"I prayed for him and nothing happened, until…"

"These signs will accompany those who have believed: in My name they will cast out demons, they will speak with new tongues; they will pick up serpents, and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.” (Mark 16:17-18 )

I had been at it all day. Moving about the hospital looking for divine appointments, exercising the “gift” within me. Praying under my breath in tongues and listening to the Holy Spirit guide me to individuals He would have me pray for. Sure, up to now I had some success releasing words of encouragement, edification and exhortation but I was looking to see the “healing” take place right then and there, on the spot before my very eyes. I was getting frustrated. Nothing. I had prayed for so many people and no healings. No miracles. No “oh that feels so much better” or even a “wow, what just happened?” In my soulish thinker defeat was milling around questioning the very purpose of the “gift” within me as if to say this was all just a big waste of time. Why wasn’t the miracle in the “moment?”

I was ready to call it a day when the Lord highlighted a man to me who was sitting in a wheelchair outside of the Emergency Room entrance at the new Alaska Native Medical Center. I studied him for a minute while listening to that familiar ‘voice’ prompting me to stick my neck out again. “Leave me alone Lord” I said quietly to myself. I heard the Lord say clearly, “go and lay hands on him and release My healing to Him. I am going to heal him.” “No!” I said inside my head. “Why?” the Lord said with amusement to which I replied “are You kidding me? You haven’t healed any of the people I have laid hands on today and frankly I have to tell You Father that I am done with the humiliation for the day, I have had enough!” Then here came His answer with authority and command, “Pray for him now!” It was a Holy Ghost tug of war in my spirit. I could not walk away from this one. Jesus wins again."But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised. But he who is spiritual appraises all things, yet he himself is appraised by no one. For who has known the mind of the Lord, that he will instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ." (1 Corinthians 2:14-16)

I approached the man then asked him if I could pray for him. As I walked up to him, he grabbed the metal railing that separated the children’s play area from the walk way to pull himself up out of the wheelchair. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a pack of cigarettes and was preparing to light up. “Oh boy,” I thought to myself sarcastically, “I get to pray for the guy who is in a wheelchair while he blows smoke in my face. What is wrong with this picture?” I asked him as nicely as I could if he would allow me to pray for him. His eyes lit up. He dropped his cigarette in the sand and thanked me for asking. “Yes” came his reply with urgency. I asked him how I could pray. He said “I am waiting to see the emergency room doctor for pain. I was in an accident and can barely stand up. I have to use this wheelchair to get around. My injuries are in my back and I’m bound to this wheelchair. I am in so much pain, please, please pray.” I was thinking to myself, “ok Lord, you brought me here and you demanded that I pray and I am expecting You to show up and show off!”

As I began to pray I could sense the deep love and compassion that the Lord has for him and I knew that the Lord was present to heal in the “moment.” I know that glorious presence of the Lord where the atmosphere shifts and the angels are at the ready to do His bidding. The Gift of Faith wrecks any and all scaffolds of doubt and casts down every vain imagination that sets itself up against the knowledge of God. The stage is set for the knowledge of His Glory that makes room for the gift. The mind of Christ flows freely from the throne and invades our divine imagination. The prayer is saturated in the knowing that nothing shall be impossible. Perfect peace rises up to do the bidding of the Healer as He is present to watch over His Word to perform it on behalf of Love. The power to heal is released as the effectual fervent prayer of the righteous man goes forth that is dynamic in its working. Perfect agreement in the Spirit diminishes any and all carnality of mind. Any thought of leaning on one’s own understanding becomes completely nonexistent. It is here, where every thought is held captive. It is here that Heaven invades earth and the perfect will of God to save, heal, deliver and protect are enthroned in the “moment”. His Super invades our natural!

I watched to see the miracle as I prayed, looking for any signs of relief, any signs of the impending healing that I had just agreed with the Word for. I had done my part. I looked with anxious expectation for life because faith without works is dead. This is where my hope was anchored. My heart was that faith with works is alive. I had made my declaration and prayed the prayer of faith and now I did not want to miss the ‘super’ invading this man’s natural. The Father was not about to let me walk away disappointed after the conversation we just had! No! Not without witnessing the promise of the miracle.“In the Mighty Name of Jesus, amen!” I finished the prayer. I stood there for a moment with anticipation. I asked him, “do you feel anything at all? Is there anything difference? How do you feel now?” He looked down at his cigarette, then at me, and sighed, “nope.” This was not the reaction I had hoped for. My thoughts instantly began warring against the Spirit and taking up a position of enmity. “Not again” I said to myself, “didn’t we just have a conversation about showing up and showing off Lord?” I tried not to show my dissatisfaction.The man gave me the answer I did not want to hear. “Nothing” he said, “but thank you so much for praying for me.” Sitting down in his wheelchair he pulled out another cigarette, lit it and began to head back towards the building. In an effort to be reconciliatory I said to him “God doesn’t have me pray for anyone without Him doing something so just keep believing for the healing.” As I was left alone with my angst I said to the Lord with spite and some mild bitterness, “see, that’s why. You did it to me again.”"Then Hezekiah and all the people rejoiced over what God had prepared for the people, because the thing came about suddenly." (2 Chronicles 29:36)

I was done with the ‘humiliation’ for the day and turned towards the parking lot to leave when my cell phone rang. It was my Pastor. He was all excited, “Stephen! The Lord just spoke to me to call you. What are you doing tomorrow for lunch?” My troubles evaporated for a moment while the possibility of baptizing shrimp in sweet and sour sauce began dancing in my head. “I don’t have any plans, why what’s up?” He began explaining, “Stephen, the Lord said that I am to take you to lunch tomorrow if you can be here at noon.” Naturally I replied with joy, “I’ll be there at noon, thanks, see you tomorrow!”

“Free food! Thank You Lord. You’re not so bad after all” I said with a grin as I continued walking. I know the Lord and He is not thin skinned nor is He easily offended as some would suppose. We talk like this even when I don’t get my way. My immaturity is no surprise to Him. We have our moments and I never stay offended or disgruntled when things don’t go the way I hoped and I soon get over it. Camping out on things I don’t understand can lead to doubt and unbelief that prepares a seed of thought that if allowed to remain will produce a root of bitterness in my heart. Accepting the things I cannot change, it pays to move on. I try never to look back and micro manage situations that I have a hard time wrapping my mind around. It doesn’t pay to hold a grudge against the Creator of all things seen and unseen!

The next day I arrived for the impending smorgasbord right on time. The Pastor was just as eager to go. He was obviously excited. He knew the Lord was up to something. The first thing out of his mouth was “Stephen, the Lord says you are to choose wherever you want to go to eat in the city!” He continued, “and I am to spend whatever amount you choose for your meal even if it costs me a hundred bucks.” I looked at him and thought, “this guy really knows how to hear from the Lord, I like it! Now where do we go to eat this meal?” I saw in my divine imagination the Korean Buffet that was over by the old Anchorage City Church that used to be in the strip mall on International and Arctic Blvd. I loved the food there and I knew that the owners were believers. I hadn’t had a buffet style meal for a while and I was all too happy to indulge the Pastor. I wasn’t going to minimize the moment by exercising any guilt or shame concerning my waist size either. I felt like I was on a mission from God. I asked if he knew the place, then he gave me a puzzled look. He was probably thinking his offer was about to take us to the Crow’s Nest on the top floor of the opulent Captain Cook Hotel for lobster and steak. Nope, we were going to eat in a hole in the wall Korean buffet where would get more bang for the buck. Besides, far be it from me to take advantage in a situation like this. This could be a test after all. The Lord may be leading me into another trial. I thought I would just go low and lean towards humility and not take advantage of the offer but to enjoy fellowship and a good meal with a brother. “Ok Stephen, the Korean buffet it is” and off we went."Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight." (Proverbs 3:5-6)

We walked into the restaurant and headed straight for the buffet. The Pastor went ahead as I followed his lead down the selection. I was curious. What was it that the Lord was up too? Why would the Lord have him call to take me to lunch? Was I about to be ‘ministered to”? Was this man who hears so well from God about to speak a ‘heavy revvy’ into my life? I was just finishing up at the line and he had already gone to sit down when behind me at the entrance I heard a big commotion. I turned to see what all the racket was about just in time to see a crowd of people piling through the door. There was at least ten or more that I remember. That’s when my jaw dropped to the floor. It couldn’t be! At the front of the pack was the man I had prayed for who was in the wheelchair. He was walking effortlessly. My mind was racing. I walked quickly over to our table and put my plate down then looked at the Pastor and said, “I’m sorry Pastor, I’ll be right back. I have to go and speak to these people!” The fact that I knew the Pastor was waiting for me so that he could pray and dig in was not going to keep me. My hunger pangs had flown out the window. I turned and made my way over to the table where the group of people who had just come in had sat down before he had a chance to answer.

“Do you remember me?” I asked in amazement. The man looked up at me from where he was seated. His eyes were full of surprise. I was the last person he was expecting to see. “What happened?” I asked with wide eyed curiosity. “Yesterday you were barely hanging onto the railing struggling to stand up full of pain and now here you are!” He recounted the story to me. After we had prayed, he wheeled himself into the hospital to wait to be seen. When they called his name, he wheeled himself into the infirmary where they gave him a room to wait for the doctor to see him. Just as the doctor came walking in, he felt the power of God all over him and it was then that the infirmity lifted off of him. The doctor asked him, “what can I do for you today?” Realizing that all the pain had left him, he looked up at the doctor and replied “nothing now. When I originally came here, I was racked with pain. I could not stand up. I had been in an accident and the pain was getting to be more than I could bare. When you walked in here though, all the pain left and I feel like a million bucks! Before coming in here, I prayed with a man in the parking lot. I believe the Lord has healed me!” With that he got up from the wheelchair, apologized for taking up the doctor’s time, then hurried out the door. He could not wait to tell his family. He got on the phone immediately and began telling everybody. His family was so happy for him. To celebrate they decided to go to a restaurant. The very restaurant that I had chosen that day. My head was spinning! “Praise God! Wow! Look what the Lord has done!”

"The steps of a man are established by the Lord, and He delights in his way." (Psalm 37:23)"Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near." (Hebrews 10:23-25)

My mind that had gone from zero to fifty was now racing at awestruck one hundred miles per hour. My countenance must have beamed as I arrived back at the table where the Pastor was waiting to pray over his lunch. I sat down quickly so he could do the customary blessings and dig in so I could share with him the miracle that I had just witnessed. It hit me that this was not just one miracle. This was several miracles wrapped up in one! I recounted to him the story from start to finish to where we were now sitting in the afterglow, or at least I was. When I finished, he said to me with amazement, “now that’s a spiritual ‘atta’ boy if I ever saw one!”I started to eat and enjoy the moment when he leaned forward and began to tell me what the Lord had commissioned him to take me to lunch for. He said, “Stephen, the Lord has given me a message to give you. He wants you to know three things.” I sat back and stared him right in the eyes knowing that this was going to be from the Lord and that I had better give him my undivided attention. After what I had just witnessed, I wasn’t about to miss another thing. He continued, “Stephen, the Lord says you need to know that every man needs a father, every man needs a brother, and every man needs a son.” "He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God; Many will see and fear and will trust in the LORD." (Psalms 40:3)It was at that moment the song "Every Man" was born. The atmosphere shifted; the psalmist anointing fell like rain. I felt the deposit of revelation from heaven physically filling my spirit. There it was in in my knower as if it had always been there. The words, the music, the arrangement. “Let me see your pen” I asked the Pastor. Handing the pen to me he watched with curiosity and patience as I began to write the song (“Every Man” see the video here) on a napkin. This song downloaded from Heaven is on my new album “I Am a Son.” I named the album in memory of Don Nori Sr who wrote the book “I Am a Son” just before he passed. Listening to the Spirit I could already hear the sound that these prophetic lyrics of encouragement should be composed to. Lunch and a miracle! That’s the way I like it! The compete package and then some! Once again, the Lord had done exceedingly and abundantly far more than I had could have hoped for or asked!

"But our God is in the heavens; He does whatever He pleases." (Psalm 115:3)"The Lord of hosts has sworn saying, “Surely, just as I have intended so it has happened, and just as I have planned so it will stand." (Isaiah 14:24)This whole amazing journey has taught me to leave the results to the Lord when it comes to the when, where and how He chooses to manifest His miracle. No! It’s not always about the “moment” we pray but it is and always will be about the glory of God! Can’t you hear Him saying still to this day, “keep your hands off the ark!” When the presence of the Lord manifests the glory, it is time to give up our personal expectations and relinquish any thoughts of wrapping our mind around what does not belong to us. We share in the fullness of the experience when we fall into lock step with Jesus as we realize we are about our Father’s business and not our own. Don’t touch! Simply carry out your marching orders in accordance and within the confines of the realm of stewardship the Spirit of God has appointed you and nothing further.Believe and have faith that He is accomplishing that for which we are being sent . We are the vessel but He is the Lord of the harvest. Jesus who is the Word that proceeds from the mouth of the Father is Lord over all of His plans and purposes. When we move in the “moment” our attitude should be as if we are proceeding from the mouth of the Father just as our Lord Jesus does. We are sent ones.Our expectations are to remain solely within the context of His faithfulness. Did He not say that His promises are yes and amen? Did He not say that He was watching over His Word to perform it? Yes, He did say that! His Word never returns to Him void neither is He a man that He could lie. His Word always accomplishes that for which it was sent and always bears forth fruits of righteousness. There is nothing wrong with standing on the Word of God in the “moment,” however, the moment does not belong to us. The One who created time and space calls us to be present within His moment with no expectations of our own choosing. Nothing within ourselves should dictate the outcome. Simply knowing that our faith pleases Him and validates us as sons should be sufficient. We should be content He is performing His Word according to His plan and purpose and not for our instant gratification. As obedient sons we step out by faith within the “moment” on behalf of Love. This is the Father’s heart. It is here where we find peace and rest in the doing.

As He passed by, He saw a man blind from birth. And His disciples asked Him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he would be born blind?” Jesus answered, “It was neither that this man sinned, nor his parents; but it was so that the works of God might be displayed in him. We must work the works of Him who sent Me as long as it is day; night is coming when no one can work. While I am in the world, I am the Light of the world.” When He had said this, He spat on the ground, and made clay of the spittle, and applied the clay to his eyes, and said to him, “Go, wash in the pool of Siloam” (which is translated, Sent). So, he went away and washed, and came back seeing. (John 9:1-7)

There is a whole lot of freedom in not having to jump through the hoops, or to be anxious with expectancy, for the Lord to perform the supernatural on cue according to our own limited imagination. Listening to the Lord tell us to go left or right, stop or go forward, stand or get out of the way is not always easy when we have visions of grandeur born of unrealistic expectations. This immaturity in the spirit realm concerning doing the good works has selfish ambition and anxiety written all over it. When our plans spring from within our own vain glorious expectations we step outside the realms of faith into carnal works of the flesh. Soon we find ourselves robbed of our potential to experience great joy in serving the One we love. Our joy should always be in our Salvation alone! Our obedience should always spring out of the knowledge that He loves us and chooses to express His Love and His power through His sons.Immaturity keeps us disappointed and frustrated. Experiencing the reality of our weakness apart from Christ should be the impetus of the desire to “grow up.” Disappointments and frustrations are designed to produce a hunger and thirst for righteousness born out of the lack thereof. It’s nothing to be ashamed of. Walking in the spirit realm at entry level is a process of falling down and getting back up again to maturity. It is a life long journey. We will always find ourselves entering into something new in Christ. He loves the new! He knows what He is doing and uses every mistake, wrong attitude and preconceived notions or expectation to mature us. No one has arrived that I know of, although some are under the impression they have.The Lord is not offended with our immaturity, nor is He surprised that you would contend with Him concerning His part in the “moment.” Consider that when the Lord spoke us into existence, He already knew what the times and the seasons would be for us just as He has for everyone that He foreknew. Besides where there is weakness and failure and obvious sin His grace much more abounds. He has stacked the deck in our favor so that we can get back up and move on to maturity when contentions between our spirit and His Spirit arise. Praise God!"for in Him we live and move and exist, as even some of your own poets have said, ‘For we also are His children." (Acts 17:28)

Many “moments” in our walk of mystery and intrigue in the spirit realm have pointed to unshakable knowledge that it is He who is working within all of us to will and to do His good pleasure. We are simply fulfilling the part we are to play in this dance of love. Let us all come to the place where we allow Jesus to lead us, His Bride, in the dance of cooperation. Let the dance instill within us this Truth; that signs and wonders would follow us without us having to micromanage the outcome! What a place of rest it is to trust in the Lord with all of your heart and not have to lean on your own understanding!It is His plan; it is His purpose in all that He has called us to do. His will must prevail. It is not going to be about us except that we would grow in faith and glory as we love and trust the Lord. We are maturing sons who are about our Father’s business. His plans and purposes are always about Jesus Christ to the glory of God the Father for and always on behalf of Love. Ask the Lord to sow this revelation into your spirit."Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ASK or THINK, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory (not ourselves) in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen." (Ephesians 3:20-21)

Thank you everyone of you who read these submissions and thank you for clicking on the links to the songs and the web page. Please take the time to click on the link to the “I Am a Son” book and remember Don Nori Sr who passed a year ago. I am grateful that my “moment” with Don and Cathy led to my introduction to Destiny Image and Don Nori Jr who has graciously extended to me this valuable opportunity.