Doing The Assignment
Over the years as I’ve sought wisdom about moving in the gifts of the Spirit, I’ve learned to look for what I call the “peg” – a simple word of knowledge that can trigger a spontaneous flow of the Holy Spirit.
There is a delicate balance between hearing from God in advance and being led spontaneously. If I try to know everything God wants to do in a meeting before it happens, I have often struggled because I sensed something spontaneous but didn’t have time to do both. If I try to do everything spontaneously, I may get to the meeting and find it hard to get started. I’ve learned to look for one phrase or one small mental picture and not much more.
I found a prophecy in Isaiah 22:23-24 that gives a word-picture of this principle:
In prophetic song, my peg may be a key I’m supposed to use, a line of lyrics to sing, a melody, or a sound in my keyboard. When I write an article, my peg will often turn out to be a metaphor or story that will make the material come alive. Last week I mentioned that I had soaked, looking to God for inspiration for the week’s blogs. One by one, He gave me the images I could build each blog on.
I mention this principle now because of ministry to the man with the yellow shirt.
10. Soaking, Oct 22. Soaked while walking around the lake. Was struck with the joy in heaven when a sinner repents, and challenged to make repentance more a part of my ministry.
11. Soaking, Oct 26. Listened as I plan three upcoming projects. Was led to postpone one for a couple of months to avoid stress. As I looked forward to the morning meeting, sensed that I would prophesy in church. Peg: ministry to a man with a yellow shirt.
18. Ministry, Oct 26. Man in the yellow shirt turned out to be Joseph. Prayed for peace as he works to put on the BTV conference next week, and grace to be a step ahead of all needs and attacks.
19. Ministry, Oct 26. A woman came to me, requesting input re dream interpretation. She shared one; I took a shot at interpreting it; she wept as I did. I encouraged her to jot them down and to look to God for interpretation.
20. Ministry, Oct 26. Unplanned phone visit with Betty re the BTV conference. Felt to pray for her as I had prayed for Joseph; the prayer took a couple of unexpected turns.
One more thought about the peg. In context, it follows a verse about the key of David. This belongs to Jesus; this is how we know the lines about the peg apply to Him as well. But the last verse of Isaiah’s prophecy shows how He paid for it: by being cut off at the cross. It’s a reminder that our reaching for spiritual gifts must always center on Christ crucified and risen.
JoAnn and I have had to change plans for the worship cruise in 2009 because the port at Galveston has been devastated in the hurricane. Main changes: lower prices, new dates, new ship, and departure from Los Angeles CA instead of Galveston TX. See the changes below:
Combine your vacation with an opportunity to linger in God’s presence,
with prophetic worship led by
Julie Meyer, JoAnn McFatter, Steve Swanson, and Stan Smith.
Royal Caribbean
Mariner Of The Seas
April 19 - April 26, 2009
Departs Los Angeles, California
Hosts — Stan & JoAnn Smith — www.gospelsmith.com
Undecided? Book now to lock in the price.
$861 Inside Cabin
Promenade Cabin — Prevailing Rate
Ocean View — Prevailing Rate
$1221 Balcony
Price includes 7-Day Mexican Riviera Cruise,
Government Taxes,
Port Taxes, Fuel Charges,
and Conference Fees
Cruise deposit is $250 per person or $500 per couple, fully refundable until February 11, 2009.
Monthly payment plan available. All prices based on double-occupancy and subject to change.
To be part of the “Glory Is Here” cruise,
you must book through Pastor Sharon Heuton
at 209-588-9565 or egpministry@gmail.com.
We were hoping our new friends, Walt and Julie Meyer, could be there to lead worship. But they had a prior commitment. “What if we planned another cruise and centered it on worship?” JoAnn suggested. It was just a playful idea, but Julie contacted some of her friends who are involved in prophetic worship and said, “Would you want to be involved in a soaking cruise?”
One thing led to another, and JoAnn McFatter and Steve Swanson agreed to serve as worship leaders with Walt, Julie, and me.
Pastor Sharon Heuton is doing the hard part – she’s doing the bookings and similar details. JoAnn and I have become the hosts, which means it’ll be up to us to arrange the meetings and workshops. What began as a whimsical “what if…?” is turning into reality.
We’ve been surprised at how enthusiastic people are. Many of us are becoming weary of conferences; we are hearing a lot of good teachings but can’t find time to implement them.
We have no idea where God will take us in prophetic worship, but we want to do all we can to make the Holy Spirit the main speaker.
If you are interested in the cruise, contact Pastor Sharon. For more about the ship, click here.
Doing The Assignment
I enjoy doing the month’s assignment because God is creative. Opportunities arise at unexpected times; God works in diverse ways. This keeps things from becoming boring.
This week I attended the Movie Guide Fundraiser in Atlanta, GA. I was the guest of my mother, who knows many of the people who work so tirelessly to bring a godly influence to Hollywood.
I was very impressed with their strategy, which includes an annual awards dinner at which they honor secular moviemakers who have had a positive influence on society. Perhaps it’s my upbringing – I often heard that you catch more flies with honey than with vinegar – but I can’t help feeling that a loving and affirming tone will be more likely to touch hearts in Hollywood than the mean-spirited boycotts I am often asked to join.
Though many of the people they honor are not Christians, the award winners often are very touched; one asked for extra programs so he could send them to his family. I plan to visit the awards event in Los Angeles in February.
Here is my report on the assignment for this week. As a few of the ministry times were very personal, I’m being careful not to be quite as specific in public as I would be in the privacy of my own journal.
8. Soaking, Oct 14. Soaked to prepare for an out-of-town trip to visit friends. Basically asked God, “Is there anything You want to tell me?” Sensed a word for one of the men.
9. Soaking, Oct 19. Looked for blog inspiration. KEY: I’m reminded to look for a metaphor for each article. I received one for the music blog as I soaked; sense that others will come spontaneously.
14. Ministry, Oct 15. Most of this report is too personal to tell. JoAnn and I met a friend for lunch. I felt to share something about the calling I sense in His life. The Holy Spirit bore witness in an unusual way; he had an open heaven experience in the restaurant, fulfilling the words of Hebrews 12:22-24.
15. Ministry, Oct 15. Visited a family whom I very much look up to. They showed us a house they are ready to move into and asked me to bless it. I sensed a prophetic flow as I spoke to their home.
16. Ministry, Oct 17. I had a prophetic word for an internationally-known singer. In spite of a chaotic environment, I was able to share the word with her in a conversational way that did not attract undue attention.
17. Ministry, Oct 17. I met a woman whose father had just taken his own life and shared a simple thought with her from Romans 8; she said it was wonderfully comforting and thanked me profusely.
As far as ministry is concerned, my personal philosophy is much like what I saw at the Movie Guide Fundraiser. I know there is much that needs to be corrected in the lives of people around me, but feel that most of it will happen if people simply begin to follow Jesus. I don’t try to correct everything that’s wrong; instead, I look for what people are doing right and look for ways to affirm it.
The Holy Spirit does such a good job of convicting people of sin that I want to be careful to leave room for Him to do it. My role? To pave the way for Him, by giving people a loving touch from Jesus.
Doing The Assignment
A key principle of the online school is that it’s important to look for ministry times that weave in with daily life.
With that in mind, I’ve had two ministry opportunities this week, with several opportunities for personal ministry.
The first sprang up because someone in the Charlotte area had found the prophetic song blog and was excited about the online school of the Spirit - “It’s where our worship team is right now; God is leading us into it.” Then when she found out I would be in the Charlotte area for a month, she called to see if we could meet for coffee.
I suggested meeting at the church so we could use the keyboard as we talked about prophetic song. She called the pastor, and soon we had plans for an informal worship gathering with a few members of the worship team.
I wish I had more time to reach out to strangers, but I do a lot of writing for the online school and I’m working on a book. Both projects demand that I spend time shutting out distractions. So my testimonies this week will be a sample of the principle of looking for personal ministry opportunities that happen as I fulfill my ordinary responsibilities.
4. Soaking, Oct 8. Soaked by taking a walk, then soaked my way to sleep at night. God dropped specific inspiration into my heart re writing JoAnn’s book.
5. October 9. Looked for ministry promptings. Got a few ideas for the website and tightening the school. Sensed a woman named Meg. (As of posting this blog, I haven’t seen her. Did I make a mistake, or will I meet her later?)
6. October 10. Looked for inspiration re meeting with worship leaders in Concorn NC. Sensed I should focus on the two voices of Jesus.
7. October 11. Soaked as I drove to Candor NC. Got a few ideas for reformatting the online school, but nothing for the Sunday service.
5. Ministry, Oct 8. Shopping for clothes. Affirmed two salesmen, Roy & John. Did not sense an open door to go deeper with either.
6. Ministry, Oct 9. Phone visit with an older prophet. Talked about revelatory things; sensed it was an encouragement to him that I called.
7-9. Ministry, Oct 10. The sharing with the worship leaders in teaching and song seems to have hit its mark; it confirmed what the keyboard player had been learning from God. The drummer had a vision and received an impartation of peace that seems to have brought him a measure of deliverance. Prophetic prayer for the pastor seems to have struck its mark.
8-13. Ministry, Oct 12. People came forward for prayer after the meeting dismissed; most wept as I prayed with them. I won’t give names here, but prayed separately for the pastor and his wife, for an Anglican minister who is presently in a holding pattern, for a young couple who lead worship, for a man whom I sensed God was nudging to step into a larger role of ministry, and to a woman whom I sensed God was releasing from issues of condemnation. This is as much as I remember at this point. I felt the anointing was given for impartation; I don’t know how much word of knowledge was in the prayers.
I wasn’t sure if my preaching really connected on Sunday morning. It was helpful to know I would be posting this report; it stirred me to make myself available for personal ministry. Judging from the many tears that were shed, it may have been the most important thing I did.
Doing The Assignment
Praise Report. There are gas shortages in North Carolina, but God enabled us to get to our meetings in Goldsboro this weekend. We’ve managed to find gas whenever our gauge showed that we were down about a quarter of a tank, so we haven’t had to miss anything we had planned. We got back to Charlotte late Sunday night and all the stations at our exit were dry. It won’t matter to us; we don’t have to drive far for the next few days…
Good things happened in Goldsboro. The preaching seems to have been well-received. God gave a tangible sense of His peace to many of us. One woman testified her ankle was healed and now pain-free for the first time after surgery a few months ago.
Pray for us. I am working on JoAnn’s book – you may have seen the short version of her testimony at http:/diaryofanexorcism.com. The version on the web gives the narrative, but the book will tell more of the inner story. JoAnn’s experience has been that whenever she tries to move forward with the book, it stirs up a lot of warfare. If you are moved to pray for us, we’d be grateful if you would help cover us in this area.
I’m also starting to sense that I need to change the format of the online school of the Spirit to make it more user-friendly. The diversity of materials make it hard to present simply. As I’m soaking, God is starting to give a few ideas but I need more. Please pray for me, that I’ll receive wisdom from the Holy Spirit so I can better serve the body of Christ.
Doing the assignment. For this month, I felt I should post the written part of the monthly assignment on my blog. Here it is:
1. Soaking, Oct 1. Soaked briefly in the afternoon; felt out of it. But in the evening service had a throne room encounter, watching Jesus clothe and equip people for ministry in the Philippines, India, and Africa.
2. Soaking, Oct 4. Woke up at 5. Soaked to prepare for men’s breakfast. Saw a vision of a man with a blue shirt and a goatee. Also sensed God wanted to impart peace.
3. Soaking, Oct 5. Prepared for Sunday service. Sensed nothing new; only to continue theme of ministry at mens’ breakfast.
1. Ministry, Oct 1. Was at the Laundromat, and called a pastor who had hosted me a few months ago. Talked about what God was doing in each of our ministries.
2. Ministry, Oct 2. Met a man at Morningstar who was in my classes when I taught for a term at Pinecrest. Began talking about word of knowledge – how it works – suddenly asked, “Why am I talking about all this?” He replied that he has been doing a lot of prophetic ministry. We swapped stories and prayed for each other when we were done.
3. Ministry, Oct 3 and 5. Friends took us to a buffet. Talked about weight-loss with our waitress; she has lost weight because of health problems. Promised to pray for her at church when I preach Sunday. Followed through, praying for congregation as well.
4. Ministry, Oct 4. Spoke at men’s breakfast and prayed for the man with the blue shirt. Encouraged his ministry of encouragement and lifting up hands that hang down. He thanked me with tears. Later learned that he leads the benevolence ministry at the church.
I could write more on each of these, fleshing out the ins and outs of why I did things the way I did and what resulted. But I’m keeping it short, like the entries I keep month by month, to give an example of how to do the assignment…