By David Ryser
One man’s wilderness is another
man’s theme park. (Author Unknown)
“They don’t want what you have.”
The voice of God spoke softly inside of me. There was no hint of disapproval or
condemnation…it was simply a statement of fact. And I knew what to do because
of an incident that had occurred several years before.
And it began with one of the most
remarkable cases of divine healing I have ever witnessed.
A young woman was seriously ill…to
the point where the Christian lady caring for her became concerned the illness might
be life-threatening. This situation was made known to one of my school of
ministry students who felt strongly that a group of us should go and minister
God’s healing power to the young woman. So, I gathered up my wife and a small
number of students, and we made the two-hour trip to visit her.
Upon our arrival at the house, we
were informed by the sick woman’s caretaker that the woman’s illness had taken
a turn for the worse. If not for the fact that our small group was on the way,
the sick woman would have been taken to the Emergency Room at the local
hospital that afternoon. We were invited inside the house and shown to the room
where the young woman was confined to her sickbed.
So, what now? What should we
do? How should we do it? And when? The
answers to these questions are of vital importance when ministering the power
of God.
And the answers to these questions
typically do not come all at once. They
come one at a time, and we must wait for each one.
The Bible abounds with examples of
this principle. Through study of the scriptures and through experience, I had
learned to flow through this progression to arrive at the desired outcome. It’s
not complicated: it’s simple…and easy…to do.
But it requires patience.
So here we were in this young
woman’s room spending time getting to know her. She was happy to see us, and
was friendly towards us, but she wasn’t very talkative due to the pain and
infirmity of her illness. We already knew what God wanted us to do…He wanted us
to minister His healing power to this woman.
But how?
Would He select one of the group to
minister the healing, or would the whole group be more directly involved? Would
we anoint her with oil? Lay on hands? Pray in Jesus’ name?
How?
We discerned God wanted to use
group ministry in this case. I especially enjoy group ministry because no one
person can claim credit for performing the healing/miracle. It’s safe.
So, when?
The situation in the house was
somewhat chaotic with teenage children coming and going. This chaos was
disruptive and distracting both in the natural sense and in the spirit. So, our
small group.…including the woman’s caretaker…waited. And waited. And waited.
Someone whispered to me, “So when are we going to pray?” I whispered back, “Not
yet….”
Now!
Steve Gray calls it the “now
moment” when the power of God is released in a torrent. We all felt it. The
members of the group seized the moment and poured out their hearts in fervent
petition and declaration for healing. This lasted for a few minutes, then
subsided. We stayed with the young woman for a while to comfort and encourage
her. Then we went into the main room of the house for a time of fellowship with
our hostess (the young woman’s caretaker).
Within a few minutes, the formerly
sick woman joined us.
What a difference! No longer
lethargic, this woman was animated and talkative. She enthusiastically related
how she had been instantly healed during prayer and described in intimate
detail her previous symptoms and how she determined they were gone in the
moments before she joined us. We rejoiced with her and continued to hang out
and enjoy one another’s company.
The work of God was finished…or was
it?
In the course of our conversation,
our hostess shared her frustration with her inability to find a church where
she could fit in and participate. This wonderful lover of Jesus was powerfully
gifted by God and had sought in vain for a fellowship where she could bless
others with what God had given her.
The words rose up inside of me, and
I spoke them without thinking: “They have not wanted what you have where you’ve
taken it. Now take it where they want it.”
Jesus did this very thing. At
Gadara. At the synagogue and the temple. Everywhere. When His ministry was
rejected, Jesus would not argue or contend with people. He would leave and go
somewhere else.
Why?
Because once people reject you and
your gifting, you can do no good…you can only do harm. You cannot take a person
somewhere they don’t want to go; if you attempt to do so, you will end up
harming the one(s) you desire to bless.
Why not simply take your giftings
where people want them?
So, when I heard, years later, God
say, “They don’t want what you have” I knew what I should do. At the end of the
church service, I quietly and respectfully left the building.
And I never returned.
Responses to this article are
welcomed. You may contact the author at drdave1545@yahoo.com
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