The Pain Stopped

I have been experiencing lower back pain for a couple of months. I went to the Doctor and he prescribed physical therapy and exercises. That night I did the exercises he showed me and the next morning I woke up with my left leg in severe pain. Some how I "pinched" and irritated my sciatic nerve. The pain was terrible all that day until I went to the Physical therapist. After his treatment, the pain was no longer consistent in that I could find positions to sit and lay that would bring some relief. BUT, I could barely walk or stand for more than a few seconds without a stabbing pain running down my leg that grew in intensity by the second, and I could not straighten up.

The condition persisted without change all day Friday and Saturday. Thank God for the sweet time in prayer and the peace of God that filled my heart and mind. Sunday morning I felt no change and was concerned how I would even get into the church or get on to the platform to preach. But, I grit my teeth and dealt with the serious pain finding a place to sit as soon as possible. The church prayed for me twice while I sat on the front pew, and I felt no change until I began to preach. I started preaching by sitting in a chair on the floor, but it didn't seem right to me to preach sitting down, so I kept trying to stand. I felt no relief, only being able to stand for 5 or 10 seconds at a time, until 10 minutes into my message I stood for the third or fourth time and the pain quickly began to stop. I ended up preaching the rest of my message on my feet, moving about for 30 minutes, finding no need to have to sit down. I continued to stand in the foyer as people were leaving. And, I walked to my car which Markus had parked in a lot down the street. That evening I carried on my ministry as always, including my occasional jumping with joy during the worship.

The short of it is that my healing is still in the process of being complete. I can walk nearly pain free most of the time. It is at worse only an annoyance rather than debilitating. It was wonderful for God to touch me like that in front of the congregation so that they could be a part of my healing and so that their faith might be increased. Together we will seek after God's Face that His mighty Hand will move to save, heal, and set people free from the things that bind and hinder them. We are Expecting the Miraculous and God is coming through as He promised.

God is good! He deserves all the glory, honor and praise.

Pastor Tim

The Latest

The day came yesterday when we put our daughter, Kassi, on a plane to Costa Rica. She has been given the opportunity of studying abroad for a semester. We are very proud of her and happy for her, but we don't like if for ourselves. We already miss her tremendously. Communication is going to be limited because of the cost. And, it might be a few days before she can get connected and send us an email. Pray for her safety.

Our Church is having a groundbreaking ceremony this Sunday at 2:30pm. Excavators are supposed to start working next week. Both exciting and scary times. Building a new church is a huge responsibility. But, we are trusting God for wonderful people who will help us get in.

We still haven't heard from MAPS Rvers yet. Pray that God puts it on their heart to help us. It will be HUGE if they do. Also, pray we can get a cheaper septic system installed than what is presently planned. Pray we can get connected to a water source. Wells aren't a good option out there. And, pray that we can get electrical service sooner than expected. As it is it could take 36 weeks (it seems ridiculous, but it is true).

Our Christmas production was a big hit this year. Although a winter storm hit the night of our first presentation (I don't like using the term performance for something that is supposed to be ministry). Our attendance could have been better, but both times we presented it went great. It was a unique creation of our own that the Lord laid on our heart and mind to do. We are looking forward to doing it again next year, with exciting changes and improvements.

We are starting off the new year well - good services, visitors, good offerings, optimism is high, and prayer meetings have been good. We are expecting an excellent year as we believe that God is not going to make us wait in 2008. This is going to be a year of answered prayers, accelerated growth, and increased fruit for our labors. We are believing God for more love, more power and more of Him in our lives and ministry. We are going to work hard this year to be far more evangelistic, taking the Gospel to people rather than trying to get them to come to us. We are seeking God to be used in the gifts of the Spirit in greater ways, with signs and wonders following. Again, we are praying for and expecting 2008 to be great!

God Bless!!!