Lately, Satan has been trying to get in the way of our
ministry. A few of my teammates had demonic dreams. Another teammate of mine woke
up with an extremely high fever two nights in a row. She felt cold air blowing
on her (which definitely does not exist in this hot climate), and felt demons
standing over her at night. On Sunday morning we awoke to a large fence blocking
the small, dirt road that leads to the church. Because of this, people have no
way of getting to the building dedicated to worshipping God. The owner of the
road felt there was too much noise coming from the ministry center and
concluded that Pastor Al needed to buy the road in order for it to be the
walkway to the church.
While Satan has put up roadblocks-literal roadblocks-God’s Kingdom has not stopped advancing.
The fact that Satan is attacking us makes me realize we are
right on track. He is terrified of the work God is doing through us. He has
recognized us as a powerful force of Christ and is attempting to put us to a
stop.
The good news is that Satan has no power over us. His
schemes are worthless in the light of
God’s power.
After we prayed with my fever-stricken teammate, her
temperature began dropping back to normal. After my team spent an hour in the Lord’s presence-declaring that He reigns, casting out all demons, singing songs
of praise to God, and allowing the Holy Spirit to completely consume us-the
demonic dreams and high fevers left. They have yet to come back.
Satan chose to bring the fever on the night before our
“Women’s Day.” My team had been planning a day for all the women in the
village. This day was an opportunity for us to serve them by washing and
massaging their feet, painting their toenails, and simply sitting with them to
talk and laugh. While the women were shy about getting their nails done at
first, they eventually realized that our intention was to show them love
through service.
We asked the ladies to stick around after they received a
pedicure for a short message and worship. A lot of the women that showed up
were from White Beach, which is about a half hour walk from our village. Most
of them were on their way to play a volleyball game at the ministry center but
stopped by to get a pedicure. Jojo, the pastor’s daughter, told me they don’t
usually come to church because the majority of them are not Christians. I was
amazed that every woman stayed and waited to hear the message, even though they
were late for their game.
The night before our women’s day, I heard the Lord telling
me that I needed to get up in front of people and speak. After much prayer, I
realized He wanted me to give a message to the women after they received their
pedicures. So I obeyed. As I talked to them, it was as if God had given me His
eyes. I became so overwhelmed with how much they were loved and how beautiful
they were in His sight that all I could do was break down in tears. I saw them
as beloved daughters of the King. I explained to them that the Creator of the
universe loves them so much that He stooped down to wash His disciples feet. He
loves them so much that He willingly gave up His life.
As the Lord spoke through me, all of their eyes were on me.
While every sermon I have heard in the Philippines included noisy chatter in
the background as the pastor spoke, these women were silent.
The fact that God planted seeds in these women’s hearts
proves His power over Satan. The fact that the women from the volleyball team
came to church the next Sunday proves His power over Satan. The fact that my
team became deforesters for several days in order to build a new road to the
church proves God’s power over Satan. The fact that the fevers left for good
proves God’s power over Satan.
Sin has lost its power, death has lost its sting! Christ has
risen from the grave victoriously! He reigns, He reigns, HE REIGNS.
