“Houston, we have a problem!”

OK, that’s not what I said.

“Sulojana, we have a problem!”

“What is it?”

“I can’t open the drawer at the base of the stove to get out the skillet that I need to make the omelette.”

“I’ll be right there.”

Onions sliced? Check.

Mushrooms ready? Check.

Spinach cut? Check.

Eggs beaten? Check.

Olive Oil handy? Check.

Skillet? Nyet.

So I did what any man would do under the circumstances. I applied the most brutish force I could muster and tried to pull the drawer open. No cigar. I even mimicked the feminine touch and jiggled it gently in between manly pulls. Still no change.

Enter Sulojana.

“Just move over.” (The tone said: Get out of my way RIGHT NOW!)

“OK.”

I stood back to observe what would surely be an ancient Indian technique for opening jammed drawers at the base of an electrical stove that had been handed down through the generations in her family. What kind of finesse would it take? Perhaps jiggling sideways was not the answer. She’ll probably move it up and down and get it open. Or she might simply lay hands on it and pray. Maybe her breakthrough anointing will kick in.  

Well, it did in a way…but not with the laying on of hands. As a matter of fact, she did not even bend down an inch or make any attempt to use her hands.

Instead, she drew near to the stove and gave the drawer a swift kick with her right foot. Bingo! The drawer opened. She handed me the skillet with a smug look on her face. I let out the weakest hallelujah I’ve ever whimpered.

What was so readily obvious to her became apparent to me at that moment. Somehow the pots had been positioned in such a way that they prevented the drawer from being opened. Once she gave the boot, there was a realignment in the drawer that pushed the offending vessel out of the way. With no obstacle to impede its movement, the drawer opened meekly with the simple tug of a lady’s fingers.

All I could do was shake my head in puzzled amazement.

In Daniel 4, we see how God had to apply a swift kick in the pots to a boastful king named Nebuchadnezzar. In verses 29 and 30 we read: As the king was walking on the roof of the royal palace of Babylon, he said, “Is not this the great Babylon I have built as the royal residence, by my mighty power and for the glory of my majesty?”

What happened right afterwards? He was driven away from people and ate grass like the ox. His body was drenched with the dew of heaven until his hair grew like the feathers of an eagle and his nails like the claws of a bird. (v. 33)

It was only as he raised his eyes toward heaven that his sanity was restored (v. 34). The swift kick caused a re-alignment in his thought process and turned him around.

Dear DWOD friend, this may sound harsh, but there are times when you could be so caught up in your misguided priorities that the only way God can open closed doors is by giving you a swift kick in the pots.

I must admit that I’ve experienced the right foot of God more than once in my life. Although it was not what I wanted at the moment, it was exactly what I needed.

Perhaps it has happened to you already. Would you share your experience(s) with the rest of your DWOD family?

It was in May 1976 that I first set foot on Canadian soil along with my mother, sister and brother. Dad had already been here for 10 months by then.

Even before we arrived, he had sent in applications to several universities in Ontario where I could begin my undergraduate studies. Without exception, every one of them sent back the same standard reply: “Students from India need to have completed a B.Sc with first class standing before they can be admitted into the B.Sc Degree program at our university. Admission denied.”

Needless to say this response was discouraging. I had already completed 13 years of schooling in India. Why would Ontario universities not consider that to be the equivalent of completing Grade 13 and grant me admission?

Dad came up with a strategy. Let’s show the universities that threw the book at us the syllabus of the courses I had taken. This way they can see that my Indian education was comparable to that of a typical Canadian Grade 13 graduate.  Perhaps that would sway the decision in my favour. I vividly recall paying a typist to put it all together and then air-mailing the papers to Canada. Still most of the universities had refused to budge.

When we arrived on May 19, Dad gave me the good news that the University of Waterloo had granted me admission, provided I passed the TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language). I did…and received the offer of admission.

That summer, we decided to visit the University of Waterloo campus to see where I would be spending the next few years of my life. We stopped in at the Faculty of Science office to thank them for granting me admission when others would not.

The receptionist led us to the office of the Associate Dean, Dr. Brisbin, who was in charge of admissions. It was then that we discovered the reason behind the University of Waterloo’s decision to bend the rules and let me in.

The letterhead on which Dad had composed the cover letter was that of the United Church of Canada congregation in Englehart where he was serving at the time. This caught Dr. Brisbin’s attention because her brother-in-law was working at the denominational headquarters in Toronto. She decided to take a look at the enclosures.

When she started perusing the syllabus, she suspected that it could be close to what was being taught in Grade 13. To confirm her suspicion, she simply walked down the hallway to the office of a Professor of Physics who had been educated in India. He took one look at the documents and my transcript and assured her that she could safely grant me admission.

I am reasonably sure that every university to which I applied had on its Faculty of Science at least one professor of Indian origin in those days. But it was only one Associate Dean that took the time to consult a colleague.

In my second year, I was privileged to be taught Chemistry by Dr. Brisbin She was a great professor who was able to communicate the basics of Chemistry in an exceptionally simple manner. She did such a good job that I finished with a 100% mark on that introductory course!

Sad to say I have forgotten a lot of what I learned in CHEM 101, mainly because Chemistry and Theology do not exactly mix well in the course of practising ministry, unless we are talking about spontaneous combustions at certain church meetings, ha, ha!

However, I have never forgotten the extra effort that Dr. Brisbin took to walk down the hallway. It is that which makes her extraordinary in my books.

Dear DWOD friend, do you realize that all it takes for you to move from ordinary to extraordinary is an “extra” step? Ask Holy Spirit to show you what extra step you need to take today to help someone else to get an opportunity or to make progress on the road to their destiny. You too will be viewed as extraordinary by others in due course.

P.S: The picture accompanying this post is the only one of Dr. Brisbin I could find on the web. It was taken at a university reception in 2011, 35 years after our first meeting.

But earnestly desire the best gifts. And yet I show you a more excellent way. Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. (I Corinthians 12:31-13:2)

Last Saturday, a group of us gathered at Forks Road East United Church in Wainfleet, Ontario to prepare for a “Treasure Hunt.” For those of you who may not be familiar with the terminology, let’s demystify it with this definition from Kevin Dedmon, widely acknowledged as a pioneer in this form of outreach:

“A group of people (three to five per team) asks God for words of knowledge about people’s names, clothing, appearance and prayer need(s). They also get words of knowledge about locations and other unusual things. They write these down on a paper called their Treasure Map and go to the locations on their Map to find “treasures”…people who correspond in some way to the clues that the team has written down. When they find someone, they show him or her their map and ask if they can pray for him/her.”

When we first started doing Treasure Hunts last summer, we had two Bethel School of Ministry graduates, Taylor Woodburn & Melissa Egerter leading us through some Activation exercises before we broke up into teams and headed out on the hunt. This year, the responsibility fell on my shoulders. I vaguely recalled what we had done last summer, but, to be on the safe side, messaged Taylor and Melissa on Facebook to provide guidance.

Here is the first part of Taylor’s instructions: Talk about how the main idea is love, then do a “Love Activation.” Have them get into groups of two, and one person focuses on receiving and person two focuses on giving love. Then break the love connection. Repeat by switching roles.

 

That is exactly how we began our Activation exercises. If it is true that “the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us” (Romans 5:5), then we simply needed to release that love from one heart to another.

It was exactly the right way to begin preparing for an Outreach. Since we had done Treasure Hunts before, we knew that once we got out there and started identifying our “treasures”, accurate prophetic words would flow, healings would be the order of the day and commitments to Jesus would follow.

However, if we were to embark on a Treasure Hunt focusing only on the supernatural gifts of the Holy Spirit flowing through us and getting people saved, we could be missing the boat! As Paul reminds us in the passage quoted above from I Corinthians, without love, the gifts don’t mean a blessed thing.

The starting point is love. The force that carries us through the outreach is love. The ministry that happens and the decisions that follow are all undergirded by love. That is why we started out with the Love Activation.

Dear DWOD friend, please bear in mind that as you advance toward your destiny, demonstrating the supernatural in your daily life with signs, wonders and miracles following…you too will come against attempts by the enemy to offer resistance and make you respond out of your flesh. You could be tempted to retaliate, take offense, spew venom, hurl insults, act out of spite…you get the idea.

The greatest proof of the supernatural active in you in moments such as these is how you resist the temptation to respond according to the flesh and choose instead to live by the Spirit.

That response will always be one of pure, unadulterated love, the kind of love that Jesus showed everywhere He went. And that is as supernatural as it gets!

“Let your eyes look straight ahead; fix your gaze directly before you. Give careful thought to the paths for your feet and be steadfast in all your ways. Do not turn to the right or to the left; keep your foot from evil.” (Proverbs 4:25-27)

Last week in our city of St. Catharines, police officers were setting up shop at various intersections with one goal in mind: Catch those who were committing the offense known as “distracted driving.” Needless to say it was a very “successful” campaign!

The most flagrant violation under this category is, of course, drivers using their cell phones to text, talk, check e-mail, etc. However, distracted driving is not limited to cell phone use. You could also be ticketed for eating a sandwich with one hand while driving with the other or applying lipstick while looking into the mirror on your visor…in short, anything that takes your attention away from focusing on the main task at hand, i.e. driving in a safe manner.

For the record, I have been using a Bluetooth headset for taking and making calls since the day that our province enacted legislation to this effect. However, I cannot say the same for text messages and e-mails.

The hefty fine of $280 and the possibility of a careless driving charge (6 demerit points and up to a $2000 fine and/or 6 months in jail), should be a deterrent in itself. What is even worse is the prospect of driving off the road and putting one’s life and the lives of others in the vehicle in jeopardy. Or even worse, driving into another vehicle and destroying more innocent lives in the process.  

Dear DWOD friend, distractions abound on the road to your destiny also. Over the years, I have seen many who were tracking well toward their destiny get completely derailed by distractions. Frankly, I have given in to distractions myself and prevented myself from progressing as I ought to.

There have been times when I have committed myself to a training program that will help me move forward. But before I master it, I get interested in something else that also looks good. Before I know it, I have mastered neither. It was nothing but a self-inflicted distraction that delayed my destiny.

Or sometimes it can be something as simple as starting to write a DWOD, only to see the notification of an e-mail’s arrival in my inbox or hear the ‘ding’ of a Facebook message. The e-mail has a link that I absolutely need to click on right away, of course! And the Fb message demands an immediate response, amen? Then I’m reminded that I need to change my stale-dated profile picture. Ah, might as well use one of those recent pics I took for the cover, while I’m at it.

In the meantime, another e-mail arrives. I must read the article that my good friend recommends. Oh, what’s this, 32 likes and 19 comments for my profile picture and double digits in both categories for the cover pic as well? Wow! Gotta check them out first and like every comment…courtesy demands it, right?

Before you know it, the original inspiration for the DWOD has taken wings and flown away into the nether regions of the brain. Launch search and rescue. Brilliant Idea, where art thou?  

No wonder Solomon, the wisest king of them all, counsels us: “Let your eyes look straight ahead; fix your gaze directly before you…Do not turn to the right or to the left…”  

In other words, he is telling us to avoid distractions. They carry a hefty penalty. Sometimes you pay with hard-earned cash. Sometimes the price tag is a precious life.

One thing is for sure. Distractions can delay your destiny and destroy you in the process.

How about you, dear friend? What are some distractions that you battle? Have you been derailed by any in the past? How do you avoid destructive distractions now?

Would you kindly share your experiences with the rest of us? Thanks in advance.

Today is Canada Day, the day we celebrate the establishment of the Dominion of Canada.

A not-so-publicized fact in mainstream media is the fact that the choice of the word “Dominion” was biblically inspired. In fact, even today you will see emblazoned on the Peace Tower in our capital city of Ottawa (among the Parliament Buildings) these words from Psalm 72:8: “He shall have dominion also from sea to sea and from the river to the ends of the earth.”

Let me also share with our American subscribers something that you may not know. Around the time of independence of your great country, many who were loyal to the British Empire were heading north to our great land. Known as the United Empire Loyalists, they played a significant role in the settling and establishment of Canada in 1867.

Needless to say not everyone was pleased with this exodus. Some wanted to take aggressive action and prevent those loyal to the English monarch from leaving America.

It was then that one of your prophets proclaimed these words: “Do not hinder these people. Let them move to Canada. Do not seek to incorporate the land of Canada into America. I am in the independence of America from Britain, and will mightily use this country. But Canada has been reserved by Me for the last days for a special work.”

We believe that we are beginning to see the fulfilment of this so-called Puritan Prophecy right now here in Canada.

Over the years, many anointed men and women of God have heard and declared words from the heart of the Father for Canada.

One of these mouthpieces of God was Dr. Yonggi Cho, founder of the mighty work of God known as the Yoido Full Gospel Church in Seoul, South Korea (which until recently was the largest church in the world). Here is how he describes what happened when he was travelling through Canada in 1984:

“Wherever I went, the Holy Spirit spoke in my heart that God was going to raise up tremendous churches in Canada and that Canada would be used as a missionary sending country, and that Canada would open the way for Jesus Christ to return to this earth.

I was afraid to confess that when I was praying…I was afraid because I already thought that America was far greater than Canada. If ever God would use any country, He should use America instead of Canada, because America is a country with greater resources and more population.

But again and again God spoke to my heart that He was going to use Canada, so finally, in Toronto, with great inner faith, I prophesied as the Holy Spirit anointed me:

 “I really believe that God is going to bless Canada and the Canadian Church is going to rise up once again and go to the four corners of the world and bring the Gospel of Jesus Christ to pave the way for His Second Coming.”

More recently, in April 2013, renowned prophet Peter Kumar prophesied that millions of Canadians are turning to Jesus over the next 2-3 years. In July of last year, the Lord released a revelation through me called The Barrie to Buffalo Portal, in which He showed how the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) was key to making disciples of the nations. As those who are already living in the GTA representing 212 different countries of the world come to Jesus, they will then go into all the world!

We believe we are in the midst of the fulfillment of these words as well right now.

So, today, dear DWOD friend, may I ask you to join all Canadian Christians in praying these words, as our Lord Himself instructed us in Matthew 9:38: “Lord of the harvest, thrust forth (Greek ekballo) labourers into your harvest.”

Please pray for Canada, eh?

“Where should we go to church this Sunday?”

It is not a question that Sulojana and I have asked each other too often in nearly 31 years of marriage. Most Sundays we are committed to ministering in the churches where God has called us to serve.

Yet, from time to time, when we’re on holidays or have a Sunday off, we do need to make a decision about where we will worship.

Eight years ago when I asked the question, Sulojana pulled out a business card from her purse. “There is this guy who works with me who has been inviting me to his church. He is always so excited about his church and his pastor. I promised him that we will go to his church when we have a Sunday off. So, why don’t we go there today?”

Sounded reasonable to me. Plus, it was right in St. Catharines, where we live. So, we set out, business card in hand, to this church that neither of us had ever heard of before. It was on Queenston Street, well-known in our city for housing the General Hospital.

We drove to the spot where the church was supposedly situated. But, we couldn’t find it. No “sign” of the church whatsoever. Literally.

We don’t give up easily. Let’s take another shot. Drove to the logical spot where the church should have been waiting for us with open doors. Alas, no church to be found.

Now I’m getting frustrated. “Sulojana, there are lots of churches that have a 10:30 service. It is already 10:27. Let’s keep driving till we find one.”

She would have no part of it. “We must be really close. Let’s just go around the block and look one more time.”

I am not feeling very pastoral or Christian by now. But the thought of being in the doghouse for not going to her choice of God’s house was a powerful motivator.

“Alright. Last try.”

Sure enough, we found the church. It was on the second floor of a building, directly above the Pizza place which is all we’d seen until this time.

Worship was lively. The pastor was flowing powerfully in the Holy Spirit. The hospitality that followed was heavenly.

That was the blessed morning we met the one and only Pastor Dayo Adeyemo of the Royal House, who has since become one of my closest friends in ministry and in life.

What started out as an attempt to appease a persistent co-worker and an insistent spouse turned out to be a divine appointment.

Two nights ago, the same question popped up again. Only this time we were at a hotel room in Midland, Ontario. No business cards this time. In Google we trust.

We checked out a few websites and narrowed the choices down to two. Once again I deferred to Sulojana’s choice. She picked River of Life.

We knew nothing about this church, except what we saw on the website. No familiar names or faces—online or offline, when we walked in there. Friendly greeters, exuberant worship, powerful message with a prophetic flow.

In the course of his message, Pastor Tim mentioned a name that caught my attention. Daniel Smith. I have a pastor friend by that name, who ministers at Logos Christian Family Church in Mississauga. I recalled that he had ministered in this region at one time.

Out came the cell phone. A quick exchange of texts with Dan. I found out that we are in the same church where he had ministered a few years back and that Pastor Tim is his best friend. Wow!

We met Pastors Tim & Kari at ministry time and introduced ourselves. Much to my surprise, he recognized my name instantly and reminded me of a prophetic word I had given him through Dan. We received powerful prayer ministry through them.

We could have never orchestrated this. Another divine appointment.

Dear DWOD friend, may I encourage you to follow the nudges of the Holy Spirit (even when they come through your spouse!) and go where He leads? I exhort you to expect and experience divine appointments as well.

Zacchaeus stood before the Lord and said, “I will give half my wealth to the poor, Lord, and if I have cheated people on their taxes, I will give them back four times as much!” (Luke 19:8)

In a recent Facebook post, our friend Rachelle Mainse, founder of Princess911 and Luella girl exhorts women to develop a love for modesty. As part of that post, she writes: “I remember years ago when God really started speaking to me about modesty and it went from my head to my heart to my closet.”

Hearing from God is good.

Taking it to heart is great.

But the ultimate proof that you heard from God and took it to heart is the change you choose to make next.

For Rachelle, it was making changes to her wardrobe. When the word of the Lord went from her head to her heart to her closet…that is when things began to happen.

She continues: “A couple of days later a woman who knew nothing said she felt God tell her to give me a big bag of classy and sharp clothes and then another lady came up to me after a conference (again knowing nothing) said I want you to come speak on modesty.”

Wow! The changes Rachelle made got the Lord’s attention. He promptly used two of His own to confirm that her obedience did not go unnoticed by Heaven!

When Jesus invited himself to Zacchaeus’ place, you knew that something was going to change in the chief tax collector’s life. And then we get proof that Jesus’ words went from his head to his heart to his bank account when he makes the astounding statement at the top of this post.

Obviously it got Jesus’ attention! Please note that it is only after Zacchaeus promises to give away half his wealth to the poor and make fourfold restitution to those whom he had gouged that Jesus makes this declaration: “Salvation has come to this home today, for this man has shown himself to be a true son of Abraham.”

Were you surprised that Jesus waited for proof before he made this declaration? You shouldn’t be, really, when you consider the meaning of the word “repentance.”

“Metanoia” the Greek word that is usually rendered as “repentance” in English translations, literally means “a change in thinking or mindset.” The Hebrew word “shub” which is translated metanoia in Greek actually means “to turn around.”

In other words, repentance is a change of mind which results in change of behaviour.

A great illustration of this occurs in Luke 3, where John the Baptist preaches a message of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. He makes it clear that he is not just talking about an invisible internal change when he says in v. 8: “Prove by the way you live that you have repented of your sins and turned to God.”

He then goes on to apply this with specific directives for certain people groups such as tax collectors and soldiers (vs. 12-14).

Dear DWOD friend, whether you realize it or not, you are surrounded by skeptics and seekers who are all looking for proof that what you say you believe has gone from your head to your heart to your closet, your wallet, your hormones and your _____________(please fill in the blanks).

Actually, the Lord Himself is watching to see what you will do. When you get His attention, you too will get confirmation, as Rachelle did. Please feel free to share your testimonies with the rest of your DWOD family.