When we gathered to pray at a Christian meeting, the atmosphere felt heavy, congested with a mix of hope and despair. That's when the unexpected happened—I was led to clear the room, a decision that might have seemed harsh but was critical for creating a space where healing could flourish. Our latest episode takes you through this profound journey, showcasing a transformative approach to prayer within the Christian Healing Ministry. We unravel how, at times, the best intentions of inclusivity in traditional church practices can inadvertently stifle the very healing they aim to foster. Reflecting on Jesus' own ministry, we see a biblical foundation for selecting intimate settings and unlikely individuals to carry out his work, a reminder that healing comes from God working through the most unexpected sources.
Venturing further, we tackle the balance between intuition and action when spirits are at play. We share how following a nudge from the Holy Spirit led to a breakthrough moment—a testament to the power of trusting divine guidance even at the risk of seeming foolish. Throughout the episode, we encourage you to lean into that still, small voice when faced with uncertainty, for it is often there that we find the courage to act for the greater good.
When we gathered to pray at a Christian meeting, the atmosphere felt heavy, congested with a mix of hope and despair. That's when the unexpected happened—I was led to clear the room, a decision that might have seemed harsh but was critical for creating a space where healing could flourish. Our latest episode takes you through this profound journey, showcasing a transformative approach to prayer within the Christian Healing Ministry. We unravel how, at times, the best intentions of inclusivity in traditional church practices can inadvertently stifle the very healing they aim to foster. Reflecting on Jesus' own ministry, we see a biblical foundation for selecting intimate settings and unlikely individuals to carry out his work, a reminder that healing comes from God working through the most unexpected sources.
Venturing further, we tackle the balance between intuition and action when spirits are at play. We share how following a nudge from the Holy Spirit led to a breakthrough moment—a testament to the power of trusting divine guidance even at the risk of seeming foolish. Throughout the episode, we encourage you to lean into that still, small voice when faced with uncertainty, for it is often there that we find the courage to act for the greater good.
Okay, we're back for another episode of Coffee Pods. Very warm welcome from myself and from Wes. Hello Wes.
Speaker 2:Hi, yes, back again. Nice to be here.
Speaker 1:It is good. Thank you so much everyone for engaging in different ways with Acorn, whether it's with our podcasts, acorn Christian Live. You've gone to a healing hub. It's been wonderful to connect with you. But for today we've got another episode around the Christian Healing Ministry, of course. Do you know what Wes? I don't know why I introduce it, as we're talking about the Christian Healing Ministry because what? Else would we be talking about?
Speaker 2:Absolutely.
Speaker 1:So let's just jump straight into it, if that's all right, yeah, go on. So you told a story in the Christian Healing Academy about emptying a room of people before praying for someone, and there are so many questions about this. And the reason I say that is because it seems like a bit of an unchurchy thing to do, doesn't it? Normally, we're all going to come together to pray, so can you just expand this story and what's going on?
Speaker 2:Oh gosh, let me tell you a story, thank you, you can give me more questions. I was overseas praying for a ministry in a church and a service was over and a pastor, and it is why I come and say, would you come and pray for this couple? So I say yeah, yeah, absolutely. And we leave the church, we walk into the back hall and there are some chairs found and if there was a couple there, it was difficult to see them because they were under a rugby scrum of their friends and family, just literally all my surrounding them. Almost the fact that they could breathe I was amazed that they could contain, but there was just such a lot of emotion and sorrow. The need was great, absolutely. But some of them were crying and you could hear the sort of this is sort of thing.
Speaker 2:But there was such a lot of it and so we walked in and he said would you pray? And I said no, and of course they looked at me and I said they said why not? I said there's just too much unhelpful stuff.
Speaker 2:So he said what do we do? So I just turned to the people and I remember honestly it's really embarrassing now, but I just remember pointing at people saying, right, you, you, you and you go out to the next room make coffee, just go and do that. And they looked at me and realized I was not messing about and so they left and then other people sort of started to look and stop crying and stuff. And then I said, right, you, you, you and you, you, you, you, you go over there and pray quietly over there and the rest of you just go, sort of that sort of thing. And of course they looked at me as if looking at the thing you are.
Speaker 2:But they did it and all is left is this couple who now looking at me, thinking you're not quite what we expected, and the pastor and his wife. And it was on the basis of that that they and God gave me some further helpful revelation and I and so he said well, you pray now. And I said no. So he said why not? I said, actually, what I'm going to do is I'm going to pray for you and your wife and then you're going to pray for this couple and God is going to meet them.
Speaker 2:And there was a reason behind that which was I didn't want people to say and I felt wasn't right, that people thought this only happens if you get special people in.
Speaker 1:Oh, okay, yeah.
Speaker 2:I wanted it to be that actually the past was wiped at it, because this is just normal Christianity. But the purpose of the story was I literally did throw people out before praying.
Speaker 1:And it was the first time I've done it.
Speaker 2:So I've selected on it since.
Speaker 1:Okay, and so it sounds as though the pastor and the pastor's wife responded quite positively to what you were saying. They were okay about that.
Speaker 2:Other people were initially quite surprised Because, as you say in church, we just put A. We supposed to include everybody.
Speaker 1:And.
Speaker 2:B. We're supposed to put this in the right way. We're supposed to put up with anything? Yeah, anybody wants to. You know Mrs Pendergas wants to put dandelions in the flowers because she likes them. You know we have to put up with it. Or you know, and I understand how we are inclusive and gracious absolutely and most of the time. That's fine, but in terms of spiritual ministry, sometimes there are things that are not helpful.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and this has happened in scripture, hasn't it? We've seen this happen before.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I mean, just take a look at a Jairus's daughter. We looked at that story in the service. You know, jesus throws a room full of the culturally acceptable weifers and waivers and he just throws them out.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:And other times Jesus will do the opposite. He won't throw the people out, he'll take the person out, yeah, and say, right, come with me, we're going outside the village, or, you know, we're going to do this in private and because and I'm absolutely certain that there are times when the context, that the environment, those practical, spiritual, just doesn't help us, but we never deal with it and therefore we see the next thing we should, yeah.
Speaker 1:I wonder as well whether I'm just thinking of like the Pharisees, for example, but only because that's kind of what we can read and see. There's probably lots of other people who probably expected that Jesus would use them or ask them to pray and pray. And then he, what's he done? He's brought along his disciples.
Speaker 2:Lisa, I never thought about that. That is the truth. They would have expected to be the ones who would have been invited to be the ministry team.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and then he got back to you.
Speaker 2:Oh, I like that.
Speaker 1:Because I knew that again.
Speaker 2:And of course, the thing is that Jesus shapes his ministry team on the people who are open to God and open to the Holy Spirit and 19. And if you know what I mean, don't know so much that it's become a problem to them.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:And he just, you know. So you look at the disciples. I mean they know zip, which includes me, really, you know, but part of that is that Jesus then draws them in because they're accessible to the spirit, and and it was part of that that made me think about how, at times as as as prime ministers, we do need to regulate the atmosphere, we need to take authority over that before we can deal with what needs to be dealt.
Speaker 1:Hmm, okay, so, having done this whenever it was that you did it, would you? Do it again, or have you done it again?
Speaker 2:I have regulated the atmosphere.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:I don't always throw people out, just in case you're ever thinking of inviting me to come to a church. And, of course, sometimes, as you said about like the Pharisees, it's the people that everybody would expect should be involved in. Sometimes they're the very people that who shouldn't be involved.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:And actually you look fairly. You look fairly negative when you said people, I'm really sorry, but I'm going to ask you if you want mine just leaving, especially sometimes when it's family members, that can be really difficult. Of the person that you're yeah yeah, because you know, Uncle George is just sitting there thinking, well, nothing's going to happen, and if something does happen I'm going to be really upset.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:You know, and so I do think you do need to regulate the thing and choose your moment. I've waited until some people have left the room before praying for somebody.
Speaker 1:Okay.
Speaker 2:And you sort of said that you sat there and you say, lord, I just need you to get rid of them for me. Yeah, jesus name. And so somebody needs to go to the Lou or put the kettle on the stuff, and you think yeah, okay, now's the moment Because, genuinely and I don't think it's that people wicked or mean or horrible, it's just the place that they're in.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:It's just unhelpful to the Holy Spirit's work in the person and of course sometimes and we've had this before that actually people come into the church and they come from a spiritual background, from our background, even from a coven where people come in in the days of any of the coven, because they just wanted to be in the meeting to try and stop something happening.
Speaker 1:Oh, interesting yeah.
Speaker 2:There are times when you have to deal with something in order to be in a place to release the spirit. I would be. I have done it. Yes, I don't always, you know, throw people out like sort of a bouncer, but I do I do, and I do encourage our teams. If you think something's wrong, it probably is, so deal with it first. Yeah, before you pray.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's wonderful and I like that. You did also give the example of you know Jesus actually taking the person away or out as well. Yeah, that might be an easier way of doing it, yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I've done that because I said to somebody hey, do you, do you just take a walk with me?
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:You know, let's just walk in the garden for a moment you can pray that yeah.
Speaker 1:Yeah, Okay. Just one final question for you. Have you ever not done this? You know, remove people, remove the person and then ended up regretting it?
Speaker 2:Yes, I have.
Speaker 1:I remember.
Speaker 2:I remember praying for somebody who had cancer and family were there. And you know, in the moment of praying, Lisa, I sort of knew that we weren't going to get anywhere and I had in the back of my mind, back in my heart, you should change this. But I'll be honest, I felt intimidated, I felt pressurized in that moment and sometimes we can really come under pressure from people and expectations, praying this way and whatever, and if you don't pray in the way that they're expecting, it's like you know. And I remember thinking I really should change the atmosphere in this room before praying, because I just knew something wasn't right. And, yeah, I regret it now and unfortunately the person died, but I genuinely regret that. In fact, I made a promise to myself right there and then I would never do that again. If I get a feeling that something needs to change, I would do it.
Speaker 1:I wouldn't change.
Speaker 2:I couldn't do it. I just you know, there's moments when you've done something and you walk away and then you hate yourself because you can do it and I thought I should have done that and my desperate thing was there was no way of going back and changing it.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah. So I say to our teams of listening if you think something's wrong in the room, it probably is and you need to ask the Holy Spirit, what do we do? Do I take the person out? Do I get rid of the people? You know what needs to happen here and you know sometimes you end up thinking I'm the right idiot, I'm just going to look stupid. It's best to look stupid and see somebody heal and try and look cool.
Speaker 1:Absolutely. What a line Brilliant. Thank you, wes. Again, really good stuff, and we'll come back together next month for a couple more questions, but again, like I always say, do check out everything we've got available on our website. If you'd like to know when new podcasts have been released, all you have to do is like and or subscribe to our program wherever you listen to your podcast, and then you'll know as soon as a new one has been released. So we'll catch you next month. Bye, bye.