was for helium balloons! I went to the web page (you have to go quickly because the offer is offered to a small amount of people only, for a very short time. First come, first serve.).  When I clicked onto the following page, I made it in time! Now I would have to come up with something to imprint. Maybe the BIBLE thing? An idea quickly came to mind. It was this; Jesus is the Lamb of God. I found a picture of a lamb on the internet and put the words with it and sent the order in. It all took about 5 minutes.
    Now I am going with this theme. I made a slide-show up the other day on Jesus being the Lamb of God in the Old Testament and New Testament. I finally got the slide-show to work on my I-Pad today, so that will be great too.
  As we were having our planning meeting this afternoon, one of the volunteers created a tract, so I let her bring it and explain it. I had no idea what it was going to be on, but as she explained it to me, she is going to use this homemade tract to explain Jesus being the Lamb of God, as shown in the Old Testament and New Testament. Wow, could that be coincidence? Her mind was blown when she saw the imprinted balloon. No coincidence at all! God is orchestrating all our activities as we commit ourselves to Him.
  Last thing is that I decided we needed a backdrop for the tent. We used an evolutionary one that looked kind of strange, the last time we did this. But now, we have a different theme. So, I decided to look for shower curtains to use as a backdrop. Through doing extensive searching, I found one place that sells shower curtains with pictures of lambs on the curtains. They were quite expensive, but there was a discount available until midnight (Got on the Columbus Day weekend sale!). So, now I ordered the curtain and will use that as a backdrop.
   It is amazing to see how everything is falling into place for this. God is working all the plans and difficulties out for us. And we are grateful for His allowing us to do this.

The Cross and The Switchblade - A Faith Builder

     Probably around 37 years ago, I read a book written by a man named Nicky Cruz. I had not read 'The Cross and the Switchblade' until recently, and now I have a better appreciation for both Nicky Cruz and David Wilkerson.
   David Wilkerson was a country preacher in Pennsylvania, during the mid 1900s. Without telling all the wonderful ways God worked in this particular part of his ministry, I will comment on a few. 
   While looking at a Time-Life magazine, during the mid 1950's, David Wilkerson was drawn to an article about 7 gangsters from New York City, who brutally murdered Michael Farmer, a crippled boy with polio. David has an impression from God that seemed way out to him, but he followed the impression which led him on a search in NYC to find these 7 boys. 
   At first, he has nothing to go on, but his burden to find them. He goes to NYC and sits in on a court session that happened to have 2 extra seats, in which David, and his companion Miles, sat in. After that, David persisted in asking the authorities for information concerning finding the names of these boys, to which the authorities eventually became suspicious and David got in trouble with the law on account of his persistence. While he was tricked into holding up his Bible in the air, the camera men got a picture of him which went to the press immediately, which in turn, ended up on the front cover of newspapers throughout that whole section of the country! David was discouraged beyond comprehension, and went back home believing he really didn't hear from God. But what David didn't realize was that God was going to use that embarrassing, humiliating situation to bring him into a special type of ability to be able to reach these gangsters in NYC.
    After going back to PA, with his tail between his legs (so to speak), David apologized to his congregation for what he had done, and for the humiliation he would have caused his church to experience, but, David could not get away from this burden that God placed upon his heart. Instead of his congregation being angry with him, they actually collected money again for him to return to NYC. David and Miles returned to NYC and again started their search for the 7 gangsters who brutally killed a crippled boy with polio.
    When David arrived back in NYC, he searched for the gangsters by trying to find out what their names were. He found the name of the main one, which was luis Alvarez. As he talked with gangsters, they began to recognize David. The gangsters would stare at him and call his name. 'Davey' they would say, as they fondly nicknamed him. He began to recognize this name now. The gangsters would tell 'Davey' "You are the preacher that got in trouble with the police" "You are like us" They found Davey comforting, as they knew he was in trouble with the law, just like they were. They recognized him from the pictures in the newspaper headlines.
    David was told he would need the signatures of the parents of all seven boys in order to have an audience with them. How likely would he be to find all the names of the boys, and the addresses of the homes they came from, in NYC? He went through the phone book to find the parents of Luis Alvarez. There were at least 200 Alvarez names in the phone book, and after calling 40 of them, without a good response, he gave up calling numbers with that name. 
   They took the car and went around Time Square and were going around in circles. They got off on a side road in order to get out of traffic, and ended up in an area known as the 'Spanish Harlem'. He found a place to park and got out of the car. He came across a group of kids and asked them if they knew where Luis Alvarez lived. No one answered. After a long pause, he walked away. Then one of the kids came running up to him and asked David some questions. "You looking for Luis Alvarez?" "Is that your car?" David was getting irritated at trying to figure out what the boy was asking for. After answering the boy's question about the car, David heard the most awesome answer he could have ever heard. The boy told him that David had parked right in front of Luis Alvarez' house! 
   After meeting Luis Alvarez' parents (who were trusting God to send someone to their son) and getting their signatures, David asked if Luis' father knew the names of the 6 other boys, to which Luis' father said that he didn't. One out of 7 signatures is better than none, especially since God arranged this meeting, but how would he get the other 6 parental signatures that were required for him to meet with this group of murderous gangsters?
   On his way out, another young man was running up to his apartment. David called out to him, but he just kept on running. But then he stopped and took a look at David, and recognized him as the preacher who was in trouble with the law due to his desire to meet the gangsters who killed the Farmer boy. He and David communicated now, and David asked this young man if he knew the names and addresses of the other 6 boys who murdered Michael Farmer, to which the young man replied that he did. Not only did this young man give David the names of the murderers, but he directed them to their homes and David was able to get all the parental signatures he needed in order to meet with the 7 boys who murdered the crippled boy with polio! 
   Here is an excerpt of a conversation David had with a man named Nicky Cruz. Nicky Cruz was not one of the 7 boys who killed Michael Farmer, but this young man was as far away from God as anyone could be. When David was introduced to Nicky Cruz, Nicky didn't want to have anything to do with David. Here is how their first conversation went:

David Wilkerson: How do you do, Nicky?
Nicky Cruz: Go to hell preacher.
David Wilkerson: You don't think much of me, Nicky, but I feel differently about you. I love you, Nicky.
Nicky Cruz: You come near me preacher, I'll kill you.
David Wilkerson: You could do that. You could cut me in 1,000 pieces and lay them in the street, and every piece would say, 'I love you'.
Nicky Cruz's story is in the book, 'Run Baby Run'.

I do not want to spill the beans, but I do want to tell you that Nicky Cruz came from a family of 19 children. The family was from Puerto Rico, and their home was not made of a loving family. His family practiced witchcraft and they were Godless people. Nicky learned violence at an early age, and was left to himself and to defend himself in NYC as a boy. But what happened in his life can only be credited to God, and you can read some of his story in 'The Cross and the Switchblade', but his story is in the book, 'Run, Baby, Run'. God had mercy on Nicky and he became a new creature in Christ. God used a man named David Wilkerson to minster God's love to him, and Nicky 'got' the Gospel. 
Watch this video:
Nicky Cruz on Youtube
Here's his testimony: Nicky Cruz Testimony on Youtube

Enough Oil To Pay Off The Debt

   This story really happened, many, many years ago. The same God who raised Jesus from the dead, the same God who works wonders today, showed His mercy and power to a woman in desperate need. The woman was a widow, and there were bills that hadn't been paid since she was widowed. In those days, people who were in debt could pay off the debt by giving their children to serve in the family that they were indebted to. In this case, the creditors were about to take the sons of this widowed lady, and that would satisfy the debt that she owed. But, look what God did for her.
   Here is the account from The Message Bible. It is found in 2 Kings 4:1-7.

One day the wife of a man from the guild of prophets called out to Elisha, “Your servant my husband is dead. You well know what a good man he was, devoted to God. And now the man to whom he was in debt is on his way to collect by taking my two children as slaves.”

 Elisha said, “I wonder how I can be of help. Tell me, what do you have in your house?”

“Nothing,” she said. “Well, I do have a little oil.”

 “Here’s what you do,” said Elisha. “Go up and down the street and borrow jugs and bowls from all your neighbors. And not just a few—all you can get. Then come home and lock the door behind you, you and your sons. Pour oil into each container; when each is full, set it aside.”

 She did what he said. She locked the door behind her and her sons; as they brought the containers to her, she filled them. When all the jugs and bowls were full, she said to one of her sons, “Another jug, please.”

He said, “That’s it. There are no more jugs.”

Then the oil stopped.

 She went and told the story to the man of God. He said, “Go sell the oil and make good on your debts. Live, both you and your sons, on what’s left.”

  How about that one? God was very merciful to this widow. This incident happened around 850 - 800 years before Christ, in the country of Israel. 

   The Bible tells us that God doesn't change. That means, He was all-powerful 2,00 years ago, and He is all-powerful today. He was just 4,000 years ago, and He is just today. God never had a beginning and of course, He will never have an ending. He is infinite. He showed mercy to His people throughout History, and He still shows mercy to His people today.

God is uncreated. He never had a
beginning and has always been
in existence.

No More Rash!

   Years ago, probably during my second pregnancy, I was in for a doctor's appointment. As he was examining me, he was startled and made some kind of remark about a rash that covered most of my body. I looked like a giraffe! That did it. I asked God to heal me of my rash.
   My rash problems began when I was around 13 or 14. My girlfriend and I spent a lot of time in different lakes around town. Her dad used to drive us to them and we would swim in some of them. That is where I believe the rash originally came from.
  Over the next couple of years, the rash continued to be on my skin. Most of it was hidden under my clothing though, but some of it you could see on my arms.
  After I got married, the rash was still there. It would be more obvious whenever I was sweating. I went to the doctor, and he gave me a prescription ointment that worked. I was happy, but the tube was very small, and didn't go very far. It was also expensive, so I could not continue using it, as effective as it was.
  Of course, the rash came back in full force, and it was very noticeable when I was pregnant with my second child. Even the doctor noticed it, although he didn't know what kind of rash it was, plus, even if he did, I would not have been able to use any medications on it until I was through with the pregnancy. So, I prayed for God to take the rash away.
   Actually, I forgot about my prayer and even the rash, but months later I did remember and noticed that the rash was no longer there. That was back in the mid 80s, and the rash has never been back on my body since that time. Thank God for answering that prayer and healing my body from whatever that rash was!

My Last Trip to the Ice-Cream Parlor-Almost

   Long, long time ago, when I was probably 14, my dad took us out for ice-cream, which was one of his favorite things to do for his family. On our way home, a driver in front of our car was driving very slow, so my dad went around him, which appeared to make this man irate. Road rage was beginning, and this man was not happy about my dad being in front of him. The angry activity continued until we got to the stop sign. The man in the other car went around our car, through the stop sign, drove his car onto the street we were going to turn onto, and he turned his car around and was aiming his car at ours. We assume the angry man was probably on drugs or possibly drunk. My mom was saying that if she had a gun she would shoot his tires. I don't know what happened, but his car didn't go anywhere! It was like stuck, and we went on past him. He wasn't happy, but we were glad that we weren't killed by this man who appeared to be out of his mind.
   At this time in my life, I didn't have Jesus Christ as my Lord yet, but God, in His foreknowledge, knew that I would come to know Him, one day. I am sure that angels were involved in making the car stuck, but God could have worked that whole situation out by a number of different means. We may never know what happened while here on earth, and it doesn't really matter. But we do know that God worked in a supernatural way to protect us from harm that day. And that event definitely was not my last trip to the ice-cream parlor, for which I am very grateful of as well!

How God Works in Guiding Our Paths (1976)

  A neat episode came to my mind today. It involves a boy (now a man) I will call 'Roy'. Roy sat in front of me in a class in high school. Actually, I knew Roy before I became a Christian. We hung out at the same place (a place where 'hippies' used to hang out). Roy was there with a friend, who was trying to be one of my boyfriends. My girlfriend and I would meet guys in pairs and we would match up with them. Although we were familiar with each other, I never got to really know Roy.
  But something happened to me when I was in the 12th grade. God became very real to me, after I repented of my sins and trusted in Jesus Christ as my Savior. My life was changed and now I also desired to share the Gospel with people. I brought tracts with me to school (I'm surprised I didn't get into trouble). I would give them out in class to anyone who wanted them. A few people were regular tract readers when I offered them tracts. One of them was Roy, who I already was familiar with.
   Roy was not interested in school and really was quiet and kept to himself. I don't know if he even graduated with us that year, but he did show an interest in the tracts. He would tell me of difficulties he was in, such as his breakup with his girlfriend. This made him very sad.
  One day, I didn't have any tracts with me, and he wondered where the tracts were. I actually got bold and asked him if he wanted to become a Christian (I don't know what I would have said if he were to have said 'yes'). He said he didn't want to, but he still looked forward to reading the tracts.
   Graduation time came and I graduated, went to dental assisting school, and got married, all within a year. I also joined a ministry called 'CEF' which stands for 'Child Evangelism Fellowship'. One of the assignments we had was to do 'open air' work in sharing the Gospel with children using the wordless book colors. The quota was 25 and I reached that and continued to tell children the Gospel story using the wordless book colors. (I used a walnut with a ribbon that had the colors of the wordless book story).
   A couple of years later, I was going to the school behind our apartment to find children to tell the Gospel to. Today, this would probably have gotten me arrested, but this was a long time ago. There were parents back them who objected to what I was doing. But I was walking into the school yard and noticed a man who looked similar to Roy, but this man looked different. He seemed happy and organized. He noticed me and said he wanted to talk to me. He was leading a group of boys in a sporting event and got them settled, then told me what happened.
   He said he had been praying to be able to find me to tell me that he had become a Christian. I could tell that this was a different person than the one I knew in class a couple of years before. He shared his testimony with me, of how he came to Christ. I saw him one time at a later date, in a Christian band.
  I would love for 'Roy' to read this and respond if he does. I know he will know who I am talking about. God works in mysterious ways, and I believe He wants to encourage us when we are serving Him. God guides and directs our steps, according to the Scriptures. God is active in our lives, even during the times we don't see Him. But it is really neat when we see Him work like this.

The Late, Unexpected Saturday Arrival Came Just in Time

   We were planning on going out as a group on a particular Saturday evening, to go and evangelize. I am not sure that this was the Jazz festival or some other event going on, but whichever one it was, I had run out of tracts to give out and use. I use the tracts as an ice-breaker to start conversations with people. It has come in handy, plus the tracts have the Gospel on them and the person can look at the tract later on, when he/she gets home.
  I was excited about evangelizing but disappointed because I ordered a huge amount of tracts and other items from Living Waters, but I needed them for that event, and they had not come. If a package has not come by Friday, it will be Monday before I get it. I don't know why the post office does it that way, but I have not ever received a package on Saturday, up to this point.
   We were getting ready to eat, and then leave, even without the tracts, when a knock came on the door. I opened it, and it was the package of tracts! Just in time they came! God's timing is always perfect. We opened the box, and took the tracts out and got ready to leave. Thank God for tracts. and for the fact that they came at the exact time we needed them, and not a minute later!

Snowbound!

   I was just reminded of this one today. It is not a major thing that happened to us, but it still shows that God is here and that He is near and knows what's going on with us and when we need help.
   Several years ago, we made a quick trip to Georgia, because we heard that it was going to snow. We piled in the van and left. When we got there, the snow seemed to be melting. The kids had not seen snow yet, and the weather appeared very mild.
  Early in the evening until late at night, we heard on the radio and TV of all these places that were going to be closed the next day. Schools and daycares were going to be closed. Church meetings were called off. But the weather appeared fine to us. Did they know something that we didn't know?
   Just before we went to bed that night, my daughters were all excited! They noticed it was snowing. They went onto the porch and made a little snowman! We got dressed to go outside and look at the snow. Now I remembered why I was glad we lived in the South! Snow was pretty in pictures, but not enjoyable to walk in!
   We got up the next morning and I got rid of all the food. We packed the car up (our car was covered in snow). Everyone got in, but we realized that we weren't able to go anywhere. As we were leaving, we had to go up a road (we were in the mountains) and the car just wouldn't go up! We tried a couple of times, but to no avail! We noticed that there was no one in the office, and no one in the resort was getting into their cars to go anywhere. The other people seemed to know what was going on, but we were unprepared.
   We went back to our place where we were staying. Were we stuck here? We didn't have any food because we had thrown it out. We couldn't get out because of the snow and ice. What would happen to us?
  We got back in the car, and my husband prayed. He prayed for God to help us to get out. A few minutes later, there were some guys who came around to level the streets. We saw them and my husband flagged them down and asked if they could do the street we needed to be on to exit the resort. They were glad to do it. They also recommended that we be very careful and don't go over 35 mph.
  We were grateful that God supplied some men with their equipment to come our way, and level the street we were on so we could get out. The only alternative was to stay there without food or drink, and no way to get to a store that day.

70 Years of Miracles

  Do miracles happen today? Maybe a better question to ask is, does God work in a supernatural way among His people today?
  The basic problem we have in being human beings, is that we have sinful hearts. One person says it this way, "Our hearts are idol factories." (Calvin). By default, we love ourselves instead of loving God. The Bible says we can't love both at the same time!
  When it comes to miracles and God answering prayers, we have to be careful. When Jesus was ministering to people, 2,000 years ago, many people asked Him for a 'sign'. The people, in essence, wanted to be God, and wanted to call the shots when it comes to miracles. Jesus did many signs and wonders among the people, but they wanted to be the ones to decide on making the miracles happen or take the credit for it.
   We do the same thing today. We, if we are not careful, could want God to do miracles for a variety of reasons. One could be, because it would make us look important. Experiencing a miracle could cause us to become prideful. It could make us look powerful. Our friends would notice us and respect us in a new way. Sometimes, we want our problem to be solved, so we pray for God to meet our need. Or maybe we simply think that God's power belongs to us, for us to use at our discretion. Unless we have a deepening relationship with God, through the Lord Jesus Christ, and want to bring glory to God for what He does, we may not experience God's power in our lives. It is of utmost importance, that we respond to God with great, deep humility. No pride is allowed when we are serving God in truth.
   Any time miracles take place, it is always with God's intent to minister to someone, or to a group of people. That is how the body of Christ works. That brings much glory to His name.
   Richard Harvey is a man who is filled with faith and trusts in who God is. He is a conservative man who is not seeking to make a name for himself. He serves other people with the wisdom of God. In his book, '70 Years of Miracles', he tells of his everyday life, in his interactions with his family and those whom he was serving in the church, while he experienced not just an average life. He wrote about how God worked in many different situations that he was involved in. Some of them were simple, every day issues, like how his pregnant wife had a serious craving for watermelon, and after waiting all day, the watermelon finally came her way. This happened in another country where watermelons weren't readily available as they are in America. Or the lady who was dying from cancer. In her last days, she asked forgiveness for the person she was bitter toward. Just as she asked for the person to forgive her for her bitterness, she coughed up a huge glob. It was the cancer and it came out roots and all. It was really yucky, but she was healed after that.
    God can work through us, and we can use the spiritual gifts, but unless we have a strong motivation to make sure God gets the glory, our ministry will bring dishonor to His name. We don't want that to happen! Let us be filled with the Holy Spirit and serve the true and living God with gladness and in the fear of the Lord!

If you can find this book anywhere (it is out of print) get it! I got mine for a couple of dollars on amazon.com. I went back a week later to get some more, but they were a little more expensive and not many were available. Check back often because the sellers could put it on their list any day. Or maybe it will be listed on Ebay or Yahoo's store. An internet search can help locate this book.

How God Healed Me At Age 22

I have written this out and posted it on Facebook, so I will repost the article here. This happened in 1978, I believe, in Winter Haven, Florida.

I never imagined I would get to write about this years later but here it is. The beginnings of this sickness I had started right after I got married in 1975. I got very sick and almost ended up in the hospital when we were married for a couple of weeks. It involved a lot of trips to the doctor and antibiotics and a lot of patience. I was very sick with a kidney infection and had a fever that was hard to break, but it did break and I recovered, somewhat.

   Well, I still had problems with this kidney stuff. I went to another doctor and they found scar tissue and infection that will still there. I had to have minor surgery and then we moved away to another place. 

  By this time I had been married for about three and a half years. My husband worked for a hospital in Winter Haven at this time, and I started with a kidney infection which became very painful. I got really sick again, but now both my kidneys felt like they were on fire. On a Thursday or Friday, I was looking for a doctor. My husband found two options. I could get in right away with an internist, but his reputation wasn't very good, or, I could go to another doctor on Monday that had a high recommendation. I opted for getting in right away and took the first doctor. 

   When I got there I had an impression that he was going to give me medicine, but he would tell me it might not work. That exact thing happened. I was doubled over in pain, and both kidneys felt like they were on fire. Would I ever recover from this? It wasn't getting any better. 

  Of course, I had been praying for God to heal me, and believing that He would. But I stayed sick. I knew God was sovereign and that He was all powerful, but I wasn't getting better, only worse. 

  Well, Tuesday rolled around, and I was praying in the morning. But this morning instead of asking God to heal me, I thanked Him that He was sovereign over this sickness. Just a second after I prayed that, I noticed the pain disappeared. I was amazed. I knew God can heal and had heard of people being healed like that, but it actually happened to me. I was well! I recovered from the sickness. The doctor couldn't help. The medicine certainly didn't work, but God was merciful to me that day. And I am grateful to Him that I don't suffer with kidney infections anymore! The Bible talks about God as the Great Physician. One of His names is Jehovah-Rapha, which means The God Who heals. God is still at work today, just as He was when Jesus walked the earth, or when He created the earth in the beginning. The Bible says that God never changes. It also says that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever. 

  God heals people today. God is still supernatural and always will be. He also saves people from their sin. He rescues people and gives them hope because of the Cross. If you have never turned to God and trusted in Jesus as your Savior, now is the time to repent and trust! 

5

One Hundred Days of Miracles

   That seems like an unusual title for a book, but at least I remembered that name. I can't remember who wrote it, but the stories in it were amazing. They were short stories and they told of how God worked in power among His people. I had this book, at least 30 years ago, and wish I could find a copy of it somewhere.
  One of the stories told of a woman who had terminal cancer. She was in the hospital bed dying, when she was asked if there were anyone that she needed to forgive. As she contemplated this question, she realized she had bitterness toward a person. She repented and admitted her forgiveness for this person who she was angry with. Right after that, she started coughing. She coughed up a ball of something, which ended up being the tumor. She was healed of cancer at that moment.
  Now I know that there were many more details of that story that were left out, but this is what I remember of if. The author of the book spoke at the church we were at and told of some of the wonderful things God was doing in their midst. If anyone has a copy of this book or knows where I can get a copy, please let me know. I would love to have this book again.
  Update:  01/26/2013 - Woohoo, as my daughter would say! Something very interesting has happened here! As you know, I have been on a hunt for this book. It was quite a long time ago though, when this particular man came to our church (probably in 1977, at the latest). I have a good memory (or should I say, had a good memory until I had kids!) but I really can't remember the man's name, or really even the name of the book.
   I had done searches on the internet, and at amazon.com, but with no success. The only thing I really could remember about this book was that it was either called, '100 Days of Miracles' or '100 Years of Miracles' and the author's first name was probably Richard.
   We were visiting with some friends last night and were talking about this subject. I happened to ask them if they knew of this book, to which one replied that it sounded familiar. They suggested that I get in touch with the people who were around during the time that this man visited our church. At the same time, something came to my mind. It was the name 'Richard Harvey'. I thought about it for a while, but the name didn't sound familiar to me.
   When I got home, I thought I would do a search on the internet again, to find this book. I put in the key words '100 years of miracles richard'. Well, lo and behold, what came up was this '70 years of miracles Richard Harvey'. It was on amazon.com all along and the person who wrote it really was Richard Harvey, although that name still sounds unfamiliar to me.
   I ordered the book for around $5. Not sure where I got the number '100' instead of '70' though. God answered my prayer and my search is over now. I will report things that I read from the book, and I will make sure this book doesn't get lost in the house somewhere!