The Testimony of Joel Clouse

I heard an old familiar voice the morning of January 10th of this year. I was awakened around 4:00am, having been sound asleep and quite comfortable. I'd been medicating horrible bad back pain for the last week, a sudden onset while standing at the kitchen sink rinsing dishes. God spoke to me that morning. He spoke through words and visions, as clear and apparent as a face to face conversation with a great friend. That lasted almost three hours, but seemed like only minutes. In all of this, a great gift was revealed to me, and a new course charted. I was rewired in an instant, brought back from the verge of certain misery and hopelessness. I was turned around and set back on God's path, now to do His work for the short time we have left.

That morning, in my vision, God showed me why I was having this back pain. I had a vision of a demon tearing into the flesh on my back. I could see the talons on his feet gripping my lower back, his claws ripping into my shoulders and his fangs gnawing at my neck. Next, the Lord told me why this was happening. This demon was attacking me to lead me further down the road of addiction - pain killers and booze. I could never get enough to ease the pain, I would have died of an overdose or poisoning had this continued. The Lord then revealed more about this demon, He showed me his face, as he stood looking up at me wearing a dark cloak and surrounded by darkness. The Lord told me his name, one I'll never utter or write down. Then, as I prayed, He went to work. I saw the Sword of the Spirit, shining of silver fire, plunge between my back and that demon and cut him away. My visions continued with marvelous revelations, including a charge to go see the pastor of the OKC Life church campus, Chris Spradlin. As my vision came to a close, my wife came to give me a kiss goodbye. She was about to fly out of town for business.

I fell back asleep for a few hours, my kids woke me up after we all slept in. We spent a slow day, resting and nursing Dad's back. The kids wanted to spend the night with their Grandma, so we arranged to meet in downtown OKC. I dropped them off at 4:30, got back in the pickup and headed towards Edmond. I called my good friend, Scott to see what their plan was for the evening. I wasn't in the mood to eat supper alone. When I got him on the phone, he said he was sitting in the Lifechurch parking lot waiting on me so they could go in. This was the campus that Chris Spradlin was pastor. Boy, I didn't want to go, I didn't even commit to going until I pulled in the church parking lot. I met up with Scott and his wife Mecca and in we went. It was another part in the "INVASION" series, and nothing jumped out at me until the service ended. Chris Spradlin was up on the stage, ending the service. He said in his closing remark, "if anyone just needs to visit with me, I'll be up here afterward, come on up." I then heard God speak to me, "That's you, Joel." God's timing is always perfect, and come to find out Scott and Mecca were serving the next service that day, so I was going to have to wait almost an hour before we headed off to dinner. I saw Chris down at the front, and started that way. He walked up to me and asked what was up. I said "My name is Joel, I've been told to shake your hand." and as soon as I did, I broke down crying like a little girl. I gave him the nickel run down on what had happened to me earlier that morning. He stopped me, walked me over to another guy across the way an introduced me to Mike Leehan.

Mike and I sat down together; I'm still trying to compose myself and thinking how great this first impression is. Our first meeting was short, to the point and inspiring. He told me three things that evening that I'll never forget. The first was "you are a seer; too, God just told me that." He then told me that I have the Heart of David, my heart did flips when he said that, even though I hadn't any idea of what he meant. Then he invited me to a meeting of men. He said that he and a few others were putting together a group of core guys to start a ministry, and that I was to join them as one of three "prophets." He told me he'd see me Monday night, and that was the beginning of my journey and our journey together.

I was fired up to meet with these guys, and got there early that first Monday evening. It turns out that that night was Mike's birthday - 1 year prior, he had turned to Jesus and been born again. I walked into the room and never had I felt more comfortable and safe. Here I was, a week ago in so much trouble, walking into a room full of strangers, with the feeling of Christ walking in with me. I told my story, cried, words were given to me, and I was blessed by these men. We had a great evening; it lasted for several hours and opened up many, many doors. Meeting Mike and coming to that meeting has brought me here, to this blog (thanks Randy), to a new church and to other groups in Christ. So many things are lining up, there can be no other explanation of it all than "of The Lord." I look forward to telling my stories here and everywhere God takes me. Much more to come...

LifeChurch.tv Invasion Video

Acts 26:12-18 (New Living Translation)

“One day I was on such a mission to Damascus, armed with the authority and commission of the leading priests. About noon, Your Majesty, as I was on the road, a light from heaven brighter than the sun shone down on me and my companions. We all fell down, and I heard a voice saying to me in Aramaic,‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is useless for you to fight against my will.’
“‘Who are you, lord?’ I asked.
“And the Lord replied, ‘I am Jesus, the one you are persecuting. Now get to your feet! For I have appeared to you to appoint you as my servant and witness. You are to tell the world what you have seen and what I will show you in the future. And I will rescue you from both your own people and the Gentiles. Yes, I am sending you to the Gentiles to open their eyes, so they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God. Then they will receive forgiveness for their sins and be given a place among God’s people, who are set apart by faith in me.