Affected lives or continued misery?
by Iris Davis
Hello Readers,
I’m sure that I am not the only person who has been through a traumatic event and used it to reach out to others who are experiencing similar circumstances. It is why some say that a “test” is part of having a “test-imony.” What do you do with that, after you realize that you indeed have a testimony? I would like to briefly discuss that in this entry, as it was something that I went through as well.
This past month, my husband and I began attending a new church. We have become very involved in a short amount of time and lost track of time over the last couple of weeks. I think that happens sometimes when you go from being in a dry place to one that waters you from the roots up. Hmm..that’s sounds like a good blog topic![ene_ptp]
We met up with this local church while we were doing a Reimagine event in Thomaston, GA, which is about an hour south of me. Amazing how the Lord connected us to a LOCAL church OUT OF TOWN!! For more information about Reimagine, a project of Doers of the Word, please click here: http://www.reimagineworldwide.org/
These events, and another one like it, are where my heart came alive for outreach. Missions in your own backyard for hurting people who need healing and help. I was one of those hurting people when I began working with Maximum Impact Love, Inc. in 2007, only I didn’t know it at the time. I only knew that, for some reason, I had a burning place for the addicted and abused people who lived in the “armpit” of the city of Atlanta. As the years have gone by, I have moved from one geographical area of ministry to another, but the needs are the same. Hurting people need love and acceptance to move out of the jails of their minds.
This coming up week, my new church is hosting a small event similar to the ones mentioned above. The similarities are striking even though the geographical area is limited to a 5 block area while the others are whole towns and communities. In one day of preparation, we met a handful of people who desperately need healing, inside and out. Of course, the common thread, as always, is that only Jesus can meet those needs.
One man that my husband and I listened to this past weekend shared his story of losing his mother. He kept saying that she was right there with him, and I learned that she is literally buried 150 yards from where he lives. He visits her grave daily and draws strength from those visits. It was hard to accept that he thought he was getting life from a death. But then I realized that, even though he was in error because his mom is still dead, that we as Christians draw strength from the death of Jesus—because He ROSE again!!!!!!! Hallelujah!!!!!!!! This young man shared that his mother was a Christian, so I believe that the Lord will reveal to him, in time, Who he really needs to be focusing on. And, I hope that we have another chance to minister to him this coming Saturday. Things happen in stages when the hurts run deep.
As we have been approaching this event, several ministers in our church have fallen physically ill. Myself included, as of Sunday night. We have all been praying for each other and encouraging each other via texts and email. It is part of the battle sometimes. But, my Lord will have His way as He always does. And, as Paul says, we count it all joy—we must be doing something right to be attacked. Only the Lord knows the outcome of Saturday’s event, but I believe with all my heart that many people will see Him in a different light. And, I believe that, for some, it might be their last chance.
Regardless of when you read this, please lift this event–and so many others like it–up in prayer. These events are a last day strategy to reach all those who need Him but are too broken to pass through the doors of any church.
The next entry will be a picture of the day!
Be blessed![slideshow_deploy id=’2787′]
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