He lifts the needy from the dust....
Slough November 2016-11-25
I met a young chap working for an internet company. We chatted a bit then he asked me what I was doing in Slough. I told him I was a Christian praying for people and showing them God’s goodness and was there anything I could pray for him or his family? He said his Mum wasn’t well and invited me up into his sort of “shop area” (an open fronted portacabin in the middle of the square) There were two seats and he stood up to be respectful to me. He said he was a Muslim (name Abdul) so would that be a problem for me to pray for his family?. I assured him it would be an honour to pray for his Mum. He asked what he needed to do and whether I charge anything !! as he had never been prayed for or seen it done before. I told him just to sit and relax and there would certainly not be any charge! I jprayed several things out loud for his Mum who had depression and other health issues. Then I prayed a blessing over "Abdul" too ( not laying hands just speaking) He thanked me warmly and hoped I would come back another day. Sweet.
I saw a youngish girl sitting on the pavement near Macdonalds and said to her that she must be cold sitting there….she was happy to talk and told me she was homeless. I sat next to her – her name was "Emma". She told me a bit about her life, she was only 21. Mum has serious health issues and Dad is not around. She doesn’t have connection with either of them. Another lady eventually came on the scene who was also homeless and her name was "Tessa"- older than "Emma" and trying to look after her a bit. They both live in a tent and we talked about how they manage in the winter. They both have complex health and wellbeing issues. I was able to pray for each of them in turn and they really appreciated it. "Emma" said that no one had ever prayed for her before. I told them about a welcoming local church in Slough and encouraged them to come any Sunday they like. I've seen "Emma" a few times since that day in Slough, she always calls out my name and we have a hug when we meet.
I was walking in the High Street and was stopped by a joyful looking young black guy promoting an organisation that uses music to help youth get out of trouble and into community. I felt pretty certain he was a Christian from how he described things and just his whole demeanour. Name "Johnson". He told me about his past – wow, so broken - in and out of prison dozens of times, homeless, addicted, big time trouble-maker. He eventually went to a Christian Rehab centre and was born-again through a powerful God encounter. Now he helps others going through what he once did. He was very happy to let me pray for him (he had seen me praying for the homeless girl "Emma" earlier) and just wanted me to pray whatever God gave me.
I prayed several things – some about the "sounds and new rhythms" that God would give him even as he slept. I then began to pray about relationships andI found myself praying for a relationship that he was in right now (risky!) – for God to be in the developing and the timing of it . "Johnson" suddenly interrupted me as he was quite overwhelmed at what I was saying. He explained he is currently “interested in someone” and described some of the background to it….he was bowled over that someone who knew nothing about a situation that mattered so much to him would be prompted by God to bring him encouragement and reassurance. It was really cool.
He then took me to meet one of the young guys he had come into town with. His name is "Jack". He was there with a laptop and some kind of sound system he had rigged up to play his music in public. "Jack" is an unusual fellow – I'm pretty sure he has deep mental health issues and is probably demonised. He talked a lot about the "third level", and weird universe /energy stuff that I didn’t understand at all!
"Jack" had seen me praying for an older gentlemen along from him on the bench – Mitch, a homeless guy who was literally delusional. He thought he had an assignment to bring together ex-bands like the Beatles for a special musical event and he thought he might be the archangel Michael!! Having said that, he did have some kind of faith and when he allowed me to pray for his messed up chest/lungs, he was actually very clear headed and cooperated by breathing in deeply as a step of faith. He spoke out some poetry lines to me – I don’t know if he had composed it but it was actually really beautiful and quite arresting. It was really interesting how being prayed for put him in his "right mind"!!
Anyway, back to "Jack" who said he could feel I had some "special energy" when I prayed for Mitch. He mentioned that he had sometimes met with creatures of light and beauty but when he did, these other demons came to shut it all down!!!! Oh boy.! I prayed some different things for him - some to do with fear and also for his physical ears which were messed up. Can't remember what else. The whole thing was pretty surreal. At the end he stood up and hugged me and was truly grateful for the love I had showed him. It was Love that he received and that mattered the most to him. The whole morning was unusual to say the least but beautiful in its own way. Jesus did some beautiful things as he touched the broken lives I met today. It's all about love, Jesus. Help me remember, it's all about your love.
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