What Do You Want Me To Do

Every now and then the Lord sends a truly anointed vessel to encourage the body of Christ. This anointing spills over and affects all in close proximity. One anointed vessel can change an entire nation let alone, an entire city. Things happen in the spirit before they are manifested in the natural. Let he who has an ear to hear [and eye to see] listen. This weekend was filled with such an unusual anointing for praise. Being obedient to the Lord is so necessary in order to advance to the next level. In advancing to the next level one should be mindful that the blessings are not for you alone. Just as every negative thing we do affects others, so does every righteous thing. Doing good unto others or, “paying it forward” as we say today has never left a dry man thirsty or a starving man hungry. It should be a desire to do good to all men.
When we listen to the voice of Christ, aren’t we prepared to follow his instructions? Churches would be filled with thirsty, hungry men and women if we listen to the voice of God and follow his directives. When someone says praise the Lord, does that mean now or later for you. Is the praiser asking you to greet him back with the same command, or is he asking you to actually praise the Lord? When we stand before God’s people and say “Praise the Lord Saints”, do we want them to praise Him right then and there or are we simply greeting the body. If the latter is the case simply say, “Greetings saints, peace be unto you.” (Something I heard as a child growing up in the Pentecostal church.) The saints would reply, “Peace be multiplied.” In my home church after the benediction has been given, we hug, kiss and leave the building. We normally continue our conversations outside of the sanctuary. There’s nothing special about this.
This particular Sunday the Lord was not finished with us. After an excellent worship and praise time, a rhema word from the speaker, prayer and anointing of the parishioners we were ready to follow the norm. But oh, somebody had had a break through, much like the one I had the previous day. Recognizing this and listening to the woman of God who was instructed to lay hands on the rejoicing saints, we got back into worship mode. “I hear the Lord say I see you,” she started. “I see you all. “Praise me and give thanks,” the Lord spoke through her. Well needless to say most stood around looking until praises started flowing. We praise you Lord, You are awesome, you are special, you are altogether lovely, we adore you, you are a friend, and we love you for your many blessings. Sounds like praise to me. The next time someone stands in the pulpit and asks us to praise the Lord – let’s not greet them, but let’s do as instructed. Praise the Lord? Praise the Lord.