My first memory of the Supernatural is from my 7^th grade science teacher. Mrs. Khoenle was a well-dressed, tall woman, with pretty blonde hair and a great smile. I don’t remember what she was teaching us that day, but she caught my attention when she shared her heroic teenage moment. Her little brother was messing around in their dining room and a huge china cabinet tipped over, pinning him underneath. She shared her initial moments of shock and fear, as well as the incomprehensible strength she suddenly possessed, strength that allowed her to lift the cabinet and save her brother. Years later as an adult, she still couldn’t explain it – she never had that strength again.

How could that be? It’s also baffling that I remember this heroic moment 30 some years later. Does it stand out because most girls love the concept of possessing Wonder Woman special powers? Does it stand out because I heard it from my science teacher, instead of my catechism teacher? All I can conclude is that it was so out of the ordinary that I wedged it into my brain until a day that I could ponder the possibility of a God being so Big, and so Loving, that He can work through anyone at any time to get the end result He wants.

Don’t believe me? There are little glimpses of God all around us, you just have to tune in to see them. You know the ones, those moments that cannot be “coincidences” or “chance” because they are just too good! I call them God Stops:

• God sends His creation, even in the form of a large white bird, to a Chicago suburb to bring comfort and hope to not-yet believers, days after a tragic death.
• Home renovations cause a break in a “grace” sign in a corporate woman’s kitchen. God nudges her and her family this perfect reminder: we are all cracked and broken, and need to offer ourselves grace.
• Praying for healing and redemption after a run, God shares not one, but two shooting stars in acknowledgement.
• Think about that word or concept you heard mentioned on the radio, then by a friend and again reinforced by your pastor … it’s clearly a new area you need to research. (Hey, I would love to hear about your God Stops, please share them in the comment section below!!)

Author Eric Metaxas explains in his book Miracles: “because God created each of us differently, he will communicate with us individually. Though he is the same God for every one of us, in his tenderness and desire to reach us he is able to speak to us in ways that are very specific to us. God will never demand that we speak his language, on the contrary, in love he condescends to speak ours. He uses vision and dreams and words and circumstances and experiences to communicate with us, and he wants us to expect that – not to demand it but neither to be closed to it.”

As I’ve become more comfortable understanding how God communicates with me, I’ve accepted a few offers of prophetic prayer. One of which occurred a couple of weeks ago, while out of town, when a complete stranger shared these words over me: “Lord I ask that you give her (Kristie) supernatural ability to target and hit the target, Lord. That it’s literally going to be like pulling back a bow, Lord I ask that the words you give her would be like bows in the Spirit Lord, that go and take aim and shoot straight to the heart of man. And Lord, we thank you that are going to do something Supernatural.” The stranger, Pam, had no idea that I am a writer, let alone that our Good Word for the month was Supernatural. She shared knowledge that no one besides my husband knew, and completely affirmed the next doors our Lord was opening.

“In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one”. Ephesians 6:16

In my Receive the Holy Spirit blog, I shared that I received the supernatural Baptism of the Holy Spirit at Sunday service in Khayelitsha, South Africa. It was February 2015 when the Holy Spirit zapped and started pulsing through me in that tented church, I didn’t know what was happening, only that I didn’t want it to stop. (Philippians 2:13 MSG). What I haven’t written about before is that by Friday, I was learning a new form of supernatural, as our enemy attacked friendships and insecurities, not wanting me to spread all the good news I was learning. Yet at that low moment, when I was empty and far, far from home, God supernaturally spoke to me through another lovely lady, this one has gorgeous silver hair named Petru: “Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness.  Stretch out your hand to heal and perform signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus.” After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly”. Acts 4:29-31. I have this verse marked fondly in my Bible and instantly return to the car ride we shared and the advice she provided, anytime I need reminding of the God’s ability to talk directly to me.

What a blessing about a week after returning from South Africa, I awoke to a vision from Heaven. Our Big Daddy in Heaven used my other Big Daddy in Heaven, my paternal Grandpa to speak to me. Gramps stood tall and smiling, near my bedroom arm chair. There was an aura around him, shaking his stubby finger at me and saying “Kristopher, You’ve Done Good.” It was an awesome vision. That vision will stay with me for my lifetime. He was a man of great faith and his message confirmed my obedience. He was telling me it wasn’t about me not being Catholic, that he was proud, that I had done well in sharing my faith, now it was up to God to work in others with what I wrote. Gramps’ message confirmed my boldly sharing of Jesus to our family and friends.

I know I am not unique in these amazing conversations with God. If you are interested reading more, author Eric Metaxas, shares over 30 stories of encounters with God, all by people he first-handedly knows, in his book Miracles – What They Are, Why They Happen and How They Can Change Your Life. One quick recount is entitled Beyond Death and is the incredible story of Andy DeVries’ motorcycle accident, incessant prayer and faith that led to the inability of the surgeon to amputate his leg. During his hospital stay, Andy has an encounter in Heaven that allows him to share that he has absolutely no fear of death. He says that he looks forward to it with great anticipation, knowing that God has something beautiful and wonderful planned for him. Andy says the experience dramatically changed his life.

“If you declare with your mouth “Jesus is Lord” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved” Romans 10:9-10

I can share these God Stops, prophetic prayers, baptisms, enemy attacks, and the vision from God because of my absolute belief in the supernatural resurrection of Jesus.  Without faith in the resurrection, there is no “bridge” connecting us to eternity, there is no connection to Jesus who walked on this earth to the same Jesus sitting at the right hand of the Father (Acts 2:14-47), without it, we lose the foundation to the Christian faith.

^“Now, let me ask you something profound yet troubling. If you became believers because you trusted the proclamation that Christ is alive, risen from the dead, how can you let people say that there is no such thing as a resurrection? If there’s no resurrection, there’s no living Christ. And face it—if there’s no resurrection for Christ, everything we’ve told you is smoke and mirrors, and everything you’ve staked your life on is smoke and mirrors. Not only that, but we would be guilty of telling a string of barefaced lies about God, all these affidavits we passed on to you verifying that God raised up Christ—sheer fabrications, if there’s no resurrection”. 1 Corinthians 15:12-15

Does it seem baffling to believe without a doubt that an event occurred over 2000 years ago? Does it stand out that Jesus died, was buried, raised on the third day and then went to visit Peter, the other disciples, more than 500 believers and then Paul? (1 Corinthians 15:3-7). Does it stand out that He did this all out of supernatural love for you?

All I can conclude is that even when times are tough, I can draw on these supernatural spiritual sources for strength, because God is so Big, and so Loving, that He can work through anyone at any time to get the end result He wants.

 
Pray with me – Lord, thank you for being a Daddy that wants to communicate with us. Thank you for speaking in our language and for the gifts of visions and prophetic messages. Keep nudging us to slow down and recognize your voice and prompt us with what next steps to take.

Please share your God Stops, Prophetic Prayers, Visions and times of speaking boldly here in the comment section. I cannot wait to read how God has communicated with you.