The Conference Ends
I've wanted to finish talking about the conference and how it ended.
Friday was mostly sessions on teaching how to facilitate a program back home. However, the last session was the wind up--a time of corporate prayer and celebration. It was long.
It began with each of the team members (there were about 30 of them) each giving a brief word of encouragement for us. Many of them simply gave a verse from scripture. The painter of "my" cross blessed us with fun! And then there were prayers for each region of Canada and beyond which were represented there and those provinces and territories which were not represented. As each province was called out, those from that province stood as everyone else stretched out their hands toward them and two volunteers prayed. It was a powerful time, especially as we reached New Brunswick (we'd started from the west and were now at the east coast). A huge contingent had come from New Brunswick with the express intention of beginning a program there for the first time this fall. It really was exciting to have them all there. For them, instead of us stretching our hands towards them, we were encouraged, those of us who felt so led, to get up and actually lay hands on them. I felt so led. The Vineyard church was represented amongst their numbers and for me that was especially exciting. The fervour increased from there as we prayed over the other Atlantic provinces, those from Vegas and finally the two from Lithuania who also would hopefully be starting a program in their country. I wish I could express all that happened. The choice was to participate or record. I chose to partipate and now, writing three weeks later, I've forgotten so much. There was an excitement and anticipation for what God will do and so many of the prayers were powerfully prophetic. The enthusiasm was palpable. Finally we all sat down and the director for Canada spoke. I want to share some of what he said.
Time and again, when God calls his children, he doesn't call them to be perfect. The patriarchs struggled incredibly in their journeys with God. When we've said "yes" to him, we've given him permission to mess us up and disrupt us for the rest of our lives. The patriarchs' lives were never the same after God entered them. God wasn't causing chaos but bringing his children close to him, delivering them from boredom and offering them the wildness of living with him. God is relentless in his pursuit of us.
God is calling me (and you). He says, "My grace (not "my total healing") is sufficient for you." I say yes to God-being-whatever-he-wants-with-me. Safety is in God, not in what he's doing. He's doing what's best for us. We may not know what God is doing but we can know that he is real. We are to listen to God as he interupts us. The speaker said that every time he made plans for his life, God would interupt them. God told him, "I want you to know that I am enough for you."
God is after our hearts. As we give him our hearts and our futures we'll find that he is wildly unpredictable but profoundly faithful. God wants us to know him in a deep spiritual way. The speaker told us that God allowed his homosexuality because it was the only way he would come to God. God will interupt us but he will be with us. He wants us to walk in freedom throughout our journey. "Follow the God who takes you to the strange places," we were admonished.
The Canadian director gave each of us a very special gift. Aside from his full-time job as director, he is also an artist. What he did was hand paint each of the 90 name tags needed for the conference. As he painted them, he prayed for each person. Sometimes as he prayed, God gave him a word of prophecy, encouragement or admonition for that person. We had known right from the beginning that during the last session, he would speak out those words God had give him. Apparently some people feel very uncomfortable with this, and those were encouraged to let him know ahead of time so he wouldn't put them in a difficult spot. For myself, I really hoped that I was on his list. So did the woman I was sitting with. No one knew if they would be included or not.
As he named someone (or often couples), that person would stand and team members would surround the person, lay hands on him and/or her and pray silently. Often what he had to say was very long. It seemed for sure that I would not be included because he named so many people and spoke to them. Then, to my surprise, he DID call my name! His word was very simple. First he asked me if I had children. Yes! I have four sons, I answered from the back. "God has your sons in his hands." That was it. At first I was rather disappointed. Well of course God has my sons in his hands! I knew that! But as the word went deeper, I realized just how much I needed to know that. I thought first of my eldest sons who don't follow God. "God has your sons in his hands." And then I remembered something that happened amongst the three youngest many years ago and how I've worried about how all that will turn out--the healing each of the boys need, their future in regards to this, etc. That's when this word from God really hit me. "God has your sons in his hands." I began to sob. I needed this reassurance more than I realized. Sometimes we don't realize how much we're in need of something until that need is met. What a promise! "God has your sons in his hands."
The final part of the evening was a celebration of God in worship. Once again the chairs were stacked and cleared away. The worship leader began to sing and play and people began to whoop and holler and dance. The previous celebration had been awesome but paled in comparison to this night. I myself wasn't as exuberant as two nights before (well, I did try to get someone to help me start a conga line but she wasn't interested), but it was so much fun to watch everyone. What a party we're going to have when we get to heaven! We'll have the energy to dance and celebrate non-stop through eternity! The joy will be incomparable. I have never seen celebration of God in worship like I saw at the Leadership Training Conference and yet even that will be as nothing compared to what we will do before the throne of God. I can hardly wait!
Friday was mostly sessions on teaching how to facilitate a program back home. However, the last session was the wind up--a time of corporate prayer and celebration. It was long.
It began with each of the team members (there were about 30 of them) each giving a brief word of encouragement for us. Many of them simply gave a verse from scripture. The painter of "my" cross blessed us with fun! And then there were prayers for each region of Canada and beyond which were represented there and those provinces and territories which were not represented. As each province was called out, those from that province stood as everyone else stretched out their hands toward them and two volunteers prayed. It was a powerful time, especially as we reached New Brunswick (we'd started from the west and were now at the east coast). A huge contingent had come from New Brunswick with the express intention of beginning a program there for the first time this fall. It really was exciting to have them all there. For them, instead of us stretching our hands towards them, we were encouraged, those of us who felt so led, to get up and actually lay hands on them. I felt so led. The Vineyard church was represented amongst their numbers and for me that was especially exciting. The fervour increased from there as we prayed over the other Atlantic provinces, those from Vegas and finally the two from Lithuania who also would hopefully be starting a program in their country. I wish I could express all that happened. The choice was to participate or record. I chose to partipate and now, writing three weeks later, I've forgotten so much. There was an excitement and anticipation for what God will do and so many of the prayers were powerfully prophetic. The enthusiasm was palpable. Finally we all sat down and the director for Canada spoke. I want to share some of what he said.
Time and again, when God calls his children, he doesn't call them to be perfect. The patriarchs struggled incredibly in their journeys with God. When we've said "yes" to him, we've given him permission to mess us up and disrupt us for the rest of our lives. The patriarchs' lives were never the same after God entered them. God wasn't causing chaos but bringing his children close to him, delivering them from boredom and offering them the wildness of living with him. God is relentless in his pursuit of us.
God is calling me (and you). He says, "My grace (not "my total healing") is sufficient for you." I say yes to God-being-whatever-he-wants-with-me. Safety is in God, not in what he's doing. He's doing what's best for us. We may not know what God is doing but we can know that he is real. We are to listen to God as he interupts us. The speaker said that every time he made plans for his life, God would interupt them. God told him, "I want you to know that I am enough for you."
God is after our hearts. As we give him our hearts and our futures we'll find that he is wildly unpredictable but profoundly faithful. God wants us to know him in a deep spiritual way. The speaker told us that God allowed his homosexuality because it was the only way he would come to God. God will interupt us but he will be with us. He wants us to walk in freedom throughout our journey. "Follow the God who takes you to the strange places," we were admonished.
The Canadian director gave each of us a very special gift. Aside from his full-time job as director, he is also an artist. What he did was hand paint each of the 90 name tags needed for the conference. As he painted them, he prayed for each person. Sometimes as he prayed, God gave him a word of prophecy, encouragement or admonition for that person. We had known right from the beginning that during the last session, he would speak out those words God had give him. Apparently some people feel very uncomfortable with this, and those were encouraged to let him know ahead of time so he wouldn't put them in a difficult spot. For myself, I really hoped that I was on his list. So did the woman I was sitting with. No one knew if they would be included or not.
As he named someone (or often couples), that person would stand and team members would surround the person, lay hands on him and/or her and pray silently. Often what he had to say was very long. It seemed for sure that I would not be included because he named so many people and spoke to them. Then, to my surprise, he DID call my name! His word was very simple. First he asked me if I had children. Yes! I have four sons, I answered from the back. "God has your sons in his hands." That was it. At first I was rather disappointed. Well of course God has my sons in his hands! I knew that! But as the word went deeper, I realized just how much I needed to know that. I thought first of my eldest sons who don't follow God. "God has your sons in his hands." And then I remembered something that happened amongst the three youngest many years ago and how I've worried about how all that will turn out--the healing each of the boys need, their future in regards to this, etc. That's when this word from God really hit me. "God has your sons in his hands." I began to sob. I needed this reassurance more than I realized. Sometimes we don't realize how much we're in need of something until that need is met. What a promise! "God has your sons in his hands."
The final part of the evening was a celebration of God in worship. Once again the chairs were stacked and cleared away. The worship leader began to sing and play and people began to whoop and holler and dance. The previous celebration had been awesome but paled in comparison to this night. I myself wasn't as exuberant as two nights before (well, I did try to get someone to help me start a conga line but she wasn't interested), but it was so much fun to watch everyone. What a party we're going to have when we get to heaven! We'll have the energy to dance and celebrate non-stop through eternity! The joy will be incomparable. I have never seen celebration of God in worship like I saw at the Leadership Training Conference and yet even that will be as nothing compared to what we will do before the throne of God. I can hardly wait!
posted by Magdaleine at 8:17 PM
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