I've spent the past couple weeks ministering to people on a one-on-one basis, which is actually my preferred method (so if you have questions of any kind, feel free to e-mail me: Art@SupernaturalBlogger.com).

One particular person named Christynn (permission granted to use her real name and e-mails) has been asking some significant questions about physical healing that I thought would be good to publish. There is a lot of confusion about how God's healing power works, so I want to help clear things up with what the Bible actually says.

Christynn read my article about how the scars on my face were miraculously healed, and it struck a chord with her because of her own condition. The following are excerpts from our dialogue about her healing:

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Christynn writes:
The story about your scars is amazing! God is awesome. I'd like to talk to you about it; I've been standing in faith for Him to take mine as well. And I believe He has. Sometimes it gets hard to keep the faith. I'd like to know what you did. Please email me back.

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Art writes:
Great to hear from you! God can definitely heal your scars—I've met several people since I was healed who have also had scars miraculously disappear. But if there's one thing I've learned, it's that the method is sort of irrelevant. Look through the Scriptures, and you'll see that Jesus never healed two blind people the same way, etc. I have yet to meet someone else who had a vision like mine and was then healed over a two or three week process as they laid hands on their scars and said, "Jesus, take the scars." (that's what I did, by the way).

Anyhow, the reason I say this is because what God longs for—more than anything else—is for you to trust Him and cultivate your relationship with Him. That's the one common thread I've found: people being healed as they draw near to the heart of God. So keep seeking His face more than you seek His hand—look for His presence more than His power, and the power will follow suit. The Lord once told me that the only thing necessary for a miracle to happen is the presence of God—so if we'll get into His presence and get to know His voice, everything will be in place. At that point, it's just a matter of talking to Him about your condition.

Also remember that faith is substance. It has a very real spiritual form. But faith is not merely "belief for the sake of believing"—that’s presumption. Real faith is relationship-based. If my fiancé, Robin, says she'll meet me somewhere, I have faith that she'll be there because I know her and trust her. I have faith in her. I could "believe" with all my might that she would be somewhere else, but that wouldn't be faith...it would be presumption. If she says she'll be somewhere, it takes faith to trust her. God is the same way. We don't change Him by merely believing something with all our might—but we can certainly touch His heart by drawing near to Him.

Psalm 107:20 says, "He sent forth His word and healed them." That's what happened to me—the Lord sent forth His word to me because I was desperate enough to cry out to Him and press in for a response. In my case, the Lord responded with a simple vision in my mind. For other people, they just receive an assurance that God has granted the healing, and they stand by it. For others, they may have some physical sensation. Whatever the case, the key ingredient is the fact that God Himself has spoken it, and so we grab onto that promise in faith. Until He speaks, we can "believe" all we want; but that is nothing but impersonal presumption—not faith. Faith is based on relationship.

So I don’t know where you're at right now, but check your heart. If you're struggling to see a healing manifest, think back and determine whether or not you've pressed into God's presence with persistent petition on this matter and actually received a word back from Him. If you haven't yet heard from Him, then you need to keep asking Him to heal you until there is some sort of response. Once that response comes, though, you can take it as an edict from the throne room of heaven and trust the word wholeheartedly! You can grab onto that word with full assurance that the Lord has spoken and it WILL happen! Apart from that word from God, your belief won’t accomplish much. But with that word from God, there is NOTHING that can stand in the way of your faith!

Remember: Romans 10:17 tells us that "Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." Listen for His spoken word regarding your healing, and your faith will genuinely be evidence of a hoped-for healing and the substance of your healing even when it is not yet seen (Hebrews 11:1). So spend some time in conversation with God. I don't know much about you from your e-mail, so if you'd like me to explain this further, just let me know—otherwise I'll assume that it makes sense to you.

Thanks for taking the time to e-mail. I’ll be praying for you!

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Christynn writes:
Yes, Art that all makes perfect sense. I appreciate you taking the time to reply. I'm 23 and married and saved and love God dearly. About 3 months ago my complexion started breaking out and not really scaring, but leaving marks behind. I've had skin issues since I was 12 and in the past few years it hasn't been too much of a problem, until recently.

The last few years I strayed far from Him. I did drugs, was addicted to porn, didn't go to church, and messed around with someone, other than my husband. I know God didn't put skin ailments/problems on me, only satan does that (John 10:10), but I think it happened to wake me up and realize I can't live without God.

I've turned my life around, got baptized and serve Him completely; at first it was to get Him to heal me, now I crave Him all the time. He spoke a word to me a while back as I was reading Gal. 3:13 and He said, "I became a curse for you, so you don't have to live with one." And back in Deuteronomy 28 it talks about the curse of the law and how skin ailments are part of that. I've been standing on that ever since. And I found the story of you and it gave me such hope that He cares for us so much that he wants to take away small ailments like acne/skin problems and scars. Things that aren't life or death, but things that bother His children.

I bought the little healing prayer book called, "God's creative power for healing" by Charles Capps and I read it everyday--2-3 times a day--and plea the Blood of Jesus, His Word, His holy healing power and faith into every pore of my complexion so there is no room for satan to infest it. Where God is, the devil can't be. I'm fully persuaded that He has healed me, but it's hard to look in the mirror or at people. But I know it's a lie from satan and it will soon reflect my new inner self.

It's hard to look my husband in the eye sometimes, but what you said, "…you can take it as an edict from the throne room of heaven and trust the word wholeheartedly! You can grab onto that word with full assurance that the Lord has spoken and it WILL happen! And with that word from God, there is NOTHING that can stand in the way of your faith!"

I want to know what you did when things looked hopeless while your scars where still there. Would you look in the mirror and still see them and get down? What did you do then?

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Art writes:
I didn't do a whole lot during those two or three weeks while the Lord was healing my scars. I didn't pretend they weren't there or believe they were already gone—some people call that "positive confession," but I personally feel like it's just "denial." The way I see it, it's one thing to believe that my healing is already purchased and certain; but it's another thing to act like it already happened when it still hasn't. If I had cancer, then it wouldn't do me any good to pretend I didn't have it—as a matter of fact, that would be dangerous!

So for two or three weeks, I looked in the mirror every morning and acknowledged my scars. I would sometimes speak to them: "You don’t belong here anymore." Then I would put my hands on my face and say, "Jesus, take the scars," because that was in line with the vision God gave me. In your case, you can ask Him to "take the curse" because that's how He spoke to you. Picture Him on the cross and remember that your condition was completely paid for there.

What matters is that you stay realistic. If you're "already healed," then why are you still asking for healing? On the other hand, if your healing is already paid for by Christ and you're not yet experiencing it, you have an awesome reason to be asking for it! You still have a skin condition that has not been healed even though Jesus Christ paid for it. That's an injustice! Call it what it is! Then go to the King of all creation and plead your case, asking for righteousness and justice to reign through your healing!

Don't be afraid to acknowledge earthly reality and command it to be subject to the superior reality of God's Kingdom. No one has skin conditions in heaven, and Jesus taught us to pray that our Father's Kingdom would come and that His will would be done on earth just as it is in heaven! The Kingdom of Heaven is a superior reality; but until it is manifested on earth, we need to be willing to acknowledge the earthly reality—otherwise we won't press in with prayer in the way we ought to.

Another thing is that I would purposefully look for even the slightest inkling of improvement and worship God for it. I remember the first time I noticed a little corner of one of my scars had some pigment in it—I immediately dropped to my knees and started thanking God. So try to maintain a heart of worship and adoration at all times.

In everything, remember that we need to also be content in all things. It's okay to settle in your heart the idea that whether you're healed or not, God is still worthy of all your adoration. Keep your focus more on Him than on your physical condition. I only dealt with asking for healing in the morning and spent the rest of my day focusing on Him, building our relationship, and praying for revival in my church. I didn't let my physical condition consume me. Be persistent in your prayers, but also keep your priorities set. If your physical healing begins to occupy all your prayer time, then the devil has won—keep your focus on matters of the kingdom and don't let yourself get wrapped up in one little thing.

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After this e-mail, Christynn and I spoke on the phone, and she recognized that she had been allowing her condition to occupy most of her prayer time. At the end of our conversation we prayed, and I sensed the Holy Spirit pointing to a root issue in her heart that immediately resonated with her. We prayed about her need to forgive herself, and here's what she wrote later that day:

Thank you Art, so much for your prayers and time; you have no idea how much that meant. I pray I'll be as good a witness to others as you were to me. We are only vessels to God. I looked in the mirror after we prayed and I saw some small improvement! Praise God! And praise Him for the complete manifestation!

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At this point, a couple days passed, and I received this e-mail:

Christynn writes:
Last night I found this church out in Dallas called the Healing School. I was curious and called them. I also sent those pictures of my face that I sent to you. The first thing they asked was how my marriage was. I told them it was fine, my husband doesn't go to church as often as he should, but he believes in Jesus and loves Him. He just is going through a hard time with questions about the church. (Thankfully God's putting people in his life to answer them.)

And the pastor basically told me that's why I'm not healed, because my husband is being disobedient. I asked him were in the Bible does it say that and he couldn't back it up. He just told me to read the whole New Testament with my husband and go to church every Sunday and tithe and then I'll be healed.

But I said back to him, in Isaiah 53:4 it says "He took up our infirmities and carried away our diseases." No where in there does it say, but only if you don't tell a lie or only if you make your husband go to church. No, it says point-blank He took them! In Titus 3:5 it says "He saved us, not because of any righteous things we have done, but because of His mercy." And I'm healed because of His merciful sacrifice! He also said that no one in the Bible got healed by Jesus until they repented and walked holy, even the woman with the blood disease. The way I read it is she only believed Jesus could heal her and He said her faith healed her, not anything else.

Now I know that one needs to confess their sins and ask for forgiveness like it says in James 5:16, and I have done that and have completely turned my life around for Him. And I'll tell ya Art, my skin is improving! Every morning I thank Him for taking the curse and even the slightest improvement I thank Him over and over. And people are noticing the difference and I say "Thank God, all glory to Him!"

My mom, who's a strong women of God, was listening to the conversation I was having with the pastor and she was shaking her head and said tell him goodbye. Then after I did, my mom, my dad and I all prayed and broke any spoken curses over me that that pastor said, and thanked God for healing my skin once again.

The thing I noticed that I told my mom was when I talked to you; you were encouraging and uplifting and prayed for me regardless of whatever. This pastor didn't pray for me, he just told me I was wrong and I couldn’t be healed unless whatever. I believe the more Christ you see in a person, the more Christ sees in us. Thank you Art for being Christ-like to me.

If you could give me some feed back on what this pastor said and your thoughts on the matter, I'd appreciate it. My mom told me a true story of a married couple, she was Christian and he was Muslim, and her prayers were getting answered and his were not. That's how he became saved to Jesus! So there, it doesn't matter what your spouse is going through, God's relationship with you is based on you, no one else. Praise God!

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Art writes:
Wow—yeah, your mom was completely right. As far as spouses go, I see two big issues with that pastor's logic and theology. #1, your husband does indeed believe in Christ—he just has questions and is going through a sort of "desert time" right now. That's totally normal, and many Christians experience this—I went through such a time myself. #2, even if he didn't believe in Christ, Paul said that "the unbelieving spouse is sanctified by the believing spouse." God's power is stronger than sin and cannot be limited in your life by someone else's condition. It's silly to think that God's power would be overcome by your husband not attending a weekly meeting. If we were made sick every time a relative questioned the church or "didn’t tithe," NO ONE would be healthy! Tithing, by the way, is another issue I have because it's a law that gets heaped on people and makes them feel unnecessarily guilty. Believe it or not, the Bible actually doesn't tell us to tithe, so that's not part of the problem either (you can read an article I wrote about tithing and how Christians should actually give titled The Truth about Tithing if you're interested).

The scriptures you quoted were absolutely right, and your discernment on the matter was right too. I sincerely believe that we already got to the root of the matter when we prayed about self-hatred and forgiving yourself. I felt the Holy Spirit was bringing it up, and it resonated with you right away; both of these are evidence that it was the right thing to address. So a big part of your continued healing will be continuing to walk in self-forgiveness and reminding yourself of your inner freedom through Christ. That, in my opinion, is the most important word you've received from God yet regarding your healing!

Let me know if you have further questions. I'm looking forward to your complete healing!

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Finally, we come to today's e-mail...

Christynn writes:
I hate to keep bothering you with questions. Sorry if I am. What do you think about me going to a doctor for my skin condition? I mean if God has healed me, should I go to one? And if I believe He is my healer and great physician, is it an insult to Him if I go and seek medical help for my skin?

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Art writes:
It's totally fine. Like I said on the phone, it's okay to use "crutches" while God is bringing the healing.

Remember when I told you how I threw my back out last year and couldn't walk for two weeks? Well, before God healed me, I was going to the doctor and to physical therapy for those two weeks. It wasn't accomplishing much—especially compared to the complete healing God gave me—but when I walked into PT the next week perfectly fine, I got to share my testimony with the Therapist, his assistant, and three people who had seen me barely moving for the past couple weeks. It was a tremendous opportunity to share the Gospel because the miracle was so obvious.

Likewise, my mom had a hysterectomy about six years ago—never actually received a divine healing, except that she is still cancer-free. Anyhow, she did everything she possibly could to have people pray for her and experience a healing before the surgery date, but nothing happened. Then, while she was in the hospital being prepped for surgery, she got to pray with two young ladies who couldn't believe how calm she was (they were also there to go through procedures). My mom prayed for the Holy Spirit to give them supernatural peace, and it worked! If my mom hadn't gone in for surgery, those two women might never have encountered the power and presence of God like that.

So seeking medical help is only a sin if you are "giving up on God" and leaving Him behind. But if, on the other hand, you are getting medical attention and welcoming God to come along with you, you are not in sin. It's just another opportunity to get around people who may never have heard the Gospel before. Look for opportunities to plant seeds in the waiting room, with the doctor, at the pharmacy—wherever! Just use it for the glory of God.

Lastly, I know many many people who have been healed of a condition for which they were presently seeing a doctor, so this obviously doesn't hinder a healing. The only way it slows you down is if you believe it will slow you down. But as long as you recognize that our Almighty God is not limited by us getting medical attention, and that He can still miraculously heal you, you have nothing to worry about. There's nothing in the Bible that says to avoid doctors—actually, Luke, who wrote the third Gospel and the book of Acts (all about miracles and healings) was a physician himself. And I've heard it taught that when James 5:14-15 says to have the elders of the church pray for you and anoint you with oil in the name of the Lord, the "anointing with oil" was culturally a medicinal practice rather than a spiritual one in this case. Notice how verse 15 says it is the prayer offered in faith that makes the sick person well; not the oil. If you have to take some sort of medicine, take it in the name of the Lord. Dedicate it to Christ's use. And keep trusting God to bring such a complete healing that you won't need the medicine anymore. He can do it, and I believe He will do it.

Don't feel bad about all the questions—this is my ministry, so I welcome it :-)

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Closing Thoughts:
When seeking to know what the Bible has to say about healing, it's important to consult the Bible first. There are hundreds and perhaps thousands of books out there with wacky ideas that are neither healthy nor true. A good book on healing is hard to come by. I've found that the people who understand healing theology the best are the ones who have been personally healed in the name of Jesus Christ several times (not just once) and have applied that faith to seeing others miraculously healed. The bizarre ideas come from people who were healed once many years ago because everything in the Bible gets interpreted through the filter of their one experience. When you've been healed several times, however, you discover that God never does it the same way twice!

We need to keep our eyes fixed on Jesus!

God bless!
--Art--

With all the writing I've been doing about the Lakeland meetings with Todd Bentley, I wanted to take a moment to exalt the name of Jesus Christ for His true healing power!

In the first two pictures to the right, you can see various scars I used to have on my face. The most obvious ones are there on my chin. It's a little hard to tell, but there are also big scars on my cheeks, nose, and forehead--they're just sunburned, so they show up pink (click the images for a larger picture).

I received these scars from borderline third-degree burns (technically classified as second-degree) when I was 16 years old. The doctor said they would never go away, and my dermitologist said that in the slim chance that they would disappear, it would take 7 years because that's how long it takes a skin cell to replace itself. In the first picture, I was 17, and in the second picture, I was 18. Shortly after that, though, was the healing I'm about to share with you, which resulted in the third picture, taken when I was 19.

Three years into having the scars, I got upset with God--I don't recommend that, but it's just where I was at the time. I said, "God, what's the point? You're not getting any glory from these scars! Children are afraid of me. It's embarassing. Why would you make me live with these scars?"

Suddenly, a picture popped into my mind of Jesus after the resurrection when he told Thomas to put his fingers where the nails were and touch where the spear entered His side. I sensed the Lord saying, "I didn't just take the punishment for your sin so that you wouldn't have to face it, but I also--even now--bear the scars so that you don't have to!"

I quickly put my hands on my face and said, "Jesus, take the scars!" Nothing happened.

But I held onto that word from God and did the same thing every morning. Within three weeks, they disappeared completely--four years before the dermitologist said it was humanly possible! To this day, the only evidence I have of those scars is a little patch of white hair that grows in my beard (and I technically shouldn't be able to grow a beard because of the dead cells that once formed the scars!). And any time someone points out the white, I get to share this testimony with them! God is so awesome!

That's not the only time I've been healed, though. As a baby, I was diagnosed with a heart murmer, but my parents had our church pray for me and I was miraculously healed. As a matter of fact, my medical record still shows the heart murmer even though the doctors agree that I no longer have one!

Then there was my broken back that was healed about six months ago. Long story short, I dislocated some vertebrae and pinched some discs, which rendered me unable to walk or even move without excruciating pain. I spent two weeks sleeping on a mattress on the floor of our living room before I begged to be taken to my church. There, during the morning prayer time, I was laying on the floor in pain. My pastor prayed one of the simplest prayers: "Father, I hate seeing Art hurt like this! Would You please do something?" Immediately, I felt and heard a series of pops as my spine went perfectly into place! I returned to the physical therapist on Monday walking perfectly upright (only a slight limp from a pulled muscle in my hip). I got to share the Gospel with the therapist and his assistant, and the assistant rededicated her life to the Lord! She had not been to church since she was married about a decade prior, but now she could see the power of God!

I could go on for hours with these stories. I've been healed of tendonitis in my right shoulder, Attention Deficit Disorder, a degenerative tooth disease that was making my teeth fall apart, stomach ulcers, chronic sinusitis, and more. I KNOW God's healing power and the TRUTH that by the lashings Christ endured, we are healed! I can say with confidence that you too can be healed supernaturally in the name of Jesus Christ, the Son of God!

Jesus Christ has all power and authority in heaven and on earth, and I feel it is important to testify to it--especially in the midst of so much speculation surrounding the physical healings taking place in Lakeland, Florida with Todd Bentley. I still do not endorse those meetings (you can read the other articles here at www.SupernaturalTruth.com to find out why), but I certainly do not deny the power of God to heal people physically!

Feel free to e-mail these pictures and testimony to your friends to show proof of God's healing power. I would like to open up the "comments" section of this blog post to people who have testimonies of their own healing or prayer requests for physical healing; and then I would like for us to praise God, rejoice with one another, and pray for the afflicted in Jesus' name. Let's get a true online "healing revival" going, and let's do it in the name of Jesus Christ with a clear presentation of the Gospel!

Blessings,
--Art--

A notable event has stirred up in the little town of Lakeland, Florida. On April 2, Todd Bentley began a series of meetings that have now lasted nearly a month due to the intense spiritual activity taking place. I usually prefer not to write lengthy blog posts, but I believe this is a topic that warrants it.

I have scoured the Internet for credible information on these events, and I find that people seem to be either gung-ho for it or dead-set against it. As you are all aware, I believe very much in the supernatural, but I am also a strong proponent of what is actually true rather than what is counterfeit. Therefore, I want to present both sides of the coin, and then offer what I believe the Word of God has to say about such debatable matters.

So far, the most objective information I've found (although largely supportive of the event) came from Charisma Magazine, which presented this report:

Thousands of people longing for a physical or spiritual touch from God are flocking to central Florida for ongoing revival meetings that some have dubbed the "Lakeland Healing Outpouring."

The services, which are being broadcast live daily on GOD TV to millions of potential viewers, reveal the excitement radiating from this area of the Sunshine State, prompting some people to jump on planes and fly in from across the country and even from abroad.

Todd Bentley, the 32-year-old Canadian healing evangelist with a boyish grin responsible for the meetings, reported on Friday that people’s faith alone has healed them even while they were booking their flights online or boarding planes bound for Lakeland, a city of about 90,000 between Orlando and Tampa along Interstate 4.

The 700-seat sanctuary of host pastor Stephen Strader’s Ignited Church can no longer contain the crowds. More than 1,000 worshipers stood inches apart at Friday night’s service, jamming every aisle and altar area. Their bodies rocked back and forth, and their faces wore peace-filled, lovesick and euphoric expressions.

The cars parked outside were also inches apart, with every grassy parcel of land on bordering properties used for overflow. During worship, song lyrics on PowerPoint were replaced with a warning to drivers parked at a nearby store that their cars would be "towed immediately."

"We are all shocked that each night a minimum of 60 percent [are] first time [visitors]," Strader said yesterday.

Fire marshals locked the church doors at last night’s meeting, forcing 400 people to remain in front of the church. The crowd watched the service on a large TV, and more than 200 waited until midnight for Bentley to come out and pray for them, Strader said....

At Friday night’s meeting, the mother of a 6-year-old girl said her daughter broke her elbow about two weeks ago and was healed after a word of knowledge from Bentley. The little girl told the crowd: “Jesus came out of heaven and touched my elbow.” The girl’s before-and-after X-rays are posted on YouTube [Art: I should interject here that I've seen this video, and there is nothing visible to the poor quality camera--all you can see is a lot of excitement among the people viewing the X-rays. That doesn't mean they're not real; it just means it's not worth looking up].

Amber, a thin 15-year-old girl born with scoliosis, said she was healed and could now carry her schoolbooks as well as bend over and touch the floor, which she did publicly during the meeting. One man said he was healed of Hepatitis C. An elderly woman said she went to the doctor for confirmation first before telling the crowd she was healed of glaucoma.

Others on Friday night said they were healed of rheumatoid arthritis, panic attacks, ruptured discs, deafness, post traumatic stress disorder, cancer, leukemia and emphysema.

After a half hour of testimonials Bentley asked the crowd “to give the Lord the glory.” For at least 40 minutes people continually cried the words “holy” and “glory” in a chorus.

Some worshipers fell to the floor weeping. From behind his keyboard, a blonde-locked worship leader named Roy Fields led the procession, his face beaming heavenward.

“What is happening is so much bigger than anyone in this building,” Bentley said from the stage where he was kneeling. “I hear the angels joining in. … The Holy Spirit is taking over.”....

The meetings have been extended due to swelling crowds. Bentley announced Friday the revival would continue daily through at least May 4. He also said he believes the same revival will hit Kansas City, Mo., next.

—Paul Steven Ghiringhelli in Lakeland, Fla.

Charisma Magazine's perspective on the revival appears to be rather positive. It even had quotes from John Arnott and John Kilpatrick from Toronto, Canada, and Pensecola, Florida respectively. These men were instrumental in big "outpouring" events of their own--and they too were highly criticized and scrutinized for their meetings and the strange things taking place.

As it turns out, there was a well-documented prophecy given to Todd Bentley before the Lakeland events at a meeting in Australia. A pastor from New Zealand, Rob DeLuca, foretold the "healing revival" that would break out in Florida and spread around the globe (the picture to the right was taken while this prophecy was being given). Whether or not this prophecy was actually from God has yet to be seen; but as you'll see in a moment, there is a healthy way we should respond until it is either fulfilled or proven false.

I've also found people, like Andrew Strom, who are sharply against what is happening--although this does not surprise me because Andrew Strom has been pointing out fallacies and heresies in the prophetic movement for some time (many of them valid, admittedly, but some of them overblown). Strom asked in a recent e-mail regarding this movement in Florida, "Have we completely forgotten the warnings of 'Lying signs and wonders' in the Last Days?" I believe this is a fair warning, and we would be wise to stay on our guard about such matters, but we have yet to see if this is actually the case in Lakeland.

Strom has a lot of criticisms about Todd Bentley's ministry, but I do not believe this necesarily means God has not been using Todd to perform genuine miracles (see my article titled Spiritual Power and the Nature of Christ). As much as Andrew Strom is doing well to keep our eyes focused on Christ and free from false teachings, he also has issues in his life that could be criticized (though I do not believe it is my place to share these things in a public forum like this without addressing him personally first). The point I'm making is that no one is perfect, and we need to be discerning of what God may or may not be doing rather than judgmental of the individual(s) He might be using to carry out the work.

Finally, as promised, I want to present how I believe we should resond to this activity in Florida.

In Jeremiah 28, we learn about a false prophet named Hananiah who proclaimed, "This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says: 'I will break the yoke of the king of Babylon. Within two years I will bring back to this place all the articles of the LORD's house that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon removed from here and took to Babylon. I will also bring back to this place Jehoiachin son of Jehoiakim king of Judah and all the other exiles from Judah who went to Babylon,' declares the LORD, 'for I will break the yoke of the king of Babylon.'" (Jer. 28:2-4).

So the false prophet Hananiah prophesied peace in a time when the true prophet Jeremiah knew better. But what was Jeremiah's response? Did he condemn Hananiah? Did he rebuke the false prophet's words? Nope.

Jeremiah 28:5-17--Then the prophet Jeremiah replied to the prophet Hananiah before the priests and all the people who were standing in the house of the LORD. He said, "Amen! May the LORD do so! May the LORD fulfill the words you have prophesied by bringing the articles of the LORD's house and all the exiles back to this place from Babylon. Nevertheless, listen to what I have to say in your hearing and in the hearing of all the people: From early times the prophets who preceded you and me have prophesied war, disaster and plague against many countries and great kingdoms. But the prophet who prophesies peace will be recognized as one truly sent by the LORD only if his prediction comes true."

Then the prophet Hananiah took the yoke off the neck of the prophet Jeremiah and broke it, and he said before all the people, "This is what the LORD says: 'In the same way will I break the yoke of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon off the neck of all the nations within two years.'" At this, the prophet Jeremiah went on his way.

Shortly after the prophet Hananiah had broken the yoke off the neck of the prophet Jeremiah, the word of the LORD came to Jeremiah: "Go and tell Hananiah, 'This is what the LORD says: You have broken a wooden yoke, but in its place you will get a yoke of iron. This is what the LORD Almighty, the God of Israel, says: I will put an iron yoke on the necks of all these nations to make them serve Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, and they will serve him. I will even give him control over the wild animals.' "

Then the prophet Jeremiah said to Hananiah the prophet, "Listen, Hananiah! The LORD has not sent you, yet you have persuaded this nation to trust in lies. Therefore, this is what the LORD says: 'I am about to remove you from the face of the earth. This very year you are going to die, because you have preached rebellion against the LORD.' "

In the seventh month of that same year, Hananiah the prophet died. (NIV)

Three things stand out to me in this passage. First, Jeremiah shouted, "Amen!" to the prophecy of peace and affirmed that he too wanted the word to come to pass. Second of all, Jeremiah makes the point that if a person prophesies war and disaster, that's nothing special; but if they prophesy peace, then they are only recognized as true if their prediction comes to pass. And thirdly, God brought judgment on the false prophet as foretold through the true prophet.

Furthermore, 1 Corinthians 13:6,7 tells us, "Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres" (NIV). If we are truly a people of love, then we should rejoice with the truth...but we should also always trust and hope. In love, I believe we should trust Todd Bentley and hope that this truly is a move of God.

If this current movement is truly from God, then no one will be able to stop it. And if Todd Bentley is a false prophet, then I can guarantee that God will expose him for what he is. But unless this happens, I have to say, "Amen! So be it! May this be the beginning of the revival we've been crying out for! May the healing power of God be poured forth from heaven on a global scale!" If God reveals differently to me, then I will certainly speak out against these meetings, but I will not do so apart from genuine revelation. For now, let's pray that God would reveal the truth of Jesus Christ and save thousands of souls in the midst of what is happening with Todd Bentley in Lakeland.

Have you ever been hurt by a friend? A stranger? An authority figure? A church? Discover the life transformational power of real forgiveness that will set you free from your past!

If you go to the Podcasts page of SupernaturalTruth.com, you'll find a new section titled "Sermons and Teachings." I've added a lesson I taught at the recent Encounter Retreat titled "Forgiveness." Simply right-click on the link there and select "Save Target As" to download it to your computer. Then listen at your leisure!

This message is packed with testimonies and personal examples that bring it to life and make practical applications. Expect the Holy Spirit to minister to your heart as you listen!

Blessings!
--Art--

P.S.--As always, the message is not copywritten, so you are free to copy and distribute it as you see fit. I only ask that appropriate credit is given and that you do not sell the teaching for financial gain. Thanks!

One of the couples from my small group who attended the Encounter Retreat this weekend got to experience the delivering power of God. They're completely free from a long-time addiction to smoking!

The wife stopped smoking on Friday--as I understand it, this was mostly due to some chest and throat pain she was experiencing. That evening they went outside to smoke, but she found it hurt too much. All day Saturday, she stayed away from cigarettes because of the pain, but she was grateful for her condition and felt it was God's way of making her not even like smoking. That night, she got her cigarettes from her car and threw them in the bon fire...but her husband refused.

He had tried quitting many times before and thought he knew what a waste it would be to get rid of his current pack of cigarettes...that's a lot of money to waste if you're not really quitting! But as he laid in bed that night, he prayed, "God, if you really want me to quit, then I don't want any symptoms whatsoever--no headaches, nervousness, or even oral fixations like gum chewing or pen biting. Nothing!"

Guess who took him up on his bargain? You guessed it! The next day brought no withdrawal symptoms at all. Neither did Monday. Or Tuesday! He said this is the first time he's ever been able to quit without horrible side effects.

Part of the solution was the supernatural power of God that appears to have brought healing to his lungs and nervous system; another aspect is that at the Encounter Retreat we deal with matters of the heart and healing inner wounds from past experiences.

Addictions like smoking tend to stem from inner voids that need to be filled. Often they are a way of simulating peace and giving temporary relief from anxieties or stress. But such methods are entirely artificial. When the inner void is filled with the Spirit of God, however, and we actively choose to rely on Him for peace, we begin to find complete freedom!

Now, here's how to stay free: Temptation to return to an addiction will inevitably arise when we find ourselves facing the same stress or anxiety that we used to manage with our addiction. We then have a choice: either we can suppress our desires or confess them to the Lord. Suppression only serves to pressurize these desires so that they erupt later on in a flurry of anger or an addictive binge. Confession, however, allows the desire to be released in a healthy way. We can then confess our anxiety and stress to Christ, ask Him to handle all our concerns, and choose to trust Him.

Addictions are not solved "cold-turkey." They are solved by the love of Father God, trust in Jesus Christ, and the power of the Holy Spirit. Allow God to heal your heart and teach you to trust Him. Ask Him to heal you. And rely on Him to keep you free! He will do it!

1 Thessalonians 5:23-24--May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful and he will do it (NIV).

What can I say? Our Encounter Retreat was awesome! God showed up in powerful ways and ministered His love and power to everyone present in one form or another. Some had a deep inner revelation of our heavenly Father and experienced His love in a whole new way. Some had a God-given realization of their guilt and came to encounter the work of Jesus Christ deeper than ever before. Many of us had dreams, visions, and supernatural experiences. Many people were released from long-time bitterness that they didn't even know they had. Strongholds were demolished. Chains were broken. The all-consuming Fire of God set people dramatically free this weekend!

On top of all this, on our drive home, we called one of the ladies from our small group and found out she had been horribly sick all weekend. We invited ourselves over to pray for her (which she welcomed). Before we had even arrived at her house, her fever lifted for the first time in days!

From there we went to the little city park in downtown Plymouth to have our Wildfire School of Supernatural Ministry and play worship music by the big fountain in the middle. We had fifteen people from our group show up, and we worshipped God for about an hour together in the park.

Before long, it started getting too cold to stay out there, so we went to a local coffee shop called "The Bean" to continue. Within a matter of minutes after we started playing music, a man walked in and looked at us. My girlfriend Robin flagged him over, and he listened as my friends Sara and Katie sang a song they wrote that said, "I want to wake up and find that I've already died and it's not I but Christ who lives in me."

"Hi, how are you?" I asked.

"Have you got a half-hour?" he asked.

"Absolutely!" came the collective reply of all the people in our group.

Long story short, we spent the next several hours listening to him pour out all his struggles and life experiences. During the first hour, our statements were careful to gently point him toward Christ and set the stage for a presentation of the Gospel. During our second hour, though, we spoke of Jesus Christ and His power to save and set us free from guilt and shame. Everyone listened couteously to his stories, and those who spoke always seemed to say just the right thing as the Holy Spirit led us. People shared prophetic words and supernatural "words of knowledge" in practical, loving ways and pointed this man to a relationship with God through Jesus Christ.

Eventually it was closing time and we had to return home. We invited him to our Monday night group, so hopefully he'll be there tonight as the seven of us who attended the Encounter Retreat share testimonies about our experiences!

God is so awesome! If you are willing to welcome His presence in the streets, I can guarantee that He'll show up with power!

Why do you suppose we complicate God so much? We think that hearing His voice is somehow something strange and mystical that rarely happens. We don't realize that we were created for relationship with God! Why would He make that a difficult thing?

I'm asking these questions because the Lord just put me in my place a couple hours ago. I develop web sites for a living (Michigan Network Solutions, LLC.), and today I came accross a severely frustrating problem. My client wanted a change made to one little thing, and I spent three fruitless hours trying to fix it with every trick I knew. My girlfriend, Robin, who is a computer programming major and will be graduating in December also couldn't figure out what was going on. It was a mess.

Then I had a novel idea: Why don't I ask God what to do?

I dove off my swivel chair and fell down on the floor in desperation. "God!" I cried out, "You've got to help me here!"

Instantly--and I mean instantly--a simple, three-word sentence popped into my mind. Funny, I didn't want to accept it because it seemed too simple! But then the Holy Spirit said, "What kind of friend do you think I am? Why should I make you beg? Now go do what I showed you!"

I made the change--it was something I had never done before, but it worked!

God wants to be your friend, and the sacrifice of Jesus Christ made that possible. To think we have to beg, plead, and somehow work for an answer is to imply that Christ's sacrifice wasn't enough!

Listen for the voice of God even when it doesn't seem like you're doing something for the Kingdom. He will direct your path even as it relates to your career. The next time you run into a problem at work or a question about what turn to make, cry out to God, and He will answer!

I just have to share a story from a good friend of mine--we'll call him Paul--who recently spent some time with some long-time friends of his and shared the Gospel. In his friends' living room, Paul kicked back and talked about the love of God and the Good News of Jesus Christ. This couple hung on every word, captivated with the message he shared.

The next day Paul received a phone call from his friend who said, "I've been thinking a lot about all the things you said yesterday and all the wisdom I heard in what you said. Was there some person whose beliefs have really influenced you and made an impact on the way you believe?"

"Absolutely," replied Paul, "There was actually one guy in particular that has had a profound influence on my beliefs."

"Well, who is it?" pressed the friend.

"Jesus."

I thought this was an awesome example of relational evangelism. I've never really been a fan of preaching in the streets, going door-to-door, or handing out literature (even though God does sometimes use these methods). Rather, my preferred method of evangelism is through personal relationship. Try asking around--see how many Christians you know who received Christ because of a street preacher or a pamphlet and then see how many came to Christ through a personal relationship with another believer. The latter are far more common!

Start with the people you know--your friends, family, co-workers, or classmates. Pray for the Holy Spirit to begin softening their hearts and then act on any opportunity you can find to share the love of Christ! Speak the Truth, seasoned with love. You might be surprised at how effective you become at planting spiritual seeds for God's Kingdom!

When we read about Jesus in the Gospels or about His apostles in the book of Acts, we find several places where they were involved in casting out demons. We even find places that say "many demons" were cast out! In fact, some people had multiple demons opressing them. And Jesus told His disciples (which includes you and me) that we have authority over all the power of the enemy. Through the power of the Holy Spirit and the authority of Jesus Christ, we can heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the leper, and cast out demons.

Such activities were so common in Bible days, but these days it seems like we pretend demons are nothing but figments of an uneducated person's imagination. And yet, all over the world we see dramatic evidence of their existance.

I'm reminded of the many cases in Africa and South America where people are inhabited by spirits that make them behave like animals--eating grass, crawling on all fours, slithering like a snake, clawing at people, and making bizarre noises. When the spirit is cast out in Jesus' name, these people come to their senses and testify to the power of God.

This isn't the only way demons work in other countries, but it is very common. And yet we rarely see such things in America. Demons try to be more clever here. Instead of dramatically demonstrating their influence over a person, they do so sneakily and subtly. And here's how:

In Genesis, we are told that God formed man from the dust of the ground (body), breathed into him the breath (Hebrew: "spirit") of life, and man became a living soul. Body, spirit, soul. From this description, we learn that the soul is the product of the body and spirit coming together. As a result, our soul (which consists of our mind, will, and emotions) can be directly affected by the condition of our body or spirit at any given moment.

In a healthy Christian, our spirit is fully alive in Christ and supercedes the condition of our body so that our soul obeys our spirit. But if our spirit is not alert and drifts off to sleep, our body takes over and our souls become slaves to our impulses and physical condition.

Now, if our soul is the result of our body and spirit coming together, what do you suppose happens when an evil spirit comes into the mix? Well, for one thing, we get confused on a spiritual level. For another thing our soul gets affected, causing us to have tainted emotions, evil thoughts, and unwise choices. Furthermore, our body can be effected. Just as our human body is given life by our human spirit, it can also be adversely affected by an evil spirit.

Demonic activity is no less common today than it was 2000 years ago in the Bible. If anything, it is more prevalent because the end is approaching and Satan knows his time is short. In America, demons produce mental disorders, clinical depression, strife, envy, and other things that seem like they're just natural parts of who we are. We try to physically suppress their effect on the soul by taking pills and changing our diet, but we often end up in worse shape than we were in before.

In the past three weeks I've had the opportunity to see four people instantly set free from clinical depression as I took gentle authority over the evil spirit, cast it out, and prayed for the Holy Spirit to fill that void in the person's life. In fact, I too went through a few hours of unexplainable depression on Sunday until my girlfriend Robin took authority in Jesus' name and cast the evil spirit away (this may have been one of the spirits that was cast out of the others, which should remind us that we need to stay clothed in the armor of God).

My encouragement to all of you is not that you would go out looking for depressed people and casting out demons. Jesus said we need to be careful about that because if the person does not also get their life filled up with God and repent, the evil spirit will vome back with seven more demons worse than himself. I've seen this happen in the past too, so I'm very careful about this.

Another word of caution is that we need not tell the person, "You have a demon." This could be just the thing that demon needs to make the person leave or put up walls. Instead, offer to pray for them and then take authority during your prayer. Tell the spirit to leave in Jesus' name and invite the Holy Spirit to bring healing and transformation to the person. By the way, "taking authority" does not mean yelling, or being angry, or jumping, or doing anything else dramatic. In a confrontation, the person with the most authority is often the one who is most calm. Tell the spirit to leave and not come back. Speak on behalf of Jesus Christ, and make that point known. It's that simple. No hype, just authority.

So if you know someone who is struggling with an evil spirit in any way, I tell you on behalf of Jesus Christ that you have been given the authority in Him to cast out demons. But also seek the overflowing power of the Holy Spirit, and put on the full armor of God (Ephesians 6) so that you may remain protected and not vulnerable (otherwise you might wind up affected by the same demon like I was in the story earlier).

God bless!

Depression is a tough issue, and this time of year is especially hard for some due to the lack of sunlight and more time spent indoors. In the past few days, however, I've seen a couple of my friends discovering freedom from depression even though it is normally so common for them at this time.

I know the situation is different for everyone and there's not really a "pat answer" that solves every person's situation, but I believe there is tremendous power in testimony. Just today, as we held our Wildfire School of Supernatural Ministry, one of my friends was talking about how depressed he's been lately and how he can't seem to break free from it.

I think it's important to note here that being depressed does not make you less of a Christian or somehow less loved by God. The fact is, you're just going through a rather rough season in your life, and God is right here with you. It is true that He wants to help you out of your depression--and I believe He will--but that does not mean that you're involved in some sort of grave sin that has made God hide His face from you. On the contrary, He is paying even closer attention because He cares about you so much!

Anyhow, as our meeting went on, we all spent some time practicing "hearing God's voice" and sharing insight with each other. That's when I noticed something rather curious. I would have expected that my friend's depression would have started lifting as people shared words of prophecy and encouragement for him. To some extent, I think that helped; but this did not appear to be nearly as effective as when he started prophesying and encouraging the rest of us!

Admittedly, this took some serious effort on his part--he had to break past the emotional struggle and choose to actively embrace who he is in Christ. This meant putting his faith into action.

And here's a part of the story I find really fun: he is rather new to the whole concept of hearing God's voice, and yet he was having visions and receiving impressions from the Lord that ministered to several of us! You do not need to be some sort of "super-Christian" in order to hear God's voice. You can be a developing Christian struggling with depression and still hear Him! As a matter of fact, ANYONE who is a Christian has already heard His voice!

John 6:44-45--No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up on the last day. It is written in the prophets, ‘And they shall all be taught of God.’ Everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to Me.”(NAS)

If you're a Christian, then you've already heard God's voice, and the lines of communication are open between the two of you. So let Him speak to your heart, but also let Him minister to others through you! Get into a small group of believers where you can actively participate in interactive ministry. I can't guarantee that all your struggles in life will vanish, but I can certainly say that the heaviness on your heart will begin to lift! As I mentioned above, there is something liberating about being a vessel of the Lord and allowing Him to use you to minister to others; but we must choose to take action.

And what if you're not a Christian? Well, I believe God is speaking to you and calling you today! It's easy to be depressed when we're overwhelmed and physically worn down--even for a Christian. But when we start realizing who we are created to be and begin acting on it, the cloud begins to lift. The Bible calls the Lord "my glory and the lifter of my head." He raises you up! Turn to Him today and ask Him to begin showing you your true identity!

Pam Walker has been used by God to raise the dead more than once. In this new video she shares one story about a little boy named Isaiah and the events surrounding his miraculous resurrection. Also, I'll share a couple stories about raising animals to life and a spiritual encounter I had in which Jesus taught about the Christian's ability to be a "life-bringer who is full of life."

The video entitled "Raise the Dead" can be found through the video page at SupernaturalTruth.com.

The Holy Spirit is certainly supernatural, but He is also very practical. The supernatural things He does are always for a purpose (although, admittedly, we don't always know what that purpose is at the time).

Furthermore, I think sometimes the Holy Spirit is so active in our lives that we don't give Him credit for the things He's doing. For instance, my small group recently doubled in size. I could call that a coincidence, or I could observe that people have been drawn to our group because of the Holy Spirit's presence!

And this week we planted two more small groups (a men's group on Wednesdays and a ladies' group on Saturdays). And the most exciting part to me is that I'm not the one leading these groups! Other people are catching vision from God and running with it!

Tonight we held our first men's group meeting, and four people were able to attend. I'm reminded of Zechariah 4:10 that says "Do not despise these small beginnings, for the Lord rejoices to see the work begin..." (NLT). Certainly, we could sense the Lord rejoicing!

And here's where the practicality of it all comes back into play. People were moving in the power of the Holy Spirit and not even realizing it! That's how practical He is! My one friend started moving in the gift of a "word of wisdom" as the Holy Spirit supernaturally gave him the right words to speak to another man in the group. When I pointed it out, he said, "Wow, thanks--I was wondering if my words had any purpose." We all started to laugh because the rest of us knew how profound his advice actually was!

Then, as I mentioned something about the trials in our lives being used by God to perfect us, another man in our group had a vision and didn't even realize it! He said, "You know, as you were saying that, I started picturing a swordsmith hammering a sword into the perfect shape so that it's balanced just right and won't break in a battle."

I said, "You weren't just picturing that on your own--the Holy Spirit was giving you a vision! I'm glad you shared that!" A surprised smile started to spread across his face as if to say, "God gave me a vision?? Wow!"

Sometimes we don't realize just how active the Holy Spirit is in our lives, and frankly, it robs glory from our Father in heaven! We need to start encouraging one another to see the Holy Spirit's activity in their lives so that we can all notice Him in our own lives! We should recognize Him in the practical things of life and not just in our events and Christian meetings. The Holy Spirit wants to be your everyday companion in all things. He's the Guide and the Comforter. He is our Advocate. He's the Living Water that should be overflowing from each of our lives! He empowers us, He leads us, He helps us, and He ministers through us!

So I want to challenge you in the coming days to look for the activity of the Holy Spirit in your everyday life. He's probably moving at this moment right under your nose!

Well, it turns out that my time spent a couple weeks ago in that online atheist forum was actually a training ground set up by God. This Saturday, eight of the people from my small group went to Applebee's and ended up talking to our waitor until 12:30 AM! He opened with a political question, and the Holy Spirit moved the conversation to spiritual matters within a matter of minutes. As it turns out, this fellow was a die-hard atheist.

But what was great is that almost all the arguments he brought up, I had already faced less than two weeks ago in the online setting--so nothing came as a surprise, and I was also aware of what arguments from the Christian side would be useless to bring up. I find it awesome how following the Holy Spirit will inevitably lead to experiences that train you for the next place He leads you.

Long story short, my girlfriend Robin and I frequent that restaurant and see this waitor often, so now the lines of communication are open. We'll definitely be seeking him out.

Please pray that the Holy Spirit would reveal the truth to him--we have a couple people in our small group who used to be atheists, so I know God can do it!

And here's a little practical advice for the next time you're in a restaurant and you share the Gospel with a waitor or waitress: Always leave a generous tip! We need to show the love of God tangibly more than we need to explain His love verbally.

Wow! At last night's small group meeting, the 13 of us present encountered a powerful move of God! We started with someone saying how odd it was, while watching a TV documentary, that there was a white-collared Priest (denomination unknown) stating there is no Hell. My friend said, "I can't believe there are people in authority who would be so oblivious to the truth!"

Of course, I saw right away the correlation between this statement and the blog post I made yesterday about true and false prophets. Not only that, but several other people I know have been sensing the Lord speaking about His judgments and the necessity for there to be a "Fear of God" in America today. God is thundering from heaven, and those whose ears are tuned have heard the warning.

But the move of God last night merely started there. Before long, one of the long-time members of our group openly confessed how distant she had been feeling from God. It seemed at first that it was just her problem, but suddenly you could see conviction settling in on the faces of several others of us present.

I said, "I hope this doesn't sound inconsiderate or like I'm just brushing you off, but I think what you're crying out for here is a group-wide issue. You're feeling this way--and many of us are feeling this way too--because we haven't truly been being the Church! We've let you down--we've let each other down. This cry of your heart for the fire of God and the presence of God is not your own--it's His!"

Another person chimed in, "I need to pray more. I haven't been praying at all."

I said, "Well, let's act on that right now and all of us pray...And I want to push you a little and ask if you'd open for us."

What followed was group-wide, passionate prayer and open repentance. People began crying out for God's presence and power. We openly confessed our sins and received the forgiveness of God. We got to watch as the Holy Spirit moved in every person's heart. Even the newest believers in our group were speaking prophetically and praying for the more seasoned Christians. The power of God moved in our midst and stirred us up to action. In fact, we all made a commitment to take action for God's Kingdom this week. We even planned some time when we could go out and minister as a group.

But I don't think this was all a coincidence. Yesterday--after writing yesterday's blog post--someone sent me the following article from Charisma Magazine's editor, J. Lee Grady. I steadfastly believe that the events of last night and the similar happenings at my church on Sunday are the direct result of the 21-day fast called for in this article. Read the article and see if you don't see the correlations. Hundreds, and perhaps even thousands of Christians are fasting and praying right now for revival in America, and I believe we're already reaping the benefits--even though we didn't know about the fast until a few days into it.

I want to encourage you to join me and the many others in entering into this special season of fasting and praying for America. It doesn't matter if you're late joining--what matters is that you care enough to join at all.

God bless you as you join us in seeking God for more movements like the one I shared above! I pray that His power will move in your own churches and small groups even more powerfully than He did in ours!
________________________________________________

A DESPERATE CRY for REVIVAL in 2008
-by J. Lee Grady.

...Never in my 15 years at Charisma have I known a time of such intense spiritual turbulence. God is shaking everything that can be shaken, including our Christian colleges, our megachurches and our most prominent ministries.

At a time when a U.S. senator is investigating the financial practices of six well-known preachers, I sense that God has taken out His holy plumb line to conduct His own detailed inspection of every church and ministry in this country. He wants to unleash a nationwide revival, but He must bring His correction first.

These are desperate times that require desperate measures. That is why I have joined with the Awakening America Alliance to call for a solemn 21-day fast that runs from January 1-21. Here’s a list of the things I’m praying for during the next three weeks:

1. The fear of God. Holiness was so tangible among early Christians that false prophets were blinded and greedy liars fell over dead. As a result of God’s judgment on Ananias and Sapphira, “great fear came over the whole church” (Acts 5:11, NASB).

Where is this sense of “shock and awe” today? How can Christians be so cavalier about divorce or so flippant about adultery? How can television preachers sleep at night after robbing God’s people with manipulative fundraising appeals?

We celebrate His mercy but ignore His severity. We need a thunderclap from heaven and a display of Elijah’s fire to remind a wayward church that God will not be mocked.

2. Integrity and purity in the church. Our movement hit rock-bottom in October when charismatic pastor Donnie Earl Paulk of Atlanta announced to his stunned congregation that a DNA test had proved he is not the nephew of Bishop Earl Paulk but is in fact his son.

That such unspeakable depravity was permitted to thrive for decades at the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit is an indictment against the elder Paulk and all leaders who refused to challenge his behavior when they first learned about it years ago.

This and other recent religious scandals have so tarnished our credibility that we have become a curious freak show. Many unbelievers now associate ministers with wife-swapping, wife- beating, no-fault divorce, gay affairs and $10,000-a-night hotel rooms. We need a Holy Ghost housecleaning.

3. A return to evangelism. In the 1970s we were less sophisticated but so much more zealous for Jesus. We handed out tracts and witnessed to everyone. Sharing our faith was the priority. Yet most people in churches today have never led anyone to Christ.

We are no longer contagious. Spirit-filled believers spend more time chasing “financial breakthroughs” than lost souls. We have rejected sacrifice and compassion and embraced a counterfeit gospel that produces bored, selfish spectators.

4. Godly leadership. As we head into an election season it’s obvious that our nation is facing a leadership crisis. But this leadership vacuum is not just in the political arena. Many of our spiritual fathers have disappointed us, either by their own moral failures or by their refusal to confront sin.

I pray that God does not give us the president we deserve in 2008. If we cry out for mercy, perhaps He will upset the current slate of candidates and put someone in the White House who can model Christian integrity. May He also give us spiritual shepherds who care more for the flock than for the crowd’s applause.

5. A national spiritual awakening. There were seasons in America’s past when sinners became so convicted of their sins that they collapsed under the weight of their guilt. During the days of revivalists George Whitefield and Charles Finney, huge waves of conversions led to a widespread transformation of society. Drunks became sober, prison inmates sang hymns, stingy business owners stopped oppressing their workers, atheists surrendered their unbelief and rebellious children returned to faith.

Can such a movement happen again? It must or our country will descend into its darkest hour. I urge you to join me in this solemn fast. Pray with desperation for the five topics outlined here. We can’t settle for anything less than a heavenly visitation.

~J. Lee Grady is editor of Charisma.
SOURCE: http://www.charismanews.com/

Well, I spent all day participating in the discussion that ensued from my post on the atheism forum (mentioned in my last post), and a lot of great support for Christianity was shared. Nevertheless, it's impossible to convert people with words alone--even Jesus knew enough to put action to His words.

And that brings me to the last post I made on this forum. It was made in response to one of the people who finally seemed to accept my argument but still refused to embrace my convictions. Anyhow, I want to share it here becuase it is further proof that we as Christians need to be active in the world. I want to encourage you to step out in faith. Don't just share your faith in words--take a risk and see if the Holy Spirit will work through you supernaturally!

------------------------------

One last post...

"J" said: "A real, true, believing Christian, as we know, can heal the sick. It's one of the signs of such a person. Yet there are hospitals and clinics and homes around the world full of sick people."

You're right. Point taken. But this only proves the low activity of Christians, not the lack of our existence or of God's.

"J" said: "Where are all these Christians you seem to think are all over the place? How are they spending their spare time? Why not just donate an hour and so, and clean out the local oncology ward of their local hospital?"

You're right again. In countries like China, these Christians are constantly spending as much time as possible spreading the gospel and working miracles (including while they're in prison). In America, sadly, this is less common--partly because the Christians at large are lazy and partly because of the overall lack of faith.

In Mark chapter 6, Jesus found Himself in a location full of people with very little faith. It states, "He could not do any miracles there, except lay his hands on a few sick people and heal them. And he was amazed at their lack of faith." Therefore, the operation of miracles is not 100% dependent on the Christian but also on the potential recipient. I'll take responsibility for my own occasional inaction, but I can't be accountable for the lack of faith in others.

"J" said: "Are you a "real Christian?" You seem to make that claim. Then what are you doing fiddling away your time here, when you have a gift that could spare others misery, pain, and sorrow? Why aren't you out healing the sick, instead of proselytizing?"

Point taken. I hope this doesn't sound cheesy and fake, but you've inspired me to "get back out there" and continue doing the things I've been sharing in this forum. Nevertheless, I don't consider this a waste of time--your eternal destiny is a lot more important than somebody's earthly comfort. Sorry if that sounds heartless--I just want you to know that you and the others in this forum are not a waste of time.

"J" said: "Does your God actually credit you more with preaching, rather than actually helping people? That, to me, is hardly an admirable attribute. Either in you, or your God."

Actually, in God's sight, preaching is helping people. What could be more helpful than trying to show a handful of people a life-saving truth? If we were in a plane together that was in an unrecoverable tailspin, and I knew about a stash of parachutes, it would be heartless and wrong of me to wander the cabin healing stomach aches instead of helping you all into parachutes. Is it better for us all to die comfortably or to escape destruction and then deal with improving the quality of life? It makes more sense to deal with the eternal issue first so that we're secure no matter what happens.

Furthermore, the purpose of preaching is not to spin my wheels but to plant seeds in your hearts that you might remember one day when it matters. And those seeds are meant to multiply (according to the Bible) so that there are even more people out there healing the sick and so forth. I can't do it on my own, but a whole group of us certainly could! I invite you all to explore real Christianity a little deeper because I'm convinced that you all have a purpose and a destiny for which you were created.

Again, thanks, everyone, for a lively debate. I hope to meet you in heaven one day!
--Art--

I just spent quite a bit of time reading through a long online discussion on atheism vs. Christianity and made my own lengthy contribution to the debate. I believe the stance I took is good for all of you to read, so I've included a good chunk of it here.

I want to encourage debate on this site as well, so feel free to comment!
--Art--

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MY RESONSE TO THE DISCUSSION ON ATHEISM VS. CHRISTIANITY:
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Hi everyone,

I just spent about the last hour or so pouring over the original article and most of the discussion that followed, and I found it all really intriguing.

The original article was well thought-out and intellectual. The author really put a lot of work into developing his argument, and I’ve got to give him credit for that. But unfortunately, it appears to me that he made the very same mistake that he accuses Christians of making: choosing a belief and then disregarding all evidence to the contrary.

Personally, I’m not a historian or theologian, but I still base my own faith on facts that have been proven over and over again. And what history exists, I am willing to accept as reliable even if there are some questionable aspects among the accounts.

There are also differing accounts of things that happened as recently as the Revolutionary War, but we still agree that it happened and that the colonists won! Why? Because of what exists in the present. No one will ever be able to settle a 100% accurate account of the whole war, but we can still observe the present-day effects of it.

Christianity is the same way. We could argue the events and chronology of 2000 years ago until we’re all blue in the face, but none of us will win because none of us can prove something so distant. Truth be told, I’ve read a whole lot of books that intellectually, historically, scientifically, and anthropologically prove the case for the Bible’s historicity and authenticity; so this isn’t a cop-out. I know the evidence exists even if I can’t personally do it justice. I just prefer to look at the present-day evidence to prove the reality of God and His Holy Spirit.

For one thing, there’s the ratio of new Christian converts to present-day martyrs. It is estimated that some 25,000 Christians are murdered every month worldwide for refusing to deny their faith. It is also estimated by many reliable sources that in the country of China alone, 25,000 people come to faith in Jesus Christ EVERY DAY! The worldwide statistics are actually 25,000 every 4 hours!

All over the world (I believe in 52 different nations) Christianity is either illegal or heavily persecuted. Christians face severe torture, family disownment, hate crimes, imprisonment, confiscation/vandalism/destruction of property, and even death; and yet more and more people continue to become present-day followers of Christ. And these are the countries where Christianity is spreading the most and bonified miracles are happening most frequently.

People in these nations know the risks associated with being Christians, and yet they continue to meet in secret gatherings and would rather die than deny their faith. Why? Because it’s real and they know it.

In America, we’re largely ignorant to these statistics. The problem is that we have “freedom of religion,” which I’ve found is merely the “freedom to be religious.” In other words, most of the “Christians” in America are not Christians at all–they’re just people with a lot of beliefs based on dogma and tradition. Unfortunately, they do not have a present-day relationship with the God they profess. I think this is apparent given all the insulting comments littering this discussion made by people claiming to be Christians. Such people are not representatives of Christ and do not know Him.

And that brings me to my second point. I believe the biggest detriment to the Christian side of this discussion is that true Christianity (as Jesus demonstrated it) is severely misrepresented in the world today. People like to rally around the ideology of the Bible, but they don’t apply its teachings to their personal lives. As a result, the most common example of a “Christian” is sadly someone who does not represent Christ at all. As a side note, I’ve found that this tends to be the most common trigger that drives many people to investigate atheism. So if you’re a Christian, take a look at your life and see if Christ is living through you. 1 John says that anyone who claims to be in Him must walk as Jesus did. And Jesus Himself taught us to prove by our actions that we have really repented from sin and turned to God.

Thus, the second present-day evidence is a transformed life. Such people are hard to come by, but they’re out there (I’m one of them). There’s not enough room to tell the whole story here, but I was personally set free from an addiction to pornography and lust that plagued me for years. And not only that, but I’ve gone from extreme outbursts of anger (and even nervous breakdowns) to being a peacemaker. I’m not perfect, but I can honestly and humbly say that Jesus Christ lives through me supernaturally, and He can live through you just as easily.

The last present-day evidence I’ll mention are the countless miracles that happen every day worldwide. I’ve personally been miraculously healed of more “incurable” problems than I deserve: a heart murmer, scars on my face from 2nd degree burns, chronic sinusitis, Attention Deficit Disorder, a degenerative tooth disease, tendonitis, and even a broken back to name a few. And I’ve seen many miracles too (I’m not talking about coincidences; I’m talking about things like thunderstorms parting in two at the command of a Christian in the name of Jesus).

I could go on, but I think I should start winding things up.

In short, I’ve come to find that atheism is a matter of beliefs, but Christianity is not. That may sound surprising to you, but consider the logic:

To be an atheist, you must believe that there is a non-spiritual explanation for everything. There is no way to prove this because there are so many “unexplained” things happening through Christians all over the world (including Christians raising the dead in more than 50 countries over the last 25 years alone).

To be a Christian, you start with a belief; but if you pursue it, that belief becomes solid knowledge. You can believe me or not. You can accept the present-day evidence or deny it. You can accept the biblical accounts or deny them. But it all remains in the realm of belief until you encounter it.

That’s why I say atheism is strictly a matter of belief–there’s nothing to encounter. Christianity, however, has a God who is to be experienced and encountered on a moment-by-moment basis. Whether you believe in Him or not is actually irrelevant. God doesn’t care if you believe in Him. He cares if you know Him.

Are you willing to test the belief?

What a Way to End the Year!

A few hours ago, my friend Brian (who's part of my small group) called me up very concerned. He said that his 5-year-old son had to go to the emergency room a couple days ago because of a 103.5 degree temperature. What's worse, it was now Monday morning and the fever hadn't lifted in the least.

So he called and asked if we could pray on the phone just before the boy's appointment at the pediatrician. I could tell Brian had the faith to believe God for a miracle, and to be honest, that stirred me up. In less than 60 seconds, we asked God in the name of Jesus to cause the boy's fever to lift and set him free from his condition.

Guess what? Maybe this comes as no surprise to some of you, but about 90 minutes later, Brian called to tell me that when they arrived at the doctor, his kid had a regular 98.6 temperature! Praise God for miracles! And what an awesome gift for the end of 2007!