Kentucky Baptisms

Another baptism in the books, and God was once again faithful!

Coming into the weekend there were two things the Lord laid on my heart:

1. Stay focused

2. Extra healing was going to happen.

It was an extra special revival as soon as we started. I was assigned to work with Kiah, our oldest daughter. Getting to serve the Lord together baptizing folks was so fun and she did such a good job, and was even able to give a few powerful words to folks to help them on their journey.

The “extra healing” part of my word came quickly as we were told that we’d be assigned to the folks who had a hard time getting into the water, so every last person coming in was believing for the Lord to heal their bodies. Some we were able to see immediately and some we are believing with them for some amazing reports when they get their next Dr. results back!

One such lady came into the water with the help of two helpers who all but carried her into the water. I felt the power of God and we didn’t mince words, but just started to pray for her as she arrived. She didn’t only need physical healing, and soon the chains of the enemy were falling off of her. The blood of Jesus spoke a better word over her life and completely cleansed her. As she came to after the Lord blasted her, all she could say was “I’m so clean! I’m free!!!” Thank you, Jesus!

A little later in the day, a young lady came into the water crippled with anxiety, fear, and a bunch of other issues. As we started to pray, she shook so uncontrollably as she struggled to surrender to the Lord. After commanding the demons to leave and breaking down the strongholds, we baptized her and as she came out of the water the presence of the Lord filled her so tangibly that we all cried and laughed at the same time. She was absolutely amazed at what God had done for her. There is no doubt her life will be radically changed.

The lady we prayed for in Ohio a few weeks ago, who was not able to eat regular food, only these special shakes, showed up. You could tell she already looked so much healthier, and she has been able to eat regular food ever since we prayed in Ohio!

Day 2 started pretty slowly; the crowd was smaller than normal to start but people continued to trickle in. Amber did an amazing job all weekend watching our little man Derek along with some other children, Zoe was assisting with the line, and Phoebe got to tag along with one of the baptizing pods to help baptize a few people. Again, such a joy!

Just after midday I decided that it looked like things were basically wrapping up, so I went ahead and started packing things up. I even changed out of my waders and put some clothes on to travel home. Just then the water supervisor came by and was looking for people to get back in to replace some folks who had been in the water for a long time. At first I told him that if he couldn’t find others, to come get me, but then I remembered word number 1, “Stay focused.”

So the waders were put back on and, as I got back in the water, what I can only describe as the most amazing run of powerful deliverances I’ve ever been able to be a part of took place. It started with an elderly lady who wanted to get baptized last year, but felt she missed her opportunity, but this time she was able to bring her whole family to support her. Well, not only did they support her, they all got delivered! As the team started praying for the younger grandchildren, their mother’s demons started manifesting. As she was set free and completely blasted by the glory of the Lord, the family was all dumbfounded and surprised. The elderly lady was next and after she came out of the water a slew of demons left her and she felt a giant burden lifted off her.

Just then I locked eyes with the husband of the first gal and I could see he was desperate for the same freedom his family was experiencing. I looked at him and said “You ready for this, bro!?” He shook his head yes and came up, gave me a big hug, and started sobbing uncontrollably. The love of the Father invaded this man and there was no longer any room for the demons; the man began to retch and puke. I was ready for my waders to be filled with the vomit and snot of this man, but somehow the Lord managed to take care of me lol. We quickly shut up the demons and commanded them to leave the man without harming him, then baptized him. As he came up the Lord began healing every hurt and wound to his soul until all that was left was joy. The remaining family members also got so much healing and deliverance I can only believe it will completely change their entire family for generations to come. Praise God!

People kept coming, and it was one powerful deliverance after another. It wasn’t until after 8 p.m. that our little pod finally got out of the water after one lady was set free from the brink of suicide due to all the deep bondage she was surrounded by.

Leading up to this weekend, the Lord had been teaching me about His glory. It is the executive force He uses. Where His glory is, nothing else can remain. It is the most powerful force there is. Sometimes we think of His glory as something beautiful and wondrous, but its defining characteristic is its weightiness. I experienced that this weekend more than ever. Lord, continue to show us Your glory!

As we go on these trips, my first job is to find people that bear fruit for His kingdom. One such man named Shannon is someone I met a year ago, whom I got to bump into this weekend again. He has one of the very best testimonies I’ve ever heard. He was deep in drugs and every sort of evil. He was in such a dark place that when the hospital called to tell him they found a liver to replace his terminally destroyed one, he declined it because he knew he would just blow through the new one as well with all the drugs he was on. As he lay in bed one night, demons began to appear before him and started suffocating him. He heard the Lord ask him if he wanted help. At first he told the Lord no, as he believed he deserved what was coming. But as things began to go dark, the Lord asked him one more time, and he accepted. When the demons left, he got on his motorcycle and drove with his bad liver until he wrecked right in front of a church building. He was invited inside, where he gave his life to Jesus. The next week he went out to tell people about Jesus when he came upon a tent revival where a young boy was on stage and pointed to Shannon in the crowd. He called him up and told him God was about to give him a new liver. When he prayed, the whole crowd was laid out and Shannon was standing there with his new liver. He has been bringing thousands of recovering addicts to Jesus ever since!

Back in Indiana already excited for the next adventure! Thanks for your prayers!