I must admit that the 1994 renewal in Toronto challenged us as believers. We all experienced laughter. When it hit me, I felt such peace. It also deepened my bond with our Father. However, some things we saw made us uncomfortable. We sensed not everything was from the Lord. While the laughter might match the Holy Spirit's work, I felt some of it came from the flesh. The worst response would be to judge or turn away from something very special that God was sharing with us.

 

The joy of the Lord is our strength, and I needed a lot of it. I was fortunate to be in a meeting in Anaheim. John Wimber guided us through the pros and cons of this move of God. He would ignore what he and others felt was not of God. He focused on blessing what he recognized as being from Him. If things got chaotic, he would ask his team to take that person to a nearby prayer room and pray for them. However, I only witnessed this happen once.

 

David displayed no inhibitions when he danced before the Lord. I was determined not to become like David's wife, Michal, who despised him as he danced before the Lord. I wanted as much as I could get from God.

 

 

The devil seeks to intimidate us, which leads to oppression. I longed to see His face and be filled with joy and gratitude. Instead of succumbing to intimidation, I wished to grow in intimacy with Him.

 

The Lord has made many good promises to us, and I know that if I stay close to Him, I fear nothing and no one. I often reflect on my life and how courage comes over me when I face strong adversaries. I’ve experienced this on a few occasions, both in natural and supernatural ways.

At art college, I worked part-time as a caretaker. I looked after a large apartment block owned by a famous boxing promoter. The building featured a sizeable entertainment area next to the swimming pool. One evening, a young lady celebrated her 21st birthday there, inviting all her friends for a BBQ. Among her guests was a man who used to be a boxer. Sadly, he had fallen into alcoholism.

Things took a turn when two big motorbikes arrived, carrying two imposing bullies. They were friends of a young lady at the party and soon began picking a fight with the ex-boxer. He was so drunk he could hardly stand. As the caretaker, I knew I had to intervene to de-escalate the situation. I approached the main aggressor. I was aware of his massive muscles and towering height. I politely asked him in a soft voice, “Would you please leave this property?”

He smirked and replied, “And just who do you think you are?”

“The caretaker,” I responded, my voice even quieter.

He flexed his muscles, looming over me, and said, “Don’t you know who I am? I’m a friend of the boxing promoter who owns this property.”

 

I gathered my courage and said, “And I work for this boxing promoter. I want you to leave right now!” To my surprise, fear vanished from my heart.

With a slightly softer tone, he retorted, “How do you think it will look if I walk away now? It will appear as though I lost the fight to this boxer.” I almost laughed; the strongman had revealed his hand.

 

I replied, “Listen! Don’t worry about that.” I walked over to the inebriated boxer and asked him to return to his flat for a while until these guys were gone. He promptly took my advice and stumbled home. Turning back to the strongman, I said, “There you go. He’s gone. Now leave!” Thankfully, he complied. A week later, that same man shot and killed a bartender at a local hotel and was imprisoned.

 

I believe that when you have an intimate relationship with God, He is with you all the time. I spoke for the property owner. I also spoke for the Lord, whose Holy Spirit is within me. God told Joshua to be bold and courageous.

 

We all must face someone we fear at least once in our lives and not allow anyone to intimidate us. Greater is He who is within us than he who is in the world.