One of the biggest lessons that I ever had to learn in my life was through a very hard personal experience. I share this testimony to you to speak for and to show how amazing the healing power of God’s spirit works. Or in other words, please read as a person of Godly character.
Since I have been born I have always been in church somewhere. Out of all the places that I have ever attended, there was one that I spent most of my time in. It was the church I grew up in, my heritage, my starting place. It was the venue that I started life in my mothers womb as she played piano at and grew up through the age of accountability. For a space of time once I began to enter into my teen years I had a falling away from church and God all together. In the few times that I made it to church though people loved me and helped me (even when I looked like I didn’t deserve it). However during this time and season I was going back and forth driving by that same place I had grew up all my life in and remembered all of the words and love that I had heard and felt all of my life…but yet a thought began to provoke me: where was the love I needed outside of the building?
As it turns out the same place that I had been educated and led by God to salvation would not be the venue of my prodigal son moment; for as it turned out it was in a place of completely different denomination and people I had never known. In the first few weeks of my deliverance I began to have a great boldness and zeal for God (as we mostly do starting out). I had actually announced my calling to preach and had began working in a few churches. It finally hit me one day, “Why don’t I go by and visit that church?” In doing so I came to discover something that left me greatly confused: not only was the reception different than it used to be but it declined with every visit.
When I realized what God was teaching me, my heart broke. I now knew something I did not know before. As I began phasing out it became evident that the lack of love and support was never to do with where I came from but where I was now. And whether anyone will ever read this or not I am stating it anyway: working together as churches, ministries and people should never be separated by a name on the door or the doctrine it represents. To this day the door has never been opened for me to come and minister to where my heritage began. I’m not grieved, though. In fact to this day I thank God that he appoints my open doors and sends me to places where I can be of help. And to this day I hold nothing against anyone and love each and every person dearly that helped be a part of the earlier years of my life. In fact, I have had an abundant outpouring of those who were rallying for me to continue to grow knowing the circumstance!
In conclusion, here’s what I leave you with today: if you have to leave all that you have known behind to step into your calling and walk in the favor of God, do it! If people will not receive you then let go of the affliction that this would bring (shake the dust from your feet) and move on. Please do not ever let anything be as a hindrance to the true will of God for your life!
