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On my way out to Encounter this past Sunday night I was praying that God would reveal the Holy Spirit to me in a big way. I prayed for a specific issue that I will get to later. Right before Encounter started I was sitting in my seat, still praying that God would reveal the Holy Spirit to me. Did God EVER come through!
At one point during the night Karen came up and said if anyone needs to lay something down before God to come up to the front and basically just lay down and lay down what you need to before God. I felt the need to go up because I've been dealing with something for a while now, roughly 3 years and I needed to lay it down before the Lord.
Shortly after that a guy came up and said if you're feeling hopeless about a situation to come up for ministry. This is also something I was feeling, especially here lately.
A guy came up to me about a minute after that and asked if he could pray for me. He said God was laying it on his heart to pray for me, so I gave him the okay to pray. He began to pray and everything he was saying hit home. He said not to be ashamed, he said that Jesus was crucified on the cross for our sins and there is no condemnation in Jesus. He then went on to say I know how tough it is to be a man in this world today with all the desires of the flesh.... Wow. This all hit home to me and I just began to cry.
After he prayed I got up to walk back to my seat and a lady stopped me and it turned out to be a middle school students mother I lead in a middle school small group. So, after she said hi to me I stayed there for the last ten minutes of Encounter and during the song "Freedom Reigns" she leans over to me and says... "This may sound weird but I feel God telling me that he wants to set you free. God is stronger and more powerful than what he wants to set you free from." WOW! Amazing.
The issue I've been struggling with the last 3 years is an addiction to pornography. I feel I'm coming to the end of it as I've been free for nearly 1 and a half months or so but recently fell back in a bit. I just felt hopeless that the temptations are not going to stop flying at me and that I would fall back in just as worse as I had for the 3 years prior to the last month and a half.
I truly feel that God is going to set me free, and possibly already has. Praise the Lord! Freedom Reigns in this place. God's great.
At one point during the night Karen came up and said if anyone needs to lay something down before God to come up to the front and basically just lay down and lay down what you need to before God. I felt the need to go up because I've been dealing with something for a while now, roughly 3 years and I needed to lay it down before the Lord.
Shortly after that a guy came up and said if you're feeling hopeless about a situation to come up for ministry. This is also something I was feeling, especially here lately.
A guy came up to me about a minute after that and asked if he could pray for me. He said God was laying it on his heart to pray for me, so I gave him the okay to pray. He began to pray and everything he was saying hit home. He said not to be ashamed, he said that Jesus was crucified on the cross for our sins and there is no condemnation in Jesus. He then went on to say I know how tough it is to be a man in this world today with all the desires of the flesh.... Wow. This all hit home to me and I just began to cry.
After he prayed I got up to walk back to my seat and a lady stopped me and it turned out to be a middle school students mother I lead in a middle school small group. So, after she said hi to me I stayed there for the last ten minutes of Encounter and during the song "Freedom Reigns" she leans over to me and says... "This may sound weird but I feel God telling me that he wants to set you free. God is stronger and more powerful than what he wants to set you free from." WOW! Amazing.
The issue I've been struggling with the last 3 years is an addiction to pornography. I feel I'm coming to the end of it as I've been free for nearly 1 and a half months or so but recently fell back in a bit. I just felt hopeless that the temptations are not going to stop flying at me and that I would fall back in just as worse as I had for the 3 years prior to the last month and a half.
I truly feel that God is going to set me free, and possibly already has. Praise the Lord! Freedom Reigns in this place. God's great.