Spiritual Gifts Outside The Sanctuary

Living as we are in a new community, JoAnn and I have been seeking to connect with our new neighbors and then to see what God will do from there.

Further, we are used to ministering the gifts of the Spirit together as we traveled together and preached in all sorts of churches all over the world.  But now that medical issues have made travel impossible, how do we start connecting with the strangers we meet in the normal day-to-day rhythm of our lives?

 

It has seemed to me, that this season of pruning has put us where many Christians live:  hungry to experience the flow of the Holy Spirit firsthand, but without the benefit of open doors that provide a platform for ministry. Here are a few ways God has led us to connect with strangers in restaurants, stores, and more.  And here are links to a few testimonies.

Catch someone doing something right, and comment on it.  This can be enough to start a flow of the Holy Spirit.

Notice something God has created in a person, and acknowledge it.  JoAnn and I had a divine appointment in a grocery store because I heard a clerk’s voice.  “Are you a preacher?”  I asked.  He sounded like he should be.

Pay attention to nudges of conviction when God highlights someone.  This is a call to see someone in the light of Christ crucified, buried, and risen.  What would this person look like if the cross of Christ had its perfect work in her or him?  Then, I begin to speak what flows from that glimpse of Jesus.

Sometimes, by simply abiding in Christ, it becomes easy to see what God designed in someone.  Then, at the very least, words of divine destiny are ready to flow.

Seeing people in the light of what God has created them for, causes us to love them.  And perfect love casts out fear.  A divine boldness, with rich sensitivity to their feelings and even more to God’s feelings towards them, causes self-consciousness and shyness to vanish. 

Read Psalm 139 aloud to God, and use it as a prayer outline.  It’s true for you and for everyone you will meet this week.  Pray accordingly.

Spend time soaking in God’s loving presence.  The more time we spend with Him, the more easily we fall into a flow of His grace and power when we meet people anywhere.

Testimonies below:

https://miraclelifestyle.wordpress.com/2011/11/08/using-my-prophetic-joke-about-almonds/  Sometimes, a joke can start the flow

https://miraclelifestyle.wordpress.com/2011/11/03/overflow-communion-glasses/  Divine appointments can begin with simple errands.

https://miraclelifestyle.wordpress.com/2011/12/13/lift-up-your-eyes/.  The flow may happen while doing mundane things at home, with people we already know.

 

 

https://miraclelifestyle.wordpress.com/2011/11/03/overflow-communion-glasses/  God often uses “butterfly nudges” to catch Margaret’s attention.  They are very subtle and easily missed, but expect Him to use them in yours.  He will help you discern the kingdom opportunities He sprinkles in your life.

https://miraclelifestyle.wordpress.com/2011/11/12/dinner-with-jesus/  It can take just a moment to say, “Would you like prayer?”  Your next encounter with God may be waiting for you to ask that simple question.

I list these testimonies so you’ll have several in one place, and can encourage your friends and family to expect God to do similar things in your own lives.  Go for it, and win glory for the name of Jesus!

Stan Smith  ::  © 2012, GospelSmith  ::  http://www.GospelSmith.com

Testimonies Beget Testimonies

At our Gathering last Sundy, we shared testimonies over our meal together.  Lately, I’ve had several each week about prophetic ministry outside the sanctuary, but this time I wasn’t the only one.  As we shared our stories, We noted several things God is doing in us as we step out prophetically with strangers.  (1)  It’s getting easier.  (2)  God is making us more loving and less cynical/judgmental.  (3)  The manifest presence of God goes with us, and these encounters are drawing us closer to Him.

How do we evaluate these experiences?  So far, we haven’t led people through “the sinner’s prayer.”  Is it really evangelism?  Should we continue?

“Are you giving them good news?” somebody asked.  Yes.  We’re talking about what Jesus is saving them for more than what He’s saving them from.

I shared a testimony in an email and received this reply.

So many think God wants to take things away from them, but He wants to give us so much if we just say “yes” to Him.

This is why it’s important to help people pursue destiny.  It focuses them not on what they’re being saved from, but what they’re being saved for.  And that one simple paradigm shift makes a huge difference in staying power, etc.  In other words, without a vision the people perish.

So far, we’re seeing that God is giving us relationships with the people around us through these prophetic glimpses He gives us of His purposes for them.  It’s then up to us to follow through with prayer and by nudging them towards Jesus day by day.

So as God leads you and uses you,  keep sharing your testimonies with one another.  God will give you more.  Not long ago, I was the one sharing them; now a table a table full of people were sharing them.  Testimonies beget testimonies.

Stan Smith  ::  © 2011, GospelSmith  ::  http://www.GospelSmith.com

The Thanksgiving-Christmas Healing Race

I lay in bed last night, soaking and listening, unable to sleep.  Suddenly I heard a challenge:  to engage in a “Thanksgiving-Christmas Healing Race”, and to invite other people to join me.  Here’s what it’s all about.

It started on Sunday as I sat with my four crazy friends at the dinner table.  God is nudging us all into new exploits in healing, but none of us were sure how to begin.  Then, last night, I saw what to do.

Part One – it’s about 30 days from Thanksgiving to Christmas.  That’s the duration of each round in this race.

But even if I have to start late, thanksgiving is how the race begins.  Step One is to collect testimonies of healing that have happened in our lives so far, and thank God for them.  The principle here is, “To him who has will more be given.”  If we already have a few testimonies, God will give us more.

The other endpoint of each round is Christmas, the day when Jesus was born into this world.  Our goal with each round is that we have a fuller presence of Christ the Healer in our lives.  But between the endpoints are about 30 days.  And the goal is to lay hands on somebody and reach for a miracle of healing on every one of them.  Even with sporadic results, we should have at least a few testimonies by Christmas, and be ready to start another round of Thanksgiving again, and another 30 days of reaching for more.

The purpose of the race.  The purpose is to see more of Christ born into our lives — in this case, Christ the Healer.  As we hunger for more of Him, He is sure to build our faith as we let Him lead us into ministry encounters.  And testimonies are sure to accumulate, and then momentum can build.

Two ways to race.  I’ll gladly do it by myself.  It calls for me to reach for healing miracles about once a day.  If I fall behind, I can double up and minister to several people in a day.  And it probably wouldn’t matter if I finished a few days late.  Or a group of four crazy friends could run the race together.  Together, we could easily minister to 30 people in 30 days.  If anybody developed a testimony, we all could say, “Look what God has done for us.  Then, having something, we could expect God to give us more.

Why a group helps.  Sometimes as was one of us reaches out for God’s healing power, we wonder, “What if nothing happens?”  The whole onus is on each of us as individuals.  But, as part of a group, we’re part of something bigger than ourselves.

So I’m inviting my four crazy friends, and other friends in other nations to join me in the race.  Then we’ll all be able to say, “I’m involved in an international prayer experiment…”

Call it a prayer experiment.  That way, we don’t have to try to convince others that we have great healing ministries.  Instead, we can introduce them to Christ the Healer.  And as joint-owners of the testimonies, we can strengthen one another to receive more from God.  So if you’re nervous about what to do if you minister to people and nothing happens, this gives you a covering.  “I’m involved in an international prayer experiment,” you can say.  Then you don’t have to worry that you’re promising something you can’t deliver.  Then you can forget about yourself, and lovingly reach for Jesus.  And that’s when faith works:  when we get our attention off ourselves – my faith, my gifts, my anointing, my, my!  But when we see Jesus and His love, His presence makes healing easy.  And if you’re in another nation and want to run the race with us where God has put you, let us know.  Then we’ll be able to say it honestly:  “We’re involved in an international prayer experiment.”

Your Invitation.  I’m going to do this, whether anyone joins me or not.  I’ll start on Thanksgiving, which is November 24.  But I’m determined to keep it persona and relational.  It isn’t meant to be an annual event with a lot of hype and publicity.  It’s simply a way for a few friends to stretch our gift mix, and to take our first faltering steps into power evangelism.  Step-by-step, the Holy Spirit will show us how to stretch beyond ourselves.

And how do we reach for miracle testimonies?  I’ll have to answer that with more articles.  From what I’ve seen of miracles and healings in the past, the mysteries and paradoxes make it a wonderful adventure.

Stan Smith  ::  © 2011, GospelSmith  ::  http://www.GospelSmith.com

Testimony – Injured Arm Healed

I didn’t get to hear how it happened, but a man at our church shared that he injured an arm as he tried to catch someone who was falling.  He couldn’t move the arm without pain, in spite of pain pills.  And he was planning to go to the emergency room after the meeting, to see what further treatment would be needed.

We always end our worship services with Communion and a meal.  At the meal, he told what had happened to his arm.  Soon, people gathered around him to pray.

 

As the prayer ended, someone said, “How’s your arm?”  He moved it this way and that and said, “It feels better.”  I could see in his face that it wasn’t perfect yet, but he kept moving the arm.  A few moments later, he picked up his pen, which he’d left on the table.  “I couldn’t do that earlier,” he said cheerfully.  “It really does feel better.”

That was what he told us a few minutes after prayer.  But then he shared again in church on Sunday when I asked for testimonies.  “As I was driving home, I decided to skip the visit to the emergency room.  Then when I went to bed, I wondered if I could sleep through the night without a pain pill.”  By morning, he realized that even without a pill, he felt no pain.  “I haven’t had any more problems with my arm all week,” he told us.  “I’ve lived a full week, and haven’t had to curtail anything I needed to do.  My arm is healed!”

 

This happened when three or four of us prayed at the dinner table.  But I’m sharing this story because God will do things like with any group that gathers in the name of Jesus and looks to Him for guidance.

 

Stan Smith  ::  © 2011, GospelSmith  ::  http://www.GospelSmith.com

 

Why Keep A Record?

I like to keep a two-column version of my testimony, with one column for what I’ve done and the other for what God has done.  Use this method to measure your soaking and ministry opportunities.  You’ll soon collect some remarkable testimonies.

I learned this principle when I was involved in street witnessing in Detroit.  I’m not particularly gifted as an evangelist – I don’t find it easy to talk to strangers, and I don’t have a manner that seems to put people at ease. But the compassion in my heart outweighed the limitations in my personality, and I started going out every week.

Two churches had jointly opened a coffee-house ministry, and they always needed people who would go out into the neighborhood and share Christ with people.  The neighborhood was dangerous and they sent us two-by-two, and they gave each team a bundle of 24 booklets written by Dave Wilkerson.

Within a few weeks, I learned that by the time I had given out one bundle of booklets, I was sure to have at least one Holy-Spirit-encounter with somebody.

I could measure my activity – all I had to do was hand out a bundle of booklets.  I couldn’t control God’s activity; there was no faucet I could open to get the water of life flowing.  But without fail, if I handed out a bundle of booklets, God would do something that touched somebody.

Sometimes someone came to Christ.  Sometimes a Christian was encouraged.  Sometimes someone who had given up on the things of God came alive again.

The issue for me was this:  was I willing to keep handing out 24 booklets every week, knowing I couldn’t make anything happen, but also knowing that I would see God work in His own way if I would do my part?

Frankly, I thought it was a bargain.  And it took the pressure off as I handed out my booklets; I didn’t have to make anything happen.  Sooner or later, God would.

This is why the online school of the Spirit calls for you to commit yourself to 2-3 times of soaking each week, and to encourage 5 people.  It’s something you can do whether God does anything or not – and even when you are in a low time personally, you can still reach out to others.  None of it is particularly hard; use the gift mix you already have to give as much of Jesus as you can.

I didn’t have to write anything down when I handed out booklets.  Someone had already counted out 24.  If I simply handed them out, I knew how many people I had tried to reach out to.

But when it’s a matter of using an opportunity that springs up spontaneously in daily life, it’s helpful to jot something down so, at the end of the month, I can remember that I’ve done it.

I use one column to list what I’ve done and another to list what God has done.  It’s just as easy to write it all as a list, but I like to make it easy to see at a glance what God has done.  Often a week or two passes and someone gets back to me with a testimony.  Once in a while, one small testimony turns into an avalanche of divine activity.

Why keep a record?  First, it’s good to be determined to stay active in ministry.  It’s easy to get busy with other things and to let it slide.

Second, it’s encouraging to look back and see what God has led you to do, and to see what He’s done.  It’s easy to think we aren’t doing anything, or that we have no ministry opportunities.  God wants to convince us otherwise.

Third, the process of writing it down forces you to notice what you and God are doing.  There are a lot of testimonies we might simply overlook if we don’t make a point of noticing them.  Don’t throw them away.  They glorify God.  And that’s the most important thing you and I will ever do.

Stan Smith   ::  © 2008, GospelSmith  ::   http://www.GospelSmith.com

The Scavenger Hunt

The Scavenger Hunt is a new feature on the Assignments page of the online school of the Spirit.  Like a child’s game, it gives you the opportunity to gather a variety of experiences as you soak, minister to people, and share your testimony.

I’ve added something new to the online school of the Spirit:  a Scavenger Hunt with 10 specific things to do every month.

A friend gave me the idea.  He used to head up the school of the Spirit at Morningstar.  He said they would give a weekly challenge – “Go minister a word of knowledge to someone in a red shirt” – and usually, about 60% of the students managed to do it.

God sometimes gives me assignments like that.  I touched on the idea last week when I wrote about a peg – a simple word of knowledge that gives me something to look for when I minister, while keeping me dependent on God.

I’m posting easier assignments.  For instance, item 5 tells you to find three or more faith-building truths in Romans 8, and then use them to encourage people around you.  It should be easy to start a conversation with a friend or family member and say, “God says He’s for you, not against you.  What do you suppose that means?…”  As you explore what God has said, encouragement is sure to follow.

But I want to share a bit of a story behind some of the other items in the list.

Start with soaking.  Item 2 challenges you to thank God for things He has done in your life, and also for influences He has used to make you hungry and to equip you.

If you’re anything like me, you tend to focus not on what God does but on what He doesn’t do.  Did three people get healed in the last meeting?  Great, but what about those who didn’t?  I’ve always had a tendency to focus on those who didn’t get healed.

At the moment, I don’t feel particularly gifted at healing.  My hands aren’t burning right now; my heart isn’t melting with compassion at the moment; I don’t feel the anointing.  But if I look back over the past few months, I have a few testimonies.

I would probably have more if I ministered to more people.  But if I take time to thank God for what I’ve seen Him do recently, my faith grows.  I start becoming bold, and am more likely to reach out for ministry opportunities.

What if you don’t have a track record yet?  Pay attention to the influences God has put in your life.  JoAnn and I heard a wonderful faith-building message about healing based on Romans 8:11 – “If the same Spirit that raised Christ from the dead dwell in you, He will quicken your mortal body.”  As I thank God for the things I have seen Him do, I also need to add scriptures and other nudges that push me forward into healing.  It‘s all part of His process to clothe us with His power.

Devote one of your soaking times to thanking God.

Then look at item 7. A few years ago, I was in a small church and many of the people were sick, including the pastor.  I decided to pray for them day by day – there were five.  I called the pastor Monday night; one was healed.  On Tuesday, another was healed – so it went through the week.

Look at item 10.  If the online school of the Spirit is doing what it’s supposed to do, you should start accumulating testimonies.  Write a brief one – 250 words or less – and post it as a comment on one of the blogs this month.  Or if you don’t know how to post a comment, send it to me at StanSmith888@sbcglobal.net and I’ll post it.

Finally, have fun with the scavenger hunt.  Let it be like a game, not a grim duty.  Jesus told us to be childlike.  Have fun – I know I do.

Stan Smith   ::  © 2008, GospelSmith  ::  http://www.GospelSmith.com

Pray Specifically

If you want to build a testimony, start asking God for things so specifically that you can tell whether your prayers are answered or not. Paradoxically, stay focused but don’t put all your eggs in one basket.  Then persist in prayer until you see answers.

I was fresh out of school and beginning my ministry, and a prophet spoke over me that “word will get out that God answers your prayers.”  I knew I didn’t see many prayers answered at that point, so I decided I would have to learn how to pray the kind of prayers God can answer.

Most books about prayer tell us that God changes us when we pray, and this is more important than the answers we receive.  Jesus by contrast told us repeatedly that if we ask, we will receive; if we seek, we will find; if we knock, doors will open.

Experience has taught me that both perspectives are true, but I have found it very helpful to keep coming back to the words of Jesus.  He expects us to pray the kind of prayers God can answer.

This is especially useful if you want to enlarge your gift mix.  For instance, I have known many people who wanted a healing gift.  Many have prayed, “Lord, use me in healing.”  And months passed, and nothing happened.

Pray specifically. Things start to move when you start praying for specific people.  It’s not theoretical anymore; its reality.  Use scripture as you pray.  Look for ways to let God have the credit for answering prayer, not yourself.  Be moved with compassion as you pray; faith works by love.

Being specific carries a risk of failure.   What if nothing happens?  Then it’s time to go back to the words of Jesus, who said that if we ask, we will receive.  It’s good to search the scriptures and find what we need to do to clear obstacles out of the way, so we can see our prayers answered.

Stay focused, but don’t put all your eggs in one basket. Sometimes we put all our prayer into a single objective and, if our prayer isn’t answered, we get caught in a spiritual stalemate.  We refuse to move on to pray for anything else; on the other hand, nothing is happening with our first efforts in prayer.

We don’t always know all the issues when we pray, and sometimes there can be hidden obstacle to answered prayer.  I John 5:14-15 says –

Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us.  And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him.

Sometimes we know enough scripture to know God wants to heal, but we don’t know everything going on in a person’s life.  It’s best to stay focused in prayer for healing, but don’t funnel all your prayers into just one person.  Pray for many.  For reasons we’ll never understand, some will receive more easily than others.

To build a testimony, don’t pray for just one.  Pray for many people; sooner or later you’ll see God heal someone.

Persevere. Persevere in praying for many, but also persist in prayer for some of the “hard cases” and push through the obstacles that hinder the flow of healing.  This is how you will grow in authority, and this is the kind of prayer that will change you.

Ask God to teach you how to pray.  Whether the issue is healing or something else promised in scripture, God will teach you when to hang on in prayer and when to let go.  He’ll teach you the importance of personal integrity; He’ll teach you discernment; He’ll teach you faith.

As you see more and more answers to prayer, you’ll develop a testimony.

Stan Smith   ::  © 2008, GospelSmith  ::  http://www.GospelSmith.com

Soaking Testimonies

Have you ever had a testimony about your soaking?  Sometimes soaking is nothing more than doing the dead-man’s-float in the river of God; you come out of the experience rested and refreshed.  But sometimes you’ll see or hear something clear when you soak.  Collect testimonies of what God does when you spend time with Him.

When I soak, I list my experiences in a two-column table I’ve created in a Word document.  The left column is where I list what I’ve done and what I’ve sensed as I was soaking; the right column is for what happens by way of follow-through.  Or I can do the same thing in a steno pad, with its vertical line dividing every page into two columns.

Over the years, four things have happened when I would try to hear from God:  (1) nothing; (2) a time when I thought I hadn’t heard but later found out that I had; (3) times when I did hear clearly; and (4) times when I thought I had heard, but it turned out I had made a mistake.  There is something to good about each.

When we hear nothing. A steady diet of spiritual deafness is what we want to get away from, but it’s healthy to have a reminder that God is not at our beck and call, as though He were a well-trained pet dog, prepared to do tricks to amaze the crowd.  He always has the freedom to do as much or as little as He chooses when we approach Him.

Just being in His presence has value.  Just having it noted in the heavens that we took time to seek Him has value – even if we feel we haven’t gotten anything out of it.

When we think we heard nothing, but later discover that we had. There was a season in my life when I was discipling a young man who lived in my home.  We would go out to a park by the river and pray for about an hour late at night, each pacing along a different stretch of the walkway.  Afterwards we would compare notes.  “Hear anything?”  I would ask – he would shake his head – “Neither did I,” I would say.  But then as we talked bout what we had prayed about, it would come out that we both had been sensing the same things.

What did this mean?  It told us we had been hearing from God, but hadn’t realized it.  This will happen to you sometimes; it will train you to identify the voice of God when He speaks to you.

When we hear clearly. This is straightforward stuff.  We wait on God, hear something clear, and write it down in the left column.  Then we follow through with appropriate action, and soon we have a testimony we can write down in the right column.

Over time, you can expect more and more of these experiences.

When we think we have heard from God, but it turns out we have made a mistake. We all make mistakes at times.  As I Thessalonians 5:21 says, “Prove all things; hold fast what is good.”

Sometimes we see or hear something that doesn’t happen.  This can reflect a mistake we have made, but it can also mean someone else failed to do his or her part.

Sometimes we think we have received a word of knowledge from God, but it’s inaccurate.  The facts don’t line up.  Bear in mind that circumstances are the only way you can prove your words of knowledge – no scripture will help you discern whether a woman in a yellow dress will be in the next meeting.  You simply have to wait and see.

Bottom line – it’s all a learning experience. Sometimes the left column of my notes is full and the right column is empty; sometimes the right column is three times as long as the left.  But however it plays out, it’s always an opportunity to learn more.

Stay humble, and you’ll keep learning.

Stan Smith   ::  © 2008, GospelSmith  ::  http://www.GospelSmith.com