Friday night at Redeemer

There was an attempt to recreate the spirit of the old Friday night service from the 70's. My we looked old. George Mims, Brian Howard and others led the service.

I came along mainly because my wife was interested. It was billed as a sort of reunion. I think it was. An old friend and co-worker in Boy Scouts drove in from Austin.

I was a bit shocked and surprised to experience a little of the old charismatic Holy Spirit peace and excitement. Others encouraged us that the Holy Spirit was here.

Brian Howard - I never did recognize him. There was an old guy playing guitar and helping to lead with vocals. But only later when I read a review saying Mims and Howard led us did I realize what I saw.

We sang some old favorites but there were also a lot of new songs led by George Mims. So it wasn't really the songs. But the Holy Spirit graciously did come down. I think God was very gracious to give a little peek at the old excitement at Redeemer of the 60's and 70's.

This was also to be a healing weekend led by Jack and Anna Marie Sheffield. I love Jack. Jack found us a fairly dead congregation for his healing talk. He kept having to ask us to respond please. He wanted a bit of positive feedback but he was not getting it. I think he was a bit surprised.

That's why I say it was very gracious of God to send the peace of God. Otherwise we were a pretty heavy group.

I was remembering what Graham Pulkingham said in his first two books about the people who received spectacular healing. He noticed that those who God healed were willing to change, to repent and amend their lives. Not only did they receive physical healing, they received spiritual healing as well.

Many came for healing who did not receive. He felt it was because they were there for healing only and not for amendment of life.

To receive the healing required a personal response on their part. One could not simply be a passive recipient.

I think this is because God is much more interested in our spiritual well being. The spiritual is forever, the physical is only for a short time. But we have our spiritual bodies forever.

God wants to use physical healing to work spiritual change in our hearts. Not that there is any hard and fast rule. I'd never mean that.

But I think it is important to realize when God does not heal or immediately heal we should look in the spiritual realm.

At church when people give words of knowledge at the behest of the pastor many of them are about spiritual needs not physical needs. I think this is appropriate as that is where God's heart is.