Say it, say it, say it UNTIL you see it, see it see it!

I met the Evangelist at a Saturday, Noonday Prayer Service as she exhorted, "Say it. Say it. Say it! Until you see it! See it! See it!" Hmm. To an unabashed skeptic (Moi), the declaration startled me into an active listening frame.  The dictum caught my attention.  Pithy. Pregnant.  Memorable.   Sounds like it promises everything and nothing, I mused.  Empty of guarantees, but demanding who-knows-what kind of commitment? Nice-sounding, but helium-light.  Like a frilly dress without the proper petticoat.

A reluctant attendee who felt Saturdays could best accommodate themselves to Saturday chores, grocery shopping, or even an unhurried lunch, I had committed to attend the Service, so I settled in to listen.  And got more than I expected! The Evangelist packed a wallop of a delivery. Rather,  she brought a powerful message, filled with punches! Evangelist understood the vagaries of life and had retained encyclopedic knowledge of life and its myriad challenges.  She surprised the unsuspecting, unknowing, naive, or even the know-it-all with swift uppercuts that led to knockdowns seemingly coming out of nowhere.  

Had the Evangelist been following me around? No way! I'd lived too many places:

"I've been so many places in my life and time
I've sung a lot of songs, I've made some bad rhyme
I've acted out my love in stages
With ten thousand people watching..."

Until.  Dysfunction,  Distress.  Despair upended my world, tenuous as it was, with a ferocity that nothing could have prepared me to handle.  Nor had I.  Mother used to question in the words of a song "Where could I go? Now, tell me, where could I go? Seeking a refuge for my soul, Needing a friend to save me in the end; where could I go but to the Lord? The Evangelist exhorted, "Say it, say it, say it, until you see it, see it, see it!

The Evangelist took the demand a step further, snd preached the counsel with the Word.

Is sorrow suppressing or oppressing? Say it: "Let not your hearts be troubled.  Believe in God; believe also in me."  John 14:1

Feeling endangered? Say it!  "He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.  I will say to the Lord, "My refuge and my fortress, my God in whom I trust." Psalm 91:1-2

Experiencing loneliness and fear? Say it!  "The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.  He makes me lie down in green pastures.  He leads me beside still waters." Psalm 23: 1-2

Living in lack and desiring more? Say it!  "Ask, and it shall be given to you; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened to you.  For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened."  Matthew 7:7-8

Trusting in a shaky world system?  Say it!  "Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, 'Be taken up and thrown into the sea,' and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him.  Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours." Mark 11:24

Fearing what tomorrow (or even today) may bring?  Say it! "The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.  And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:5-7

"It's in the Word," Evangelist reminds us. SAY IT, SAY IT, SAY IT, UNTIL YOU SEE IT, SEE IT, SEE IT!