God often heals you in ministering to others. He spoke to me as I looked at Chris; a new believer in his 20’s who had been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia. He was in a halfway house because his parents could not deal with him. Part of the problem was his size; he was well over 6 feet tall and weighed about 240 pounds. He would have psychotic breaks and come to his senses in odd places, sometimes along the highway.
At the time I was 5”7” and about 150 pounds. Again, the visual is important.
God spoke to me, “I want you to take Chris fishing.” I figured this young man needed a friend and thought God wanted me to minister to him as a brother in Christ. I asked Chris if he would like to go fishing and he agreed.
This was to be a night fishing trip I would never forget. Between work and ministry I was pushing the time envelope. I picked up Chris at and we drove out to the lake. We got there just before the boat rental closed at 9 p.m. It was already dark but we rented a row boat and a battery lantern. We set out on the lake.
I was exhausted and kept asking God what to say. I did not get any answer.
Suddenly, the lantern went out. We were in the middle of the lake alone in the dark.
“David, I think God is speaking to me.” Chris said. He was a very large individual who had psychotic breaks and this was not comforting for me to hear.
Hearing it in the dark in middle of the lake made it even less so comforting. But being “the mature Christian minister” I was willing to listen. I said, “Sure go ahead.” I was already figuring out how to teach and correct him. I will never forget his words.
“God wants you to know He sees everything you are going through. He wants you to know you are following His perfect will. He wants you to know you are moving in obedience and He is pleased with you,” Chris said, a young man who did not normally have this degree of awareness.
I had to catch my breath. It was more than anyone who I was looking to for counsel had said.
He asked me, “Do you think this was God?” As I choked backed the tears I told him it was.
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