And the prayer of faith will make the sick person well. - James 5:15.
Smith Wigglesworth (1859-1947) was a guy who had enormous faith and had many stories to tell of God doing the miraculous through him. Here's one of his stories which contrasts prayers of unbelief vs. a simple prayer of faith:
A Baptist minister came to me and said, "The doctor says that this is the last day my wife has to live. " I said, "Oh Brother Clark, why don't you believe God? God can raise her up if you will only believe Him!"
I sent word to another man and asked if he would come with us to pray for the dying woman. We entered the house, and I asked this man to pray first. He cried in his desperation and prayed that Brother Clark might be comforted after he was left with these little motherless children, and that he might be strengthened to bear his sorrow. I could hardly wait until he was finished! My whole being was moved, I thought, "What an awful thing to bring this man all this way to pray that kind of a prayer. What was the matter with him? He was looking at the dying woman instead of looking at God."
When this man had finished, I said to Brother Clark, "Now you pray." He took up the thread right where the other man had left off and went on with the same kind of prayer. He got so down beneath the burden I thought he would never rise again! I was so glad when he was finally through. I couldn't have taken it much longer. These prayers seemed to be the most out-of-place prayers that I had ever heard. The whole atmosphere was being charged with unbelief. My soul was stirred. I was eager for God to get a chance to do something and to have His way.
I did not wait to pray but rushed up to the bed and tipped the oil bottle, pouring nearly the whole contents on the woman. Then I saw Jesus just above the bed with the sweetest smile on His face, and I said to her, "Woman, Jesus Christ makes you whole." The woman stood up, perfectly healed, and she is a strong woman to this day.
Do you pray prayers of unbelief, or prayers of faith? May God help us to get our eyes off the conditions and symptoms, no matter how bad they may be, and get them fastened on Him. Then we will be able to pray, "the prayer of faith."
Our friend Uche is a radical Christ-follower ministering in Sudan. We keep up with his ministry through his blog (you can find it here). I also enjoy his blogposts about his wife and two sons. We were part of a skype call with Uche last week, and it was encouraging to hear about how God is using him to share the good news of the Kingdom.
The kids and I pray for Uche and his family during our Bible/prayer time in the morning. This week I decided to video the kids praying so that Uche can share it with Sola, Ed and Othniel, and know that we are lifting them up in prayer. These videos are for them, but if you are reading this blog, please take a minute to lift us their family as well.
Here, the kids introduce themselves: Liam, Josiah, Kiersen, Aliya and Fabrice.
This is Fabrice. He is a five year old from the country of Burkina Faso, a small country in West Africa. A medical mission organization brought him to the US for surgery to correct a chronic condition. We have the privilege of being his host family for the 3-6 months that he will be here.
He arrived about four weeks ago. He speaks a tribal language at home, and knew no English when he came here. He fits in well with our kids and in general, is a very happy kid. But every once in a while, he will climb into my lap and just cuddle with me. That is when I know he is missing his family, his life, his language, his culture and everything familiar.
As I sit there and hold him, I wish that I could speak his language and comfort him. I want to tell him that even though it is so sad to be away from home, and scary to face surgery, it is for his benefit. I want to reassure him that he will get to go home to his family soon, and it will be worth it, because he will not be sick anymore. In other words, I want to explain that the short-term pain is worth it for the long-term gain.
But I can't tell him that, at least not in a way that he will understand. So instead I just hold him and love him and pray that God will comfort him in a way that I can't.
It made me think about my own life. I often complain or cry out to God over big or small pain, wondering what is going on and why I have to go through it and how long it will last. Maybe, God is allowing the pain for a while, because He knows that it is changing my heart in some way that will make me healthier in the future. He doesn't explain that in a way that I can understand, but He just holds me. And He says, "Trust me. Even though it doesn't look like it, this is for the best."
I am not saying that I will never question the pain in my life again. But I am trying to learn to trust God for the whole thing... now, eternity, and everything in between. And I am thankful for times like this when He gives me a glimpse of insight and perspective. After I hold Fabrice for a while, he doesn't have any more answers than he did before, but he eventually is ready to get back to playing. Lord, teach me to become like a little child- to come to you for comfort, not necessarily answers, and to trust in your long-term plan, even when I have no idea what is going on right now!
Romans 8:28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
When Jesus sent his disciples out on one of their mission trips, he instructed them to leave their luggage behind:
"Take nothing for the journey-no staff, no bag, no bread, no money, no
extra tunic."
--Luke 9:3
And that's exactly how Jesus sent me to Swaziland. I barely made the connecting flight out of Washington DC, but my luggage wasn't so lucky. I found myself halfway around the world with nothing but the clothes on my back and the stuff in my backpack.
And do you know what? It was one of the best parts of the trip. God taught me something through that experience. He was telling me that I need to let go of my baggage. I need to let go of the regrets, the disappointments, the failures of the past. Those things do nothing but weigh me down. They're unnecessary. God has redeemed those things and I can move forward in freedom, without guilt, regret, or shame.
And so I spent the week without my baggage, without the stuff I was used to clinging to. It was a great week.
Sometimes we need to just throw off anything that entangles, and run with perseverance the race marked out for us. I'm so glad my suitcase didn't make the trip.
"My therapist told me that if I want to achieve true fulfillment and satisfaction before I die, I need to take an inventory of everything in my life that's half-done or unfinished, and then go finish it. So I did just that. I went home last night and found a half-empty bottle of chardonnay, and I finished it. Later I found an opened package of Oreo's, so I finished them. Then I found some Ben and Jerry's in the freezer, so I polished that off too. My therapist was right! I feel great!!" Ha ha.
I'm great at starting things. Books. Projects. You name it. I can get it up off the ground and started. That's me.
I'm not great at finishing things. When Heidi asks me if I've read a certain book, I say, "Yeah I started that one." I've started countless marathon training programs. I've started multiple 40-day fasts. Historically when the thrill of the "new thing" wears off, I get bored and go finding something else that interests me.
But as I wake up in the kingdom of God, this is changing. Jesus is talking to me more about being a finisher than a starter. Many are strong starters, but only a few are strong finishers. Read Revelation and see how many times Jesus exhorts people to simply "overcome." Just hang on and finish.
Jesus prayed at the last supper, "I have brought you glory on earth by completing the work you gave me to do." John 17:4
Jesus was a finisher and I must be one, too. I don't bring glory to God by starting the work, but by finishing it.
That being said, I'm moving forward with the Ohio for Orphans campaign to raise $14,000 to build a school in Swaziland at one of AIM's carepoints. I have 700 people to call before June 15th, and I've already called 102 of them. The website is up. So far everyone I've talked to is interested in hearing more. Things are looking good.
I have no idea how much money will be raised for orphans in Swaziland. Actually that's not even my concern. God's calling me to do my job. If I do my job, God will do His.
I look forward to the end of July when I can pray like Jesus prayed, "I have brought you glory on earth by completing this work you gave me to do!"
Monday night we had pajama church, which is our primary form of "church" these days. We put Aliya to bed and, with the other three kids in their pj's, we gathered on the deck to pray, read scripture, and hear stories about people who were risk-taking followers of Jesus (usually someone like George Mueller, John Wesley, etc).
This night we tried something new. We put an empty chair in the middle of our circle and dubbed it the "hot seat." One by one we sat on the hot seat while the others put their hands on and prayed out loud for that person. I announced that we would be doing something differently this time. After each of us prayed, Heidi and I would then "prophesy" for the person in the hot seat.
"Dad, what does 'prophesy' mean?" I explained to the kids that "prophesying" was simply listening to God and sharing what we hear. It's something that all Christians can do once they've tuned their hearing into the voice of God. The kids were intrigued....
What surprised me (but shouldn't have) was that once we each finished praying for the person in the seat, not only did Heidi and I share with that person what we were hearing God say about them, but each child also wanted to chime in with what they felt God was saying to them!
Kiersen was especially good at this. She had something comforting, strengthening, or encouraging to say for each of us, all framed within "this is what I think God is saying to you." Each time she spoke, her eyes pointed up as if she was listening to the voice of the Holy Spirit. And the amazing thing is, she indeed was hearing the Holy Spirit!
She is a live wire, charged with the Holy Spirit. Monday night reminded me that God does not give out "demo" versions of His spirit with limited capabilities and reduced functionality. He gives His spirit without limit, and even children who have put their faith in Christ can hear His voice.
Something came alive in Kiersen Monday night. I'm so happy to have seen it with my own eyes! She awoke to a new reality in the kingdom of God!
"The first stage of growth always looks worse
than when you were in control." -Julie Bogart
I heard this quote at a workshop about teaching kids to
write. It certainly applied to that topic. But I think that it also describes the process of learning to seek the Kingdom. Allow me to explain with the following analogy.
Consider feeding your baby. At first, the baby drinks only
milk, but eventually he is ready for some solid food. Hurray!
It is a big step! You sit the baby down at the table, give him a knife and
fork, and put a big steak in front of him, and say, "Welcome to the world
of solid food! Eat up!" Ok, obviously this not how you do it. You
get a bib, a special tiny little spoon, and some watery cereal or mashed up
banana, and you give him a tiny little bite. He spits it back at you, so
you try again, until you are both covered in cereal and you managed to
get him to swallow a couple of bites. But pretty soon, you get it down to a science. You
plop him in the highchair, feed him with the spoon, wipe his face, and very
quickly, he is fed, clean and happy. Then one day, he starts to grab
the spoon, so you realize its time to start letting him try to feed
himself. You give him a bowl of something, a little plastic curved spoon, put on a bib, and let him go. And suddenly, mealtime is a mess!
If you let him do it himself, most of the food ends up on the floor or in his
hair, and it seems like you are back at the beginning, where he is messy and
only getting three bites into his mouth. But it's not the same. Why?
Because you have given up control and are letting him start to learn. And
we know that at some point, he will be able to sit at the table and eat just
like you, the adult.
But right when you gave up control, it looked like
chaos.
"The first stage of growth always looks worse than when you
were in control."
Since you don't want to spoon-feed
your child for the rest of his life, you are willing to endure that stage and
let the growth and development happen.
Here is the parallel that occurred to me. Over the
last couple of years, we have been trying to learn what it really means to have
Jesus be king of our lives, and what it means to seek His Kingdom first.
One of the ramifications for us was leaving the Sunday Morning Church in favor
of seeking God together through prayer and community and the Bible, rather than
packaged programs. Since then we have been a part of some different kinds
of house church groups, online groups and prayer nights. And truly, to
the outsider, I am sure that our "Christian lives" look worse now than when we were in control. We used to make all the decisions. We chose what service we
went to, we chose which program to put our kids in, and then we went home to make the rest
of our decisions based on how we thought God would probably want us to
live, or better yet, what good things we thought we could do in God's name, without consulting Him! Now, it's so much messier. We teach our kids at home, and we
are not following a specific curriculum. We are teaching them to know God
and listen to him, and to believe the Word of the Bible. (We hope!)
We pray on our couch and find out where God is leading us next, and usually we
only know the next step. We don't have a plan to build a house church,
build a ministry, move to another country, or anything else. But if God
calls us to do any of that, we will. The point is that we are learning to
follow in obedience the little steps first. So for now, these little steps are Gabe praying for a customer, or me sharing the story of Easter with our
neighbors. It is praying for pastors in Haiti and Africa and sponsoring
kids in Pakistan. It is leading online listening prayer groups with
people we have never met, and then taking mission trips with some of those
people. It is getting up early to read the Bible and reading blogs about
what God is doing around the world, and believing in the stories of
miracles. And it is trying to learn to walk in the love and authority of Jesus. And what is the plan beyond that? We don't know. We are not in control any more, which is a good thing. Because although it looks messy right now, we know that this stage of growth is necessary. We want to see God's Kingdom come, we are willing to sacrifice anything we have in order to follow Him, and we trust that someday we will be able to sit down and share a meal as adult sons and daughters at the table with Jesus and hear him say, "Well done, good and faithful servants. You served me, and look, my Kingdom has come!"
Matthew 18:3
3And he said: "I tell
you the truth, unless you change and become like little children, you
will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
Hebrews 5:14
14But solid food is
for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to
distinguish good from evil.
Matthew 25:21
21"His master
replied, 'Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful
with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and
share your master's happiness!'
One
cold Sunday morning in February 2008, I was sitting in the back of a
worship service, minding my own business and thinking through my lunch
options when God interrupted and said, "Gabe, you will give your life
for orphans." Heidi had just given birth to our fourth child a few
weeks earlier, and it came as no surprise that God would be unlocking a
love in my heart for orphans when He surely had unlocked a great love
for my own children. God had brought me a long way and, in fact,
during the 14 years I was a pastor, one of my sincerest sentiments was
that I would do anything for God as long as it didn't involve kids!
I drove home from church, fired up the computer, and found that Seth had just written a blog (see it here)
about some orphans in Pakistan who urgently need help. How ironic.
God had just spoken to me about orphans and now voila! Here was the
perfect opportunity to get started. I shot Seth an email and within a
week I was part of a six-person team of supporters for orphans in
Pakistan. Over
the next two years I've had the honor of getting to know Pastor
Emmanuel, the man on the ground in Pakistan who takes our support
dollars and buys a three-month supply of food for each orphan.
Emmanuel has consistently proven his integrity and trustworthiness.
Every three months, after buying the food and supplies for the
orphans, he mails me the original receipts for accountability. Also
enclosed in the package is a thank-you card from each orphan,
individually signed and fingerprinted, the truest stamp of
authenticity.
I received word yesterday from Emmanuel that the number of orphans
needing urgent help now stands at 21. Two years ago it was quite
manageable and sustainable to support only six orphans. But instead of
receding, the need is growing, and we need to respond with fresh
inspiration and direction from the Holy Spirit.
I have this idea of a Virtual Orphan Village. It's a way for those of
us who are unable to sell our homes, quit our jobs, and move to a
foreign land to take care of orphans in person, to still be connected
together in community with like-minded Christ-followers who want to
tangibly help the least of these. Here's the vision:
A team of 25 people
Each pledging monthly support of $30 for their orphan
Each pledging to pray daily for their orphan
Linked
together in community via email and a Virtual Orphan Village blog,
which is also a communication point to Pastor Emmanuel and the orphans
Each receiving quarterly communication and pictures directly from their orphan in Pakistan
If you are interested in joining this ministry or if you have questions, please email me at landes.gabe@gmail.com.
Our family is teaming up with our neighbors to give our kids a chance to actively participate in helping the Haitians. You can read about it on our family blog here.
I met some Australian church planters several months ago in North Carolina who had a unique attitude about the kingdom of God. "Give it a go, you never know" was a refrain they said repeatedly.
Has God given you a dream? Give it a go, you never know.
Got an idea? Give it a go, you never know.
Got an idea and you're not sure if it's you or God? Give it a go, you never know.
In that spirit I'm declaring 2010 the Year of the Orphan. This year we're going to raise money for literal orphans living in Swaziland, Mexico, and Pakistan, and we're also going to address the problem of the "orphan spirit" which so many people in the States carry with them. The orphan spirit is a repressive spirit that whispers to us, "You're on your own. God isn't showing up. You need to fend for yourself."
Everyday I interact with customers, colleagues, and Christians who are being oppressed by the orphan spirit. They're not walking in the reality that they have a Father in heaven who has adopted them into His family and they need to stand up and walk as sons and daughters. Doubt, worry, and powerlessness dominate their lives.
I have an idea of how to help both kinds of orphans.
First, I'm going to approach my 500 colleagues in the state of Ohio and ask them to support the work we're doing in Swaziland, Mexico, and Pakistan. I'll ask each to give $100. Even if the average donation is $25 per person, that's $12,500 for orphans. And if the average comes in at $100 per agent, that's a whopping $50,000! Give it a go, you never know.
Second, I've plastered my office lobby with pictures of orphans from Swaziland. It's a great conversation starter for those coming in with the orphan spirit. Customers come to me daily and share their worries and fears about their family, the economy, and all sorts of other things. I would love to say to each of them, "You remind me of this orphan right here. She worries constantly about where her next meal will come from and who is going to protect her. You're carrying around that same orphan spirit, believing you have to look out for yourself, BUT you have a Father in heaven who wants to adopt you into his family and take care of all your needs..."
When Jesus sent his disciples out on one of their mission trips, he instructed them to leave their luggage behind:
