1-800-HEAVEN STINKING THINKING

Stop, listen, and smell the roses. If your mind is rushing from one thought to another nonstop, you're going to miss what our Lord wants you to hear. We are designed to listen and grasp what he is saying to us, then wait on Him to reveal what he wants us to do or say.

Psalms 46:10 Be still and know I am God. Also means: Stop Striving and realize that your striving stems from a lack of understanding of who God is and what He is capable of.

John 5:19 “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, these things the Son also does in like manner.”

John 12:49 Jesus said, “For I did not speak on My own initiative, but the Father Himself who sent Me has given Me a commandment as to what to say and what to speak.”

If our Lord, while fulfilling His Christ (redemption) ministry, was careful to do what these scriptures indicate, you can see how important it is for us to be attentive to His presence in our everyday life. I will continue this thought to illustrate why we should always follow our Savior's example. Have you ever had the idea that you would love to be more effective in your daily interactions with others who are without Christ, yet who show clear indications that they are searching for the truth? In seeking the truth, they are seeking Christ because He is the Truth. Remember this critical point: you may be sowing the seed of their salvation while, at the same time, causing them to resist for a moment. Why would I say such a thing?

God's promise to us is that His word will not be fruitless.

Isiah 55:11 “So will my word be which goes forth from my mouth; it will not return to me empty, without accomplishing what I desire, and without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.”

Let me be so bold as to say that if you want to be effective while sharing God’s word, let it be God’s Word. Listen to His still small voice for His prompting and know the Lord has already equipped you to share what He is saying, and let the Holy Spirit fill your mouth because He knows exactly what is needed at that exact moment.

By example, I will share my first experience when this lesson became life to me. On a mission trip to Kenya in the early 70s, our team was invited by the local churches in Nairobi to conduct an open-air presentation of the Gospel. Don Borgergard, the founder of Maranatha Missions of Kenya, greeted the over 100,000 people gathered in the central park. After sharing a short word, he turned to me and said, “You’re up, Lou” Want me to share my testimony I replied. He said, No, it's your time to preach. I froze. I have never done this, and in front of all these people? What do I say? With that, he said, “Go up to the pulpit, pray and ask the Lord to fill your mouth and He will do the rest”. And that is precisely what happened! One and a half hours later, I sat down and didn’t have a clue what had happened. That night, over 10,000 people received Christ as their Savior. GOD’S WORD THRU HIS SURRENDERED VESSELS ALWAYS RETURNED BEAUTIFUL FRUIT!

After the people around the platform dissipated a couple of the participating pastors came up to me to request my presence at a smaller gathering on the far side of the park. I asked them to state their request to Don since he was the right individual to ask. He agreed I should go, and off I went. This gathering consisted of new converts and church members assigned to guide them for the first few weeks of their salvation. They were standing all around the front and sides of the building. So many I couldn’t count. I sat on the platform with all the pastors. When asked to share what the Lord had to give, I was stuck again, not knowing what to do. I prayed again, and the Holy Spirit directed the following.

I directed the pastors to stand on the ground facing the people. The Holy Spirit told me to inform the people that they needed to be equipped to with the Power of the Holy Spirit. I talked about what happened on the day of Pentecost. Then I instructed the people to turn away from the platform and put their hands on the people in front of them. I directed the pastors to do the same. Then I laid my hands on the shoulder of the nearest pastor and began to pray that the Holy Spirit would fill the people with the evidence of speaking in other tongues. The power of God came down so powerfully through me, through my hands, and on through the pastor to the last person far out in the park. Then that same power rushed back through the people back to me. My experience in Kenya was meant to solidify my understanding that it is not me, but the Holy Spirit of promise, who does what the Father directs. Read the previous scriptures to see how God works fully. Remember Jesus' statement that He does what He sees the Father do.

In the following post or chapters (directed to combine 1-800 into a readable study), I will present other instances where the Holy Spirit has moved. Believe me when I say that many cases of His power are hard to understand or believe, but if you seek the Lord, He will reveal the reasons these things must happen. Miracles have several effects, and the primary one is to build faith and power within the believer. It has always been taught that miracles are for the unbeliever to convince them that Jesus is real. I disagree. I believe that man already knows he is lost, that he knows he is a sinner, that he is disobedient, and loves his sin to the point of rejecting all words of faith. But then there is a time when the most minor crack comes into their lives, and the search for absolute truth leads the individual to hear that still small voice. AND GRACE IS FOUND.