A promise God gave me 50 years ago in 1976 was
reignited in my heart this week when I quoted two biblical passages during our
online Hour of Prayer.
I quoted Jeremiah 29:11, which says, Call to Me,
and I will answer you, and show you great and mighty things, which you do not
know. I also quoted Ephesians 3:20, which says, Now to Him
who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or
think, according to the power that works in us.
In these passages, God promises to not only answer our
prayers, but to do much more than we have asked. Out of His is great generosity
and goodness, He promises to exceed and go beyond all that we have asked or
even thought.
It was this truth of God exceeding and going beyond
all our expectations that reminded me of a wonderful promise He gave me in such
a dramatic way 50 years ago.
The Promise
Shortly after Sue
and I married in 1976, I was reading a small book entitled The Authority of the Believer. Within the book was a quotation of
Malachi 3:10, which includes the promise from God that He will, open
for you the windows of heaven.
The phrase open
for you the windows of heaven burned in my soul. When I went to bed
that night and it seemed as though I could actually “feel” that word in my soul
in the same way food just eaten could be felt in the stomach. It was a very
real experience.
I arose the next morning and prepared for my
devotional time in which I was reading through the Bible. As I sat cross-legged
on the floor with my Bible in front of me, that phrase, I will open for you
the windows of heaven, began burning once again in my soul. I hesitated, wondering if I should continue with
my planned devotions, or give attention to this burning promise.
As I pondered this question, I glanced down at my
Bible which was lying open in front of me on the floor. It had randomly fallen
open to 2 Kings Chapter 7 and the first words I saw were windows in heaven.
I was astounded for I did know there was another place
in the Bible that spoke of the windows of heaven. This was incredible and I
knew that God was speaking.
With God All
Things Are Possible
I continued to read and found that this was the
account of God’s supernatural deliverance of a city of Samaria that was
besieged by the king of Syria and his powerful army. They had cut off all
escape routes and blocked any food or other supplies going into the city. People
were starving and some had resorted to cannibalism.
In the midst of this desperate and impossible
situation, Elisha the prophet (who was inside the city) made an incredible
prophecy. He predicted that the very next day food would be sold at
ridiculously low prices because of the abundance.
An officer of the king of Israel (who resided in this
city), heard Elisha’s prophecy and scoffed. Look,
he said, If the Lord would make windows in heaven, could this thing be
(I Kings 7:2)? Elisha replied that he would see it but would not eat or partake
of it.
That same night four leprous, homeless men who lived
outside the city gates decided that it was time to take radical action. They
said to one another, Why are we sitting
here until we die? They reasoned that if they went into the city they would
die with everyone else, but if we sit here, we will die also.
Why not go out to the enemy camp, they asked
themselves. The worst thing that can happen to us is that we will die. Who
knows but what they may keep us alive.
So, they arose and began walking toward the enemy
camp. As they marched forth, God caused the Syrian army to hear a sound of a massive
army marching toward them. They panicked thinking that the king of Israel had
hired the Egyptian army, and they fled in terror, leaving everything behind
The Windows
of Heaven are Opened
The four lepers reached the camp and found food,
clothes, gold, and silver in abundance. They enjoyed a sumptuous meal and then
they took gold and silver out and buried it. Then they went back to the city
and informed the watchman on the wall of what they had discovered. The watchman
informed the king and the king sent several men to check it out. It was as the
leprous men had said. The Syrian army had fled leaving behind a massive
storehouse of supplies.
As morning dawned and word spread that food was being
sold at the gates of the city, there was a mad rush by a lot of famished people.
The officer of the king who had scoffed at the prophecy of Elisha was put in
charge of the gate where the food was being sold at ridiculously low prices
because of the abundance.
As the crowd rushed forward, he was knocked down, trampled
upon and died. The prophecy of Elisha was fulfilled in that he saw the widows
of heaven opened but he did not eat or partake of the miracle.
God’s
Sudden, Supernatural Abundant Provision
That morning, I sat in awe at what I was reading and experiencing
in my soul. It was a beautiful time in God’s presence, and I knew He was
speaking to me.
Out of this experience the opening of the windows of
heaven came to mean for me “God’s sudden, supernatural, abundant
provision.” It is God breaking through from above into our present situation.
It is God bringing about effects for which there is no human cause or
explanation.
In the natural world there is the scientific law of
cause and effect which says that for every effect there is a cause. This is a
human attempt to explain, on a horizontal plane, why things happen.
But when God opens the windows of heaven, He brings
about effects for which there is no human cause or explanation. He breaks into
our lives from above and produces effects that we have not caused. He provides
in a way that is sudden, supernatural, and abundant.
God Confirms
His Word
As I sat pondered all of this that morning, I seemed
to hear in my spirit, “I am going to open the windows of heaven on you and on
everyone who supports you in what I have called you to do.”
About two years after this, Sue and I were sitting
around our kitchen table with several other people, including a white-haired, eighty-year-old
woman who was a renowned prayer warrior. As we lifted out hearts in prayer,
this dear old saint arose from her chair, came around the table, laid her hands
on my head and began to pray.
After our time of prayer had ended, she looked at me
and said, “The Lord told me to lay my hands on you and pray, and when I did, I
saw two doors open over your head.” I excitedly replied, “Praise the Lord! He
told me he would open the windows of heaven on me.”
Not long after this, God confirmed this promise in a
very practical manner. I was invited to speak at a conference in NE India and I
accepted. This was my first overseas travel and I was responsible for all my
expenses. When the day of my departure arrived, I had only $30.00 above the
cost of my ticket.
The challenge was that I had an overnight stay in
London and two nights in Calcutta where I had to apply for a special travel
permit. I then had two overnight stays on my return flight home. So, I needed
money to cover 5 nights in hotels and food for four days, and I only had
$30.00. Would God open the windows of heaven as He had promised?
On the way to the airport to catch my flight, we
stopped at the travel agency to pick up my ticket, for which I had already
paid. The clerk was obviously stressed as she informed me that she had been
trying to call me because she had to change my route. She said I arrived at my
destination at the same time, but for some reason she had to change the route.
As she typed up the new itinerary, I asked, “What is
the difference in the cost?” She finished typing, looked up the cost and, lo
and behold, it was $300.00 less than before. She handed me my ticket and $300.00
and Sue drove me to the airport where I boarded my flight to India. God had
opened the windows of heaven and I saw God pour out His Spirit during my time in India.
2026: A Time to See the Windows of Heaven Open
During our 50 years of marriage, Sue and I have seen
God open the windows of heaven on our behalf too many times to mention here. I
have a deep desire—I believe from the Holy Spirit—to see that promise manifest
in 2026 in ways we have never seen or thought possible.
I am reminded that in biblical Israel every 50th
year was a Year of Jubilee, which was a time of great blessing, freedom and restoration.
So, in this 50th year of our marriage and of receiving this promise
from God, I have great hope and great expectations of seeing the windows of heaven opened in marvelous ways.
I also desire to see this promise manifest in your
life in 2026. So, let’s turn our eyes
upon Jesus and acknowledge Him as our Source for all of life. Let’s walk
through the coming months of 2026 expecting to see the windows of heaven open with
blessings and open doors beyond anything we have asked or even thought.
Now to Him who is able to exceedingly abundantly above
all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be
glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever, Amen.
– Eph. 3:20
Dr. Eddie L. Hyatt is the co-founder of Hyatt Int'l Ministries and his numerous books on Revival and biblical themes are available from Amazon and his website at http://eddiehyatt.com. He is also the cofounder of The Hyatt Institute an online Bible Training Center whose purpose is to Make Disciples Who Will Change Their World. You can explore the Hyatt Institute at http://hyattinstitute.com.
No comments:
Post a Comment