MY ENCOUNTER WITH "OLD SCHOOL" CHRISTIAN IN TRADER JOES

Was out in Santa Cruz on thursday and was shopping in Trader Joes. A woman in her 70's gave me a little piece of paper with the Lord's prayer on it and then gave them to other people. People who know me know that the type of evangelism that she was doing bothers me. Not just because it's unbiblical, but because it impersonal and pushy. It's an old method that doesn't work as much as it used too and usually makes people uncomfortable. Jesus never handed people booklets or pieces of paper. He talked to them like they were human. I've seen it where tracts work, but overall, I've seen them do more damage than good because times have changed.

Instead of getting irritated I felt the Lord tell me to go and equip her. So I went up to her and asked her if she ever tried praying for people. She said, "No". I told her how effective it can be and that it really works. I told her all about healing the sick as well. She was open to everything I was saying. I told her testimonies. Her friend came up and was listening as well. I asked if I could pray for her, she said, "Sure".

I asked if we could pray outside because I didn't want her to get slain in the Spirit in the store. She didn't care. I prayed for her in front of the butter and she started getting hit by the Ghost with electric jolts. I had my hand behind her so she wouldn't go down. When people would walk by I'd act like I was just having a conversation with her. Then they'd pass and I would speak fire. She got lit up and equipped. She had been evangelizing for 40 years and nobody taught her how to pray for the sick and move in the gifts when evangelizing.. I've been realizing that it's not that people are refusing to do what scripture says. They're just doing what they've been taught.. So I guess the moral of the story is, let's equip!!

TIPS WHEN YOU'RE PRAYING FOR THE SICK

When you first start out praying for the sick, many can get discouraged because they will pray for people and nothing will happen. They always question themselves and say, "I just don't have the gift of healing" or "I guess God doesn't want to always heal." Discouragement sets in and eventually they are contemplating on quitting. Eventually they do. Here are a few tips to counter act the discouragement.

-- I tell people who are starting out doing this that the first 10 to 15 people you pray for aren't going to get healed so deal with it. Of course, there is always the exception to the rule, but set your mind in this fashion so you know it's okay that they don't get healed. When the first healing comes, you'll most likely be shocked because you won't be expecting it. Why does it take this long sometimes? Because demons are fighting your prayers and work hard so you don't see these miracles. They don't want your faith to increase let alone the person get healed.

-- Also, if you're starting out praying for healing, don't go after all the diseases first. Go after all the joint and bone injuries and headaches. When some christians start out, they go after cancer, auto-immune diseases, crippled, mental illness, etc.. In other words, they start off with the severe cases. Nothing is going to sack your faith quicker than to pray with these cases off the bat. Why? Because, most likely they won't get healed because they require more power and knowledge. Now, please understand me. I'm not saying to avoid them. I'm just saying, don't go out of your way to pray for these cases first. Eventually, you're going to want to pray for these, but you want to be able to see healing first so your faith will start increasing.

-- Never approach people on the streets like this. "Excuse me, can I pray for you?" Don't let that be the first thing you say to them. It's too weird for people. Just say, "Excuse me, what happen to your knee?" All you need to do is ask them 2 questions. What happened and how/ when did it happen? You ask two questions so you can establish a brief relationship. It makes the person feel more comfortable with you. Then ask if you can pray.

-- Keep the prayer short, like 15 seconds. Then ask them to see if it still hurts. If it does, then pray again.