A day of rest (Sat 11 Feb 2012)

A day of rest today after yesterday.

A view of the field by Enosh's house where the crusade was held.  Nearly all packed away now...

Two people came over to the house today for prayer.  Young lad wanted prayer for his studies and had been involved in a fight and had had his face hit.  Face healed.

Another man came who had a Hindu background.  The guy was sweating profusely when we were praying for hi,.  So had to lead him in a prayer of repentance and cutting him off from the former things.  Still had some heaviness in his head but just him being fearful of what disease he might have rather than anything spiritual.

Again, I was so fearful at the start - was yesterday a dream?  Would God do the business again?  And He did.  I don't know how I can maintain this over time.  Good chatting with Peter and he tells me that he travels 1½ hours to the nearest "Healing Rooms" once a month to pray for people so it keeps the gifting alive.

Roy also brought a sobering story about Barney Coombes' son who as a child prayed for someone who was blind and they saw again but today his son not a believer.  I confess that I thought that bringing children on mission so they saw God in action would "ensure" that they'd stay on with God.  But I realise now that I was relying on something other than God Himself.  The truth is I need to be on my knees begging my Father that my children as it's Him who brings them into the Kingdom.  Yes I need to do my part and live my faith but they need to be born of the Spirit and only He can do that.


How I am going to share what I've seen with those at home?  What lessons have I learnt? 

• The people are SO hungry for God.  We have trouble getting to church on time.  No wonder God is delighted to pour out His blessing.
• There was more than a month of prayer and fasting beforehand - they take it seriously that God changes things with prayer.
• We have so much "stuff" that it slows us down from responding to God.
• Faith shrinks when it's not being tested - what in our life is beyond our natural (God given) abilities?  How do we need God?  Are we living like agnostic Christians?

"Youth Blessing Festival" - third evening

Great evening meeting, at least 50 people saved and Roy also asked for those Christians who wanted to follow Jesus day-by-day to stand up.

Then since it was the final night there was a real crush of people for prayer.  They were holding them back but they were ducking under the barriers and shoving and jostling to get closer.

Waiting for prayer afterwards

It must've been like when Jesus went around with people clamouring to touch him and receive healing.  Don't know how many we prayed for.  Lizzie reckons we prayed for 3 hours.  We certainly finished at 1am and then prayed for the helpers as well.

Similar things: headaches, heart pain, back pain, leg pain, child with fever, neck ache as well as prayer for blessing.  By the evening my faith was so lifted by all we'd seen God do that it was a delight and joy to pray.

It was great to see God's Kingdom advancing and pushing back the works of darkness.  It was fab to see the hunger of the people for a touch from God - some waiting three hours "just" to receive a blessing.

My only concern was for the child with the fever who came back again today - we prayed and the child settled again but asked them to come back tomorrow if there's no improvement.  Lord, please pour out your healing on this child.

The highlights included one lady who had pain all over so made me ask if there was idol worship or unconfessed sin.  She confessed to have a really short temper.  So we prayed for her and she just collapsed into the loving arms of the Father.

Another lady felt fear when we prayed for her - so we cast out this spirit and she felt suich a lightness filling her.

Another lady had pain all over so again enquired and she'd had witchdoctors praying for her.  So we asked her to renounce her acceptance of their healing and I think we had breakthrough.

Right towards the end we had a lad with headache and pain all over his body.  Enquired and found out he wasn't actually a Christian.  So we prayed and he felt the pain lessening but it wasn't all gone.  So I asked if he wanted to receive Jesus and receive the rest of the healing.  He said yes and we prayed for the Holy Spirit to fill him and all the pain had gone.

I think what was good was the fact that I just was delighting in God's love for the Indians and His pleasure with their hearts that are seeking Him.  There wasn't a trace of pride tonight - just the joy of bringing Jesus to people.

It was also great to start getting the translators to pray for people with me.  They were thinking only a "great man of God" could do this - and I had to repeatedly tell them Jesus will use anyone who is willing (besides I'd only been doing it for 3 days!)  So got them to pray with me in the same way that Peter was so gracious in letting me join him.  At the end I got Babu to pray on his own - and it was great to see God use him and the faith rise (particularly since he was praying for a friend and so was more fearful).

Lord, please will you help those young men to rise up in You, to do the works You do, to step out and be counted for You.  Lord may they realise that they don't need us - only You.

Jesus said my food is to do the will of the Father and I certainly felt that I wasn't hungry - I was alive!  But I had neglected Lizzie and she was aboslutely shattered.  So I had to ask for her forgiveness for putting others higher than her.

Lord, thank You for the privilege of being Your hands in India.  thank You for sharing Your heart for the people of India.  Thank You for letting me be a part of seeing Your Kingdom advancing and taking ground back from the Enemy.

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"Youth Blessing Festival" - third evening (prayer before)

Wow!  What a day - just absolutely awesome.

First we had prayer before the meeting.  Again, Lizzie and I started with Peter and with one lady with pain all over.  When praying she started shaking - so asked and found out that she'd prayed to an idol (and had in fact asked the spirit to enter her).  So we got her to renounce it and prayed more,  Pesky thing was telling her all sorts of lies and saying she couldn't make him go.

Prayed for goodness knows how many headaches, two with chest pains, two with leg pains, back pain, lump in arm, infertility, one lady who couldn't raise her arm, two with indigestion, students asking for help with their studies and many asking for blessing (including lots of people asking is to bless their little bottles of oil).

To be honest there wasn't a clear breakthrough on the lady with the arm and i confess that when praying for the ladies with indigestion I listened to the voice that said "Jennie's got indigestion and that's not got better" and so I doubted and did not see complete breakthrough.

*Also learnt that the side rocking with their head means "yes" - whereas for us it would mean so-so.  So all the other nights when I'd been praying and asking the interpretor whether they felt better I saw the "so-so" response from the individual and didn't believe him when he said that they said it was all better.  Funny now.  So all those prayers where I didn't feel there was complete breakthrough - there was.  God is good - he gets the glory!

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Shopping, baptisms and more prayer

Bought Lizzie a punjabi - Chundra (Enosh's wife who came with us and ensured that we didn't get ripped off as tourists!) was very kind and treated Lizzie to a second one.  I gave the rest of our Indian money to Enosh - I just couldn't hold onto it when God's doing so much here - my money will be going on the Kingdom.

Great to commission one of the church leaders at the conference.  God was very gracious and gave me a word for her after looking at her Sari (black, red, green - the black indicates the darkness, the red - the blood of Jesus and her blood shed for the Gospel and the green is the growth that will come out of her sacrifice).

After the conference we baptised the first five of the people who became Christians at the Youth Blessing festival (the rest are to be baptised on Sunday).  I love how they baptise people as soon as they can after their conversion.  We got to pray for them.

Then got to pray with Peter for a few people later on in the afternoon for a few people.  Really good as after a sleep I can almost feel like it's all a dream.  So it's good to pray with him so that my faith is built up.  Once you see God working it become easier to trust and believe Him to do the same again.

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Pastors conference (Fri 10 Feb am)

Roy's teaching

If we don't hear from God then the church will remain just the same.

eg Methodists hear from God at start but 150 years still the same

10 years ago 30,000 people groups had not heard the gospel, now it's down to 8,000 people groups.  So probably another 10 years before Jesus comes again.  We need to use that to rescue people but we won't do that at the current rate and certainly won't do it with more effort - but only by listening to God and being obedient.  Hence, it is vital to hear from God.

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People were coming to the church for prayer during the Pastor's conference.  Peter was very gracious and asked me to join him.

First lady was brought by her Christian friend.  She was from a Hindu background and had two tumours.  Prayed for her and she felt the pain decrease - asked if she wanted to accept Jesus - she said she would if healed - but challenged her - and she accepted Jesus , the pain went and the tumours started decreasing.

Second lady had neck pain and a tunour on her front.  God healed both.

Next lady had heart pain - but God broke my heart and I found myself praying that God would cut her off from a spirit of rejection.  God is good.  My faith has risen from its low this morning.

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Peter's teaching:

Seek out those with maturity who are further along the path than you and imitate the,

However, look beyond the gifting and look at the character.  Since in the long-term only those who carry the character of God will continue their ministry to the end.

Similarly, share those things that God has given you with those around.

Finally, when imitating be who you are - your unique character that God has given you.

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"Youth Blessing Festival" - second evening

So tired this morning - the meeting finished late with much prayer for people then diiner meant it was at least 12.30am before we got to bed.

It feels a bit like a dream - did He really use us yesterday?

We had prayer for people in the church before the meeting which had a little more time.  Peter was so kind in training us up.  We got to pray with him for people as he talked through it and we saw God do many things our faith rose and we then started praying for people on our own.

Saw God do so many amazing things such as healing a ladies hearing - but again it was very mixed.  For example one lady her eyesight was healed as was her neck but still had a headache.  Another ladies knees were healed but her back wasn't...

Faith was certainly rising as we saw Him do good things - but I realised that so was my pride and I wasn't being broken for those who didn't see breakthrough eg mute baby and gall stones.

So asked God to break my heart for the people - that I would see the people that Jesus loves and not as stepping stones to success in healing.  That I would seek to know Jesus more rather than many people healed.  That I would be obedient rather than important.

Not surprisingly with a prayer like that we didn't see much breakthrough during the night - not even for headaches*.  Lizzie prayed for a baby with fever who was screaming and the baby calmed down and went to sleep.  I also saw a lady with a sore back get better.

But I did have much more of a heart for those that didn't see breakthrough and that's more important.

Good to also hear that the guy who I prayed for who couldn't raise his arm had more prayer with Peter and saw healing.

* Again when asked by the translator if it was better they just did that so-so side head rocking motion.  Something cool is going to be discovered later - you'll have to hold on though!!

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Second visit to orphanage (Thu 9 Feb pm)

Visited the children today when the children were back from school.  Went by little yellow taxi (woo hoo) - but with only five of us in it - it just didn't feel right!!!

It's great to see the children so happy and healthy.  They are clearly well loved*.

Was asked (with about 2 mins warning) if I would like to talk to the children.  Some frantic praying and felt I was to talk about the upside down kingdom.  So stood on my head and asked them about who was most important in Jesus' upside-down kingdom.  We started with the First minister and then down to Enosh and Roy and then one of the strongest lads and one of the prettiest girls** - each time asking the children whether that was the most important person.  They quickly got into the game of it - saying "no!" each time.  Finally I picked up one of the smallest boys and said he would be the most important.  You could see them asking why.  So I said that who of them would've sat perched on the arms of a strange white man like this little boy?  It's because he simply trusts - that is why he is most important.

So great to do assemblies again and then we got to pray for and bless the children afterwards.

Sorry Lord that I was looking earthly praise from Roy and Enosh afterwards.  I have a gifting but I need to hear Your applause.  I need You to change me so I have just one desire: to please You.  But I need to hear You applause and delight so I don't look elsewhere.

*If you want to support them go to hope4india.org.uk - £15 a month is all it takes for their housing, food and schooling. 


**I don't think it was coincidence that when I chose a girl at random it was the one who probably didn't think of herself as pretty - I think God is very good.

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