| June 2009 |
 |
 |
 |
|
Wrestling Team Update
6-3-2009
Greetings all who wrestle for the Kingdom.
How long Oh Lord, How long?
Psalm 13 reads “1How long, O LORD? Will You forget me forever? How long will You hide Your face from me? 2How long shall I take counsel in my soul, Having sorrow in my heart all the day?”
This is a cry from a guy who believes and loves God and is pursuing Him with his whole heart and yet finds himself in a hard place and no answer as to why the “stuff” continues.
How long oh Lord?
The student who had the report last month of the unexpected and anonymous $1,000.00 in his mail slot at school is still in the hard place and months back in his mortgage. Another person we have prayed with for months is still without a job while others have found work within days of being prayed for. A person who comes to the “W” often is still ill even though one of the people they prayed for @ the “W” with a similar ailment was healed.
How long oh Lord? Will You forget me forever?
We do not always know the back story of why we do not see answers. Daniel had to pray for 21 days because the angel who was coming with the answer had to battle demonic opposition to arrive. Also, sometimes there is an “above and beyond what we could ask or think” benefit for us in the delay. God might be doing a greater work that we cannot see until the time is right.
An example you ask? OK.
A woman we know has had some tumors removed (at least one was cancerous) over the past couple of years. She has actually prayed for people with the exact same ailment in the past and seen them healed. She was prayed for at the “W” and by other people who believe as well and yet was not healed and had to go through the operations and recoveries. Why? We do not know the full story but now we know at least a part of the story.
In the course of being treated for the illness she had shared with her doctors her deep belief that God would heal her and she astonished them with her lack of fear in the midst of process. One of the Doctor’s was moved to tears at one point as she shared how God was working in her life and he was taking notes during their visits in order to study more about how God wants to bring healing in the name of Jesus. Her last appointment with this doctor was very interesting. At one point he said “medically we should do some tests and procedures but I think I am supposed to pray for you to be healed. Would that be OK?” She laughed and said of course. After he prayed the post-surgical shooting pain that had been with her for months went away and has not returned.
Cool? Of course cool but God was not done.
At one point as they talked (for over 2.5 hours) the doctor (who knew some of the abuse this woman had suffered in her childhood) stammered and stumbled into an unexpected request. He told her “before I was a Christian I was like the men who abused you as a child and I think I need to ask for forgiveness from you on behalf of the men who abused you.” She was stunned and began crying, actually sobbing uncontrollably and loudly. As God worked through the wound in her heart she came to the point where she could say “I forgive you” and peace flooded her heart. The doctor then said “I want this room to be a place of true healing, would you pray and consecrate it so that God does His work in this place?”
Wow.
Does anyone else want to rise up and yell God is good? Does anyone else want to bless God for the work He did in this doctors heart and also the deep work he did in the heart of a faithful daughter who was pursuing God with her whole heart but had to wait in pain while a deeper work was completed? Does anyone else see a deeper work that was done as a result of the delay?
The newest OMWB song is “Gotta Dance” and the first line is “Gotta dance when the joy of the Lord is upon us”.
Oh yeah.
So, if you have not yet seen the breakthrough, if you are still in pain, if the result has not shown up and you are still in a hard place …. remember His reputation. He is faithful and we can trust Him and His timing. There may be a deeper work that is in the last stages of completion and it will be glorious when it reveals itself.
Thank God with us for these additional dance generating reports …
REPORTS: • A woman was in fear and having problems with her pacemaker as well. She was prayed for at the “W” and now the fear had left and her Pacemaker is operating normally. Yes! Dance card anyone? • A man who has been going to church for over 60 years stated “being at the “W” is the first time I feel like church is being done right. Thank you.” God, You provide places for us to follow You and we thank You for being with us in ways that are real and demonstrable. • A man who had experienced healing at the “W” for cancer had another tumor show up. He had a surgical procedure to have it removed and the Doctors told him it would be 8 to 10 days in the hospital and additional PT after that to recover. After two days the Doctor said “I can’t explain it but you are way too healthy to be in a hospital … go home.” A few days later he was at the “W” telling us about how good he felt and how great God is. Great indeed healing Lord. • A Woman was weeping throughout the service one Sunday and a member of the WT was observing her reaction. During communion the WT member asked if she would like to be prayed for and the woman responded yes. She never told the WT member what the issue was but the WT member prayed as the Holy Spirit directed. The next week the woman ran up and said “I just had the best week I have ever had in my life. Thank you for your prayers”. Father, You know our needs and teach us to pray. Thank You. • A man with a torn rotator cuff was at the Lake Odessa National Day of Prayer and ended up in a small group for prayer with two OMWB members. He is unemployed and thus could not have the surgery to repair it and was in constant pain. As they prayed for him he felt his whole body heat up and the pain left. The next day he was playing catch with his son and threw one as hard as he could. No pain and the shoulder did not pop out (as it would have before prayer). Thank You Lord for touching Your son with healing and blessing him with the ability to play catch with his son again. • A woman was having her hair cut by a hairdresser (who comes to the “W” often). The stylist had shared before about how God had supernaturally given her gold fillings during a service and she was praying for the woman during the appointment that God would bless her with the same blessings He had given her. A few days later the woman who had been prayed for (without knowing it) was telling the stylist that she was having a metallic taste in her mouth. The stylist told her what she had prayed and said “go look in the mirror and see what your fillings look like”. When she looked, all of her previous fillings had turned white except one that had turned to gold. She was a little excited. We bless you Healing Lord. • A young man who had stopped using his musical talent in church due to past wounds put a note in the “box” telling God he was willing to play guitar again in worship. That night Jeff was talking to him and found out he played guitar and asked him to sit in the next week with the OMWB. He did and it was fun for all. Father, You do wonders and glorify your Son by Your work. Thank You. • A couple came to the “W” and when they got home found they were locked out. As the wife sat in the car praying she looked up and watched her husband go through a window, that has never been open, to gain access to the house.” We serve an amazing God who may have sent an angel to open a window to bless His children. • A young woman was struggling with whether or not to pay her tithe since she would be short of funds in her budget if she did. As a single mom this was not a small decision. She prayed and God said “daughter, trust me” so she dropped the check at church. That night someone came to her house with groceries out of the blue and said “God told me to bring this over”. The next day she was praying because her lawn mower had broken and she could not pay to have it fixed. A neighbor came over and said “I just bought a new mower, do you want my old one since it still runs?” Then another person helped her fix her car for free. Thank You Lord that we can indeed trust You and You do provide. • A woman was prayed for via “the box”. She was not a believer and “out of the blue” came to the sister of the person asking for prayer and asked Jesus into her life. She was instantly healed of a chronic blood disorder and because the blood disorder went away she could have a surgery she needed and instead of the anticipated long recovery she was home in two days and back at work in five. All of this within two weeks of the “box” prayer request. I think the only appropriate response is WOW! • A man who has been healed from addictions had lost his license before coming to the Lord. He was prayed for and within three weeks, inexplicably, the State gave him his license back. God, You care for us well. • A businessman came to the “W” for prayer because his business was wallowing in debt and looking like it was going under. In his small group one of the intercessors had a vision of this man swimming in a large ocean alone and heard a voice say ‘I am with you’. Out of the blue within a week someone approached him to buy the business and keep him on as an employee to run it as a division of the new company. You are with us indeed mighty God. • A man had purchased a hot water heater and was installing it himself to save money. The install was done but nothing he did would make it work. He prayed and hit the igniter and it started and has run well ever since. Father, thank You for answering this prayer. • A woman was losing hope. Her hairdresser prayed for her and when she got home she found a hummingbird that had been wounded outside her door. She nursed it back to health over the next few days and in the course of watching God heal this little bird that was released back into the wild had her own hope restored. What a creative God we serve. • A man was having a bad day and asked God if he could be moved to a task where he could pray without it being an issue. Within ten minutes his boss came in and asked if he would be willing to move to a different job (it was the one where he would be alone and could pray). We bless you Lord for hearing our prayers. • A woman came to the “W” with neck pain from a physically active and stress filled week. As she was prayed for the muscles relaxed and the pain went away. Father, You are worthy of our praise. • A woman was praying that she would be able to attend her son’s wedding on the West Coast and did not have the money for the ticket. She was prayed for at the “W” and the next day a person she had never met walked into her shop and gave her a plane ticket to go on the trip. Now that is amazing by any standard. Thank You Father. • A woman stressed out about an important meeting where there was contention and stress. She prayed and the meeting went amazingly well. God, You care about the small details of our life and answer when we call. • A woman burned her hand by spilling hot coffee on it. It flared up bright red and was very painful. Her husband prayed and in :15 the pain was gone and when they checked the next day all the redness had gone too. Thank You Father for answering prayer. Woman with a shoulder issue was prayed for and she regained full range of motion with no pain. The Doctor said he could not explain it medically but she had no more issues. Bless God for He heals indeed. • Our Nephew and his wife are in Tjakistan on a mission’s project and the Nephew got ill with bowel issues. His Dad sent him scripture verses to pray including Philemon 1:20 which reads in the Old English “Yea, brother, let me have joy of thee in the Lord: refresh my bowels in the Lord.” They prayed this and within a short time the problem disappeared. Thank You Father for refreshing Your son. • A member of the WWT stubbed his toe in a Hotel room while preparing to teach the next day. It was a severe stub and his toe turned black and was very painful. He prayed and the pain subsided. He did his training and then checked the toe at the end of the day and it was not even red. Thank You again healing Lord. This same WWT member prayed for his Pastor who was having headaches and blurred vision problems after some intense ministry times. The headaches and vision issues stopped and the Pastor had a great day preaching and ministering the day after prayer. Bless God for He is able and answers the prayers of His people. Here are some additional things to be aware of as WT members;
OPPORTUNITIES:
You are appreciated and prayed for often.
Ted and Claudia Kallman Wrestling Coaches
“Question: You list two tribes under the “Christian” umbrella. What are the primary differences between the Casual and Captive tribes? Barna: The lives of Captive Christians are defined by their faith; their worldview is built around their core spiritual beliefs and resultant values. Casual Christians are defined by the desire to please God, family, and other people while extracting as much enjoyment and comfort from the world as possible. The big difference between these two tribes is how they define a successful life. For Captives, success is obedience to God, as demonstrated by consistently serving Christ and carrying out His commands and principles. For Casuals, success is balancing everything just right so that they are able to maximize their opportunities and joys in life without undermining their perceived relationship with God and others. Stated differently, Casuals are about moderation in all things while Captives are about extreme devotion to their God regardless of the worldly consequences.” From the Blog of the Barna Research Group answering questions about Barna’s new book Seven Faith Tribes: Who They Are, What They Believe, and Why They Matter
May we all find ourselves in the Captive camp.
"...in order for evil spirits to work on man, it is necessary that man's mind and will be completely empty and passive. Evil spirits rejoice exceedingly at all who fulfill this condition and immediately go to work. When a 'heathen' fulfills this condition, evil spirits will possess him; when a believer fulfills this condition, evil spirits will also come into him without any reservation." Watchman Nee The Spiritual Man |
