The Outpouring

Joshua had been praying for weeks for this night to come. When his church found out that a faith healer was coming to a nearby city, practically everyone had made plans to go. It was important to him because of his grandmother. She had been in a wheelchair for many years because of rheumatoid arthritis. Joshua desperately wanted to see his grandmother walk again.

They had left the early afternoon for the auditorium, stood in line for what seemed hours, and then made a mad rush for seats. As it was on a first come-first-served basis and there were thousands of people there, it was difficult finding good seats. The first few floor rows were reserved for the handicapped with walkers and wheelchairs. Joshua’s dad had taken his grandmother to the front while he and his mom searched for seats. The auditorium was rapidly filling, and, in order to find three together, they had to settle for the balcony. His dad found them, sat down, and pointed out where his grandmother was parked in her wheelchair. Joshua could barely see the top of her head from where he was sitting. As he watched the crowd, the lights came up on the platform and the choir began to sing. Sensing a sudden urge to pray, he closed his eyes and began.

“Dear God, please heal my grandmother. She wants to walk again. God, I’ve never seen her walk. She’s been in that wheelchair ever since I was born. We made this trip believing that you’d heal her. God, please hear me. I know that everybody here is praying and asking the same thing. Please hear my prayer.

As Joshua finished a man came onto the platform and began to pray, asking God to touch the thousands of sick and afflicted tonight. Music was playing in the background and the choir began singing praise and worship songs. Joshua watched as things began to happen. People all over the auditorium began to jump to their feet, crying and praising God. He began to notice several people begin to make their way to the platform. Not knowing what was happening for sure, he began to pray again.

“God, what’s happening? I don’t understand,” he asked.

“Joshua, I’m doing what is asked. I’m rewarding the faith of those who truly believe in me,” a voice spoke into his spirit.

“God, I believe in you. Will you reward my grandmother?”

“Patience, my child, patience. I’ve listened to your prayers these past weeks and I know that you want to see her walk again. But there are other factors involved. I’m waiting for one more act of faith to happen,” answered God.

Patience! How long must I wait? thought Joshua as he sat there. I’ve done all that I know to do, and God says that I must have patience. As he pondered on what God had said, he watched the proceedings on the platform. To his amazement he watched an elderly man jump from his wheelchair, raise his hands toward heaven and walk up the steps of the platform. The speaker met him at the top, took him by the hand, and listened as he explained how God had healed him while sitting in his wheelchair. The speaker lightly touched his forehead,  nd he fell backward into the arms of two men who stood directly behind him. He lay there for several minutes before he rose to his feet and went back to his wheelchair. Pushing it to the edge of the platform, the man took one last look at it and found himself an empty seat in the front row.

“God, I don’t know how it works. How do you heal people?” asked Joshua.

“My son, would you like to see how it works? Can you comprehend what you are about to see? If so, then close your eyes and when I say open them, do so.”

“What have I done?” Joshua thought as he quickly closed his eyes. In a matter of moments, he heard God speak again.

“Open your eyes and tell me what you see.”

Joshua did as prompted and beheld a scene like nothing he had ever seen before. A fine mist completely covered the interior of the auditorium, and music, like he had never heard, was in the background. One minute it sounded like a very high-pitched singing and the next it sounded exactly like thousands of bells were ringing. As he listened, he noticed white-garbed figures moving throughout the room, singing and lifting their hands toward heaven. Joshua come to the realization that the sound he heard was their singing. Fascinated, he watched them when out of the corner of his eye he noticed something was happening. Instantly he heard the voice again.

“Joshua, watch closely and understand what I am doing.”

A few rows down from him something miraculous happened before his eyes. From the mist overhead, a fire appeared, a fire in a liquid form. It began to trickle down until it became a steady stream. It descended directly over the head of an elderly lady, running down her shoulders until it covered her entire body. Joshua watched as something dark and ugly fled in haste as the flames covers her. As it left her one of the white-garbed figures followed it as it ran for the door.

“God, what was that?” he asked.

“My son, it was the spirit of cancer. Her faith compelled me to deliver and heal her from this terrible disease.”

“Does the fire burn the diseases out?”

“The fire is my power and my love all wrapped into one. No demon or disease can withstand the fire. So. yes, in a way it does burn them out.”

Joshua watched as the fire began to pour throughout the auditorium. Miraculous healings were taking place with the recipients jumping to their feet, shouting praises to God, and heading for the platform to tell of what God had done for them. He kept watching his grandmother, hoping to see the fire descend but nothing seemed to be happening.

“God, what about my grandmother?”

As he prayed he felt prompted to look toward his grandmother. He had never seen her lift her hands toward heaven before, but she was doing it now. He could sense that something was about to happen. Praying, he watched as the fire began slowly dripping on her head. Each time it hit her, she moved in her wheelchair. The drips sped up and became a steady stream. Finally, it seemed as if a bucket of liquid fire was being dumped on her. His grandmother glowed in the midst of the flames, and he could see a dark sinister being exiting her and racing up the aisle with a white-garbed figure in pursuit. She slowly rose from her chair and took a few steps toward the platform. Gaining strength, she began to sway to the music and then began to dance, hands raised and her eyes tightly shut. People began to watch her as she danced her way up the steps and toward the speaker. He watched her, approached, and lightly touched her forehead. She immediately fell to the floor, her hands still reaching upward, and her voice humbly singing. As the speaker lowered his microphone everyone could hear her singing in an unknown language!

Jimmy sat in amazement! God did it! He had healed his grandmother!

“Thank you! Thank you for hearing my prayer and healing her!”

“You’re welcome, my son. It would have happened a lot sooner, but I was waiting for something.”

“What?”

“I told you I was waiting for another act of faith. It finally happened tonight. I have been waiting for your grandmother to come to me and ask for healing. When she first started showing symptoms of arthritis, she asked for healing and blamed me when it didn’t happen immediately. She became bitter which allowed the arthritis to take a deeper hold on her. I’ve waited patiently for her to come to me and ask for forgiveness. She did so this evening and began to praise me with her whole heart. She told me that regardless of whether I healed her or not, she was going to praise me. Her act of faith, along with yours, compelled me to heal her. Joshua, faith always brings results. Always. Do you understand now how healing works?”

“Yes, Lord.”

Joshua learned a lesson that night that he never forgot. Put your faith in God and He’ll never fail you.”

July 9, 2020