More Amazing Answers To Prayer

If you live on this earth long enough, you can be assured you will end up dealing with a difficult person. But if you turn the situation over to God, He is able and willing to make you the victor and not the victim.

                            God's Power Over Difficult People

   I had just been hired as a customer representative for a tire distributor and it was my very first day on the job. After leaving Springdale, I drove 70 miles in a snow storm that left Arkansas State Highway 71 reduced to a single lane. All the way, I kept hoping I wouldn't meet any one because there was no place to pull over.

   I finally made it to Ft. Smith but had to stop on a hill in town because the traffic was backed up. The blowing snow had covered over my headlights which made it very difficult to see so I decided I would get out to clean them off.

   After scrapping the ice and snow off the headlight lens, I took a couple of steps back toward the driver's door. Being on an incline made it very hard to walk and I lost my footing . My legs flew out from under me and I hit the icy pavement full force on my back.

   By now I was in pain, frustrated and embarrassed. This new job was proving to be far more of a challenge than I had anticipated, but the worst was yet to come.  

   My boss, Al, had asked me to drop by and pay a visit to a particular tire dealer there in Ft. Smith and see if I could drum up some sales. I carefully navigated my way along the icy roads in town until I located the business.

   I pulled into the parking lot, got out of my car and walked up to the front door. A soon as I entered the business I introduced myself to an older gentleman and told him the company I represented.

   No sooner had I mentioned the name of my company than he began to chew me out in a very loud voice and literally got right up in my face. This caught me completely off guard, since I had no idea what he was so angry about.

   "Let me tell you something, boy," He shouted. " I was in the tire business before you was ever born and you can't tell me anything about tires."

   Now it was true I didn't know much about tires since it was just my first day on the job, but I didn't appreciate this man's attitude. Matter of fact, after standing there listening to him continue to bad mouth me, I was starting to get a little angry myself. I had already had a really rough day and the last thing I needed was some hothead yelling in my face!

   Even as Christians, there are times the carnal nature kicks in and we feel like reacting in a way that is not pleasing to God. I could have tried to justify myself, but I knew I still had a duty as a Believer to do the right thing so out of a desire to please God I cried out to Him for help.

   "Lord, I feel like punching this guy right in the face," I admitted silently. "But I know you don't want me to do that. So Lord I'm asking you to help me," I pleaded, "because I don't know what to do."

   I had no sooner finished that prayer than I felt a wave of electricity start at the top of my head and move quickly down the full length of my body. I had felt this sensation many times before and I quickly recognized it as the anointing of the Holy Spirit.

                            God promises in Jeremiah 33:3 (NKJV) -

            "Call to Me, and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty    

              things, which you do not know."

   Well, all I can say is, I did and He did! I called to Him and He answered in a great and mighty way.

   Just a few seconds before, this man in front of me had been ranting

and yelling with a crazed look in his eyes. Yet, as I watched him now, his

expression suddenly changed to a look of bewilderment as if he didn't

quite know what he was doing.

   He blinked his eyes, backed up, and a very mellow look rapidly

spread came over his face. He then kindly asked me to repeat my name.

This may sound odd to some of you, but, though I felt the presence of the Holy Spirit on the outside of my body, I must admit, it had not penetrated inside to the calming of my soul.

   In fact, I was still feeling so aggravated from this man's previous

verbal assault that I snapped the answer back at him, "My name is

Jim!"

   "Well, Jim," He now spoke in a very friendly tone of voice, "I think we got off to bad start. I'm sorry about that, but I do a large volume of business here and I don't really think you would be able to beat the prices I can buy at right now."

   I had finally begun to relax a little bit and it sunk in exactly what had just happened. I prayed to the Lord for help and He showed up on the scene, doing what only He could do.

   When telling this story to others I often say with a smile on my face, "The biggest mistake that man made that day was getting too close to me. Because, when the Holy Spirit came on me, it got all over him and changed his heart!"

   The gentleman continued, "Have you ever seen my place, Jim?" "No," I replied. "Well, let me show you around. Do you drink coffee?" "Yes I do," I affirmed. "Cream, sugar?" He asked. Looking at the secretary He said, "Get this man some coffee and put in it whatever he wants!"

   The man who previously seemed poised for a knock down drag out, now took me on a friendly tour of his warehouse. Afterward he thanked me for coming and gave me a warm sendoff.

   "Jim, I really don't think you have anything I would be interested in, but the next time you're in town be sure to stop by and I'll take a look at what you've got," He promised. "And I'll even take you out to lunch!"

   What a turnaround! He started off treating me like a bitter enemy and ended up treating me like a close friend. That's what God can do! 

   Just remember, you don't have to face difficult situations alone. God is there to help and He's only a humble, heart-felt prayer away!

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Flame of Revival

   

   God revealed this supernatural sign to me several years ago but it's 
as fresh as if it occurred only yesterday. May you be blessed by this testimony of God's power to set the human soul on fire.             

                                       God's Fire of Approval

   Bobbie had been attending church at an Assembly of God in Wichita Falls, Texas. Late one afternoon she asked me to give her a ride there because she wanted to sit in on the evening service.

   We traveled the usual route which took us down one of the main boulevards in town. As we made our way onto the side street that led up to the church, I could see the building in front of us about two blocks away.  

   Typical to many houses of worship, this Assembly of God had a steeple on top. As we neared the church, some movement caught my eye just above the building.

   I glanced up to see what it was and there at the tip of the steeple was a huge flickering yellow and orange flame. It was as clear as could be and as we got closer to the church it suddenly vanished.

   I didn't mention the flame to Bobbie but I did ask her if there was anything special going on in the church at the time. She said they were in "revival" and God was really moving.

   Bobbie went on to say that the pastor had recently gone off for several days to get alone with God.

   "Ever since he's come back, he's really different," she said. "You should come and listen to him."

   Now I had attended the church for several weeks prior and when the pastor got up to speak it seemed as though he always had a hardness about his demeanor.

   This troubled me so much that I had quit attending the services altogether. But since I had just seen this Heavenly vision that I believed was a confirmation from God there was indeed a spiritual "revival" in full swing at the church, I decided to attend a service and check it out for myself.

   That following Sunday morning I walked through the front doors, took a seat and waited to see what change, if any, had happened to the pastor.

   When he stood up behind the pulpit to speak, I saw a different man.

   In place of the stern and serious look he had carried before was a humble and tender expression that spoke of a man who had spent time in the presence of a loving and merciful God.

   The kindness and compassion that issued from his lips let me know he had truly experienced a change of heart.

   Proverbs 20:27  refers to the spirit of man as the "candle" of the Lord and I believe that a revival had taken place earlier in the pastor's heart, setting His soul on fire, which then opened the way for a revival to break out among his congregation.

   The flame I saw was simply a supernatural sign by which God confirmed (like on the day of Pentecost when cloven tongues of fire sat upon each disciple who was filled with The Holy Ghost) that a mighty spiritual transformation was taking place within that church.

   It is one thing to say you are having a revival, but it is another thing altogether to have God supernaturally bear witness to an actual revival in your midst.

  

          Have a Wonderful Weekend and a very Merry Christmas.

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Amazing Answers To Prayer

                                  

                                           Give Me A Sign, Lord

   Merrell and I had some business to take care of one day in downtown Oklahoma City. Once we arrived we took an exit off Interstate 40 and headed north up Robinson Ave. We had only traveled a few blocks when we noticed a man standing on the sidewalk next to the road carrying a large sandwich sign.

   As we got closer, we could clearly read a quote from the Bible on one side of the sign which had obviously been hand-painted. I was so impressed with this man's boldness and devotion to spread the Word of God that I just had to go back and tell him.

   We swung the car around and once we parked we walked over to him and struck up a conversation. He told us he had been doing this for years and it was just his way of spreading the Gospel.

   I asked him if there was anything we could do for him. He said the thick plywood signs he carried were very heavy and he had to use several of them in order to share multiple scriptures.

   He said he really wished he could get a lighter sign that was made in such a way he could change the letters out instead of having to hand paint a different message on several different signs . I told him I didn't have any money to buy him a sign but I would be willing to pray for Him (Silver and gold have I none, but...).

   Now I had seen the Lord provide some remarkable answers to prayer up to that time and my faith was at high tide that day. I told this gentleman that he was doing a very good thing by sharing the Word on a busy street and I believed the Lord would answer his request.

   So this gentleman took hands with Merrell and me and the three of us prayed right there in downtown Oklahoma City as the afternoon traffic sped by.

   "Lord," I began. "You said in Matthew 18:19, 'If two of you shall agree on earth as touching anything that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in Heaven.'"

   "Now, Lord, you see this man is trying to spread the Gospel and he needs a better sign," I continued. "So I stand in agreement with this man that you're going to make the way for him to have what he needs and I thank you for it in Jesus' name. Amen!"

   I turned to the man and said, "Brother, I believe God heard us and He's going to give you what you need!" We stood there visiting for what couldn't have been more than a minute when a pickup passed by that had some type of lettering on the door.

   It traveled about a block then turned around. As it approached, it pulled over next to the curb beside us and the driver rolled down his window. He explained to the man with the signs that he greatly respected what he was doing and would like to help him out.

   He said (you guessed it), "I own a company that makes plastic signs and I would like to provide one for you. You can change out the lettering on it and that way you won't have to carry all those heavy wooden signs around."

   "But I don't have the money to pay for one," The gentleman told the driver. "You don't have to," the driver explained to the old man. "They're free and I'll give you as many as you want for as long as you need them."

                  ****************************************************************

         Note:  There really is power in agreement and God is true to

                       His Word. If we will do our part, He is faithful to do

                       His part.  The Bible says in 1st John 3:22,

                           "And whatever we ask, we receive of Him,

                             because we keep His commandments, and

                             do what is pleasing in His sight."

                Have a blessed day and be sure to join me next week for more:

                                         "Acts of an Awesome God!" 

Glorious Manifestations (part 2)

                                            

                                                Light Unto My Path  (Conclusion)

   As Marty and I looked out the front windshield, the road directly in front of us suddenly lit up. The odd thing is, it didn't appear as though the light was on the surface of the road. Rather, it seemed as if the brightness was actually coming from underneath the blacktop and shining upward, much the same way the flashing disco dance floors of the 70's looked.

   There was a beam of bright light which shone directly in front of me and one that shone directly in front of Marty. Each beam had equal intensity and they went on straight ahead in front of the car for about a half mile then faded into the distant darkness.

   They appeared for just a few seconds, though it seemed much longer, then suddenly vanished. While I was certain we had just had a supernatural experience, I still wanted some further evidence.

   A few seconds after the beams of light disappeared, Marty turned to me and asked, "Did you see that?" I replied cautiously, "See what?" He described in detail what he had just seen and I affirmed I saw the very same thing.

   "What does it mean?" Marty asked. "I don't really know," I said.

     

                    As I sat there wondering about the whole event, this scripture from

                    Psalm 119 suddenly came to me,

             vs. 105)  "Thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path."

   Now that scripture had puzzled me for years. I had wondered why God chose to use the example of a light AND a lamp, instead of a light OR a lamp. Now suddenly I understood... now I had the revelation.

   Like an old-fashioned lamp that shines near your feet to show you where you need to take your next step, God's word brings illumination and understanding regarding decisions in our immediate lives.

   Also, like the bright beams we saw on the highway that night, God's word also provides understanding regarding our future. When we are in the dark about what to do, it reveals or "lights" the path we are to take.

   After this incredible experience, we decided to drive around a little more so I started the car up to leave. As soon as I turned on the headlights, I then had no doubt we had just observed something supernatural.   

   Because, while the headlights normally seemed very bright in the darkness, they now appeared a dingy yellow in comparison to the pure white beams Marty and I had just seen on the road in front of us.

   The brilliance of the beams reminded me of the same type of pure, white light I had seen a few years earlier when I witnessed the large cross light up at that Methodist Church.

   My walk with God up to this point had already been unforgettable but many more supernatural encounters lay ahead. I would come to know Him in an even deeper and greater way in the months and years that followed.

                Note:  We serve a supernatural God, so it is only reasonable to

                           expect supernatural experiences as we follow Him day to

                           day. Expect Him to move wondrously in your behalf!

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                                    "Acts of an Awesome God!"

Glorious Manifestations (part 1)

                                          Light Unto My Path  (part 1)

   In the months that followed my salvation experience, I loved to take leisurely drives with my Christian friends and talk about the things of God. On one special night I was visiting with two of my closest friends, Marty and Merrell. 

   We had been sharing the usual course of conversation about the Scriptures when suddenly I got the strongest impression. It felt so definite that I even dared to voice it out loud to Merrell and Marty.

   "I feel like God just revealed to me that if we would go over to the old highway on the east edge of town that we would see a vision!" I announced confidently. Now I know that was a very bold statement (one that would be proven true or false quick enough) but I was certain I had heard accurately from God and was willing to stake my reputation on it.

   Everyone seemed game so we headed off in the direction of the old highway. Once we arrived, I pulled the car over and turned off the engine and the headlights. We once again struck up our conversation about the Lord.

   We had been sitting there visiting for a few minutes when suddenly everyone stopped talking all at once. A strange stillness immediately settled in the car. At the time, I was sitting in the driver's seat and Marty was in the front on the passenger's side. Merrell was in the back seat alone.

   As Marty and I looked out the front windshield, the road directly in front of us suddenly lit up. The odd thing is, it didn't appear as though the light was on the surface of the road. Rather, it seemed as if the brightness was actually coming from underneath the blacktop, much the same way the disco dance floors of the 70's looked.

   There was a beam of bright light which shone directly in front of me and one that shone directly in front of Marty. Each beam had equal intensity and they went on straight ahead in front of the car for about a half mile then faded into the distant darkness.

   They appeared for just a few seconds, though it seemed much longer, then suddenly vanished.

                     Now, May the Lord bless you tremendously this week

                    and be sure to join me this Saturday for the conclusion

                       of this wonderful  "Act of an Awesome God!"