Stirring the Waters

We had a great time yesterday morning at Valley Gate Vineyard in the Annapolis Valley.

They had invited me to come and speak on vision for the next generation in the Vineyard Movement, so during the teaching, I talked about the ingredients for what Ed Piorek has called “Classic Vineyard.”
Those 3 main ingredients are:
1) The manifest Presence of God among us in worship
2) Teaching the Word of God (specifically the themes of the Kingdom and Mercy)
3) Doing the Works of Jesus (healing the sick, driving out demons, prophetic ministry etc)

After the teaching time, we made space for a ministry clinic to learn to do the works. Well, on the drive out to the Valley, I had asked the Holy Spirit what specific conditions He wanted to touch that morning. God gave a list of about 10 or 12 things that I wrote down and shared during ministry time.
We saw people with melanoma, bursitis, drug addictions, severe depression, infertility issues, slipped disks etc, dramatically touched by the power of Jesus.

One of the words of knowledge was for a man who was struggling to give up cigarettes; he wanted to quit but kept feeling the pull back to nicotine. A young man about 21 years old responded in amazement- saying that he had just been talking to God the night before about wanting to quit and he actually decided to come to church that morning to get people to pray for him. When I shared the revelation that God had spoken, his faith was elevated dramatically. He knew God cared specifically for him and was listening to his prayers. We prayed for him and had a sense the addiction was broken. We’ll see what happens with his progress.

The Kingdom of God broke in with power, as God was touching people all over the room. Many conditions completely disappeared or were partially healed.

A woman came up in agonizing pain from bursitis in her shoulder. As teams prayed for her, tremendous heat began to radiate from the area. The pain disappeared and she was able to move freely. We also got the opportunity to speak prophetically to her about the things God had placed in her heart. She was overwhelmed with the love of God and began crying as she encountered Him in a significant way.

Another home group leader was struggling with an intense sense of depression that would follow her around like a dark cloud over her head. She had a powerful call to ministry, but every time she would try to advance, the depression set in and sidetracked her. This power was broken as teams spoke to her condition, and she experienced a wonderful freedom.

The response from the church pastors and leaders was that their community needed this fresh injection of expectation and the renewal in the ministry of Jesus.
I was reminded again yesterday how close the dynamic rule of God is to each of us. I never get tired of this stuff! What a great way to spend a weekend…