Ever Hear of IHOP?

“I have no words” has been my standard response describing my recent 3 1/2 day sojourn out to IHOP KC.  The original plan was to stay with my cousin Scott, spend as much time as we could in the Prayer Room, and attend the nightly sessions.

God can be one prankster of a travel agent.

Upon waking my first morning in KC, I received an utterly absurd text from my long-time friend, Eric Metaxas, who was featured as a speaker for the two-week conference.  He told me he spoke with Mike Bickel, the host, and he agreed I should attend the private leadership team meetings.  

I suddenly became George Bailey. “That’s my trick ear, Eric, sounded like you said I’m invited to the meeting?”

It may be safe to say, a good deal of people have never heard of Mike Bickel, the International House of Prayer (IHOP), or the 24x7 Prayer Room (which is the famous plot of Heaven on Earth where 22 years of unceasing worship has taken place — and is taking place right now even as you read this).  

It troubles me how insular churches can become.  While being quite effective in the customary types of Outreach; like to the poor, with the marginalized and through international missions, churches seem sluggishly hesitant to engage with one another to embrace the unified, ever-expanding nature of the kingdom — particularly when rumors of the gifts of the Spirit are in play.  

It’s doubtful God ever intended to dole out His power and presence across segmented grids with each church subsisting through their own utility meter.   

There I was, seated with 35 hand-selected leaders in a room with Mike Bickel (Founder and visionary pastor of IHOP), Eric (NY Times Bestselling Author, public intellectual, radio host, and speaker), Francis Chan, (Renowned pastor and NY Times Bestselling Author, most known for Crazy Love) Ken Fish (John Wimber’s right-hand man in the early Vineyard days and powerfully gifted today in deliverance and healing), and Andy Byrd (YWAM, The Send, International missionary evangelist and rising star to the Gen X and Gen Z’ers).

Then there was Chris Reed, the humble yet formidable sleeper agent of the weekend.  Church Pastor and bible scholar, he is most known for his powerful ministry in the spiritual gifts of Prophecy and Words of Knowledge.  

Is this too weird for you yet?

A Word of Knowledge is simply a truth revealed without having prior awareness or former information while Prophecy is a predictive declaration of what lies ahead.  In both cases, you simply speak what you hear God saying. 

You see, the Gifts of the Spirit are not man-handled parlor tricks used to impress your friends and foes.  Rather, they are intended to invite all who experience them to behold the Giver of the gifts.

…if an unbeliever or non-gifted person enters the meeting and people are prophesying, he will be exposed and called to account.  The secrets of his heart become disclosed, and he will fall down with his face to the ground and worship God, declaring, “God is really among you.

~The Apostle Paul

I’ve been facedown since that day.

As I settled into my front-row seat about as smoothly as Rob Petrie flipping over his ottoman, the meeting was already in deep conversation, pondering and expositing weighty matters like:  What is God doing on the Earth today?

The thing is — these guys know because the Lord has been telling them for the past 50 years.

The prophetic history of IHOP under Mike Bickel is something movies are made of.  And when it finally premieres, the screen will be the sky and the projectionist will have nail-scarred hands.

As the conversation calmly yet intensely surveyed the profound local history and breathtaking future vision, Stuart shared a dream he had of Mike over 20 years ago. 

Now, I can already hear the critics; this is just another emotional escapade with dreams, hollow predictions, and license plate reading.  I’ll stick with the scriptures, thank you very much.

The thing is; IHOP is by far the most bible-fluent community I’ve ever seen.  And maybe one day you’ll hear Francis tell his license plate story — it’s spectacularly hilarious!

The two biggest things I learned about Mike: First, he may be the most gracious, generous, non-controlling church leader I’ve ever seen, both on and off the platform.  Second, he has patiently carried the immense burden of having received divine revelations for decades. 

If I were Mike, I would have song-birded my full report to the world before my morning coffee was brewed.  But Mike, in his wisdom, has borne these intense, eternal mysteries with great care for nearly five decades.  I know this because he shared unimaginable things with us in private which I watched him only hint around on the platform.

Without broaching the confidences of these private sessions, I can share a bit more of what Stuart said of his dream.  Mike’s hair was dark as he sat before a panel of opponents.  As they challenged and criticized him, his hair became more and more grey — signifying the passing of time.  Mike persisted in the face of opposition and travailed, “My life’s work is focused on the final 3 1/2 yards to score the touchdown”.

Three and a half to score.

Imagine if you knew you would live to 100, and early in your life you state with resolve:  Everything I will do for the first 96 1/2 years will only be to prepare me for those last 3 1/2 years.  Only a divinely inspired visionary can think in these terms.

The conversations continued for a bit, and then Mike intuitively turned to his right and said;  Chris what do you have?

Chris Reed is a gentle giant of a man who is currently moving his family to Charlotte to take over Rick Joyner’s position at Morningstar.  He locks eyes with me and says, “When you walked in the room, I kept hearing Psalm 90.”

That’s my trick ear again…

He went on to say how the Psalm speaks of struggle and a mountain.  “You’ve been enduring through a toilsome place.  It’s been a hard journey.  I keep hearing toilsome”.

With astounding wonder, I speak my first words in the meeting:  

I live on Toilsome Hill Road.

He calmly nods and remains reflective.  Then Mike follows with, “Does Psalm 90 mean anything to you?”  

Nothing came to my mind as I was still fumbling the callout of my street name.  Eric then fires, “What’s your address?”

OH COME ON!

Entirely befuddled, I say; I live at 90 Toilsome Hill Road.

Chris calmly proceeds.  “Now I don’t know if you and Francis have worked together, but I keep seeing your two faces:  Keith and Francis.  Keith and Francis.”

My eyes are now fastened with Francis Chan’s as we both bewilderingly shake our heads in the negative.  Suddenly it hits me:

WAIT, WHAT!?  NO WAY!

With watery eyes, I say, “It’s my name.  My name is Keith Francis Guinta.

The cabin depressurized as the breathable air was sucked into each pair of the lungs in the room.

Knowingly, Chris continues; “This mountain.  I keep hearing ‘The Great One’.  What does this mean?”

Even more rattled, I mutter,  I climbed Mt. McKinley in 1996. The original Athabaskan name is Denali, which translates; The Great One.

An oxygen mask dropped in front of my face.

Chris began to pray some of the most beautiful words I’ve ever heard for me and my family.  Next, he says that the Lord sees my investment into the nations.  “Do you have a connection with other nations?”

Yes

“I even see other continents.”

Yes.

“And I pray that Jill would be touched in her body right now…”

Um, I’m sorry.  How did you know my wife’s name who is right now back in CT?

He also named one of my sons.  At this point, I know what many of you are thinking — this information could have been gained from the Google.  Yes, there is that possibility.  And because I’ve been keenly trained as a skeptic,  I thought the same thing if I am to be entirely honest. But remember; I was not even supposed to be in that meeting and the only person who knew me was Eric.

Nonetheless, even if I were to concede to the skeptics and claim my information was researched:  Try to explain what happened next.

After “Reading my mail” and praying and prophesying the most stunning things about me and my family, this personal, extremely detailed message began to overflow to the rest of the room.  He took one of the threads he prayed for my wife and in turn, offered that same invitation to all the ladies in the room.

As Ken Fish launched into a stunningly meaningful, prophetic word about my writing (Likewise, he had no prior knowledge that I am a writer), Chris was still thumbing through Psalm 90. When Ken had finished, Chris announces; “Only the Sovereign Lord could orchestrate something like this.”

He went on; “Verse 10 reads, ‘The days of our lives are seventy…’”  Chris further shares that the original Hebrew does not use the number seventy.  Instead, it forms the number by using the phrase; three score and ten.

A pastor from the center of the room exclaims, “That’s a Hebraic word pun.  It actually reads: Three and a half to score.

My seat cushion can and will be used as a flotation device.

What you must know is that this remarkable 25 minutes of my life was not an isolated, drive-by holy shooting.  We were together for days.  And during those days, I watched Chris embark in a similar capacity before thousands of people in the nightly meetings. I also had glorious conversations with his wife, Missy, who is mother to their six children. As I marveled at what a beautiful family they are, Chris’ words and prayers only sank deeper into my soul.

But wait, there’s more.  The insanely personal and private message that emerged individually to me and my family suddenly morphed and embedded itself within the unfolding prophetic history of this famous church community.  

Mike remarkably reminisced that Stuart’s twenty-year-old dream also referenced a prophetic word given to him nearly thirty years before that.  He explained how scoring from the 3 1/2 yard line is the hardest place to score from on the football field.

Mike believes we are now living in the days of the winning score.

As I astonishingly watched all of these ingredients coalesce, I suddenly realized that my brief foray into this Hall of Fame of leaders resulted in my family somehow being added and stirred into this grand dish. 

When I am able, we can explore more of this fifty-year history and what three and a half to score actually references. We can also consider how we too often miss out on blessings because we are so quick to dismiss and split. 

But for now,  I am mostly trying to hold onto my mask and breath normally.