I'm not just sitting on the dock of the bay...

I would like to say I'm disappointed not to have a good personal story today, but I completely understand the reason I don't has nothing to do with God and everything to do with me. Beyond a doubt, God has made His presence apparent in my life many different ways. He was there in Hawaii when I cheated death and protected me for His own purpose for a later time. I know God heals...I'm living proof. I know God places angels to watch over us and cast out demons to protect us.

As much as I love hearing and reading the stories of other people, I'm still waiting to see if God blesses me with such a stunning testimony of His power and glory. It's His game and His rules...so I'm also ready if it never happens too. For me, it doesn't create doubt or even animosity because I've not been in the middle of a blatantly obvious supernatural event...not at all. It's actually very inspiring!

Thanks for reading Kingdom Bloggers. You are very much loved and appreciated by five people who equally love to talk and write about God. As always, we greatly enjoy hearing your stories too. I hope God pours His blessings all over your weekend.

What Can I Say (TCV Fused)

What can I say? Even though have asked for the gift of healing, (1 Corinthians 4.11) I have prayed for the sick to be healed and have yet to see an instant recovery.  I have prayed for the my vision and yet I still need glasses to see with 20/20 vision.  I have prayed for backaches, headaches and heartaches and have seen very limited results.

What can I say? Despite not having seen demons manifest themselves, I still pray against demonic activity. I can get a 'sense' of something outta place or evil, but I still haven't seen or heard anything in the natural to confirm the 'sense' I had. I still know that He who is in me is greater than he who is in the world (1 John 4.4)

“Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father.

John 14.12

And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God.

1 Corinthians 2.4-5

What can I say?

I will preach the Gospel and will do awesome things in the name of  Jesus because He is at the right hand of God. As Holy Spirit leads, I will preach the Kingdom and He will confirm His Word with signs and wonders. 

Corjohnthians 17.21*

*TCV Fused (Tevet Caffeinated Version) is a loose 'translation' of the Word that fuses a verse or two from a different books of the Bible and generate a new verse.

Forget the Oil - Try Ben-Gay

I think I'm the only born and bred Pentecostal in this group. I don't remember when I realized that some people who believed in Jesus and believed in the Bible didn't believe that Jesus still heals today. I grew up with Oral Roberts on television. Even occasionally saw A.A. Allen on television. Both prayed for the sick and were quite theatrical about it. Like the Reader’s Digest, an abundance of magazines from people like Brother Oral, Allen or Morris Ceruello came to my home every month. Once I learned to read, I knew God healed people who were sick.

I don’t know if I thought I was sick. It probably was just childishness. Alone in front of the black and white with a big round picture tube, when Oral would say “put your hand on the television set as a point of contact,” I would. I also was “saved” every time a Billy Graham said on TV, “I’m going to ask you to get up out of your seat.” I had a habit of routinely feeling guilty and desiring to “get saved” at every opportunity. I might even be able to get some award for “being saved” more than any other person. I knew the word “backslidden” as well as I did “saved.” Just in case, I was baptized by immersion TWICE.

The supernatural is not new to me. When I was a child, my mother led a number of children’s ministries. My favorite was “Released Time.” Every Wednesday, I was dismissed from school one hour early in order to go to church for “religious instruction.” The Catholic children went for CCD. Most of the Protestant churches had something. My mother led ours.

That was both good and bad. It was good because I thought I had status as the daughter of the leader. Bad because I had to be on my best behavior all the time in order to be a “good example.” I also had to memorize whatever chapter of the Bible she had chosen LONG before everyone else. The best part was being excused from school.

One Wednesday afternoon, a call came to the church office. In those days most pastors weren’t in the office often. The church didn’t have a full time secretary. The only believers that could be reached were Elsie and the children. It was a mother of a girl my age, a friend. Her daughter was in the hospital with meningitis. Frantic, she called for prayer. Unable to find the pastor, she thought of Elsie and the kids. She told my mother, “I knew you were there with the children and would pray.” My mother led us all in prayer for her and miraculously she was healed. Wow! This stuff wasn't just theatrical stuff for television. It works even when children prayed in a basement of a church on a Wednesday afternoon.

Several years later, just before my 13^th birthday I got sick, very sick. I remember having excruciating pain in my right knee. I had always been prone to “growing pains.” My mother would put stinky Ben-Gay on my ankles and legs. Then she would wrap them with flannel secured with a safety pin so I could sleep.

That first night as I literally writhed in pain she knelt by my bed and prayed. Of course, I had Ben-Gay and flannel but this was different. I had a fever as well. I don’t know what went through her mind at the time. I do know that her first response after the practical was to pray.

The next day the old Norwegian surgeon, Dr. Svensen, who treated everyone in the Norwegian community for everything came to the house with his black bag. I knew him because he’d be there before but never to see me. He called another doctor from our big black dial phone on the orange conversation table in our dining room. Later that day, this doctor also came to the house. He drew blood in my bedroom. He said they’d admit me to the Norwegian Lutheran Hospital as soon as they could.

It took a few days for a bed. Every day my mother prayed over my bed. I never got the bed in the new wing that looked like what I saw on Dr. Kildare. I had to go to the old wing. I was there for three weeks. I had Rheumatic Fever.

I was healed. No, I didn’t have the dramatic healing my friend had when the children prayed. Nevertheless, I had no lasting effects from the Rheumatic Fever. I had no heart defects typical of RF. My healing was just as supernatural as the instant healing of my friend.

Now I pray for people and seen a number of instant healings. Pain from migraines and pinched nerves, are gone with the last "amen." I’ve seen hot dogs multiply in a steamer to feed people. I’ve seen someone come to my door by Holy Spirit GPS.

Who said being a Christian was dull?

Clark Kent, Lois Lane and Jesus

Clark Kent, a reporter for the Daily Planet rushes into a phone booth, takes off his suit and becomes Superman, blasting off to rescue some poor citizen in distress. The scenario is easily explained - we all know that Superman is from the planet Krypton whose inhabitants are endowed with super powers. Simple.

This week your Kingdom Bloggers are going to relate a story about a time when they encountered our wonderful and supernatural God in a personal way.

How about you, have you encountered our supernatural God in a personal way? If you were ever like me, I thought that God was a make believe super hero and I had less faith than Lois Lane. I was caught up in intellectualism and thought for sure we'd find out exactly how everything worked, and that eventually there would be a cure for death itself.

My church experience was pretty limited growing up - there was no magic going on, just regular old religious stuff: stand, sing, listen to someone pray, boring sermon etc.

After I met Jesus, I started to expect that my life would involve some not so easily explainable circumstances - I was not to be let down by God.

Most folks in the civilized world have cars - these cars rust, break and wear out - mine were no different. During my hyper-faith days, on a hot August afternoon, my truck’s water pump seized and the engine overheated in the parking lot at work. In my presumption, I laid a hand on the hood the truck, and it was instantly repaired—it was good as new!

Thank you Lord for meeting my need! Jesus is my superhero!

A few months later I dropped my reasonably new car off for a state vehicle inspection and an oil change at the local car dealer. The cost should have been about $60. The phone rang at work and the service mechanic started the conversation with, “Do you want the good news or the bad news first?”

I said, “It doesn’t really matter, just tell me what is going on.”

He began, “Your car needs new brakes and rotors, a timing belt and tune-up, front struts and 4 new tires. That will run you $1,135.00”

Sarcastically I replied, “If $1,135.00 is the good news, then what is the bad news?”

“You mean the good news sir?” he said. “The good news is that I can have this for you today at 4 pm.”

“What do I need to pass inspection, what is the cost of that?” I asked.

“Well, the oil change is not required, and we can do the job for $1,100.” He answered.

“I’ll have to call you back.” I said as I hung up the phone.

Sarah who worked with me in the office had overheard the conversation. “I think we need to pray.” I said to her.

“How much money do you have?” She asked.

I looked in my checkbook and there was $135 until payday, and my rent was due too.

“$135” I answered.

“Oh God, that is not even close.” She said.

I prayed some simple prayer like. “God please give me wisdom.” and said, “amen.” Sarah agreed with me.

“Now what are you going to do?” she asked.

I picked up the phone and told the service manger that it was an awful lot of money. “What can you do to help me out?”

“Well, not a lot. How about I give you 10% off? Let’s just call it $1,035 even.” He said.

Just at that moment, I felt this faith rise up in me. “Go ahead and fix it.” I said and hung up with the service representative.

Sarah spun around in her chair and said, “You are either crazy, or you have faith that I don’t.”

I didn’t know what to do, and 5 hours later they called to let me know that car was ready. I told them that I didn’t have a ride, and would have to get it on Monday. They seemed puzzled - me, I was way out on a limb.

Saturday night I went to a fabulous meeting and people were talking about the glory of the Lord seen over the church building. Wow, I am missing a lot I thought. I arrived home and went to bed thinking about what the glory of he Lord might actually look like.

Sunday morning I woke up and my wife held up an envelope and said that she had gotten an unexpected commission check for some artwork that she had done. It was $494.65. I have to admit, I thought she was going to say it was for $1035. I was starting to feel a little better, but we still needed about $540.35.

We went to church, and I walked in looking forward to worship when I realized that we were on nursery duty. I was a sad, I just wanted to enjoy the music. I did manage to get a few songs in before we filled to capacity. There was a small PA speaker in the nursery room, and I adjusted the volume so that I could hear the music. Once the sermon started, it was so noisy in the room, that I could hardly hear anything from the little speaker; even sitting in a toddler chair right beneath it. With all the toys, diapers and bottles, I forgot about the sermon.

Just as the pastor was closing, I heard only the last sentence of his prayer. “I pray that God would give even one of you, supernatural faith today. Amen.” At that moment I felt this waterfall of warm water flowing over me as I sat with my 2-year-old asleep in my lap.

I got up to go and do a little visiting before going home. I walked into the sanctuary to see who was there, and a woman that I know walked down the aisle headed straight for me. “I am glad that you are still here.” She said. “The Lord spoke to me this morning and said that you have a financial need.” She stuffed a wad of cash in my palm and closed my fingers over it.

Without looking down at my hands, I simply said, “Thank you.”

It was $539.00 dollars. As I was telling my friends this story at church that evening, one of them reached into their pocket and pulled out a dollar and some change. It was $1.35 and they handed it to me.

God had done the supernatural, we had the exact amount of the car repair!

Thank you Lord for meeting my need! You are my super hero!