Day 61 - Open Heavens

Well this is a late Day 61. If I were more legalistic I would really be bummed out that I didn’t get my blog posted last night. As it is, I’m just a little bummed out. We were gone all day and most of the night on Friday. We left at 8AM for a 2 hour drive to Teriposo (probably misspelled). We were going to minister all day at a church there. Harry, our guide, had never been to this church, but his networking ability is unbelievable. On the way, we were praying and asking God to let us see Nicaragua through His eyes. We were asking Him to give us His heart and compassion. We felt that there was another level in the Spirit that He wanted us as a team to move into and we couldn’t do it without His heart and compassion. Toward the end of the prayer, we were going up a hill and we were overlooking a beautiful valley. We pulled off the side of the road and got out of the van. As we stood at the top of a sharp drop-off overlooking the valley, we began to cry out for the nation of Nicaragua. We were singing “Let it Rain” in the van, and we continued to ask God to pour out His rivers of refreshing. I could see in the spirit a deep reservoir that God had stored up for the nation waiting for the cry of release. Others were declaring and decreeing release. All of a sudden, I felt the roar of the Lion of Judah rise up inside of me. As I roared over the land, I felt that there was a release in the spirit, and I could see angles beginning to turn the cranks raising the gate that held the reservoir. We all held hands and were asking God to break our hardness of heart and completely give us His love for the people. We knew that our prayers were heard and answered and continued on with great anticipation of the day. We had to climb a number of hills and the van we had was an underpowered diesel 15 seat (not really) van. It smoked more than it accelerated and was having a hard tome on the hills. Finally on one hill it just wouldn’t make it. We all had to climb out and walk while the empty van finally was able to climb up to the top. That was a sight to see, all of us walking along side the road for about 300 feet. Fortunately that was the only time we had to do that this trip. We pulled into the church around 10 AM.
The plan for the day was for Morgan, a second year student to teach about treasure hunts and then we were going to go out with them to encourage them. That night Linda was going to speak and we were going to minister. During the prayer a couple of us had saw us doing some prophetic ministry , so Lacy decided to add that into the morning session. When we walked in, I could tell a difference in the spirit with this church. It’s not that the other churches were bad; it’s just that this one seemed special. It could be that it was that we were different. Anyway, something was different. There were probably around 30 youth and adults that were there. Their school runs at different times of the day, and that’s why the youth were able to be there. The pastor said that these were all leaders of some kind or another. We were introduced, and then Lacey called us up to prophecy. It was awesome! We were supposed to get a word for someone, and then someone else would tag along and give a second word. I think the plan was to give about 10 people words. The Holy Spirit had other plans. We wound up prophesying over everyone there. I have never had such a strong anointing for the prophetic. It seemed like all I had to do was look at a person, then ask God for a word and He would give me one. From what I could tell, we were all prophesying with great accuracy. We did this for almost an hour. There is one thing that I forgot to say. The church’s name is Bethel. I don’t believe that is a coincidence. After that, Morgan taught about words of knowledge and Treasure hunts. The people were energized because of what they had experienced, and were happy to try and get clues. We finished around 1PM and were supposed to come back after lunch at 4PM to go on the treasure hunt. I couldn’t understand why we had so long to eat, but I soon found out. We drove to another city for lunch. It was good but definitely not fast. It took over 2 hours for lunch ad we didn’t get back until right at 4PM.
So here was the plan. We divided the people up into 5 teams and then we sent 2 of our team with each team. We were there to just encourage and support them. The major problem was the language barrier. We had a hard time telling them anything, so we were mainly along for the ride. I was with Asha, and she spoke a little Spanish, so we were probably better of than most of the teams. The youth on our team were very zealous, and we watched and interceded for them. We were out for an hour, and watched them find two men, and pray for healing. One of the men had pain in his legs and walked with a cane. His pain went down significantly and he was blessed by the presence and peace of the Holy Spirit. We watched them give some prophetic words and pray for a sick baby. It was great. If we could have about 3 days with them, I think they would have it down. As it is, I know that they were zealous, but I wonder about whether they will continue or not.
Early in the day, during the teaching on Treasure Hunts, I began to feel that God wanted me to share at the evening service. The more I rejected the idea, the stronger it became. I felt like He wanted me to share my testimony of His goodness over the past 2 months. I talked to Lacy and she said that I should. She was going to ask me to pray an impartation of the Father’s heart at the end, and this would fit perfectly. So I was to share after Linda and then impart to the people. Worship started at 6:30 and there were about 50 people. It went on until about 7:30. By then there were probably over 300. Worship was awesome! There was a spirit of freedom in worship that I hadn’t experienced since we had been there. As we were worshiping I felt that there were Angles all around the room looking with anticipation, waiting for what was about to happen. Then I decided to press into the Spirit more. I was asking the Lord to let me see the Angels with my natural eyes. I have never seen an Angel before. I had sensed them in the corner of my eye, but had never seen them full on. Well, I was looking at the far wall, and I began to make out the outline of something. It was tall, probably about 10 – 12 feet tall. It was very big. I couldn’t really see any details because the figure was almost transparent. I could shift my eyes away and then It wasn’t there. As I focused in, I could see it again. You could see through it. I was excited; I knew that it was an Angel!
After worship we were called up without notice to give corporate prophetic words about the church. God is good, and all the team got very god words. The common theme was that this church was a light, and had been called to minister to the city and help bring revival to the country. It was an awesome time once again. Then Linda shared and I was next.
Last Wednesday night when I preached on the Father’s heart I used the passage on the prodigal son. It was a good message, and the presence of God was there. I felt a strong anointing of the Holy Spirit. But at the service I felt that I was pushing up against a wall. I tried to discern it, and I think that it was just something that was so foreign to most of the audience that I was plowing new ground. That was not the case last night. As I began to talk about the goodness of God, the people joined in. They were in agreement. The testimony of this bitter and blessed moment of my life is a strong and powerful weapon for the Kingdom. It’s not something I relish giving, but it’s something I must give, because I am living it. It is my testimony. In order to see the sevenfold justice, It is a weapon that I will definitely be using many times.
After sharing I had everyone stand and then I prayed an impartation of the Fathers Love over him or her. I knew that the Holy Spirit wanted to do more. I had anyone who had had a moment where they questioned God’s goodness over something that had happened to raise their hand. Many across the room did. I then had those around them to lay hands and pray blessings over them. The team also went around and started praying. The presence of God was very strong, and many were getting touched. Harry took over and started talking to them while I joined the team praying. Many were falling and being slain in the spirit. As this wound down, we began calling those who needed prayer for healing. It seemed like everyone came down. We started praying and the power of God was still strong. Many were falling; it was hard to move in and out to pray. So we changed the plan and moved all the chairs that were still out. We ended the service with a fire tunnel. It was fun and powerful. I really believe the whole church was touched.
After the service was finally over, around 9:30 we had dinner with the pastor and his wife in a back room of the church. It was traditional Nicaraguan food. It was cooked like tamale except with a rice mixture and beef. It was much better than I thought, and I ate it all. We then had the two hour drive back to the hotel. Since I was leaving on Sat, we had Harry come into the room and we began to prophecy over him and bless him. He is a true honorable servant of God. He has a great vision and anointing. We believe he is a key player in what God is going to do in Nicaragua. The prophecies are to intimate to go init. It was avery sweet time. He was very honored and blessed. By the time everyone left the room it was 12:45 AM. I still had to pack and get up at 4AM. That’s why this is late. Right now I am on the airplane heading home. I plan to catch up tonight. I hope God will sharpen my focus about what 2010 and beyond holds for me.
I’m on the airplane heading back to Atlanta. After clearing customs and driving home I should be back around 3:30. It is always good to come home. This was a great trip. It was probably one of the most powerful and fun trips I have ever been on. I think it is being around and ministering with 20 – 30 year old radicals. I needed this trip more than I realized. I do know this; I will apply to go to BSSM 2nd year next year. I come alive in many dimensions when I am ministering with them. I am looking for more. “More Lord” will continue to be my cry.