LaToy Williams, rising track star

LaToy Williams of The Bahamas is breaking records and making track history -- and his mother says that she knew of his successes since Williams was eight years old.

According to an article in The Freeport News, Williams' mom heard the voice of God when he was eight:

'I never doubted for a minute that this would take place.

'It was during a trip LaToy had made at the Northwest Classic that the Lord spoke to me and told me that he is going to break many records and that he will be a record holder for many years.'

The day after when LaToy returned home from the track and field event in Miami, he told his mother that he had broken the long jump record at the Northwest Classic.

Williams had not been running track for very long. With his career off to a fast start, he's talking about competing in the Olympics and World Games.

Don Piper hears the voice of God

In "90 Minutes in Heaven: A True Story of Death and Life" by Don Piper and Cecil Murphey, Piper tells the story of his first return to church after his terrible auto accident:

. . .I realized I had been foolish in wanting to come, because I wasn't up to the physical demands on my body. My stubbornness had overestimated by endurance.

Perhaps just as bad, I became completely overwhelmed at the congregation's loving response. I didn't know if I could speak. What could I say after all those weeks of absence and all I'd been through?

While I was still trying to figure that out, someone thrust a microphone in my hand. As I clutched it, I kept thinking, You people really have no idea how little I contributed to my recovery. You see it as a triumph. I see it merely as survival.

Just then spontaneous applause broke out. I had expected them to be glad to see me; I had not been prepared for the avalanche of praise to God. Every person in that building stood, and the applause began -- and it kept on for a long time. I finally waved them to stop.

As I stared at them, I felt guilty about their applause and excitement. I couldn't believe those people were applauding me. If they only knew, I thought. If they only knew.

Then God spoke to me. This was one of the few times in my life when I heard a very clear voice inside my head.

They're not applauding for you.

Just those words, but it made a difference and I could speak. Finally, I had it straight. They were giving thanks to God for what he had done for me. God had brought me back from death to life once again. I relaxed. This was a moment to glorify God. This wasn't praise for me. (pp. 120-121)

God guides a mother after car wreck

The Star (Cleveland County, N.C.) has a fascinating story about how God guided a mother of four after she was in a car accident. The woman, Amanda "Mandy" McBrayer, asked God for help after her car went off the road and hit several trees.

'I just started praying, ‘Lord help me, help me. Tell me what to do,'' McBrayer said. 'It just came to me, ‘tourniquet.''

McBrayer, of Mooresboro, said God was with her after her arm was severed following a wreck April 2.

'The thought of death never crossed my mind,' she said.

McBrayer made a tourniquet using her seatbelt, and miraculously, doctors were able to reattach her arm. Her children, who were in the car with her, emerged from the wreck unscathed. The full story -- with all of the details of God's role -- is here.

The next stage of the warrior journey

I have written in the past about my participation in a group of men called Heart of a Warrior. Now I'm continuing on to the next stage of the warrior journey with most of those same men in a group called Focus of a Warrior.

While Heart of a Warrior calibrated our hearts with the heart of God, Focus of a Warrior provides a map towards our pre-ordained destiny. We will be examining our past to answer "Where have I been?" and clarifying our future to answer "Where am I going?"

This should be interesting and challenging. Here goes. . .

Our real father

On pp. 228-230 of "Outflow: Outward-Focused Living in a Self-Focused World", one of the authors, Steve Sjogren, shares the story about one of the greatest miracles in his life:

From the earliest days of my childhood, I remember being very connected to my dad. Then came the summer of 1968. The Vietnam conflict was at a fever pitch and two of my cousins were killed in action over there. If that wasn't sad enough, in early July my dad came down with a terrible case of pneumonia he couldn't shake. On his birthday, July 10th, the doctors discovered his pneumonia was really lung cancer that had spread throughout his entire body.

To make a long story tragically short, my dad died precisely five weeks to the day after he was diagnosed, and five weeks after he turned 39. My 12-year-old life shattered in more pieces than I could count. The time leading up to my dad's death was the most devastating thing I had ever gone through.

My dad had always been a clear-headed, hard-charging guy who led a good life morally and ethically. From the age of 25 to his death he'd been a family man working his way up the corporate ladder to become president of a 400-employee company. The only thing that wasn't clear-cut for him was his spiritual life.

At the time I knew next to nothing about God, but in the days leading up to my father's death, I prayed what I discovered later was a miraculously life-changing prayer. I cried and pleaded with God saying, 'Whoever you are, please save my dad.'

Unbeknownst to me an hour away, just west of Wichita, God was answering my prayer. My dad's cousin -- who'd just had a profound spiritual awakening and invited Jesus into his life about a month before -- sensed God telling him to go and share Jesus' love with my dad before he died.

To fully appreciate this story, it's important to realize that my dad had a steady flow of visitors in the hospital each day, and especially on the weekends. This particular Saturday, about four weeks after his diagnosis, he was going downhill fast. His cousin felt God's clear invitation urging him, 'Get up now! Go immediately to the hospital, and I'll give you an opportunity to share your story in a way that will get through.'

He thought, 'This can't be right. It's Saturday and these are prime visiting hours. His room will be filled with people. I'll never get to speak with him in private.' Still, my dad's cousin felt a continuing sense of urgency. The good news is that he answered God's invitation and in doing so became an answer to my prayer (even though I didn't fully understand how until many years later).

Now I'm unspeakably grateful he took that risk and made that long drive to the hospital. And coincidentally (or miraculously -- depending on how you look at it), he got over 90 minutes of uninterrupted time with my dad to tell his story and invite my dad to join him in walking with God. As sick as he was, my dad agreed without hesitation. He prayed a profound and openhearted prayer and asked Jesus to save him.

Sadly, the very next day, the cancer advanced to the point that it affected his brain and he was unable to think or communicate clearly. During the last week of his life, he was either in a stupor due to the cancer or due to the massive amounts of morphine he was being given. The timing of his conversation with my cousin had turned out to be just right.

I didn't get this story from my dad's cousin until years later, but for some reason I was very peaceful in the minutes and hours after getting the news my dad had died. I was relieved that his suffering was over, but more than that, I felt a kind of calming presence around me. I know this sounds a little odd, but as I opened the screen door leading into our house that night, I 'heard' an inner voice speaking to me.

A still and small voice (I would later learn to recognize) was speaking comfort directly to my 12-year-old spirit.

'From now on' the voice said, 'I'll be your Father.' Years later I discovered Psalm 68:5 and underlined the part that explains that God is a 'father to the fatherless.'

(Literally) carrying the cross, part three

I originally wrote about Reverend Obadiah Franklin, a man who carries a cross made of solid cedar posts, eight feet by 12 feet, in fall 2007.

I believe that he still is continuing his journey -- more information is available here.

(Literally) carrying the cross, part two

Another story of someone carrying a cross (although smaller than Arthur Blessitt's cross) is shared on p. 130-131 of "Outflow: Outward-Focused Living in a Self-Focused World":

Back in the mid-1970s (days of intense racial unrest in Alabama) some friends of mine decided they wanted to 'witness for Jesus' out in front of the bars and strip clubs of downtown Pensacola, Florida. Someone from the group suggested that a good way to share with the people along this strip would be to carry a cross as we walked back and forth downtown and prayed. When it was my turn to carry the cross, something happened that's been burned into my memory ever since.

I was walking along Palafox Street carrying that 6-foot cross and leading a few brave prayer warriors behind me. When I came to a crosswalk, a dignified black man stepped in front of me and pulled back his coat to reveal a pearl-handled .38 special. In a quiet but ominous voice he drawled, 'KKK boy?'

'No sir,' I stammered, utter terror filling my words, 'We're just Christians walking around with a cross and...uh...praying for the city -- we never thought...uh...I'm sorry if we've offended you in any way, sir!'

Casting me a look of intense disgust, he rolled his eyes, closed his coat to cover the gun, and quietly walked away.

This encounter wasn't just terrifying; it was a defining moment for my life and my ministry. That night I realized communicating the gospel isn't just a matter of how positive my intentions are. What others perceive and believe matters as much or more!

It's important to be able to see things from another person's perspective, especially when sharing the love of God with him or her.