I was in Columbus Ohio ministering at a church there and during the service there was a lot of ministry, that lasted until nearly midnight, and on the way out a rough looking dude with a cowboy hat and boots approached me in the foyer and said, preacher, I want you to pray for me but I just want you to know that I am not going to fall over like all of those other people did.
I then asked him what else he did not want God to do for him, and he said, what do you mean. I countered by stating well it seems like you have already decided what He can and can’t do, so I just thought I would ask about the rest. He then responded that it would be okay if God wanted to do it, and I said I think He does, so I literally snapped my fingers and said receive the Holy Spirit and the man fell in the spirit and laughed for nearly ten minutes.
When he got up he was very wobbly and under the influence of the Holy Spirit and he stated that what happened to him was the best high he had ever had, that it was amazing and that he wanted more, so I snapped my fingers again and said receive the Holy Spirit and he fell again and started laughing hysterically. At this point my host decided it was time to leave, so we left. For all I know he is still there laughing and enjoying the presence of God.
I went back to that church three months later and a lady approached me and asked if I remembered praying for her, and she went on to tell me that she had been experiencing chronic back pain for about 20 years.
She then told me that after I prayed for her, that I told her to go eat bananas, but initially she did not do that, but her kids were encouraging her so finally she went to the store and bought two bananas because I had used the word in the plural sense. She took the two bananas to her car, peeled them and ate them and immediately her back pain went away. She asked me what I thought about that? I replied that I was not sure other than the fact that I was obedient to tell her and she was obedient to do it and God Blessed her with healing.
There is more to the story, but for now I will leave it for you to now reckon with God on what crazy thing he may have asked you to do, but you haven’t stepped out and done it yet. Are you wondering what will happen or is it too crazy to go after and embrace? I challenge you today that if you know God has asked you to do something and it sounds crazy or outlandish go after it anyway and see what He might do.
It is not enough to hide God’s word in your heart, but you must also speak it in your places of influence, for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. It is time for your declarations to be heard, and then manifested. Job 22:28 states that you will declare a thing and it will be established for you and then light will shine on your ways.
In other words, your declarations based entirely on the Word of God chase the darkness away and present an avenue paved with light. You might ask, what is a place of influence. Influence comes from the word influenza which means in the flu, and most reading this will understand that, but influence actually means in the flow, so we are to speak into places of influence that will permit the river of God to flow.
Paul was an apostle to the Gentiles and Peter was an apostle to the Jews yet in Acts 13 and then again in Acts 18 Paul tried to minister effectively with the Jews, but they would not listen and Paul finally stated that he would only go to the Gentiles. The reason is because that is with whom the river would flow. Peter’s anointing allowed him to see the river flowing with the Jews, but not Paul. Paul had no influence with the Jews.
Where is your influence? Go there to that place and to those people and be like the apostles in the early church who stated that they could not help but talk about Jesus. And then speak to them out of the abundance of your heart. As you have been enriched in every good thing, so share it with joy and anticipation that God’s word will not return void, but it will indeed accomplish that to which He purposed it. Remember, don’t just hide the Word in your heart, but also release it! It might sound like a bunch of crazy banana stories, but then again, God may use it to heal, touch and change a life.
The banana story is in my first book, “Downloads from Heaven,” and there are other similar and fun stories in that book along with my other two books, “Willing to Yield” and “Kingdom Encounters.” Let me know if you have a prayer request or would like information about ordering a book. You can also find the books on Amazon and Kindle. Thanks for reading my blog today – I am very honored!
So how does a banana split sound about now?
Anointed2Go MdM 
For prayer: I would say there is no change to my greatest need. It is the lifelong struggle with being blessed with creative skills but needing the administrative. As long as situations needing attention present themselves to me, they get taken care of. But if not in my face, my creative wings flit and flutter me around and nothing gets accomplished ; i.e., a secretary is needed in my life full-time. But my wages barely cover us on an existence level, much less hire someone. Perhaps being organized would generate more more money, but I can’t hire someone with no salary. Ask me a question about color, and my gift goes into hyperdrive. Ask me how to file my paperwork, and I’m instantly up to my armpits in wet clay, I’m a fish out of water.
Praying for you Roy – I understand the creative stuff for sure – thanks for sharing though – always good to hear from you
how is your swimming going being that fish out of water – I prayed for you when you posted this and am following up to see how you are doing? are you still attending that Lutheran church in your area with Pastor Walt?
loved the cowboy getting knocked off his feet. I’m asking the Lord about where I need to obey. J
You are on the right track Jody as many never ask – keep believing and pressing in and thanks for sharing too
next seminar Jody is Sept 6 at Grace University at 9 a.m. – hope you can make it
So I am in the Philippines right now and the Lord told me to go across the street from where my parents live and visit the local school. He said I need to go straight to the principal and ask her what her school needs and that I would be willing to partner with her by sending her money and supplies periodically. Someday when I retire as a teacher, He said He wants me to work with this same school and the local children there by volunteering my services as a tutor and by doing so, lead many of them to Christ. I also sense He wants me to someday open up some kind of house of prayer/school of supernatural in the area and spend my retirement years ministering to my people because this is my area of influence…this is where my forefathers established themselves and claimed the land as theirs and this land is my godly inheritance. Philippines shall be saved! Thanks for the word about going to the places of influence that God has prepared for you! It’s a very apt word for me right now 🙂
Thats so good Pia – thanks for sharing – have an amazing trip