Art 4 God Moment

Let's see...My near-death experience? In 2005, I was hit with pancreatitis. Doctors believed that it was from a botched gall blader surgery. I was put into the hospital to run tests. In the middle of running tests ,turned blue. There was an emergency surgery. I was told that I was going to have a 50-50 shot of surviving. I woke up in ICU with 18 tubes and wires sticking out, including the ventilator and a line for a future feeding tube. This happen in June 2005 causing my family to cut a vacation short because of my problems. Here is where God pops in....

While on vacation in Gatlinburg, TN, right before my world caved in, I had visited the artist community.I went into a shop called Art4God. It's run by a man who paints Jesus in modern situations.I picked up a few small prints, including one of Jesus as a boxer. While in ICU and on the vent, I had written a note to my wife to bring me that picture from home..

After a week or so in ICU, I was moved to a regular room. The doctors told me that recovery would take around six months in the hospital and the rehab unit. That meant that I might be home by Chrismas/New Years'.

About two nights after I was moved from ICU to a regular room. The lights were off, room was as dark as could be. That picture was on the shelf by the television. I had a CD that I was listening to U2's "Sometimes You Can't Make it on Your Own". That song includes the line "let me take some of the punches for you tonight."

When the song came on, it was as if a spotlight hit that picture. The light stayed on the picture the ENTIRE time that the song was playing, and then vanished, It was dark in my room once more.

Two days later, six months became three months. A few days after that, three months became three weeks.

I had my emergency surgery around June 9, 2005 and was back home by July 3. My road to recovery was long including home health nurses, feeding tube for 3 or so months, 15 or so surgeries and more to go, I never worried after that experience. I knew that God had his hand in the deal--thanks to my U2 Art4 God moment--I knew that God wasn't going to heal me just halfway.

I've been surgery-free this whole year. Last year I had three of them suckers! So this is my story.

I love my little story, especially when I'm in discussions with non-believers.

"So how do you know God is real?"

"Saw Him"

Discussions don't go too much further...LOL.....

Written by: Mel LeCompte...His personal testimony of his road to recovery to become also a published author...

Mel is the author of "Sharpened Iron" soon to hit the shelves. It is a story that uses a football game to bring a town together. He has also authored a book for children.

Check him out sharpenediron@gmail.com

CLOSET CHRISTIAN

When we think of a closet, we think of what is INSIDE of it. It usually has allot of things that we don't use anymore, or what we think we may eventually use again.

The New Webster's Dictionary definies it as, a recess built into a room and shut off with a door, or a small room for storing things.

This story has been weighing on my heart for awhile now. It is not supernatural, but it is the truth that I have not wanted to write concerned that some may be offended. With the signs of the times approaching so fast these days, we as Christians need to take and stand and start VOICING our concerns in these troubling times.

I am sometimes in awe of how church going people will hide their christianity from the world and take it out for others to see ONLY when it is a convenient thing for them to do. I am one who likes to clean out and give away items that are not being used often. My wardrobe is very basic. In my closet you will find mostly t-shirts and a couple of pair of jeans on one side. In the middle hanging you will find some work basic clothes. To the right is all of my dressy clothes. I am not a shoe fanatic, but I do have more than one pair, mostly black or brown, casual or dressy. ONE closet is enough.

My grandmother would say "I may not have all that I want, but I do have all that I need". As I get older I am understanding more and more of why she had shared this with me. Another saying was, "If you have God and a good name, then that is all you need to get what you need." I have tested out this theory and she was right.

In these days I have run across many people who used to be devout church attending members who are not going to any church now. Most of the reasons given are because they have been offended in some way. These are people who I thought would never STOP going to church, but more people are doing this these days.

We are supposed to WALK the walk and not just TALK the talk. Someone once told me many years ago that they had been accused of using CHRISTIANITY conveniently only when it would benefit them. It dug deep into my spirit, because it did have some truth to it. I have known some people like that.

Once you walk out of your home, is it like walking out of a closet and shutting the door and leaving all the junk behind? Are you a totally different person OUTSIDE for others to see? We may be hiding our issues from the world, but God SEES all. Are you following your faith, or are you just going through the motions of pretending to be a christian?

If our life inside of our homes does not line up with the will of God, then it is time to do some house cleaning. It is time to take the trash out of our lives and take a true stand as bible believing CHRISTIANS.

2 Corinthians 5:17...Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!
(NIV Study Bible)

How much of your old world is still in your house? Which master do you represent? Don't be that closet christian...

Story written by Angel Writer
praisemusicpro@peoplepc.com

Louisiana Heartbeats

Praise Music Production is a name that was given to the ministry formed between a close friend and I in 1995. This vision was a God given assignment to promote local unknown gospel artists. She had come with a friend to my beauty shop. There was something about her that seemed to connect with me STRONGLY. A short time later she began to come visit often with me in my shop . We had no idea then that God had plans in motion to join us together and create a MUSIC MINISTRY in our near future....

My customers were not just clients, but everyone was considered as friends. We soon discovered that we had ALOT in common and that our paths had already crossed a few years back while she still worked at a local furniture store. She was now disabled due to back problems. Not only did our past have alot in common, but now our present would also. She began sharing with me information about a newly formed Christian Radio station that she had started listening to. During the day she would call and leave messages on my answer machine to let me know what was happening at this station. I eventually bought a radio and listened to it in my shop daily. It wasn't long before we both soon discovered that we were hooked on Christian music, all styles....

We began to plan shopping trips together to go and check out the specials at the Chrisitan Store at the town mall. Wearing scripture T-Shirts with blue jeans was our daily wardrobe. We were always on the lookout for new ones to purchase from the sales racks. Sometimes we would not buy and we would wait until the prices would be reduced even more. It became a weekly outing for us. It was there that we soon started testing out the samples of the new Christian Music releases. When there was a free set of earphones, we would take turns, plug in and jam to the music. We were thoroughly enjoying ourselves singing and laughing. We were just being us. While waiting for a set of earphones to become available, we became aware of other voices singing. Some of these voices were awesome. We were not the only ones enjoying the music...

God woke me up one early morning around 2 am and said in an unaudible voice " I want you to SHOWCASE my people who are singing for me". I shared it with my new found friend. Praise Music Production was then formed by 2 people who loved The Lord and Christian music. We soon became known as "The Music Ladies". We learned how to create a contact list, organize, and then promote music events using the people on our music contact list.The Lord knew where the local undiscovered talent was. He knew their HEARTS and their DESIRES to sing for Him, and He sent them in our paths to be discovered in some very interesting ways... It wasn't hard to form a list. We would approach singers and say "We are Praise Music Production. We showcase people who want to sing for The Lord. We don't charge, we don't pay, and we don't get paid to get bookings for you, and for FREE. Would you like to be on our contact list?" We had no trouble keeping a large contact list.

We took steps of faith and sometimes even leaps trusting that The Lord would continue to instruct and guide us, and He did just that.....From 1994 to 2004 , a total of 10 years ,we faithfully followed the call from God to SHOWCASE GOSPEL talent only...In 2004, my music partner suffered a stroke and I had a massive heart attack. We have been restored recently to better health for the NEW SEASON. The Lord showed me while I was sick that "The season is NOT over...it is just CHANGED." Something new was going to happen. I could feel the new season coming. Louisiana Heart/Beats will be the new season to take promoting our local and statewide Louisiana talent to television and the internet for more exposure. Doors of opportunities continue to open to be able to do this...A new assignment..A new name...

There is this picture that hangs on the wall at my friend's place of business. I have see this picture many times over the years and have stood BELIEVING the scripture Isaaih 40:31 that is written on it. This morning The Holy Spirit said "Look at the eagle again. It is getting ready to fly. Now look at the trees BEHIND the eagle. What does that look like?" I said "Lord, that looks like a heart beat monitor." The Lord then said " Louisiana Heart Beats". You are getting ready to SOAR for me. Yes, your heart beats for me and a new season is getting ready to begin." The Holy Spirit then instructed me to take the name Louisiana Heart Beats and break it down again like this.....Louisiana He(art)Beats.. to then read....He Beats..... ( Lord Beats)..... in our hearts.

The name and season has changed but the vision has remained the same all these years. Louisiana Heart/Beats... will be showcasing 2 separate categories under that one name. Authors, writers, businesses and ministries will featured under the category...HEART... and music guests will be showcased under the category BEATS.. The finished product will soon be on television and the internet. God is still the author and the finisher of our faith. He is still in control....

But those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary; they will walk and not faint.....
Isaiah 40:31 (NIV Study Bible)

Send you your stories to praisemusicpro@peoplepc.com


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White Eagle

The white eagle was one of the figures that my friend and I had seen in the spiritual realm on a mountain top on a recent Arkansas trip. That visual seemed to stay etched into my memory and on my mind as time went on. Why was the eagle white? I knew that The Lord would reveal the answer to me, and that it would not be too far away, and He did..

While sitting in my kitchen one morning a few weeks later, I began to see forms SUDDENLY developing on my kitchen cabinets. They were POPPING out everywhere! I reached for the telephone to call my prayer partner and traveling friend. I began to describe to her what I was seeing in the SPIRITUAL realm. There was a variety of different scenes becoming VISABLE to my eyes. The young Indian male warrior with his single split feather and the chief and his full head gear could both be seen clearly now. Then there was the totem pole, the t-pee with the smoke coming out of its ceiling. Oh my goodness, the mountain top canvas was now coming alive on my kitchen cabinets and den walls. Oh great, even the hamburger demon was now looking down at me from the cabinet above my kitchen sink. This was the only one that really troubled me...Who was he and what did he represent? Why was I seeing him?

My den now was a canvas full of running horses, rabbits, dogs, wolves, birds, and yes the soaring WHITE EAGLE. The same things that we had see on on the mountain top was now with me in my home. I would close my eyes, when I would reopen them, the figures were all still there. I have Apache Indian blood running through my veins. I began to believe that these scenes had SOMETHING to do with my Indian heritage, or someone else's, and they did....

Within that week, I had received a special invitation to go hear a guest preacher in a nearby town. As I entered the small building, a man in a white suit caught my attention, I heard in my spirit "WHITE EAGLE". It turned out that this man had been adopted and raised by an Apache Indian tribe. He was sharing his life story with the church congregation. My attention kept focusing on the cross necklace that hung around his neck. After the service had ended, I was led to go ask him what was his Indian name. He grasped the cross and replied "White Eagle". I then shared with him the story of the manifestations on my kitchen cabinets and den walls. His words were "Are you a warrior or ARE you on a warrior's path? You have been signaled out by God and given a special assignment." I did not know the answer...yet...but would later on....

This speaker then seemed to become more interested in talking to me about the different healing rituals that his tribe still practiced. It wasn't long before I KNEW that the figure that had bothered me the most, was known as the witch doctor, or MEDICINE MAN. He began to proclaim that a lot of their spiritual treatments really worked. In a low voice he murmured, "This is something that as preacher of the gospel that I don't normally share." What was I to do with this new found information, if anything?

I researched my encyclopedias and found pictures that looked identical to the ones that had seen manifest on the mountain top turn around and my home walls. With this new revelation, I now realized that only God could continue to guide and lead me and answer all of my questions.

The PREACHER MAN had asked me "Are you a WARRIOR or are you on a WARRIOR'S path? Many years later, I have that answer.....I am a PRAYER WARRIOR on the path that God has destined for me. I am like that WHITE EAGLE, I am free to soar by The Holy Spirit where ever The Lord instructs me to go. The White Eagle represents THE HOLY SPIRIT. In another story, I will share THE GIFT OF HEALING...

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. Proverbs 3: 5-6 (NIV Study Bible)

Send your stories to praisemusicpro@peoplepc.com

Turn Around

A noticable odor seemed to SUDDENLY enter into my room. It was a smell that I had experienced before. It had this distinct odor. I asked "Lord, what is that?" The Holy Spirit replied "It is the smell of death." When I think of death, I automatically think of the funeral home and THAT certain smell. That smell was now in my room. Just incase that it was not of God, I commanded it to flee in the name of Jesus and the odor went away...Was this a warning of something to come?...

That same night as I closed my eyes to sleep, I was suddenly seeing a rapid picture slide show. There were numerous evil faces flashing literally before my eyes. The speed was almost unbelievable to the human mind...I sat up in my bed and began to pray. I asked "Lord, what do these visions represent, and what do they mean?" The Holy Spirit replied, "These are the many faces of death. Their names are Legion." The word Legion is not a good word to be heard by the Christian's ear. This means more than one demonic spirit, MANY..Sometimes the spirit will even manifest and become visual in appearance for one to see...

Webster's Dictionary defines MANIFEST as; to SHOW plainly; to be evident..

My friend and I have seen many of these manifestations..where something in the spiritual realm will suddenly take on a human shape and become visable to the human eye IF revealed by God..

However, as it is written: "No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him___but God has REVEALED it to us by His Spirit. 1 Corinthians 2: verses 9-10 (NIV Study Bible)

It was on one of our trips to Cove Arkansas that this story begins. After 4 hours on the road, we needed a lunch and bathroom break. We stopped at this hamburger place. My friend went to the restroom before ordering our food. While I waited for her to come back, I found myself watching the workers perform their different jobs to assemble each hamburger order.

SUDDENLY...I saw something that appeared to be human, but not quite human standing near one of the workers..It had on a uniform like the rest. This was a tall skeleton, with deep black eye sockets and a few strands of hair on its' head. He looked like a devil worshipper with the white dead pale looking face with red eyes... WAIT..I had to be seeing this in the spiritual world..because no one else seemed to be bothered by its DEATHLY appearance except me.....

I began to ask God for the true understanding of what was happening. The form could be seen moving slowly among the workers and peering over their shoulders briefly one at a time. The workers didn't seem to be bothered by this. The thing was now watching me from behind the check out register. "Lord, I must be the ONLY one seeing this manifestation. No one else seemed to be scared or even aware of its' ugly presence. This guy belonged in a horror film and definitely NOT serving food in a place of business..He reminded me of The Joker character...another visual description...He never spoke...just nodded his head...

My friend was now back and standing in line to place our food orders. I no longer saw THE THING. Either it had totally vanished, or had taken a break OUTSIDE somewhere. I shared with my friend of what I had seen. She looked around but could not see ANYTHING or anybody. We continued to eat while I updated her with the info. Once we had finished our meal, I then saw that it WAS BACK and sittting one table away from us to OUR right. I then asked God to let my friend SEE what I was seeing and He did..She described everything and even where it was now sitting....It then
disappeared again. It was time for us to continue on our trip...

As we headed out the door, THE THING was now seen standing near the hood of my car. She and I together...COMMANDED it to flee in the name of Jesus and it did. Things like this no longer bothered us. She and I had been on many of these do da do da trips like this...We always EXPECT the UNEXPECTED....

More was revealed to us on a mountain top turn around. We always went to a certain scenic spot to stand on the mountain to take in all of the beauty of the valleys below...We were up above the clouds looking down. It was always BREATH TAKING....This time our cut out mountain had been turned into a ROCK canvas. All kinds of images could be seen now etched on the mountain stone. We had been there many times over the many years and they were never there before. It was as if the mountain turn around was wanting to tell us individual special stories.

We saw a breath taking beautiful Indian Princess with her long black braided hair. There was young male Indian with a single feather that was partially split, a chief with his full feather head ornament, t-pees with smoke coming out of them, Indian mothers carrying papooses on their backs, flying eagles,running horses, rabbits, dogs..and even manifestations in trees among the leaves looking down at us...That leads into another story to be written later "WHITE EAGLE" which will talk more about generational curses....which some of these pictures represented...

If we can SEE we will know HOW to pray against the wiles of the enemy. We took pictures and yes..these figures...even the thing...is now visable to anyone who wants to see....We get to tell the story over and over that makes the pictures COME ALIVE to the listener..and even more interesting... It is all TRUE.....

Send your stories to praisemusicpro@peoplepc.com

Rose Bud

As I reached out to comfort a friend regarding her recent loss of a baby, my own similar experience was replayed in my memory. I carried my first baby, a boy for 8 months before I lost him to death. I have known and had God in my life for many years. After the loss of my infant son, an even stronger relationship and understanding with God has developed.....

I was very resentful of my siter-in-law who gave birth to a healthy baby boy just a few months after my loss. She was experiencing postpartum depression also, which I didn't understand at the time. This was partly due to my being so young. She was crying alot and I didn't understand why. She was so blessed to have her beautiful baby and I didn't have mine. She should have been very happy. I even believed that she was also crying because she had possibly wanted a girl and not a boy. Wow, was I ever wrong!.....

It took me a long time and a lot of tears to get past my deep loss of my child. I finally got pregnant again approximately one year afterwards. That was after I knew that my husband could bear the idea of us having another child so soon. We needed to remember that we were not the only ones hurting and grieving. Our friends and families were sad also....

When I was 2 months pregnant with our next baby, I was in an automobile accident. My car was totaled due to a man running a red light. As I stepped out of the damaged car, I suddenly remembered at that moment that I was pregnant.....

It was too soon to hear my baby's heartbeat, so God placed in my thoughts, "If your baby makes it through this accident, it will make it to the end." A beautiful baby girl was born and grew into a a young lady. She will soon become an Optometrist. We were blessed again later with another baby boy..After he was older, he was told about his brother that had died years before. Once he was old enough to understand, he then said, "Mom, what IF God fixed me and sent me back?" Wow, I was so blown away by that statement. From out of the mouth of babes will come the truth. Right?.....

No matter what we believe or try to understand, we must first know that The Good
Lord does have a purpose. I choose to believe that my baby didn't survive because there would have been possible health problems. I wouldn't have wanted to watch him suffer all of his life..I choose also to believe that God reached down and took him before I could get attached to him....

A friend of mine had lost a baby also. She said that after the death of their child, that she and her husband took comfort in this bible scripture..(please forgive me if I misquote..2 Peter 3:8) ...A day is but a thousand years, and a thousand years is but a day in God's Kingdom..(my friend did the math)..It will have seemed like ONLY minutes in time that would have passed, before we join our little ones in Heaven..We will see our sweet little babies there. They will be healthy and waiting there to be loved by us....

I know now that He chose me to help heal other broken hearts by sharing my story to grieving mothers. I truly understand their sorrow. I have been in their shoes. May
God bless you all with His constant Love and Grace..

SOMETIMES God reaches down and picks the ROSE BUD to watch it BLOOM in Heaven......

Story sent in by Cindy..To help other hurting parents...cope...

Send in your stories to sl@michaelallenmarketing.com

Back Burner

This story began many years ago. I had just sat down at my kitchen snack bar with a cup of coffee. I could visually see my son's jeep parked in the drive way through my kitchen window where I now sat in front of. As I sipped on the morning brew, I suddenly saw SOMETHING inside of the jeep. There appeared to be some kind of dark hovering shadow that came to my attention. Then I saw what appeared to be my youngest son sitting from behind the steering wheel in his jeep. SOMETHING was terribly wrong with this picture... WAIT, this is impossible, because my son was asleep in his bed in his room. Then the dark shadow took on an odd form and floated over from the back seat to the front seat now enclosing my son in this dark cloud. "Lord, why am I seeing this, I asked?" The Holy Spirit replied in that still small voice "So that you can see what you need to pray against."

I went to check again to be sure that my son was still sleeping in his room,and he was. I then returned to my stool and began to pray never taking my eyes off of that thing in the jeep. I picked up the phone and dialed a Christian. I described what I was seeing and together we agreed for it to FLEE. Slowly the evil thing retreated to the back seat gradually turning its head away from me. It then vanished from view, and so did the form of my son sitting behind the wheel.

Total revelation came that there would be more episodes like this one to come, and that the enemy of darkness was going to try to destroy my child. I began to fervently cling and quote all of God's word on a daily basis to come against that from ever happening. There are many ways to detour one onto the path of wrong, and that is by a wrong CHOICE. My faith was going to be tested to the extreme, and I knew it. I would have to stand and believe God's word when these trials would come and they did..

Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.
Hebrews 11:1 (NIV)

We live by faith, not by sight.
2 Corinthians 5:7 (NIV)

I have literally been chasing this boy since he was 18 months old. He was one that needed to be constantly monitored. He was always trying out experiments, fixing or building things, always busy. One example of his kind of adventures was as follows. He could scale up the television outside antenna pole, run across the top of the roof, and be down before being caught. I operated a beauty shop inside of my home. I had noticed that I was hearing a lot of thunder on bright sun shiny days. I finally caught him coming down. He was finally busted. I` knew early on that he would be the one sibling that was going to give me a run for my money literally. He did things that his oldest sister and brother had never even thought of. He was a chance taker, a dare devil...

The teen years brought on unwanted friends. His attitude changed and he was hard to control. The saying "Birds of a feather flock together", "Guilty by association", all true. Through the years he has been accused of many things. He however, always managed to clear himself WITHOUT my help. Cops were always knocking on our door looking for our son or someone that he knew. I would just assume that they were watching my son and eventually would come knocking at my door, and they did...

During one of these raids, I found myself praying AGAIN, "Lord please help me through this trial. The Holy Spirit replied "TRUST ME" I said, Lord I trust you, it's my son that I don't trust." This reply has brought me through my longest test ever just recently. He was incarcerated November 27th 2007. Major charges were against him that could put him in jail for approximately 60 years. It looked like an impossible situation.I regularly told my son that "Only God and a good lawyer could get him out of this." When I would want to doubt, I could still hear "TRUST ME." I serve a God that takes impossibilities and makes a way for circumstances to be made possible. I was going to BELIEVE and stand on The Word of God that these charges would be dropped and they were on September 24th 2009. After almost 2 years of WAITING to be freed, he will be coming home soon. There is just one more minor thing that has to be done, and it will finally happen. My God is not finished with His Plan for my son yet.

Picture your kitchen stove and the 4 burners. They are different in size for a reason. We may start out cooking on the front burner and then gradually move that same pot to the back burner on a lower temperature. We have a choice to keep it simmering or just turn it off. Sometimes we think that we have turned it off to only find out that the burner is still on. The food will be either burnt, or will be saved in the nick of time. Like the food on the back burner, my son has been saved just in time..God's perfect timing.

But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

Isaiah 40:31 (KJV)

Send your stories to sl@michaelallenmarketing.com