FEAR Extinguishers - (DAY 16) - with new restrictions, God opens new doors
Today we discovered that the main way we've been connecting with people and praying for them has been taken away - all restaurants are now closed and no takeaway orders can be picked up. For the past two weeks, we've been visiting dozens of restaurants/coffee shops/etc. to be "Fear Extinguishers" as per the mandate the Lord gave us.
This door is no longer available. And it came without warning.
I am encouraged because yesterday I felt "compelled by love" to head out and visit a number of restaurants, a supplement store, a bakery, and a donut shop. I blogged about those encounters yesterday. Little did I know that it would be my last chance to minister in that way.
So as we launched out this morning on foot to go to our local Costa Coffee which we discovered was now shut and in the1.5-hour prayer walk we took, the Lord opened the door for us to minister to many people. A few of those included:
1. A group of 3 working inside a now-closed bakery (maybe they were preparing deliveries) - but they opened the door for me long enough to pray for them
2. A Bangladeshi muslim guarding a now-shut Shi'ite Islamic center - I got to pray for him in Jesus' Name.
3. A Gulf Arab Muslim woman was walking by and my wife greeted her. My wife commented on the weather and she smiled with a huge smile. She asked her how she was, she said good and asked how my wife was. Then my wife blessed her with the peace of God and protection and for all fear to go and also blessed her family. The Muslim woman was so happy and she blessed my wife back saying "Thank you for your beautiful character"!
4. Filipino maids washing cars in our neighborhood - my wife got to pray for them.
5. An opportunity to pray a blessing of protection over some Afghan muslim men who kept agreeing with what I was declaring saying "Amen, Amen, Amen"
6. To share with 2 Egyptian muslim men about Father Makary Younan, the powerful Coptic priest in Cairo - and encouraged them to look up his videos on YouTube. I told them how much I had learned how to pray in Arabic for healing, for protection and how to overcome "the works of the devil".
7. To share with 2 Bedouin Arabs (most likely stateless) who were selling watermelon. I identified myself as a Christian and told them how we were praying for the country and I shared with them the Lord's prayer - especially the parts about "God's will being done ON EARTH as it is in heaven" - and how I was asking God to do IN THEIR LIVES as it is in heaven. I also shared the part where we pray, "deliver us from evil".
8. Finally, while walking past a Gulf Arab man working in front of his home, I got a word of knowledge about a neck problem. I stopped and went back and explained to him that God gave me a word of knowledge and asked if he had that problem. I identified myself as a Christian. He did have the neck problem! I told him that God was going to heal him for sure and that God would not have revealed his problem to me except that He intended to heal him. I was then able to declare God's healing over him! He was grateful.
So in short, the new restrictions only meant that we had to seek the Lord for new opportunities and He did just that.
Even as we were praying about how we could be more effective in praying for the local Arab muslim population, which has been more of a challenge in these unusual days, God gives me a word of knowledge as I am walking past one. It was a very quick answer to prayer!
So yes, we are seeing some of the opportunities we have had, being taken away. But God continues to make a way for "Fear Extinguishers" to fulfill their mandates.
...for such a time as this!
This door is no longer available. And it came without warning.
I am encouraged because yesterday I felt "compelled by love" to head out and visit a number of restaurants, a supplement store, a bakery, and a donut shop. I blogged about those encounters yesterday. Little did I know that it would be my last chance to minister in that way.
So as we launched out this morning on foot to go to our local Costa Coffee which we discovered was now shut and in the1.5-hour prayer walk we took, the Lord opened the door for us to minister to many people. A few of those included:
1. A group of 3 working inside a now-closed bakery (maybe they were preparing deliveries) - but they opened the door for me long enough to pray for them
2. A Bangladeshi muslim guarding a now-shut Shi'ite Islamic center - I got to pray for him in Jesus' Name.
3. A Gulf Arab Muslim woman was walking by and my wife greeted her. My wife commented on the weather and she smiled with a huge smile. She asked her how she was, she said good and asked how my wife was. Then my wife blessed her with the peace of God and protection and for all fear to go and also blessed her family. The Muslim woman was so happy and she blessed my wife back saying "Thank you for your beautiful character"!
4. Filipino maids washing cars in our neighborhood - my wife got to pray for them.
5. An opportunity to pray a blessing of protection over some Afghan muslim men who kept agreeing with what I was declaring saying "Amen, Amen, Amen"
6. To share with 2 Egyptian muslim men about Father Makary Younan, the powerful Coptic priest in Cairo - and encouraged them to look up his videos on YouTube. I told them how much I had learned how to pray in Arabic for healing, for protection and how to overcome "the works of the devil".
7. To share with 2 Bedouin Arabs (most likely stateless) who were selling watermelon. I identified myself as a Christian and told them how we were praying for the country and I shared with them the Lord's prayer - especially the parts about "God's will being done ON EARTH as it is in heaven" - and how I was asking God to do IN THEIR LIVES as it is in heaven. I also shared the part where we pray, "deliver us from evil".
8. Finally, while walking past a Gulf Arab man working in front of his home, I got a word of knowledge about a neck problem. I stopped and went back and explained to him that God gave me a word of knowledge and asked if he had that problem. I identified myself as a Christian. He did have the neck problem! I told him that God was going to heal him for sure and that God would not have revealed his problem to me except that He intended to heal him. I was then able to declare God's healing over him! He was grateful.
So in short, the new restrictions only meant that we had to seek the Lord for new opportunities and He did just that.
Even as we were praying about how we could be more effective in praying for the local Arab muslim population, which has been more of a challenge in these unusual days, God gives me a word of knowledge as I am walking past one. It was a very quick answer to prayer!
So yes, we are seeing some of the opportunities we have had, being taken away. But God continues to make a way for "Fear Extinguishers" to fulfill their mandates.
...for such a time as this!
Comments
Post a Comment