Have You Seen A Giant Squid Lately?

Many thousands years ago, the islanders of Lepsog islands were champion squid hunters. They harpooned these humongous sea creatures that roamed their oceans and brought prosperity to their islands. Every young man who reached 18 years of age was required to join the older men in the great sea hunt.

There were many accounts of exceptional courageous and successful hunts recorded in the ancient book known as the 'Chronicle of Sea Warriors'. Recorded in one of its illustrious chapters was a story of a Master Squid Hunter known as Nomis who with his long-time navigator, Nhoj hauled in these super seafood that fed the islanders for years.

In another account, Luap, a famous village singer, singlehandedly speared his game with his very own handmade harpoon. There were of course stories of cowards and quitters. There was a report about Kram, a young apprentice, who jumped out of Luap's boat and swam to shore even before any squids appeared. However, the legend did record that Kram overcame his fear and became a Master Hunter himself. Another islander, Samed, who served as an assistant to Luap but he quit after being bitten on his little finger by a small cuttlefish. He left the island for good because he was attracted by the lights of the mainland. No one knew whether he and his canoe ever reached the land of his dream.

The Master Hunters left behind manuscripts on how to make the right types of harpoons, appropriate baits and also techniques in catching these sea monsters. They wrote good advice on how to avoid the tentacles and if attacked, what the sea hunters should do to free themselves. For thousands of years, the manuscripts were compiled and became a treasured manual. This was a book of success as far as the hunters were concerned. Many copies were reproduced by hands and even translated into different languages and dialects.

After the first generation of hunters passed away, new hunters rose to fill their places. With the manual and the direct instructions from veteran hunters guiding them, they were just as effective as the old-timers. Many of these younger hunters pursued larger species in far deeper oceans than their predecessors had even been. Years passed, as more and more people from other islands sailed to the Lepsog island to learn how to hunt the sea giants, the people of these other islands were enjoying a very good healthy diet of quality seafood.

Fast forward to today. The Islands of Lepsog are filled with hunting schools and colleges. The students of the original schools set up similar institutions on other islands outside of Lepsog too. Squid hunting professors are very impressive. They are fantastic lecturers. To help the students, they have beautiful PowerPoint presentations and even some black-and-white film footages on how those brave hunters of antiquity brought in thousands of these deadly animals.

The libraries of these institutions are filled with countless volumes that tell and retell these old stories. Many graduates of these institutions have gone on to become the grandmasters of the Hunting League. They in turn write many books about how those ancient mariners caught their amazing giants.

There is just a slight hitch - none of these grandmasters has ever caught a giant squid before. Don't get me wrong - they are believers of the previous existence of these gigantic creatures. However, they do not believe that there are any more giant squids in the oceans. How did they know that? They had gone to the oceans to hunt for them but without much result. They have the most modern boats and ships. They have the latest hunting equipments. They have lots of money to buy anything they need for deep-sea hunting. The only problem is that they have not encountered any living giants in the deep oceans.

To pacify their disappointments and justify their lack of success, they assume that the giant squids have become extinct. Most likely, these creatures existed in the past for the purpose of testing the courage of their ancestors. More books are produced year after year about the extinction of the deadly animals in spite of many sightings reported by other hunters outside their immediate circle. These reports are from unprofessional hunters and therefore cannot be accepted. The photographs shown are most probably doctored with Photoshop or similar types of software. Life goes on even without any sightings of these elusive monsters.

The social activities of the Hunting Clubs in all the Lepsog islands are alive. They organize weekly events to celebrate the past existence of the giant squids. They also celebrate the bravery of their ancestors who risked their lives to harpoon these amazing creatures. Some islanders convert their clubs into museums and draw large crowds of tourists.

Then some younger members of the esteemed Hunting Club, claim that they have sighted a few giant squids during some of their hunting trips. Once again, the grandmaster and his committee quickly dismiss these as unsubstantiated reports and thus should be considered as mere rumours. Even though, they are shown a decomposing carcass, they conclude that "it looks like a giant squid, smells like a giant squid and feels like a giant squid but it is not a giant squid".

Those young hunters are given warnings not to spread the rumours or face severe punishment such as being expelled from the club. Without any further interruption from these ignorant youths, the Clubs continue to flourish with exciting activities. They have scholars who write articles and books. Then they exchange notes and book reviews. All the clubs are filled with published materials and they prosper and develop franchises all over the world. The Hunting clubs are now more like reading clubs. People spend more time reading about the great exploits than actually experiencing the exploits themselves.

This is what happens to our churches today. Many churches have not experienced signs and wonders for such a long time that our preachers only preach about miracles of yester-years. One of the popular sermons is about how Peter and John healed the lame beggar at the gate known as 'Beautiful' (Acts 3). We love to repeat what Peter said to the lame man, "Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk."

What an irony! Today, we have much silver and gold but in the name of Jesus, no lame person can rise up and walk. How many scholars and professors in our theological seminaries have ever healed the sick in the name of Jesus? How many have ever cast out demons? Our seminaries become "reading clubs" rather than "hunting clubs". We spend hours talking about the devil and his demons but we have no power to cast them out. Theological understanding is only good when it can become practical in ministry.

Let's get the grandmasters back into the oceans and let's really catch some giant squids.

By Rev Albert Kang

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Albert_Kang

The God of Elijah again puts Baal to shame

New York City, New York

Sunday Evening, April 22, 2012

At the Healing Service last night in the Marriott Hotel in the middle of amazing Times Square, the Lord moved with power as He did at Mt. Carmel during the time of Elijah to demonstrate to the people that He is the true God---and not the god behind witchcraft. 

There was no evidence of the power of witchcraft at the meeting to disrupt or to do anything else; but the power of God to heal the infirm was evident. 

As the disciples trained on Friday and Saturday ministered to them, several infirm people were healed and testified. 

Among the testimonies was one from a woman whose vision was blurry because of glaucoma. She was able to see clearly after disciples ministered to her. 

Unclean spirits were cast out of a man suffering from a bipolar condition. There were other testimonies as well.

Thank you for interceding for us, dear ones!

Earlier today at Glory Tabernacle in Queens we dedicated The New York Elijah Challenge Training Center. Brother Joseph White and Pastor Mel Melato will be directing the Center. 

Disciples had come from New Jersey, Virginia, South Carolina, and Minnesota as well as from New York for the Friday and Saturday Training. 

The response from the participating disciples was extremely enthusiastic and encouraging. Several of them had been healed from various infirmities during the Training sessions. 

Among other miraculous healings, cysts on a woman's thyroid had disappeared. Another woman's weak heart beat---she could not even feel her pulse---became strong. 

A pastor's poor eyesight was restored. It appears that doors for us to conduct the Basic Training in South Carolina and Virginia may open up as a result.

Tomorrow we will fly back to Houston. Praise the Lord for His wonderful grace!

In a week Pastor William will leave for Ivory Coast, West Africa.

Rev Bill

www.TheElijahChallenge.org

Power Encounter In Hanoi

We just received a message from Hanoi, Vietnam where Pastor William Lau ministered back in March 2010, and would like to share it with you. 

Dear Uncle Bill.

How are you doing? I'm Thuy from Hanoi, Vietnam, your interpreter and trainee in Hanoi and Haiphong, Vietnam.

Since your training in Hanoi, we had a baby right after that and a lot of problems in our marriage and finance that draw us away from doing ministry a while. Our boy is now 17 months. I think he's also a miracle of Jesus after 3 year marriage without children. I'm being 6th month pregnant again but we are on fire again with the house church planting ministry. Your training for us is a very important tool for this ministry.

My husband and I are planting churches in a very dark area of Hanoi. Many the top leaders of Vietnam and Hanoi are in bondage by the evil work of Satan through a monk (a fortune teller, priest of Satan) and the temple here. Too many people come here to ask help from this evil monk. He's done a lot of miracles and earns a lot of money. We are praying that instead of coming here to seek the evil monk, people are going to seek us and other disciples of Jesus for help!

We are renting a house and live here. Some villagers were healed when we laid hands on them and since then more people invited us to their homes to pray for their family. We ask them to gather all the family members and friends in their house to share  Gospel stories and heal the sick. We continue to visit the same family at least once a week to continue telling Bible stories, make disciples and heal the sick and expect the families soon to become churches.

There more and more families are inviting us to their homes to pray for their needs. We expect to see a church planting movement in Hanoi soon. Please remember us in your prayer. We are praying to have you back in Hanoi for advanced training.

We rejoice with you to hear great good news in your ministry.

Blessings to you, Thuy

The situation with the fortune-telling monk which Sister Thuy describes sounds like what we read in Acts 8 with Philip and Simon the sorcerer.

Act 8:5-13  Philip went down to a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Messiah there.  (6)  When the crowds heard Philip and saw the signs he performed, they all paid close attention to what he said.  (7)  For with shrieks, impure spirits came out of many, and many who were paralyzed or lame were healed.  (8)  So there was great joy in that city.  (9)  Now for some time a man named Simon had practiced sorcery in the city and amazed all the people of Samaria. He boasted that he was someone great,  (10)  and all the people, both high and low, gave him their attention and exclaimed, "This man is rightly called the Great Power of God."  (11)  They followed him because he had amazed them for a long time with his sorcery.  (12)  But when they believed Philip as he proclaimed the good news of the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women.  (13)  Simon himself believed and was baptized. And he followed Philip everywhere, astonished by the great signs and miracles he saw.

Drug Addicts Healed

Drug Addicts Healed

Rev Princella F. Johnson, a pastor from Virginia wrote to Pastor William Lau, Director of The Elijah Challenge: "For several years I have repeatedly watched the training videos of the ministry Christ has given you to equip the Body of Christ. I have been blessed tremendously by the fruit of your teachings. I have personally experienced divine healing through practicing the principles outlined in the teachings and so have members of my immediate family.

Further, Christ has used me to heal the sick suffering from a heart murmur, blood clots and recently a 26-year cocaine and 30-year marijuana addiction. Because of the addiction healing, 7 more souls came to Christ and joined our church! Prior to the training, God had used me in the gifts of deliverance ministry by casting out demons and also healing. Yet, I came to a deeper understanding of the authority given to us by Christ through your teaching.

Proof of the Healing Power of Prayer

For the devout, there never has been any question that prayer has the power to heal. Now, more and more medical research from leading hospitals and universities across the United States has shown conclusively that a belief in God really is good for you, and can make you healthier, happier, and induce you to live longer to boot.

"Studies have shown prayer can prevent people from getting sick, and when they do get sick, prayer can help them get better faster," Duke University's Dr. Harold G. Koenig tells Newsmax.

An exhaustive analysis of more than 1,500 reputable medical studies "indicates people who are more religious and pray more have better mental and physical health," Koenig says. And out of 125 studies that looked at the link between health and regular worship, 85 showed regular churchgoers live longer.

Dr. Koenig, director of Duke's Center for Spirituality, Theology and Health, and the author of several authoritative books on faith and healing, says a striking study published in the Southern Medical Journal last year demonstrated that prayer has a remarkable effect on patients with hearing and visual deficiencies. After prayer sessions, "They showed significant improvements based on audio and visual tests," Koenig says.

What's more, he says, "The benefits of devout religious practice, particularly involvement in a faith community and religious commitment, are that people cope better. In general, they cope with stress better, they experience greater well-being because they have more hope, they're more optimistic, they experience less depression, less anxiety, and they commit suicide less often." He adds, "They have stronger immune systems, lower blood pressure, and probably better cardiovascular functioning."

"The proof of the power of prayer is overwhelming", says researcher and writer Tom Knox, a one-time atheist who became a regular worshipper after doing in-depth study of the medical benefits of faith. "What I discovered astonished me. Over the past 30 years a growing, and largely unnoticed, body of scientific work shows religious belief is medically, socially, and psychologically beneficial".

Study after study backs up the benefits of having faith, especially in prolonging life.

In 2006, population researchers at the University of Texas discovered that the more often you go to church, the longer you live. "Religious attendance is associated with adult mortality in a graded fashion", says Knox. "There is a seven-year difference in life expectancy between those who never attend church and those who attend weekly."

The American Journal of Public Health studied nearly 2,000 older Californians for five years and found that those who attended religious services were 36 percent less likely to die during that period than those who didn't.

A study of nearly 4,000 older adults for the U.S. Journal of Gerontology revealed that atheists had a significantly increased chance of dying over a six-year period than the faithful. Crucially, religious people lived longer than atheists even if they didn't go regularly to a place of worship.

Prayer intercession also has been shown to have a positive impact across a wide range of diseases and disorders.

The American Society of Hypertension established in 2006 that churchgoers have lower blood pressure than non-believers. Scientists have also revealed believers recover from breast cancer quicker than non-believers, have better outcomes from coronary disease and rheumatoid arthritis, and are less likely to have children with meningitis.

A massive 12-month study from a Kansas City hospital showed patients admitted with heart trouble did better when somebody was praying for them. Amazingly, the patients were not told people were praying for them. Volunteers from a local church were given the first name of a patient on a piece of paper and asked to pray for that person.

Those patients had fewer complications than those who weren't prayed for. Researchers said they did not have a scientific explanation for the outcome.

Research at San Francisco General Hospital looked at the effect of prayer on 393 cardiac patients. Half were prayed for by strangers who had only the patients' names. Those patients had fewer complications, fewer cases of pneumonia, and needed less drug treatment. They also got better quicker and left the hospital earlier.

Two studies at the University of California San Francisco Medical Center showed prayer could be a positive benefit for AIDS victims, too. Patients not prayed for spent six times as long in hospital as those who received prayers and got three times as many illnesses.

An arthritis treatment center in Florida used prayer sessions to try to help patients suffering pain. A study says they showed significant overall improvement for up to one year later.

In a study of nearly 92,000 people in Maryland, people who attended church once or more a week had 50 percent fewer deaths from coronary artery disease, 56 percent fewer deaths from emphysema, 74 percent fewer deaths from cirrhosis, and 53 percent fewer suicides.

Concluded Knox: "Atheists can sneer at faith all they like, but they can't assume science is on their side".

http://www.newsmaxhealth.com/headline_health/prayer_healing_power/2012/04/06/443812.html

Woman With Bitterness Delievered and Healed

Dr. Thiagan Sinnadurai

Our good friend and dentist, Dr. Thiagan, shared with us about a lady, in his church, who was delivered from demons. This lady was supposedly to be a believer and she had all types of pain in her body. Dr. Thiagan and some friends had to carry her up to the church which was on the first level of a shop-house.

During the commands for healing, the demons in her began to accuse the pastor of hurting her. Everybody saw that the pastor (Pastor J. D. was trained by Rev William Lau during the first batch of TEC in Bangsar in 2005) was not even touching her.  The pastor and his assistants (Dr. Thiagan was one of them) then switched to deliverance and the demons came out.

Before the pastor and his team proceeded to command healing, the pastor asked the lady to confess all her hatreds and bitterness that she had towards others. To everybody's surprise, a long string of names of people whom she hated, just gushed out like a stream of water. The list included a couple of pastors whom she really disliked. This lady had harbored deep hatred and unforgiveness for a long time. That apparently created the open door for the demons to attack her.  

After her confession, the healing commands were given and all her pain left her body immediately. She was so happy but her faith was very weak. She then asked whether the same team that carried her up the stairs would carry her down. Dr. Thiagan assured her that she had already been healed and she should just walk down by herself. She was unsure of herself but after some encouragements, this lady walked down without anyone helping her. She was completely healed! Praise God for the deliverance and healing miracles.

Deaf Woman Healed On The 4th Command

Kurt Simms & Rob Short trained with The Elijah Challenge

March 2012

"During our time in Crosby, Texas the Lord answered our prayers and was gracious to open many doors to preach and to minister healing to the sick.  Many were born again, healed, and delivered in the name of Jesus Christ.

Kurt Simms and I taught the Elijah Challenge on Friday and Saturday in Crosby, Texas.

On Sunday at the end of the service, I issued a Texas-sized Elijah Challenge for someone who was deaf to come forward and proclaimed that they would be healed in Jesus' Name!

As the stage musicians were playing, a woman came forward.

We commanded healing the first time. The mountain did not move!

We commanded healing the second time. The mountain still did not move!

We engaged the congregation the third time to command healing. The mountain still did not move!

We commanded healing the fourth time and stood our ground without any doubt. The mountain finally gave away and was cast into the sea! 

Immediately she started rejoicing that she could hear. Many came forward and many healings and miracles followed which confirmed the Word and proved the One True God. 

In summary, during our time in Texas:

Many disciples were trained in The Elijah Challenge according to Matthew 28:20.

Sixteen people were born again according to John 3:5.
Five people were baptized according to Acts 2:38.

Twenty people were healed according to Matthew 10:8
Four people were healed of deafness according to Matthew 10:8.

Seven people were delivered from demons according to Mark 16:17."


-Rob Short

Praise Reports of a Hospice Chaplain

Houston, Texas

Sunday, April 1, 2012

Dear Brethren in Christ,

We just received a report from Dave Diamond in Covington, Louisiana. Dave has been exposed to Elijah Challenge Training a total of three times, if we remember correctly---once in Houston, and twice in Louisiana.

The area in which Dave ministers healing is perhaps more challenging than any other. He is a Hospice Chaplain.

Do read his report to us below...

Dear William & Lucille,

The healings are happening almost daily as I go about my work as a Hospice Chaplain.

First understand that I very rarely seek healing for my Hospice patients simply for  the reason that, by the time they come to me, most are old and very tired and not seeking healing.  They are usually at a point in life where death is a blessed release, and I don't often seek to intervene in the ultimate disposition other than the following:

 

(1) To make sure they have placed their faith in Christ.

 

(2) To address symptoms of their condition which are painful or causing anxiety.  I very often, very often see "miraculous" changes in this regard.

If a Hospice patient tells me he or she wants to "get well," then I minister as you have taught and am seeing more and more dramatic changes.  I have seen a man healed of lung cancer so that, in the weeks before his death, he transitioned from a position where he could not walk from his chair to the bathroom even with oxygen without having to stop and rest to catch his breath to a condition where he put in a complete garden and cleaned and organized a 10' x 20' "toolshed" without oxygen or discomfort.  The week before he died last year he told me that he had not felt as healthy or as strong in 20 to 25 years.  When death came, he contracted pneumonia and died painlessly within 72 hours of the first symptoms.

More dramatic at this point is a man who came to me as a Hospice patient with pancreatic cancer.  The cancer had wiped out his pancreas so that the smell of food even from the next room would send him into waves of nausea.  My brother, a retired trauma surgeon, and our Hospice medical director confirmed for me that this condition was one of the final indicators of terminal cancer and was entirely irreversible.  When we met, Jesse had not eaten in ten weeks, and his weight had dropped from 260 lbs. to 158 lbs.  He accepted Christ on my second visit and asked me to "pray for" his healing.  I ministered healing as you taught me.  Now, six weeks later, he is eating three meals a day, is gaining weight and strength, has no symptoms of pancreatic cancer, and is leaving on April 7 for a three-day cruise out of New Orleans with his wife.  Even though he asked me to pray for his healing, he has had some trouble actually grasping the truth that he is healed.  His wife has also been healed of nagging knee pain associated with a knee replacement done several years ago. 

My brother, who is not a believer, was so stunned by the report from the pancreatic cancer patient that he called me to ask me to travel to Pennsylvania to minister to a relative there who had just been diagnosed with appendiceal cancer.  I spent two days with "Jackie" who accepted Christ and received the Holy Spirit in a really remarkable way.  Although I believe she is healed as well and there are indicators that show no cancer in her system, appendiceal cancer is extremely small celled, very hard to detect, and almost completely invisible.  Even when she was diagnosed the first time before our time together, she was told by surgeons examining tissue from her appendix, ovaries and fallopian tubes that there was no evidence that the cancer had metasticized (sp) only to find after lab examination that the very same tissue was riddled with cancer cells.  For this reason, she is continuing an aggressive and extremely difficult regimen of chemo-therapy and will undergo surgery unless God provides doctors with some convincing evidence that the cancer is indeed completely eradicated.  This is an important prayer request because the chemo regimen, without God's intervention, could come very close to killing her even if she is healed of the cancer itself.

In a workshop that I've taught over the past two weeks, we've seen a man with a broken shoulder and two broken ribs healed as women I instructed laid hands and ministered to him.  Another man was healed of scoliosis so that his spine actually moved and eighteen years of daily pain came to an end.  In a chance encounter with a young park ranger at Fountainebleau State Park last Thursday, I ministered to a shoulder in which he had very limited range of motion.  That is dramatically improved, and I am ministering again tomorrow over the phone.  In another incident on Thursday, an elderly woman was cured of arthritis in her shoulder and arm.  

Even though our office is dominated by medical staff -- a physician, several RNs and a host of LPNs and CNAs -- office staff who are struggling with physical issues are often coming to me for healing.  One social worker, still not a believer, was healed of chronic pain surrounding her artificial knees and is referring me to others.  A staff member was healed of chronic back pain.  An LPN was healed of a back injury suffered, I think, in moving a heavy patient.  Another was healed instantly of an "incurable" blood condition in which oxygen would not bind to her red blood cells.  The symptoms included severe shooting pain in her head several times a day, frequent episodes of shortness of breath, muscle spasms, panic attacks, etc.  After ministering to her only once, all the symptoms immediately  ceased; two weeks later, her physician confirmed that the entire condition had mysteriously vanished from her system.  The woman's husband has now embraced Christ, and the entire family was baptized two weeks ago.

In a Bible study I conduct on Thursday nights with a small group of eight or ten people, we've seen a tumor on a woman's thyroid disappear so that scheduled surgery was unnecessary -- even though an aneurism in her brain did not respond to our ministry and required surgery to correct.  (???)  More importantly, another woman to whom Debbie and I have ministered for nearly two years has been healed of severe demonic oppression that manifested in serious depression, constant voices, frightening sounds such as hundreds of dogs barking, drug abuse, night fears and frequent compelling thoughts of suicide.  She is a different woman now and growing daily in the Lord.  Other healings in this circle include back pain, painful bone spurs on a woman's feet, a tumor on a woman's hand, high fevers, etc.

Another woman was healed of chronic severe pain associated with a broken neck and disks crushed in a horse-back riding accident.  I baptized her within an hour of that healing.  She is still struggling with emotional and financial issues in her life, but the pain which had almost entirely incapacitated her no longer exists.    

There are incidents where no healing is immediately evident, but I am seeing greater frequency of dramatic healings.  

The book "John G. Lake: His Life, His Sermons, His Boldness of Faith" has been a great encouragement to me.  

The best thing from my perspective is that, as I become more and more attuned to the voice of the Spirit in ministering healing, I often have the boldness to tell people even before I lay hands on them something like this:  "Listen, with your permission, I'm going to pray for you.  Now understand this: a hundred people will offer to pray for you.  Maybe 20 or 25 will actually do it, and, out of that number maybe one or two will actually expect God to act immediately.  What's going to happen here is that, first, I'm going to pray for you.  Then, I'm going to stop praying and, with my hands on you, I'm going to speak to your illness (or injury). Immediately when I take my hands off of you, you're going to be healed."  When I sense the freedom to tell people this, I see dramatic results almost every time.  I am also finding that I am more effective in recognizing, as held by John G. Lake, that EVERY illness has a demonic source or affective influence.  In speaking healing to someone's shoulder or fever, for example, I will also address "any demonic power, any spiritual entity opposed to the Lordship of Christ," rebuking, binding and commanding those spirits to go to Christ for judgment.  

That's a lot, brother, but that's my report.

God bless you!  He is so very good!

Dave Diamond  

Our reply to Dave:

"We are extremely thankful that the training the Lord has entrusted to us is bearing such fruit. Not infrequently other nameless servants of God around the world who like you have been trained will share with us reports of very powerful miraculous healings which we personally have never witnessed. Some as taught by the Holy Spirit have gone beyond the foundational principles we presented to them. So we know that it has little to do with us, but simply the word of God being faithfully applied by trained disciples. It's the Lord fulfilling John 14:12, teaching His disciples to do the works that He did when He was on earth 2,000 years ago. We are now anticipating reports of the "greater works" through fellow disciples like you. And we are blessed simply to be the instruments by which it was originally taught and given away."