Brisbane: J-Club VBS 2011

I know it's been awhile since I've posted something, but Jesus has been keeping me so very busy. It's amazing how He has opened up so many avenues for me to serve Him. One of the many highlights of my time in Brisbane, Australia has been being a part of a Vacation Bible School (VBS) at International City Church. For three days, I was trapped in the belly of a great fish with over 30 kids and a dozen or so leaders. No just kidding! I was trapped but not in the belly of a great fish! :D. No really it was such an amazing time! Eight kids gave their lives to Jesus and the rest were asking to be filled with the Holy Spirit! God is so faithful! I was so blessed to be a part of this work of God in these precious little children's lives. 

"Then little children were brought to Jesus for him to place his hands on them and pray for them. But the disciples rebuked those who brought them. Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” When he had placed his hands on them, he went on from there" (Matthew 19:13-15 NIV). 

Thank You Jesus for releasing the grace to me to lead these precious kids into Your Kingdom unhindered and for allowing me to pray for them all as You welcomed them into Your glorious Kingdom! Thank You Jesus for saving those who needed saving and filling all with Your Holy Spirit Who will empower them to walk into God's destiny for their lives, now and forever! Amen.

Mobile Prayer Station: DAY 40

What can I say? Today was exciting. Forty days of the Mobile Prayer Station, "it's biblical." Now when I was first starting out forty days of prayer wasn't even on the radar. Personally, I think I was thinking I'd be out more days, but then again what the Lord impressed on my heart throughout this whole adventure was love over obligation. I will write another blog focusing more on reflections and lessons learned throughout the whole of the forty day experience so stay tuned. 

I got to see lots of people today that I've been growing in relationship with from the community which was nice. I've been slowly telling people of my plans of travelling overseas so I've gotten to say some goodbyes. What I've been slowly learning over the years is the importance of saying goodbye. The more I'm able to say goodbye the better I've become at saying hello. I got to do this with quite a few people today which was sad, but also endearing. In saying goodbye I got to reflect and remember just how the other person has impacted my life, how close we've grown and how I will miss them. Saying goodbye has the power to draw us into the depths of our hearts if we allow it. 

There were a few nice surprises today as I got to interpret a dream for Maureen who is the girl I buy my ice coffees from each day. Jose came by to say goodbye and we ended up praying for one another. My dear old friend Glory stopped by whom I haven't seen in like eight years and spent some time together talking and praying. I prayed with a few other friends today from church, as well as, an old childhood friend who just happened to be walking by. So cool! The day ended with Sean, who is a card carrying Coexister who said that he has constructed his own personal religion from lots of other ones. We talked for a bit about faith and life. I ended up praying for him and he started to weep. I told him that he was feeling the presence of God and he agreed. He shared a dream and I asked God to bring interpretation and He did. I love it when God includes me when He draws near to someone. The dream was from God and highly revelatory, I actually saw the lights go on in his eyes as we talked through the interpretation. God is so good!

Lastly, I ended up giving the Mobile Prayer Station sign to my friend Scott Venable who is the pastor of Mosaic Church. We talked and prayed for one another and then He tells me that he will definitely put the sign to use. He shared how he was going to get a street performer permit and continue on with the Mobile Prayer Station. YES! It truly warmed my heart to hear that the vision God gave me has been passed on to someone else who will carry it which is something I've been praying in my heart for over the last few weeks. Thank You Lord! He even said that he was hoping to get some other people in his church to get street performer permits so that they could rotate people through. Wow! Gotta love multiplication. I love the missional focus of what Mosaic Church is doing and have a prophetic feeling that God is going to move mighty through this church to bring spiritual awakening to the area. 

At the end of the day, I know that Jesus used my presence with the Mobile Prayer Station to impact lives both directly and indirectly. I pray that you, who are reading this, were also encouraged and your faith was strengthen as you read how God drew near to people. He loves people and is eager to be in relationship with us. I am definitely looking forward to when I finally get to see Jesus face to face and have Him tell me exactly what He did through the Mobile Prayer Station. Well, this chapter of my life is finished, but there is another one ready to be written/read. I head out to Brisbane, Australia in two days! I've had so much to do in getting ready for this trip and if you continue to read my blog you will discover with me all that God has planned for me while I'm there. Though the future is unknown to me, I find peace in knowing that it is known to God and that my life is in His able, loving, caring Hands. Peace, Gerry.

Mobile Prayer Station: DAY 39

The only thing that motivated to be out on the street today was the fact that the only way that I could finish 40 days with the Mobile Prayer Station was to be out today. You see, I am preparing to leave in a few days to spend one year overseas. So today and tomorrow are the only real days left before I travel overseas. But, even so, the Lord is so gracious and though it was a battle to even be out today, the Lord drew near to me as I cried out for His presence and grace. 

What profoundly stood out today was the sense of loneliness in people. As they walked by, the Holy Spirit let me feel their loneliness and then moved me to ask the Lord to draw near to them. I believe one of life's true horrors is the feeling of loneliness because we were created by God for relationship. This is why hopeless gains such a quick foothold in a person's heart and life when loneliness grips them. We were created out of love, for love, to be loved and to give love. One of my favorite bible verses is 1 John 4:16: "And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them" (NIV). Really spend a minute to take this verse in. So amazing!

So even though I wanted to go home immediately after I got on the corner, God released grace to me and brought people for me to prayer with. First Jose and Crystal came by on their way to a youth night their church was throwing. I've gotten to talk and pray with Jose on a few occasions so it was nice to see him and pray with him again. But then God gave me a prophetic picture for his cousin Crystal which I shared with her and then prayed into. God has really brought these two through such tremendous trials which only speaks of such favor and incredible destinies on both their lives. God is so good! Next, I got to speak with a woman walking her dog who stopped to ask about dream interpretation (if you're interested on reading about my biblical grounding for dream interpretation read here). She couldn't remember any dreams and was a bit hesitant in receiving formal prayer from me, so I just spoke a blessing prayer over her as we talked. She was appreciative. Yes, I will sneak in a prayer even in conversation. 

One of the highlights of my day was praying for a dad Sergio and his stepdaughter Elisia. He kept his request general and asked for resolution to some issues happening within the family. The Holy Spirit guided my prayers and I respectfully touched on a few prayer points while still honoring the family. Next, I prayed for Elisia that God would bless her creativity and give her the courage to walk into her God given gifts and talents. It's funny, one of the first things Sergio said to me was that they were having a pretty weird day and well why not keep it going by asking me for some prayer. I love it! Rather than getting offended I just ran with the God given opportunity to pray for peace, healing, kindness and grace for this hurting family. Thank You Jesus for Your compassion, love and humility. Only by Your grace Lord!

Lastly, I got to talk and pray with Seneca, who came up to me and said that God had given him a vision sometime in the past of me and my prayer sign and told him he was to have me pray for him. Wow! Are you kidding me? So we held hands and prayed. Right when I started praying Seneca started praying in tongues. I prayed for many things for him from healing to deliverance to revelation. I won't go into too much detail, but I will say this, after Seneca left I literally heard the Lord say to my spirit that one of my prayers was the one He's been waiting for someone to pray. God is so amazing! Here I am not even wanting to be out praying with people and God releases such grace and revelation to me. Talk about a Divine appointment. Before Seneca left, he did pray for and bless me which was a bonus! I love God's amazing grace! 

Mobile Prayer Station: DAY 38

I can't believe that this is already day 38, two more days until 40. What an amazing journey this has been. For most of today, I was deep in thought and in prayer for the community. I long for Jesus to encounter people and awaken their hearts to the reality of His Kingdom. If there's one thing that I can't pray enough of it's that God would stir in people Divine curiosity. Because if there's one thing that the world is relentless at, it's dulling people's minds to the reality of a spiritual realm, to the reality of God. 

Maybe I'm reflecting on this today because only one person stopped for prayer today, my friend Jeff.  Jeff has some health issues, specifically his lungs. So, I love praying that God would heal Jeff's lungs. Over the summer I must have prayed for Jeff's lungs to be healed at least four times (if not more). It's funny when I asked if I could pray for his lungs today, Jeff said, "again?" In which I answered, "yes, again." I am believing that every time I pray, God heals Jeff's lungs a little bit more. He did say that his lungs seemed to be getting better, but then again he also says that it's hard to tell unless they get inflamed and irritated which they haven't for a little while. Again, I'm believing God is bringing healing until shown otherwise. Overall, nothing super major today, just a good old fashioned day spent in intercessory prayer for the community which is always good! Thank You Jesus!

Mobile Prayer Station: DAY 37

Well, the day started off with a bang. Denise, a regular who hangs out in the park, came by cursing and screaming about something and someone. Without missing a beat, I called out to her and asked her if I could pray for her. She agreed and we enjoyed a few moments of peace as I prayed that the Lord would give her a change of heart and help her to love her enemies. I am so grateful to the Lord for opening up avenues of prayer with some of the regulars of Wicker Park and even allowed me (at times) to be able to speak truth and life to them because the growing compassion of the Lord that dwells within me needs an outlet. 

Whenever I read about Jesus' life and the way He interacted with people, I'm always impacted by how He had compassion on the masses of people who came to Him to be healed (Matthew 9:36; 14:14; 15:32; 20:34). Over the last many days, the Lord has used my time being on the street with the Mobile Prayer Station to cultivate more of His compassion within me. Just the other day I was spending time with a group of friends and one of them said that there was something different about me. She literally asked me if God had healed me or something because she said that there was a softness about me that was new. At the time, I really didn't understand what she meant. But, in reflecting on this now (I feel like the Lord is connecting the dots for me even now as I write this), the softness that she was sensing from me was the compassion of the Lord growing within me. Praise God! 

The highlight of the day came with three teenagers who must have passed by me three times before they stopped and we started talking about dreams. Without any delay, Gabriel, Gerard and Ashley started sharing dreams that they had in the past with me. Many of them were dreams of demonic visitations where dark shadow figures would come into their bedrooms inciting terror and fear in them. Now, this is something I am very familiar with, so I took this opportunity to talk about the reality of angels and demons and the cosmic battle between good and evil. While we were talking I felt like the Lord gave me a word for them: that He has placed an incredible destiny on their lives, but the devil was currently trying to steal their dreams, kill any sense of hope in them and destroy their awareness of God's destiny for them by instilling fear in them. So, I shared this with them and asked if I could pray into God's destiny for their lives. They excitedly agreed. Let me just say that it was probably a moment that these kids will carry with them for a very long time. Thank You Jesus! 

I love how God meets us all right where were at. The seed of faith that was planted in these kids hearts and mind today was the reality that God has a destiny for their lives and that He will fight for this destiny to happen. That's where the good soil was within their hearts. Sometimes, I feel like good intention believers end up blindly throwing seeds of faith against brick walls in people's hearts and minds because they fail to spend the time in discerning where a person is at on this journey through life, where the Lord has someone on their faith journey and where the good soil actually is within their hearts and minds. What this takes is a sensitivity towards the Holy Spirit, but also a compassion towards people. To be like Jesus means to embody both. And the Good News is that both of these graces are available to a believer because we are in Christ. Maybe today is a good day to start meditating on what it actually means for you to be in Christ and all that that entails...

Mobile Prayer Station: DAY 36

As you can see, my friend Nobuki visited the Mobile Prayer Station for the first hour today. While he was there, an old college friend of his just so happened to be in the area. Coincidence? I think not. From what I gathered, this friend hasn't met the new creation Nobuki, but only knew the old Nobuki who did drugs and partied. So, Nobuki had a chance to share about his new life in Jesus with this friend. Very cool! The timing couldn't have been better because Nobuki is currently on a "short-term" mission trip back to his old art school to visit friends and to share about his new life in Jesus. Prophetically speaking, I believe that this divinely appointed meeting was like a foretaste of what was to happen on this coming trip. 

Throughout the rest of the day, I talked and prayed with Cindy, who is becoming a friend; Matt, a Greenpeace volunteer who also gave me some encouragement; Cassandra, a social worker spending the summer in Chicago; as well as a dad and three kids. Each was a special moment because what I'm beginning to really understand is God's deep desire to be near His children (both lost and found). The more that I talk and pray with people while on the street, the more I'm impacted with the reality that God has such plans and purposes for each of His children. But, the sad reality is that sin and the evils of this world weigh people down from actually going after their destinies. In some instances they are completely blinded from actually even seeing God's destiny for their lives because satan, the god of this world has truly blinded their eyes from seeing their amazing destiny in Christ (2 Corinthians 4:4). So, if there's one thing that I love to do, it's to pray that God would set people free, open their eyes and reveal their God destiny to them. 

God has a wonderful plan for everyone's life. He has a wonderful plan for your life. There's a Scripture verse that has eternally impacted me: "'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the LORD, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you,' declares the LORD" (Jeremiah 29:11-14a NIV). God has an amazing destiny for your life. I know that at times it may be hard to believe. But, it's in the rough patches of life that we need to all the more remind ourselves of this Truth: that "God has an amazing plan and destiny for my life." So, this is my prayer: that the Holy Spirit would ignite these words of truth in the very core of your being and release faith into your heart to believe and receive these words of grace, hope, truth and love. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Mobile Prayer Station: DAY 35

Today, even before setting up the prayer sign, my friend Nate and I spent a few minutes singing "I love You, Lord." It felt right to be standing on a corner in Wicker Park singing to the Lord. After today, I've decided to start each day like this, from a place of worship to the Lord; from a place of love and adoration towards Him. I can't tell you how singing a simply song of love to the Lord can tenderize your heart and draw the presence of God near to you. 

Overall, today was pretty amazing. I was so glad that Nate was by my side. The day started with Harry (see Day 34) and then Jeff, who has become a good friend. In praying for Jeff, I really felt the Holy Spirit's strong leading and hit some things that I was glad to have prayed for because it just seemed exactly what was needed. Even Jeff got pretty excited after the prayer. Next, came Eleven and his girlfriend Susie, who are a couple of traveling kids, looking for some dream interpretation. I was a bit nervous, but reminded myself that God reveals and interprets when we ask Him. The dream was another flying dream, but with a twist. After praying aloud in asking God for interpretation, I felt like God was wanting to bring spiritual breakthrough into their lives, but was also speaking directly against their current belief in astrology and their understanding of the universe as being god (pantheism). Nate felt like God was also going to bring change into their lives. They were very receptive to the interpretation and we ended up talking for a bit, until the rest of the friends came by.


Next, came William, who received prayer on Day 34. My friend Dave and I talked with William for probably a hour and prayed for him on three separate occasion. First, we prayed for some things that he lost, which he came back today to tell us that he got back what he had lost. Praise God! Now, from William's own mouth he said that he is angry with God and his chief complaint was that God wasn't talking to him. William has a faith, but it is distorted. So, the second time we prayed we prayed that God would bring revelation to him and prayed against the curse of addiction over his life. After this prayer time, I saw in my mind's eye a veil being lifted off of William's head. He even said that he felt lighter and more at peace. In this instance I felt like God lifted whatever was keeping him from receiving the blessings of God in his life. Today, when he came back he shared that the day after we prayed for him, he passed out in the park and woke up with a cross necklace around his neck (when we were talking he kept admiring my cross necklace) and was so thrilled that God had given him his own cross necklace while he was sleeping. Also, he woke up with money on his chest that someone had left on him. So amazing! Lastly, I felt like God gave me a word of knowledge about what was hindering William from freedom. So, we prayed for that and I truly feel like in that moment, God set William onto the path of healing and restoration. Go God! 


Next, a woman came by who was pushing a cart filled with various things and who also had a street performer permit hanging around her neck. She came by asking if I was a dream interpreter which I told her yes and asked her if she had a dream she wanted interpreted. She said, "No." I then asked her what kind of street performing she did and she said that she was a tarot card reader. When she said this my spirit got excited because this was such an opportunity to show her love and to share Jesus with her. So, I told her that I was also out here praying for people and asked if she needed prayer for anything. She immediately said her marriage was falling apart, but also asked me how I prayed. So, I told her I was a Christian who prayed to God and in Jesus Name. She said that she also was a Christian (but was obviously mixing witchcraft with her Christianity). Regardless, she agreed to me praying for her and so I prayed. It was a powerful moment. The peace and love of God was almost tangible in the air. After the prayer time I asked her how she felt because she was obviously impacted and a little emotional. She just nodded her head and said "Wow" in more of a gasp. But, before I could say anything else she grabbed her cart and started walking down the street. I don't believe it was because she was offended or anything, but because God met her in a very powerful way and left her speechless. Thank You Lord! 


If this wasn't enough, the day ended very sweetly. While I was packing up the prayer sign a very effeminate man came bounding up and blurted out "So you interpret dreams? How very neat. But, are you done for the day?" I told him if he had a dream I had time to interpret. But, he sadly told me, "I never dream, is that bad?" Without really answering his question, I told him that I could pray for him and ask God to give him dreams which he got very excited about. So, I said a very short prayer, asking God to give him dreams of his destiny and reveal to him the purpose he was placed on this earth. It took all of 30 seconds. Afterwards, Justin left just beaming and very excited about the prospect of dreaming and hopefully of being just loved through prayer. From what I gathered this was probably the very first time anyone ever prayed for him because before we prayed he literally said "I've never done this before what do I do?" Seriously, the day couldn't have ended any sweeter. I'm believing that though Justin has long road ahead of him, today his name and image was brought before the throne of God's grace and Jesus has now got His eye on Justin. Thank You Jesus! 

Mobile Prayer Station: DAY 34

What can I say about today? Well, my friend Dave came out today. He is on staff with the campus ministry InterVarsity and works predominately with the art schools in Chicago. After giving Dave a little "orientation" about the Mobile Prayer Station we chatted until God drew Hilda to us, who came up inquiring about dream interpretation. When, we asked her about her dreams she said she didn't really remember any of them, so we asked if we could pray for her. During the prayer time Dave got an image of a drawing of a butterfly that looked like it was drawn by a kid. We found out later that she actually works with kids. When he shared this image with Hilda she was amazed. It was obvious that butterflies hold some significance to her. But, then she started to ask Dave if he had any kids and if they drew pictures, maybe even of butterflies. What I believe Hilda was doing was trying to find an answer in the natural realm for the supernatural prophetic revelation. But, isn't that what we do? When something unexplainable happens, our immediate reaction is to try to find some sort of logical explanation for it, rather than accepting that maybe something supernatural did just happened. Hopeful I will see Hilda again. 

I did get to do one dream interpretation for a man who was with a couple teenagers who were on a one day mission trip in the city from a church in Elgin. It wasn't really a recent dream he had, but still - he shared that he was flying in his dream and then all of sudden started falling, but God took hold of his hand and pulled him up. While he was talking, I was silently asking God to bring revelation and interpretation to the dream. This is what came up, I told the man that him flying meant God was planning to give him some sort of breakthrough in his life and that he could trust that God will carry him through which was highlighted by God catching him when he was falling. It was a seemingly straightforward interpretation which I was grateful for (being my first one out here). I asked him if that seemed right in thinking back when he had the dream and he said it seemed right. Very cool! I also got to pray for him and the kids before they left while Dave had his hands full talking with William. What can I say about William except that Dave and I spent at least 30 minutes if not more talking with him about faith and life (Dave must have talked with him for a solid 30 minutes before I joined the conversation because I was talking with some other people). Let me say this, William has some issues with God. But, rather than start the story here, I think I'll retell the whole story on Day 35 because not only did we pray for William but God actually answered our prayers for William and did some pretty amazing things which he came back around to tell us. So stay tuned...


There were a couple more people who I got to pray with (while Dave was talking with William). First, there was Jeff who I know and while I was talking with Jeff, Harry came up. So, the three of us were talking when Jeff said he had to go, but before he left I prayed for rest for him and that God would give him dreams of his destiny. After he left and I turned back to Harry, who looked straight at me and said, "you need to pray for me." He shared how he felt that God was calling him to be bolder in his faith and to even preach the Gospel. Very cool! So, I prayed into this and some other things that the Holy Spirit brought to mind. Afterwards, he said that he felt like my words were coming right from the Holy Spirit because I hit everything that he's been holding in heart hoping to get prayer for. I just love it when God just shows up and loves on people. Harry's story also doesn't end here, but also continues on into Day 35. I love it when prayers are answered and people actually come back to share them with me. But, rather than make you wait on this one, I'll finish the story here. So, on Day 35 Harry came back around and said that since we prayed together, his faith has increased and he has been feeling more confident in God's presence in his life. Some of his fears are still lingering, but he doesn't feel immobilized by them. Praise God! My friend Nate who came out got the words baby steps and shared with Harry that he can trust that God will walk him through these first few small steps. Thank you Jesus!

Mobile Prayer Station: DAY 33

Although this is Day 33 of the Mobile Prayer Station, this day marks the first day that I have begun to offer dream interpretation to the community. I must say, even though I was only out for an hour during this time I noticed an exaggeration of a look I am all too familiar with, a look of perplexity. Now, mind you since starting this I believe I have seen just about every kind of look from people, but the look of perplexity is common. People are typically taken by surprise by the Mobile Prayer Station in general but now add dream interpretation and this has seemed to up the ante on people's wonderment. In the hour I was out (which was intentional I wanted to test the waters so to speak with this), I had no takers on prayer or dream interpretation, but I am hopeful and truly feel released by God to do this. 

Now, throughout the bible there are numerous examples of God communicating to people through dreams and in certain instances He has even sent a person to interpret these dreams. The most prominent dream interpreters in the bible are Joseph and Daniel. Dreams are an important avenue in which God speaks to people. Numbers 12:6 says, "And the Lord said to them, 'Now listen to what I say: 'If there were prophets among you, I, the Lord, would reveal myself in visions. I would speak to them in dreams'" (NLT). Also, Job 33:14-15 says "For God speaks again and again, though people do not recognize it. He speaks in dreams, in visions of the night, when deep sleep falls on people as they lie in their beds" (NLT). Also, in Acts 2:17 Peter quotes the prophet Joel, "'In the last days,' God says, 'I will pour out my Spirit upon all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy. Your young men will see visions, and your old men will dream dreams" (NLT). It is clear that God speaks to us through our dreams. 


More so, Divine revelation comes to us through dreams. All through the bible there is example after example of God communicating to people through dreams: the dreams of Abimelech (Genesis 20:3), of Jacob (Genesis 28:12; 31:10), of Solomon (1 Kings 3:5-15), of Nebuchadnezzar (Daniel 2:19), of Daniel (Daniel 7:1), of Joseph (Matthew 1:20; 3:13), and Paul (Acts 23:11) unless this last instance is interpreted as a vision given to Paul, rather than a dream. Again, the bible makes it clear that God speaks to us through dreams. But, not all dreams are from God. From what I've heard from other Christians that I've heard teach on dream interpretation (and from my own experience), the devil and other evil spirits can cause dreams (more nightmares), and there's something called soul dreams where our souls express and project things to us from both the past and present (this is where I believe the New Age Movement has built their camp). But, regardless of the origin of our dreams (God, the devil or our own soul), we must remember that God is the Creator of all things and in Him is all wisdom, knowledge and understanding; and if we seek Him to bring insight and interpretation to our dreams, He will give it. 


God is still speaking to people today through dreams and there is a great need for the people of God to rise up and seek the grace, wisdom and understanding of God in discerning the meaning of dreams. But, the sad reality is that the New Age Movement has in many ways hijacked dream interpretation claiming it as their own when it is and always has been something that has deep biblical roots and foundations. I believe that if we ask God for revelation in interpreting dreams, He will give it. Isn't that what the prophet Daniel did? There is a grace for dream interpretation and what I've come to understand is that some believers are uniquely gifted by God for dream interpretation. Being gifted in words of wisdom, words of knowledge, discerning of spirits, prophesy (1 Corinthians 12:8-10), even mercy, creativity and encouragement (Romans 12:6-8) are a great help when it comes to dream interpretation. If God has blessed you with some or all of these gifts then you should be asking God for the grace for dream interpretation and stepping out in faith. 

Jesus Culture (feat. Melissa How): Oh Lord You're Beautiful

What has been burning on my heart lately is letting my service to Jesus come from the overflow of worship to Him because when it does my service comes from a place of love and adoration towards Jesus. I don't know about you, but when I'm serving from a place of love, the burden of service lessens. The reason this song has so captured my heart is because it helps me refocus my gaze back onto the beauty and majesty of my Beloved Jesus. It helps remind me that, "yes He is with me and that His gaze is upon me and that He is extending me His grace." My favorite line of this song is "For my reward is giving glory to You" because it reminds me that my life is not about me striving to make some name for myself here on earth, but about living a life that expresses my gratitude towards Jesus for giving me an eternally new life in Him and giving Him the glory He deserves because of this.

Mobile Prayer Station: DAY 32

So my friend Rachel came out to the Mobile Prayer Station today. We had a great time talking about faith and life with each other. Throughout the day, we said hi to people as they sped on by. Some were friendly while some were not so friendly. In total, two people stopped for prayer. I had the great honor to be able to pray with Cindy, who had first stopped by last week, about some relational things happening in her life while Rachel got to pray with Greg, who was a bit nervous about us praying for him, but he did stop nonetheless. What I've learned over these past weeks is to be gentle yet direct with people. 

I was very glad to see Cindy again. If there is one thing that I really do enjoy is when I get to see people more than once. It's always better after the first relational encounter because of the inevitable awkwardness that comes from the newness of relationship. It's funny how connected you can feel to someone after you've prayed together. For me, I am always overwhelmed by God's heart towards His creation. He truly is a loving Creator who cares deeply for those whom He has created. That's why I will always pray for greater revelation of God's Hand in a person's life because (I know I must say this a lot but) knowing God is more than just knowledge, it's also experience. 

I've just spent the last three days at the Jesus Culture Awakening conference where the focus was on revival. There was much that went on and I know that I have been forever changed because of how God drew close to me during my time at the conference. There is something unique that happens when people gather together to worship God. It's like God releases a corporate anointing on those gathered that doesn't happen when we are worshiping God privately in our homes and rooms. But, what I wanted to share with you was a statement that Kim Walker, one of the members of the band Jesus Culture, said "If you're not passionate about Jesus it's because you haven't experienced just how much He loves you." What an amazingly true statement. Knowing God is more than just knowledge, it's also experience. 

If you haven't experienced just how much Jesus loves you, than I highly suggest that you ask Him to personally encounter you with His love. I would even add that you ask someone you know to pray with you. Maybe even asking Jesus to encounter you both with a life changing encounter of His love. Believe me, you will not disappoint. Jesus is faithful and if there's one thing that I've learned over the years is that Jesus loves to draw near to those who ask Him. 

Mobile Prayer Station: DAY 31

The day was beautiful. After last week's heat wave and crazy thunderstorms, today was almost perfect in comparison. Now before I get into sharing about the events of the day, I I decided to test my theory about the slowness of last week by intentionally spending some time before getting out on the corner in prayer with God, in order to get my heart and mind focused on Him just to see if that quickened the encounters of the day. Now, I'm not trying to find a formula in all this because God cannot be put into a box nor can He be controlled by an A + B = C mentality. I'm simply trying to keep in step with the Holy Spirit by learning and responding to the revelation He brought last week about staying focused on God, rather than on what happened yesterday or my future plans, even on the task at hand. 

Well, I couldn't have been out more than 30 minutes when Dan came strolling by ready to talk about faith and life. I've talked with Dan a couple times before and each time I've had the opportunity to pray with him about the pressing things in his life. Almost immediately after Dan left (after we talked for close to 30 minutes) Herman came riding by on his bike. What made today stand out more so than others is that I was able to share a prophetic word God gave me for him almost a year ago when I first met him in which God reminded me of again a couple weeks ago. This time I felt released by God to tell him. It was a special moment. We talked for a solid 30 minutes about faith and life. Though I've talked with Herman here and there, today was the first time I got to pray with him. It was funny when I asked Herman if I could pray with him, he said "I knew you were going to eventually ask me that." What can I say I love praying with people. Now you have to imagine this picture, here I am this 5'8, 130 pound Asian man praying with this (roughly) 6'4, 350+ pound African American man. It must have been a neat sight to see. 


Throughout the rest of the day I chatted with a few more people, but nothing very deep until Rahelle came bounding up. I met her once before gosh must have been a month ago. So, we have a little history which means she knows just how much I love praying with people because after some small talk she simply stated that she needed some prayer. I love it when I have some familiarity with people because it means we can be more relaxed with one another. She actually shared how she was planning on travelling overseas to China in 2013 in order to teach English. So, she was seeking some prayer in asking God to guide her, open doors for her in terms of getting her TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) certification and some more sensitive things in which I felt very honored to have her trust me with praying for her on. Imagine that, here I am about to spend 1 year over in Taiwan while Rahelle is just beginning her journey. Needless to say, we had a lot to talk about and I was really able to encourage her on many things. Please, remember Rahelle in your prayers.


So, what did I learned today from my little experiment? I learned that it's always better when I have my heart and mind in the right place, focused on God, when I'm serving Him. The day just flows smoother. I am less distracted and I'm freed up to be fully present both with God and with people. Does this mean God brings more people for me to encounter when I do this? I'm gonna have to say maybe. God has a plan for me and everyone else that I see when I'm on the street. So, at the end of the day, as the proverb says, "Many are the plans in a person’s heart, but it is the LORD’s purpose that prevails" (Proverbs 19:21 NIV). Now, if I could make some sort of conclusion it would be this, serving God is an honor and a privilege in which He will supply both the words to speak and the strength the serve (1 Peter 4:10-11). When our focus in on God we will embrace more fully this truth and not worry so much about what we are going to say or in having the strength to serve. God will provide, but our focus needs to be on Him in order to receive this grace from Him. When it is everyone is blessed.

Phillips, Craig & Dean: YOU ARE MY KING

This is one of my all time favorite worship songs. If there is one image of Jesus that I am completely drawn to, it's Jesus as King. For me this speaks of His majesty and authority, but also His grace and understanding. I love kneeling before King Jesus because He has earned all of my love and devotion for what He has done for us by taking on the full weight of God's wrath for sin in our place. Such amazing love! If you are a follower of Jesus than you are also His servant. This means that as servants of King Jesus we are also His ambassadors here on this earth (2 Corinthians 5:20). And as His ambassadors, Jesus has bestowed upon us the power of His authority. So, when we speak, we speak with the full weight and power of Jesus Himself. This is what it means to be ambassadors of King Jesus, but we must always remember to exercise this authority in love. In this way we honor Jesus our King as His ambassadors here on earth. 

Mobile Prayer Station: DAY 30

Man, was it humid out today which didn't help the slowness of the first hour (again). Honestly, I should pay closer attention to when this happens because I have a sneaking suspicion that maybe it was because God was getting my heart and head focused on Him, rather than on what happened yesterday or my future plans, even on the task at hand. In thinking back, I have been asking God to help me stay focused more often lately because I have been a bit distracted in thinking about travelling overseas at the end of August. 


Ken and Ann came out a little later in the day, after I'd spent an hour wrestling with God in letting go of my thoughts and concerns for the day and the future. It's interesting right before they came out Jessica came by and began engaging me in conversation. I shared with her my heart in praying with people and she asked for some healing prayer. She talked a lot about good energy, so I explained to her that I was a Christian who prayed to God and in Jesus Name. She said that was ok, so I prayed for both healing and for an increased awareness of God's Hand in her life and in the lives around her. If there's one thing that I love praying for people on, it's revelation because knowing God is both through knowledge and experience. 


The second hour in the stifling humidity was spent with Ken and Ann. God bless them that they came out right after work, but this meant that they weren't really dressed to be out in the heat and humidity. Regardless, I was grateful for their company and willingness to step out and be available to God. Over the next hour I shared with them the vision and heart of the Mobile Prayer Station of being more light than heat in the community and in being reliant on God to draw people to us who wanted prayer, rather than trying to sell or promote the prayer station and forcing prayer on people which I believe is a unique posture to take which people aren't really used to seeing Christians take. I believe giving people the freedom to choose to engage is important, rather than forcing them into conversations of faith and life. 

Maybe God was getting Ken and Ann's hearts focused on Him as He had done with me earlier (they did share that their day at the office was overwhelmingly busy), but the second hour was also slow. Ken, Ann and I spent some time praying for the community and for a few people walking by. They did end up praying for me which was great! And I was blessed to pray for them before we started to say our goodbyes. But, while parting ways one of the men who hangs out in the park came walking by and I asked him if he'd finally let me pray for him (I ask him everyday I see him which he kindly says no). But, today he said yes! So, he put out his cigarette and came on over and the three of us (Ken, Ann and I) prayed for a renewed mind and a change of heart for Emmanuel (at his request). This made me happy for two reasons: 1) I finally got to pray with Emmanuel and 2) Ken and Ann actually got to pray with someone before they left. Yay! 

The day ended with yet another answered prayer. There are a few elderly people who walk around the park with their just as elderly dogs. One of the ladies that I've been praying for as I see her came walking by with her dog and I said hi to her as I usually do and it seemed like she was going to keep walking, but then her dog started walking in the opposite direction which was right in front on my sign and then stopped. (The providence of God, what do you think?) So, Alice and I actually started talking. I have a confession to make, there's something about the elderly that draws me and warms my heart. I'm believing that it's all the Scripture verses that talk about caring for the widows, elderly and orphans that ignites God's compassion in my heart towards them. Talking and praying with Alice was a great ending to a long, hot and humid day. It felt good to be able to pray with her about some of her family relationships and health concerns. I was very surprised at how vulnerable and open she was with me. It was a very sweet moment. In leaving she said that this was exactly what she needed. Praise God!

Mobile Prayer Station: DAY 29

So, my friends Matt and Monica joined me today. Of all the days this one was probably the hottest yet this summer. To be honest, I was a little skeptical about anyone being out, let alone wanting prayer. But, oh me of little faith. The first hour was slow. We spend the time talking and praying for the community as well as for a few of the people walking by. Matt and I talked about possibly offering dream interpretation for people which I've been toying around with and now am feeling a bit more released by the Lord to do so (I'd of course have to change the sign). Matt had to leave after about an hour, but Monica stayed the rest of the time. I did end up interpreting one of Monica dreams which seemed to be on target.  


Anyways, today a few people stopped for prayer. First was Cindy, who after talking with her seemed to be a New Age spiritualist. Monica and I prayed for her and got some good words for her. I got a picture of a heart with all of these cracks and fissures which began to close and heal. I shared my image with her and told her God was going to bring healing to some past wounds of her heart which seemed to touched Cindy deeply. Monica sensed that God was calling Cindy to be a great intercessor for His Kingdom (after He saved her of course), so after Cindy left Monica spent some time just calling that out. We ended up seeing Cindy again and she was so warm towards us. Jesus seriously made her day. 


Next, Charday came by who must have been no more than 20 years old and asked for prayer because she was single and pregnant. Monica spent quite a long time praying for her. Honestly, I was a bit nervous that she was going on too long. I've learned that praying with people on the street, particularly with people who are not used to prayer in the first place, can get a bit antsy if the prayer time goes on too long. But, God's grace was there and Charday was fine with the longer prayer. Lastly, came Aldene who is a medical student who just moved into the area. So, we spent some time talking which is always a joy and then prayed for community for her. I gave her one of our church's cards and hopefully will see her again. 


The day was good. Some people may think that praying with only three people in two and a half hours is not worth bearing the heat, but I would beg to differ. Three people today received pray that I'm betting wouldn't have gotten prayer anytime soon if we weren't out on the street. With Cindy, I'm betting that this may have been the first time she ever received prayer from Christians. For me, there's nothing like being given the opportunity to pray for the lost children of God, even found children of God in transition. There are a lot of hurting people out here who need prayer. But, what I'm learning is that it's not so much about going out and trying to reach everyone. It's about simply (which sometimes isn't so simple) making ourselves available to God and He will bring people into our path to love, care and pray for and with. 

Sarah Sadler: how deep the Father's love for us

I've been really thinking and meditating this past week on the Father's love for all His children. It truly is so amazing how deep His love is for us. I mean what drew me to God in the first place was His unconditional love for me. I don't mention this too often, but some of the first words I ever heard from God was that He loved me and that He would never leave me. I was floored that even as a hopeless drug addict and manipulative drug dealer, God still loved me and wanted me to be near Him. I can still remember when God's Kingdom came near to me and I became aware of my sin and shame. When this happened an interesting thing happened as well, God heightened my sense of smell. It was like I could smell the stench of sin, both on myself and others. 

The reason I bring this up is that even through the stench of my decaying sin-filled soul God still wanted me close to Him. There's a verse in the bible that is very real to me which says "But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners" (Romans 5:8 NLT). Imagine the sin of the world as a giant garbage dump and Jesus as this pure, spotless and holy Being who steps down out of Heaven into the middle of this giant stinking rotten pile of crap and refuse. When the bible talks about Jesus taking on the sins of the world, this is the picture we should have in our minds. For me, this verse says that even when my soul stunk like a garbage dump God still sent His Son to wade into the garbage dump of my life in order to save me. That's how deep the Father's love is for us. 

Mobile Prayer Station: DAY 28

Overall, today was quiet. I stood underneath a tree in the shade for most of my time on the street enjoying the peacefulness of the day. The whole area was uncharacteristically subdued. Not many people were out and the people whom I normally see were nowhere to be found. Even the children's playground was quiet with only a few children at play. Normally, I would have been eager to get going hoping God would bring people to pray with, but the day felt different. Instead of eagerness, I felt a peacefulness wash over me, so I enjoyed the day just being friendly with people as they walked by. while still praying for some of them in my heart as they walked by as well as praying for revival for the area.  


Today was like a day of rest while still laboring in the fields. To be honest, it was a welcomed relief as God has been continually stretching and challenging me over these past weeks to have my security fully in Him while embracing more deeply my dependency on Him. God's peace felt great, like standing in the shade on a hot summer day with a slight breeze blowing. It was refreshing and life giving. Sure, I was ready to pray with anyone if they came up, but that was almost secondary to enjoying God's presence and peace in the moment. Today was a good reminder that our service should always come from a place of presence and peace with God and in this way we will make the deepest and most lasting impact on the earth for His Kingdom. I truly believe that we can experience the peace that the bible talks about: "the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, [that] will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 4:7 NIV), even while we labor for God's Kingdom. It happened to me today.

Mobile Prayer Station: DAY 27

Today, I had a very interesting conversation with a man named Mishael, who considers himself a Hebraic Christian. At first I thought he meant he was a Messianic Jew, who is a Hebrew who has found their Messiah in Jesus, the One who Moses and those after him prophesied would come. But, in further talking with him he explained that he was not Jewish but desired to live a Christian lifestyle with a strong Judaic foundation. Ok, I can appreciate that, wanting to truly follow after the 1st century disciples of Jesus' day. 

Part of Mishael's story is that God called him out from a lucrative business which gave him both money and fame. He felt God telling him to give it all up and begin living a simple lifestyle. As he put it, "Jesus shoved this big fat camel through the eye of a needle and into His Kingdom" (Matthew 19:24) and for the last 15 years he has lived as a sojourner, owning nothing and living by faith. He said most of the time he travels by bicycle and by way of God giving him or someone he knows a dream. Honestly, he reminded me of a mixture between an Amish, a Quaker and a Mennonite all rolled up in one. And from what I gathered he had very conservative views, all the way down to what he thought women should wear (everything covered). 

Now, I'm not out here to judge anyone about their views whether I agree with them or not. Mishael had a wonderful heart for Jesus and I was blessed to have spent well over an hour talking with him. We even spent some time praying together. I prayed out loud and Mishael prayed silently to himself which was a but different, but hey to each his own. I even got to prophesy over his life a little while we prayed which he seemed to received. We talked about lots of things. He shared how he was part of a fellowship of believers who were trying to live a communal lifestyle like those described in the book of Acts: "And all the believers met together in one place and shared everything they had. They sold their property and possessions and shared the money with those in need" (Acts 2:44-45 NLT). Now what Mishael and his friends are doing is not terribly new, over the last 20 years or so there has been a growing house/organic church movement which also embraces these verses and are filled with people trying to do life together more so than just on Sundays. Regardless, I commend what Mishael and his friends are doing. My only hope is that they are actively moving missionally in reaching out to the lost children of God and are not overly isolating themselves in the hopes of keeping themselves pure and untainted by the world. 

Mobile Prayer Station: DAY 26

A big motivator for me in being out on the street with the Mobile Prayer Station day after day is the alarming reality that there are countless people who have never been prayed for, who's names or images have never been brought before the throne of God's grace. Now this revelation is not of my own thinking, but something the Holy Spirit brought to my attention many years ago and continues to remind of at least once a week. 


The reason I'm thinking about this is that I read a blog by my friend Scott today where he gave a pretty fair assessment of the current "celebrity" driven Christian culture in America. Afterwards, I was scrolling through my Facebook feed when some of the status updates of the "celebrity" Christian fan pages I've "liked" came through. What struck me as I was reading through the comments was how many people said they were praying for this person and then I thought about all the many people I see each and every day who probably have never been prayed for. To be honest, it made me sad. Now don't misunderstand me here. I love prayer and and am thrilled that people are praying, but I couldn't help but to think about... (I think I'll let the Holy Spirit fill this one in for you). 


So, today I had the privileged to pray with Amir who must have been 8 years old. He was walking with his mother when he stopped in front of my sign and started reading. His mother then asked him if he wanted me to pray for him and he said yes. So, I asked him what he wanted me to pray for him about and when he shrugged his shoulders, I gave him a few suggestions. He decided on blessing, and so I started to pray. But, to my surprise the very first words out of my mouth were "God, thank you that you see Amir and that you don't think that he's too little..." which is right, I mean kids aren't too little in God's eyes. But, the sad reality is that we treat them like they are. I am always amazed at the spiritual and emotional sensitivity of children and by their faith. Kids simply believe. No wonder Jesus tells us "Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven" (Matthew 18:2 NIV).


But what does it mean to "have faith like a child?" Well, I believe this story will help illustrate. It's like a child who only knows the area of her house and yard. This is what she is familiar with and this is where she feels safe. But, as she grows, she begins to take walks with her father away from their house and through the neighborhood where she loses sight of her house and soon is lost. Even if she tried to find her way home, she couldn't. But, because she was holding her father's hand she knew deep in her heart that she was safe. She knew that her father loved her and that he would always do what was best for her. That he would protect and guide her wherever they would go. Knowing this filled her with joy and excitement, rather than fear. She wasn't frightened as they walked down unfamiliar streets because she had full confidence in her father. This is how Jesus tells us we should be, like a child who has full confidence in our Father in Heaven. 

Mobile Prayer Station: DAY 25

Today was an interesting day. The time seemed to race by. In reflecting back, it's not that I was swamped with talking and praying with people. Maybe I was simply enjoying the quality of time I got to spend with people. I was blessed to be able to pray with a few people I've prayed with before plus a few new comers. I will share about my relational time with Michael, one of the travelling homeless kids that migrate between cities throughout the year. I see them hanging out in the park almost everyday and am always moved to pray for them. Maybe it's because we have similar stories. So, I was glad when Michael came by and asked me for some money because when I told him I didn't really feel right in giving him any, he asked if I could pray for him. 


Being on the road is nothing new for me. I've spent my own fair amount of time travelling where I've rubbed shoulders with the many transient people of the various music and drug scenes; from Grateful Dead shows to Phish and Horde tours to the underground rave scene. I've even spent time with the "Rainbow Family" and their yearly gatherings. So, needless to say, on many levels I get them. Though on the outside the world sees only rebellious kids not wanting to conform to the tenets of society which is true to some degree. But underneath all of the many layers of these complex kids is the same desire that every human being has and that's the desire to belong; to be fully known and yet still be fully loved. The sad reality is that these travelling kids have failed to find this anywhere else expect among themselves. Now to be fair, there is the Lord's timing on all of this and from my experience it takes time to unconditionally love and not judge people into the Kingdom of God. But if the Body of Christ is faithful in loving and not judging people, I fully believe that there is no one that the love of Christ cannot touch through His Body, the Church. 


I am also learning that loving people means being willing to open up my heart and life to them which also means being willing to sacrifice my time, treasures and talents on their behalf. A great book that I am reading at the moment (which I think I've mentioned before) is "When Helping Hurts: Alleviating Poverty Without Hurting the Poor...and Yourself." This book has helped  broaden my perspective and given me greater understanding on discerning which of these (time, treasure, talents) is best for the people God crosses my path with and what is needed (relief, rehabilitation, development) in order to equip and empower them for greater living. I know my time with Michael was short, which is why I am hoping and praying that God makes a way for more relational time with him and his friends. So this is my prayer: Father in Heaven, lavish Your grace and love upon these travelling kids and make me trustworthy enough to be able to love these kids with the love and compassion of Jesus. And if I am not that person, then I pray Lord that You would divinely orchestrate the path of those who are and cross them with these kids. In Jesus Name, Amen. 

Mobile Prayer Station: DAY 24

What do we do when we pray for physical healing for someone and nothing happens? That's what happened with the homeless man I prayed with today. Seeing him limp along with his crutches broke my heart. I saw him walking from a good distance away because he had to stop every so often to rest. When I saw him I was moved with compassion for him and began praying that God would make a way for me to pray for him. 

I typically don't do this, but when he got close I approached him and asked him if I could pray that God would bring healing to his leg. He said "yes" and so I prayed. It's interesting after my initial prayer I asked him if he felt anything and he said "yes." So, encouraged I continued to pray again, but this time nothing happen and he started walking away. I could see his ankle still bent but obviously he had had enough of me praying. I do wish I could have spent more time praying for him, but obviously I already used up the small window of time he was willing to give me. 

Something I'm learning while being on the street is that when people stop they generally will give me anywhere from 3-5 minutes with them, if not less. So, I am learning to be on point with the Holy Spirit when it comes to praying, pastoring and prophesying with people on the street. But, when it comes to healing, I need more time with people. Praying for physical healing is very new to me and I have had some success in the past where God did bring some physical healing to people. I myself have experienced physical healing and I know that God's heart towards His creation is goodness, redemption, wholeness and restoration. But still, I need more time. The times that God did bring physical healing were times where I had at minimum 15 minutes with someone. So, I'm hoping that the more I step out in praying for physical healing, the more the Lord will guide and lead in being more on point with this divine gift. 

It is a bit discouraging when I pray for physical healing for someone and nothing happens (like today). But, at the end of day I understand that if I don't pray for physical healing than the chances for it happening are slim to none. But, if I do pray for physical healing than the chances for it happening increases exponentially. So what do we do when we pray for physical healing for someone and nothing happens? We pray again and then again and then again and then again and then again and then again. I don't believe we should ever stop asking God to bring physical healing to His children, both lost and found. We need to be continually asking God to have mercy on us and bring healing to us. In Jesus Name, Amen.