Several years ago, I heard the story about the preacher’s boy who while sitting beside his mother in church leaned over to his mother and whispered, “Mom, is daddy preaching or is he telling the truth?” after he heard his father tell another one of his stories in the message.
If you’ve been reading this blog for the past few months, you’ve read over and over again my challenge to read and memorize God’s Word. I want to go on record and emphatically state that I’m not just preaching; I’m telling the truth and practicing the truth. I am constantly striving to commit God’s Word to memory.
Here’s an example that happened just last Sunday. While sitting out on our lanai (that’s a highfalutin way to say “back porch”) before going to church, I felt impressed to memorize Luke 5:17. Now, some time ago, I had memorized a portion of this verse and quoted it often in our Jesus the Healer Rallies.
“…and the power of the Lord was present to heal them.” Luke 5:17
But, while enjoying the sunrise that morning, I knew I was to memorize the complete verse.
“And it came to pass on a certain day, as he was teaching, that there were Pharisees and doctors of the law sitting by, which were come out of every town of Galilee, and Judaea, and Jerusalem:
and the power of the Lord was present to heal them.” Luke 5:17
For whatever reason, memorizing this verse was a major challenge. I found myself attempting over and over again to quote the verse only to have to go back and read the scripture again. But, believe it or not, my bumbling and fumbling had an enormous benefit. My flubs causing the repetition allowed the “as He was teaching” to bring about an eureka moment. It was right in front of my eyes and coming out of my mouth – the power was present because Jesus was teaching the Word.
We’re seeing this demonstrated in our Jesus the Healer Rallies. As I read and quote in these services what God has to say about divine healing, God’s power is present to validate the Word. (Mark 16:20) Walking canes are no longer needed, blood pressure returns to normal, and chronic pain disappears are some of the testimonies from recent rallies. When I preach and teach in our Holy Spirit Rallies what the Word has to say about God’s gift of the baptism in the Holy Spirit, God’s power is present to see people gloriously baptized.
The reason for this post is two-fold. First, I’m challenging you again to memorize the Word. Listen, if I can memorize the Word, anyone can!!!!! And, lastly, I am challenging you to confidently preach/teach/tell God’s Word and KNOW that God’s power will be present to demonstrate to be true what you’ve proclaimed.
