The Power of Blessing
The Power of Blessing.
The son had never received affirmative words of blessing from his father. The more he strived to gain his father’s acceptance, the more he felt that he could never measure up to his dad’s expectations. Until finally he gave up trying. He left home, and went into business. He said, “I’ll show my dad what I can do.” But he held bitterness and unforgiveness in his heart until the day his father died. Then he felt guilt and shame because he had never been reconciled to his father, and now it was too late. He started playing on the worship team at his church, but on the side he was getting involved with girls and drugs. He was slowly sliding into the abyss of hell, and it only got worse when he got kicked off the worship team.
But one day his sister dragged him to an Ancient Paths Seminar. I was supposed to be the facilitator in his small group, but I had arrived late because we had hitched a ride from one city to another (in Brazil). When I arrived I noticed he sat angrily in his chair with his arms folded and a glare in his countenance as to say, “Don’t you dare mess with me.” After the first evening’s sessions he came up to me and said, “Who put me in this group? I want to change to another group. I know that kid who is assisting you and I don’t want him to minister to me.” I told him that we really don’t like to change the groups around once they have started, but he didn’t have to finish the seminar if he felt like he didn’t want to – he could do it another time. Then I prayed a brief prayer for the Lord to show him during the night if He wanted him to return tomorrow. It was already past midnight and I was tired from my trip.
The next morning, I looked around anxiously to see if he had returned and was relieved to see that he had. But during the first morning session he still sat there with his arms, legs, and heart crossed, and an angry glare on his face. He listened to the other young men in his group share, but he would not say a word. I was concerned, and was praying earnestly for the Lord to break through his shell. That afternoon while the video teaching part of the seminar was going on in the auditorium, each of the 15 ministry teams went to their rooms to pray together. As I and my team walked down to our classroom, my assistant asked me if I could translate a song into Portuguese for him. I said, “We really need to pray, but if it’s quick I can do it if there is a CD player in the room.” He told me there was, and I began to translate the song. It was a MorningStar CD and the song was a spontaneous “testimony song” about how the singer had been living a life in drugs, thinking about suicide until one night he heard a song on the radio: “What can wash away my sins, nothing but the blood of Jesus.” As I translated this song, suddenly all three of us were overwhelmed with a burden of intercession not only for each participant in our group, but also for this city, and the whole nation of Brazil. We were forced down onto the floor by the presence of a Holy God, and could not rise as weeping and wailing intercession came out of our lips. Then just as suddenly as that had come, there came an inexplicable joy, and our sorrow turned into laughter. Literally one second we were on the floor crying, and the next we were laughing uncontrollably. Then we could finally arise and return to the room where the other teams were meeting. When we shared what had just happened to us, the whole room was also suddenly down on their knees crying out to the Lord. Then the video in the next room ended, and the seminar participants started moving to their groups. I knew that something had happened in the spiritual realm, but had little idea what would happen next.
This time, our young man was the first to open up and he began unfold his story as I have started in the first paragraph. He felt such guilt because he had never received blessing from his father, and because he had never been able to go to him and ask for forgiveness before he died. I told him that he may not be able to ask forgivness of his father, but he can ask it of God, his Father. And he could release forgiveness to God for the offenses of his own father. So I asked him to pray a prayer like that, and he did. Then I asked him to ask Jesus how he saw him. Jesus began to show him a beautiful vision of himself as a warrior who had been stolen from, but now the King was about to bestow on him a new beginning. Then I told him, “Your father never was able to bless you, but your Heavenly Father has never stopped blessing you. Can I pray a prayer of blessing over you? I am not your father, but I believe God would have something to say to you.” He agreed, and I prayed a prayer blessing this young man, straight from the Father’s heart, through my voice into his heart. I cannot remember what I said that day, but I remember that the glare on his face, and his whole attitude changed that Saturday afternoon. And several years after that I heard report that it had totally transformed his life. He was free of his addictions, his suicidal tendancy, and he was back on the worship team, and now had a good job. He no longer had to strive for his father’s blessing, because he was receiving blessing from his Heavenly Father every day. And please note: All I ever did, was basically to lead this man to Jesus, the wonderful counselor. He did the rest, and I got to see it!
Perhaps you have had a story similar to this man’s. I would encourage you to go to an Ancient Paths seminar and allow the Lord to minister to you. We could tell countless other stories similar to this one of how the Lord has changed hearts to bring about a changed life. Check for a seminar in your area at www.familyfoundations.com
