Healing Conference

Dana and I attended the Healing Conference down at Heritage this week. Bill Johnson spoke Tuesday and Wednesday. It was an amazing time and we left very encouraged by what we saw and what God was speaking to us.

The picture on the right is of a sign that was posted all around the Heritage facility. I thought it was hilarious.

One of the more dramatic moments almost didn't happen. As is Morning Star's custom, they have prophetic ministry available for conference attendees. I didn't really have high expectations for this and almost didn't sign up for a time slot. In fact, it was only because I saw the line wrapping around the hotel lobby to sign up that made me pause and think twice about it. I reluctantly signed up and got one of the last slots available - others were turned away soon afterwards. Boy, did I almost miss a real blessing.

When our time slot came, we sat down with 3 individuals we had never met before. They calmly explained the process and then started with a simple prayer. After a moment of waiting, they began to give us one of the most simple, direct and applicable prophetic words we had ever received. There was no guessing about the meaning, no trying to connect the dots. It was clear and simple. We took many notes during the session and when we walked away, we realized that we could've just wrote "Keep doing what you are doing". It was very encouraging and empowering.

One of the takeaways from the conference teaching was the concept of walking in the presence of God. It sounds real profound, I know. But in our culture, we prize knowledge and principles - we want understanding without responsibility or first-hand experience. When the disciples asked Jesus about the blind man in John 9, they asked "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" They were seeking understanding about the man's situation instead of compassion and power to deliver him. It was academic to them. They addressed Jesus as "Rabbi" or "teacher" - even after seeing Jesus do miracle after miracle.

The world does not need explanations with no power to deliver, but rather the Presence of God, Christ in me the hope of glory.

Still percolating on a lot of what we heard - More to come...

J

Rick Joyner on Lakeland and Heritage Outpouring

Rick Joyner has published a series of newsletters concerning the recent events in Lakeland Florida and at Heritage in Rock Hill SC. They give a great perspective from someone who has studied past revivals and moves of God. There are 3 parts (so far):

Part 1: http://www.morningstarministries.org/Publisher/Article.aspx?ID=1000031456
Part 2: http://www.morningstarministries.org/Publisher/article.aspx?id=1000031549
Part 3: http://www.morningstarministries.org/Publisher/article.aspx?id=1000031954


I will be attending a 3-day conference on healing at Heritage next week. Bill Johnson is scheduled to be the key speaker. Should be fabulous considering what is going on down there right now.

J

Christ the Healer - Part 2

I've long believed that God does heal and have heard many testimonies of this. Even as a child, I remember praying for my own healing for various colds and ailments. As I said in my last post, I think most Christians believe God can heal, I'm just not sure most believe He is willing to heal - every time.

Where does this mentality come from? One place that it comes from is our experience. When our experience does not line up with our doctrine, we tend to change our doctrine rather than demand an experience from our doctrine (thanks Bill). I'm not suggesting that we live in denial or that we should always understand every situation - I just think we should keep swinging. I once saw Joan Fitzgerald pray for a friend in a wheelchair - he was not instantly healed. Did she stop praying for the rest of the crowd around her? Nope. She didn't make any excuses or try to explain why he wasn't walking, she just simply moved on to the next person and kept praying. Just a few people down the line, was a girl with hearing problems. Her ears were instantly opened. I talked with her mother weeks later - the healing was real and lasting. I'm sure she was glad that Joan kept swinging!

If you look through the gospels, you will see that many times Jesus healed ALL who were brought to Him. He refused no one.

What assurances do we have that healing is available to us and everyone around us - without exception? Isaiah 53:4-5 states:

Surely he took up our infirmities and carried our sorrows, yet we considered him stricken by God, smitten by him, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed.

We like to do two things to this scripture:

1. Divide it into two pieces. We take the promise of forgiveness of our sins but leave the equally stated promise of healing of our sicknesses.


2. We tell ourselves that the healing mentioned is just spiritual, not physical.

Matthew 8:16-17 brings us the needed clarity:

When evening came, many who were demon-possessed were brought to him, and he drove out the spirits with a word and healed all the sick. This was to fulfill what was spoken through the prophet Isaiah: "He took up our infirmities and carried our diseases."

Jesus bore our sicknesses just as He bore our sins. He came to redeem ALL that was lost. Healing is available to all who desire it - just as with salvation.

And now for something complete different...

Google sometimes places funny quotes on top of my email client. Today's quote led me to a whole slew of quotes by stand-up comedian Emo Philips.

• My computer beat me at checkers, but I sure beat it at kick boxing.


• How many people here have telekinetic powers? Raise my hand.


• I was walking down fifth avenue today and I found a wallet, and I was gonna keep it, rather than return it, but I thought: well, if I lost a hundred and fifty dollars, how would I feel? And I realized I would want to be taught a lesson.


• Some mornings, it's just not worth chewing through the leather straps.

Reminds me a lot of Steven Wright's stand-up routines. Here are a couple of his:

• Cross country skiing is great if you live in a small country.


• Ever notice how irons have a setting for permanent press? I don't get it.


• Everywhere is within walking distance if you have the time.


• I drive way too fast to worry about cholesterol.


• I hooked up my accelerator pedal in my car to my brake lights. I hit the gas, people behind me stop, and I'm gone.

Well, they're funny to me anyway...:)

J

Healing Evangelists

I've been reading a lot lately about the healing evangelists of the 1950s. People like William Branham and Jack Coe. I ran across the God's Generals website and they have a great list of short video clips you can watch (here is a great one of Branham telling a lady her name and her address and healing her of cancer - another one of cancer falling off a lady's nose into the hand of Jack Coe). Some are more dramatic than others. Some you may look at with skepticism. I find that my skepticism is mostly rooted in how they present themselves or how their character may have faltered. So, I have to look past that and try to see what God was, and is, doing. John the Baptist certainly did not present himself well in animal skins - but he was a powerful vessel for God. King David was not without sin - but he was dear to God. These guys had faults and were human, but they also were obedient to what they felt God was calling them to do.

I wonder how many more are out there and have been disqualified either by others or by themselves for their shortcomings? We, like Paul exorted Timothy, must not receive a "spirit of timidity" but rather should "fan the flame of the gift" given to us. Paul said "I care very little if I am judged by you...indeed, I do not even judge myself" (I Cor. 4:3) What is he saying here? That we should not examine our lives and root out sin? Not quite - it is a matter of degree. He goes on to say "My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me." In other words, he could examine himself to the extreme but still have sin that he has no knowledge of - therefore it is better to let the Holy Spirit reveal sin along the way. We have work to do, and we cannot make ourselves perfect, or expect others to be, before we do it.

Christ the Healer

I am currently reading F. F. Bosworth's "Christ the Healer". It has been eye-opening. If you have any interest in miracles and healing, this book is required reading. He makes a very convincing case for bodily healing being part of the atonement of Christ - that just as He bore our sin, He also bore our sicknesses. I am not through with it yet and will certainly be posting more about it later. But one thing I will say now, and this is something he addresses in the book, is that most people believe God can heal, but they are not convinced He is willing to heal them - and that is the sticking point.

What do you think? Is Christ always willing to heal?

J

Men Before Me

This is a picture of my grandparents on my dad's side. That's my dad holding what appears to be an official Red Rider BB Gun. My uncle Joe is in that contraption that I think is a stroller. Not yet born is my uncle Wayne.

Interestingly, I just found out that my wife and I share the same wedding anniversary date as my grandparents - August 10. I have a lot of good memories of visiting them in Savannah GA. A time I will never forget is when it was just me and Grandpa sitting on the back of his blue pickup truck - just talkin'. He told me about his times in the Army and I distinctly remember him describing the intercom box in his barracks as the "bitch box". I remember feeling so grown up just sitting there with him. I couldn't have been more than 10 years old at the time.

My granny is on the left. She died when I was in middle school. I just always remember her being in the kitchen. She used to bake corn in the oven with bacon on top. And we all know that everything is better with bacon.