Thank you for the teaching on the Baptism of Love Articles / Testimony Letters Date: Jan 26, 2003 - 12:26 AM Jerry – Thank you for teaching on the baptism of love and the baptism of fire. When you asked for testimonies I simply said your teachings were confirming many things the Lord had already lain on my heart. There is so very much that the Lord has done in my life, but it would have been too lengthy to share in that type of congregational setting. In January 2000 the Lord told me I knew how to love Him. I knew how to worship Him and how to reach His heart. But He also told me I didn’t know how to love people. That’s a really tough thing to chew on. The Lord began showing me things and situations. He was very right, you know. He always is! If I was every going to have the kind of love the Lord wanted, it was going to have to come from Him and Him alone. When the Lord was working through me I could extend that love to people, but it was still on a very limited basis. I would pour out love, and I still always seemed to get hurt. It was always a battle of love and pain. The whole process really came to head in April of 2002. No matter what I did, what I poured out, I continually got hurt again.......... Click read more for the rest of the story and again by Christians. It was to the point where I was going to walk away from the Church and Christianity. I saw absolutely no difference between Christians and the world. My husband said, “don’t you leave the church.” I really didn’t care what he was saying. But when Jesus said, “Don’t leave. Stay exactly where you are, “ I listened. I kept going to church. I was miserable and cried all the time. No one could touch me; no one knew the depth of hurt that I had gone through. My Jesus kept wooing me and telling me how much He loved me. He promised me restoration and healing. I just hung in there with my Lord, knowing that He is faithful in all He promises. I lost six months of my life in this whole process of depression and despair. Yet I learned so very much in this deep dark valley. I understand what hell is. It is no laughing matter. It is real! The attacks the enemy threw my way were continuous. He was out to take my life and other people in the process. I understand what my particular church, New Life, was created for. We have said repeatedly that we are a spiritual hospital. The wounded come in, but they are not instantly healed. It is a process that the Lord is working through them. They are going to hurt and wound other people as they are being healed. In addition, Satan is going to use fellow Christians to re-activate those sore spots and old wounds that each of us has. The Lord also taught me some specific things about me. He created me for a purpose, and He specifically made me just the way I am. I have to be true to what I am. I can’t imitate anyone else. It maybe totally weird to others, but I have to be true to the one who created me. The Lord also gave me two visual images: The first was a person in a river. The river waters were getting higher and higher, and the person was struggling and looked to be going under. My impulse was to rescue. The Lord said, “No, that it My job. You don’t see all that is going on under the surface. This person will be made stronger. Many rivers are going to converge into one body and the strength that the people have gained in their individual struggles will enable them to minister. Your job is not to rescue, but to pray from the river bank and speak words of love and encouragement.” The second image was a hands-on event. One afternoon I walked out of my office and found a robin motionless on the pavement. He had run into the window of my office building and was wounded and broken and sitting in a puddle of his own body fluids. It was cold and in the shadows, so I gently picked him up and lifted him to a sunny spot where the ground was soft. He was able to move his wings, so I knew they weren’t broken. I gently spoke to him and stroked his little head, but I couldn’t fix him. So I kept praying for him throughout my day. When the shadows lengthened, I moved him to a sunny spot. I checked on him before I left for the day. When I came to work the next morning, I expected to find a frozen bird. But he was gone. The Lord was taking care of him in some way I could not understand. But I got to be there as a comfort to that little bird moments after impact. If a small bird needs encouragement, how much more people need to reach out and touch and impact others with God ‘s love. Thanks again for your powerful teaching! God blessings to you Vicki This article comes from World's Largest Prayer Board Annointed.net News http://www.annointed.net/ The URL for this story is: http://www.annointed.net/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=357