The River's Flow

"This unction comes to the preacher not in the study, but in the closet. It is heaven's distillation in answer to prayer. It is the sweetest exaltation of the Holy Spirit. It impregnates, suffuses, softens, percalates, cuts and soothes. It carries the Word like dynamite, like salt, like sugar; Makes the Word a soother, an arraigner, a revealer, a searcher; Makes the hearers a culprit or a saint, makes him weep like a child and live like a giant; Opens his heart and his purse as gently, yet as strongly as spring opens leaves. This Unction is not a gift of genius. It is not found in the halls of learning. No eloquence can woo it, no industry can win it. No prelactical hands can confer it. It is the gift of God—a signet set to His own messengers…It is given to those who have sought this anointed honor through many an hour of tearful, wrestling prayer."  --E.M. Bounds

Recently my family enjoyed a wonderful time of vacationing in Palm Coast, Florida. We were staying near St. Augustine, so we made a few visits during the week to our nation’s oldest city. I always enjoy walking around the “Ancient City” because of its rich historical significance.

Though I had been to St. Augustine a couple of times before, I had never taken the time to tour the Saint Photios Greek Orthodox Chapel. This is the Greek Orthodox National Shrine, located just a few steps from St. Augustine’s historic city gates at St. George Street.

The shrine, named in memory of a great missionary of the Orthodox Church, is dedicated to the first colony of Greek people who came to America in 1768, and is actually housed in one of the original buildings in which these immigrants gathered for religious services. Orthodox Christians from many lands and cultures came to America in search of freedom and opportunity. Like the first Apostles, they carried with them a precious heritage and gift. To the New World they brought the ancient faith of the Orthodox Church.

The building is well over 200 years old. The Shrine consists of exhibits depicting the life of early Greeks in America and the development of the Greek Orthodox Church in America, and the St. Photios Chapel. The chapel is just magnificent. It is filled with exquisite Byzantine style frescoes of many of the apostles and saints of the Christian church.

I have always had somewhat of a fascination with the Orthodox Church. It is a religious heritage filled with ancient faith and rich traditions. Believers hold a very unique, almost mystical vision of God and His Kingdom. There is a certain beauty to the Orthodox Church’s worship, purity of her Christian faith, and a strong continuity with the past. This church has a history reaching back to the time of the Apostles.

I dare say that most Christians in traditional American churches who walk into the chapel at St. Photios cannot really grasp the magnitude of this place. Anyone without at least some prior knowledge of Orthodox Christianity could not truly appreciate the significance of the experience.

As we walked into the chapel, I was taken by its beauty and the sense of reverence I felt. There was the faint sounds of the traditional Byzantine chant being played in the background. The icons (religious paintings) on the walls and ceiling expressed visually the theology of the Greek Orthodox Church. The inscriptions on the icons were in Greek. The verse over the entranceway says "Come, whoever is thirsty; accept the water of life as a gift, whoever wants it." (Revelations 22:17) Holding the scroll on which it is written are peacocks, used in Christian art as a symbol of The Resurrection.

Entering the chapel, there were ornate boxes of sand to the right and left, beside of which were containers of long, thin candles. When an Orthodox Christian enters his or her local church, an offering is made and a candle is lit, bringing to remembrance the words of Jesus Christ, "I am the Light of the World." There were a number of burning candles standing upright in the sand, which had been lit by visitors to the chapel that particular day when my family was touring the shrine and chapel.

I played the role of tour guide, as I tried to describe to my family what they were seeing. I shared with them that often Orthodox Christians were misunderstood and their faith even erroneously confused with Catholicism. I pointed out how the chapel itself was laid out in the shape of a cross, much like the tabernacle of Moses. As we exited the chapel, we toured the exhibit area. There were artifacts, relics from the past, portraits, writings, and more. One wall of the exhibit area contained the words of the Nicene Creed.

A while after completing our tour of the shrine, my wife and daughters were busy shopping. I noticed that our youngest daughter, Caitlyn, seemed distraught, almost in tears. My wife became concerned and inquired as to the cause of the distress.

It seems that a couple of years ago, while visiting St. Augustine during a trip with her oldest sister, Catey had toured the very shrine we had just left. She was seven at the time. Not aware of the significance of this place, she thought it would be neat to draw designs with her finger in the sand boxes containing the burning candles.

Now, after touring the chapel and getting a theologically laced history lesson from her dad, Catey understood that this was a sacred place and there was a strong spiritual overtone to the candles in the sand. She was distraught because she was feeling condemnation for somehow violating the holiness of the sandbox and the candles.

Regina and I tried to console our daughter and to use this as a teachable moment for her. We wanted her to know that God understands that she didn't know any better. However, we wanted her to know how to recognize conviction when it comes and how to properly respond to the Spirit's call to repentance. We prayed, right there in the store, for God to speak peace to our daughter and to forgive any transgression.

As I walked away from our impromptu prayer meeting, my heart was challenged by the Holy Spirit. I began to reflect on how wonderful it would be if Christian believers would sense the same respect toward the holy things of God that my daughter was experiencing that day.

I have often heard my father in law say that the problem with the modern day church is that we have lost sight of the holy. Nothing seems sacred to us anymore.

I am often challenged by the level of respect for the things of God expressed by the saints of old. How things have changed. We now have such low regard for that which was once revered, venerated, and esteemed.

Lord, may Your people return to reverence. May we regain our sight for that which is holy. May we, as my daughter did, experience conviction over our disregard for the sacred.

Let me preface what I am about to share by saying that I do not believe that every dream is a message from God. I realize that most are simply a part of the human process that is life, and many times dreams can be a result of the bean burrito with hot sauce we enjoyed just before bedtime. However, I do believe that there are times when God speaks to us through dreams. This is borne out through the scriptures.

I awoke last Saturday morning from one such dream. It was so real and its impact lasted throughout the next day or so. When I woke up, I immediately sensed the presence of God and heard a Word that He spoke into my spirit concerning what I had just experienced. Therefore, I believe this dream was prophetic.

As the dream began, I was about to go onto the platform at the church. The building was filled to capacity. There were the regular folks, as well as many visitors. I noticed wheelchairs, people on crutches, the blind, the lame, the deaf, the bound, and the needy.

Somehow, in the dream, I was aware that I had been through a time of intense prayer and fasting. I felt very close to God, and sensitive to His voice.

I was about to move onto the stage, when I heard God speak to me. He told me to call those who had needs to the altar. He instructed me to lay hands on those who came forward. I heard the voice of God plainly tell me, “Tell the people that when you lay hands upon them, they will instantly receive whatever their heart desires. I am in the midst of my people and I am going to perform the miraculous.”

As I made my way to the pulpit, there was a wonderful excitement in the air. People were worshipping and praising God. It seemed that the Spirit of the Lord was moving mightily already in the service. I moved to the microphone and announced what God had spoken. I told the congregation, “God is here to do a tremendous work. Come forward and when I lay hands on you, you are going to instantly receive whatever your heart desires.”

When the altar call given, however, only three people responded. I laid hands on the first two and, just as God had promised, they were instantly and miraculously healed by the power of God. I noticed that most others in the crowd were leaving. People were being pushed out in the same wheelchairs in which they had entered. The blind were being led out on the arm of another. Those in bondage were leaving, still bearing their burdens and chains. My heart was breaking.

I looked back down at the altar, and noticed one of our church council members Brother Ed Prewitt standing in front of me holding what appeared to be a couch cushion. Ed had tears in his eyes and a look of confusion on his face. I asked him what the cushion was for and he replied that one of the people had given him it to him on their way out of the church. They asked if Ed could have the pastor anoint the cushion for them in behalf of their need, somewhat like the way we anoint prayer cloths. They had told Ed that they had to meet family and could not stay for prayer.

Reluctantly, we anointed the cushion. Ed then reached around and picked up a pillow, which another member of the congregation had given him. They too had other business to attend and could not tarry for prayer, sending the pillow instead. One had a lunch appointment. One had business to mind. Another was heading for some recreation. Another just didn’t have time to wait and didn’t feel like waiting in line. Again, we anointed the proxy pillow.

By now, those who had joined me for prayer in the altar had recognized what was taking place and we all began to weep. One after another, Ed would present another cushion or pillow and we would pray. Each pillow represented someone else’s excuse for not being able to wait on God to meet their need. Everyone had other things to do that were far more pressing than receive from the hand of the Father. Our hearts were breaking, because we knew what God had promised, but the people were not interested.

Though I and the people around me prayed fervently for the needs of the people, we knew in our hearts that God could not perform the miracles so desperately needed because His order was not being followed. Yet, we continued to anoint more pillows and more cushions.

I awoke from my sleep. My face and pillow were wet with tears. The dream seemed so real to me. It impacted me greatly, even after I had awakened. I felt that God had something to say to me through this experience. So, as I lay in my bed, I began to pray. I asked, “Lord, what are you wanting to say to me? What do I need to understand about what you have just shown me? What does all this mean?”

It was as if God was just waiting for me to ask, because He immediately answered. The voice of God was unmistakable as He said to me, “Let my people know that I will not anoint their comfort! I will not bless them that are at ease in my kingdom. I will not take time for those who have no time for me.”

God revealed to me that the cushions and pillows represented comfort, idleness, and ease. The actions of the people spoke of the attitudes of many concerning the move of God. We know that God loves us and longs to bless, heal, and deliver us. We are poor, blind, lame, sick, cripple, bound, and broken. However, we seek our relief in everybody and everything but God. We are not diligent in our pursuit of God.

It has been nearly a week since the dream. I am still troubled by it. I want to examine my own life to be sure that Christ is my only priority. Then, as a pastor, I pray that my people will be available when God visits.