The Encounter with the Prophet
I had an extraordinary experience at church yesterday. A friend invited me to come to a church that he found and I agreed to go. I thought it a bit odd that he invited me to go...he never invited me in the past and has not yet decided on a home church. He explained that the Pastor is a prophet and that the church service is a bit different from what I'm use to. When we arrived, you could hear the singing all the way up the street. It's a small church with an energetic congregation. To say that I was "lost" when I walked in was an understatement. I told my friend I couldn't understand the words to the song they were singing. Needless to say, it took me a solid 30 minutes to understand all of what was going on and follow the service.
See, we Baptist are pretty simple people. There's a script called a "program" that we follow and then we go home. Here, there was no "program" and it didn't appear that anyone was trying to go home. The preacher, a short, bald-headed man, was sweating profusely and there were a few people laying out in the aisle. I was trying my hardest to not look or act like a fish out of water. The mere fact that everyone was standing up and I wasn't seemed to make me stick out. Yet, I couldn't understand why everyone was standing....remember, we Baptist are a bit more scripted. I'm not saying that in a derogatory way. But if you arrive late at your Baptist church...say 20 minutes late, you will know exactly where they are in the service. Why? Because each service follows the same order. I digress.
Well, my friend told me before we arrived that he believed that the Lord had a word for me and that I should go. With this in mind and having never encountered having a "Prophet" speak directly into my life, I can admit that I was nervous. The service progressed without incident. He prophesied to some people in the row in front of me...and boy did my stomach end up in my throat. Why the nerves? It's like getting a phone call and knowing that it's God on the other end. How would you feel? Wouldn't there be some level of anticipation of what He might say??
It was offering time. The Pastor asked for those giving an offering to come up. I walked in front of my friend, walking around the woman in the aisle who was "laid out in the spirit." I split 5 singles with my friend and went to drop my $3 in the offering bucket when I hear, "Woman of God, Woman of God..."
I won't repeat what he said to me. But I know without doubt that he hears directly from the Lord. There were things he mentioned the he could not have known. He spoke into my future, telling me what God has planned for me. He told me specific things that I need to accomplish and timeframes. And I believe him. He gave me a word that I felt that I could run with. When we left shortly afterward, I felt that I had an extra push, an extra motivation to move forward. I have a bit more hope than I did before. I believe that was divinely ordered that I go to that church on the Sunday before leaving for India. I don't know exactly why. But meeting this prophet wasn't by chance. One of the last things he said to me was to remember him, and he spelled his name.... L.E. Cohen.
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