Adam Short's Blog

Yesterday I had a couple Holy Spirit opportunities to minister to people. The first one was in Panda Express.

I was eating, and I left my table to go refill my cup of water. As I was walking towards the drink machine, I felt a quick pain go through my mid-back. I thought it must be a word of knowledge for somebody with back pain. So I looked around and decided to pick the man by the drink machine. I said to him, "I've got a random question for you. Do you happen to have pain in your mid-back?" He told me yes, as a matter of fact I do. Then he went on to say that he was born with one less rib on one side, and that he has shoulder pain. Ends up his name is Adam too. We talked a pretty long time about God, and he told me about his experience in church. He had had enough of going to church and people talking behind his back about his tattoos and piercings. He had been hurt by religion, like so many other people. But he did believe in God and has a relationship with Him. Eventually I got to pray over Adam, and invite Holy Spirit to heal him. After praying, I asked him how he felt. He said he felt a numbness sensation down his back. Then he tested out his shoulder. Adam said he poured concrete all day and it was in pain, but as he tested it out, there was not any pain anymore! I was so thrilled. Who knows, maybe his missing rib grew out too! I told him how amazed I was...I believe God's going to heal people when I pray for them, but when it happens, it's so precious.

The next healing that happened yesterday was over at one of the houses that Tiana is a caretaker. She is taking care of a lady named Dorothy, who's 85. She's in a wheelchair, and she has 3 broken vertebrae. We prayed over Dorothy, and afterwards she told us that she felt relieved in her back. Then she tried to walk to do her daily walk down the hall, and even though she still had to use the walker, she said her back felt better!

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Tonight I typed in these words into Google to see what would come up: "I'm hungry for Jesus." Low and behold, one of the top sites that it found was a message from Pope Benedict that he gave last year at World Youth Day.

I'm kind of stunned at some of the things that the Pope said (in a good way). I think so often we write Catholics off as if they don't REALLY know Holy Spirit, but the stuff that the Pope said to thousands and thousands of youth really is powerful. He said that it's time for a new Pentecost! And, he also told them (this speech was given in July 2007) that this year's gathering of youth in Sydney, Australia, "will be a providential opportunity to experience the fullness of the Holy Spirit’s power."

The Pope went on to say this: "I invite you to give time to prayer and to your spiritual formation during this last stage of the journey leading to the XXIII World Youth Day, so that in Sydney you will be able to renew the promises made at your Baptism and Confirmation. Together we shall invoke the Holy Spirit, confidently asking God for the gift of a new Pentecost for the Church and for humanity in the third millennium."

This is awesome stuff! He's prophesying over the millions of Catholic youth that go to these gatherings every year. I've been in Europe when they had their gathering in Germany recently (I think it was in 2006).

I highly recommend reading the transcript of the Pope's speech:

http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/messages/youth/documents/hf_ben-xvi_mes_20070720_youth_en.html

I just found out that World Youth Day is happening right now in Sydney, Australia, and the website reported that there are 125,000 people at the event, and that this is the largest event that Australia has EVER hosted! There are more people there than were at the 2000 Olympic Games! Man revival is within reach.

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God I ask You to encounter me with Your goodness and love. I need to know that You are real right now.

I need breakthrough in finances Father and I yield my will to You. I give up my rights...I give up the right to even go to 2nd year, I give up the right to have a job, I give up the right to do things my way. I need, want, and must hear Your voice. Speak to me God. I want the intimacy back with You that I used to have, except way more than that even. You feel far away to me now. I feel Your presence often, but deep down You still feel far away. Draw near to me. I want You more than anything else. I am weak in my flesh, I feel worn out from running all over Redding for 2 months looking for a job. I think one big reason for that is because I haven't really heard Your voice speak to me to go here and there and look for a job. If I'm honest, I've been doing it because it's logical and makes sense. Since when in the past 5 years of walking by faith did I get all bent out of shape about a few thousand dollars that I need?

I mean heck, I need $1800 in two months to put down for school, I needed $1000 yesterday for the deposit for the townhouse, and I need $4200 to pay off my credit card. That's not that much in light of the big picture. Come on, I've seen You drop thousands in my path. I'm not saying You have to do it that way either. I'm willing and have been willing to work my butt off to make as much money as possible to go towards all this, but it just seems like every road I've pursued related to employment has just been dead-ends. There's some deeper stuff going on in my heart too. It's grating at the age-old lie that my value is based on what I do, which is hogwash. It's so hard for me to feel valuable if I don't feel like I'm doing something productive.

I was just reading the story of Elijah when God sent ravens to feed him, and an angel. It blows my mind how he heard God's voice. And how sharp his obedience was. God says go, and he goes. Holy Spirit show me more revelation about Your provision. I want to learn from You. I mean back then, it was normal for the man of God and the prophets to roam around trusting You daily for everything they need. I mean, 90% of the continent of Africa is inhabited by people who live day to day like that. That's fine, but I just can't get past Your promise to open the heavens on me to the point where I don't have room to contain all the abundance.

I'm going to encounter God. I've got enough fed-up-ness with frustration lately that it's driving me past the level of what's convenient when it comes to seeking God. Last night for the first time, I went to the Kabod House...Nick was there...and the depth and level of the presence of God and worship took me back to when I was in high school and when Adam Cox and I would go to MorningStar and have the most raw experiences with God in worship there. It was good. I want that presence to penetrate the areas of my heart that still feel dead and unavailable. I hunger for You God. Fill me.

I can see some good coming out of this trial (I'm definitely NOT saying that any of it is fun though). Trials have a way of forging us into solid people who become steadfast and unmovable (in a good way).

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When God restores what has been stolen, eaten, devoured, and lost, it's always in such a way that He restores beyond what it was before.

This past year at Bethel has been, hands down, the most redeeming, restoring year of my life. It amazes me that we can't deal God a bad hand. I came back to America from the mission field in West Africa at the end of August 2007, and my life was totally thrashed, beat up, wounded, the whole nine yards. My capacity to even hear God's voice was next to none, because of all the hurt, woundedness, and barrage of attack on my life.

BUT GOD...

But God, but God, but God. There's this song that I have in my head as I write, and it really highlights the goodness of God. Here's how it goes: "Savior, He can move a mountain; Our God is mighty to save, He is mighty to save. Forever, author of salvation, He has conquered the grave, Jesus conquered the grave."

The feeling I get in worshipping God while I look back on how much He redeemed me out of is unparalleled. I can feel God being moved by my worship. What this is for me is a stack of rocks, a stake in the ground of sorts, where I will look back the rest of my life and tell people of the goodness and faithfulness and redeeming power of God in my life.

Pain is crazy. What do I mean? More times than I can count, particularly in the past six months, I have been laying in the prayer house or even in my own apartment, soaking in the presence of God, and this deep, deep fissure opens in my soul and heart revealing nearly unbearable pain. When I say pain, what I mean is uncomfortableness to a high level, accompanied by a surge of what I would call "soul bleeding." Usually that happens when I've been vulnerable enough in relationship with others where it hits a sore spot in unresolved pain in my own life...OR I am triggered by some life event that propels me back to a memory or lie that needs some loving from God.

So anyway, back to what I was going to say about pain. I remember one night laying on the floor in the prayer house feeling so much pain deep down. Rejection, loneliness, abandonment, fear, etc. All the while I feel Holy Spirit upon me. But yet in my own heart and soul, I'm weeping inside. (And on the outside). I've come to believe that if we will wait long enough to let ourselves FEEL what is really going on inside of our souls, and LET God into that place of pain, what starts out as the most uncomfortable feeling in the world can end up taking us into the most amazing encounter with God.

In the book The Shack (which I'm reading now for the 2nd time), early on when Mack in getting to know Papa, his pent up anger and grief over losing his daughter Missy rushes to the surface and he tries with all his might to suppress it, but finally he breaks down and cries. Papa tells him that it's good to turn the water on every once and a while. Ohh that is so true. It feels so good.

So my whole point is that God's been redeeming and restoring my life this year. And I'm hanging on the promise that when He restores, He doesn't just set it back to what it was before, but He gives us seven times what we had. Divine justice, as Bill says.

One of my biggest goals for 2nd Year in the School of Ministry is to dream again with God and walk in my God-given destiny. Bethel's empowering leadership feels so good to walk under. I'm so thankful for them.

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