After five years of prayer and some dry stretches,
God came mightily
Cecil Turner was a shy man with a stutter – a pipe-fitter with no Bible college education – when God called him to lead Calvary Assembly of God in Mobile, Alabama, in 1963. Even family members questioned whether or not Turner could pastor the young congregation.
Now, 34 years later, the church literally overflows with people coming to see what’s been happening since Sunday, 29 September, 1996, when God’s presence came in power during the church’s annual “campmeeting.”
“I’ve thought we’d close out a number of times,” Turner says. “But the Holy Spirit says we’re going on.”
The church has been in continuous revival from week to week, meeting Tuesdays for intercessory prayer, and Wednesdays through Fridays for services that draw 250 to 300 people. Sunday mornings draw 400, the maximum number they can pack into the sanctuary.
Some services are exuberant and intense; others so heavy all they can do is “lay on the ground.” Sometimes the Spirit is so strong during praise and worship that they throw open the altars.
“We come in each night and never know what’s going to happen,” Cecil says, pausing for a moment. “I like it.”
The church started praying for revival in 1992, says Cecil’s son Kevin, who has been on staff for 11 years.
“At times we wondered if revival would happen,” Kevin says. “But we saw the intensity and the hunger growing.”
After five years of prayer and some dry stretches, God came mightily when a travelling evangelist, Wayne Headrick, came to preach. God spoke to Headrick that if they got out of the way, God would make something happen.
That “something” keeps on happening.
“It seems like it’s accelerating,” Headrick told the Mobile Register in May 1997. “Each service there’s more . . . anointing and more of the power of God.”
The Lost
Unchurched people are coming in droves to this church that sits at a 3-way stop on the western city limit of Mobile. “They may not understand it,” says music pastor Kevin Turner, Cecil’s son, “but they want more of it.”
Many come from other denominations: Nazarene, Catholic, Methodist, to name a few.
“We agreed from the beginning that this wasn’t an Assembly of God revival – it was for the whole church,” Cecil says.
People are saved in every service – and some 150 were saved in the last two months alone, Kevin says. Some say afterwards that they felt a need to come, and several testify that they were drawn in as if to a beacon. One man pulled into the parking lot, not fully understanding why he was there. The congregation prays regularly that people will be drawn by the Lord’s presence.
Stacy Tanton, 26, says that the revival has “totally transformed” her life. Her husband no longer drinks alcohol, and now serves as an usher during weeknight services. Others have been delivered from alcohol, healed, and delivered from demons.
Changing “Church”
The Mobile revival is redefining Calvary’s concept of pastoral leadership, steering them away from man-generated structure and teaching them to encounter God together.
“It’s like God said, ‘I’ve been trying to move. Now get out of the way,'” says Kevin. “It’s liberating for both pastors and the people.”
Kevin, who grew up a pastor’s kid, testifies that the move of God now enveloping their church has brought him to a new level of faith.
“I’ve always loved the Lord, but this has changed my life,” Kevin says. “I want to be intimate with him.”
Revival has also redefined his ministry. Kevin and his 10-piece music team keep a greulling schedule, sometimes singing for 3 hours straight. Before revival began, Kevin would lose his voice after a week of services, he says. But he asked God to sustain him, and has gone 10 months with few problems.
Revival has also forced him to be more in tune with the Holy Spirit before leading worship.
“I make a song list, but often it gets tossed out,” he says. “Some nights it’s like being held over a cliff. I know God wants to do something, and I’m asking, ‘What is it?’ I’ve had to become comfortable with silence. Sometimes he just says to wait.”
The revival is not personality-driven. Headrick is often gone for weeks at a time, and the river continues to flow. The pastors say the move of God keeps changing colours as God takes the church to different places in him.
“There have been two or three times when the revival has shifted gears,” Kevin says. “It’s hard to describe, but the intensity goes up a level.”
Churches unite
Glenn McCall, pastor of Crawford United Methodist church, frequently takes members of his congregation to Calvary for revival services. “[People] are looking for something, and only God can meet that need in their spirit,” he says. “I feel like it’s a nationwide thing. I’ve heard a lot of testimonies from around the country and the world. There’s some phenomenal things happening in the church world.”
McCall believes the fact that Calvary is drawing from other denominations signifies that America is ready for awakening. “I think people are wanting a revival regardless of what the name is on the [church] doorpost. They’re willing to crawl through barriers to get a touch from God,” he says.
Reported in the Mobile Register, May 10, 1997
Beth Cumbie, 26, prayed for her daddy all her life. “He was hard-hearted,” she says. “A good man, be he never wanted to surrender.”
Beth’s mother, a Christian, had endured decades of disbelief, but never put her husband down.
“We thought some tragedy would have to push him to God,” Beth says. “Finally we said, ‘God, do it your way.’”
In April 1997, while closing his produce store for the night, Beth’s 62-year-old father turned to his wife with tears in his eyes and asked for prayer. When they got home he fell on his face and cried out to God to save his soul. After he had received Christ, Beth’s mother came to the revival service where Beth was on the music team, ran down the aisle with the news, and together they wept.
“I didn’t care what anybody thought,” Beth says. “That was a long-time prayer answered.”
Now the family is at church nightly, and Beth’s father is able to cry, hug his children, and express his love.
“In some ways it’s strange, but in others, so natural,” Beth says. “Dad wants to go to the altar every night.”
Reproduced from the Pentecostal Evangelist.
(c) Renewal Journal 12: Harvest, 1998, 2011.
Reproduction is allowed with the copyright included in the text.
Like thousands of pastors across America, Steve Gray was discouraged and disappointed. He was even considering leaving the ministry. For twelve years he had pastored the Smithton Community Church in the sleepy little town of Smithton, Missouri, nestled among the wheat. Steve Gray was discouraged and disappointed. He was even considering leaving the ministry.
For more than a decade, Gray felt his ministry was like riding a stationary bicycle. He was pedaling real hard, but he wasn’t going anywhere. He says that all he was thinking about was “out, out, out.” Pastor Gray had even lost hope. He knew he could not continue doing what he was doing and unfortunately he gave God no other options. Steve Gray was ready to quit.
Knowing he had to get away from the church for some “R and R,” he chose revival over relaxation. In March 1996, he drove from Missouri to Florida to visit the Brownsville Outpouring that was then in its 37th week. Gray attended the services each night and spent the days in his motel room, praying and seeking God’s face.
During the Tuesday night prayer meeting, while hundreds gathered around the “Pastor’s Banner” to pray for the nation’s shepherds, Gray was praying especially for one pastor, himself. He knew if he continued in the ministry, he had to be restored. After about three days, he felt some recovery and his focus began to change. God was restoring his hope and he found this to be the first signal of his personal revival.
Before this change in focus, Gray didn’t even know what to ask from God. Gray says he came to Brownsville not to “get something” but to “see something,” as Moses went to “see” the burning bush. After several more days, Gray was “seeing” again. One night, in what Gray described as a “perfect atmosphere,” God spoke to him and said, “I want you to have a revival.” The very thought was too much to accept. Smithton, Missouri, is not Pensacola, Florida, and Gray could not imagine himself in the role of revivalist. Then God spoke again, “I didn’t say I want you to be a revival, I said I want you to have a revival.”
On Sunday morning, 17 March 1996, Pastor Kilpatrick shared part of his personal testimony of how revival came to Brownsville. Gray reached the place of faith and could believe “there is a place for me in revival.” He observed Kilpatick as he was “watching, guiding, and pastoring a truly sovereign move of God that was changing the world.” Kilpatrick’s words and example showed Gray that “revival needs to be pastored and can be pastored.”
After Sunday worship, Gray called his wife, Kathy, and said, “I have just been in the best Sunday morning service I have ever been in. Tell our church.” Near the end of his second week in Brownsville, Gray headed for home, repentant and on the road to revival and restoration.
While God was working on Gray, he was also working on the members of Smithton Community Church. For two and one-half years the church had held a Tuesday night prayer meeting, but as God prepared the church for revival, the prayers became more intense. Associate Elder Randy Lohman says there was “lots of brokenness” in the months immediately preceding the outpouring.
As the pastor sought God in Florida, the congregation sought him at home. On Sunday night, March 17, Kathy Gray relayed the pastor’s message about the great Sunday morning service in Brownsville. David Cordes, one of the elders, was deeply convicted. Weeping, he asked the congregation, “Why should our pastor have to travel a thousand miles to be in the best service he has ever been in?” He fell on the floor in repentance. Soon he was followed by several other men in the church, repenting for their lack of support and crying out to God to do the same thing at Smithton that he was doing for the pastor in Florida. God continued his work on Wednesday night as a five year old girl prophesied and said, “It’s coming! It’s coming!” The Lord had seen their brokenness.
When the pastor arrived on Sunday night, the glory fell. To be exact, at 6:12 p.m. on 24 March 1996 God the Holy Ghost arrived in his awesome power at Smithton Community Church. They will never be the same. Immediately they added services to their church schedule. Now, the outpouring has continued for two years with five services every week. Visitors have come from all fifty states and many foreign countries, often in numbers that vastly exceed the population of the town.
Thousands of lives have been changed. Sick bodies have been healed. Visiting pastors have taken the fire back to their congregation. Steve, Kathy, and teams from the church are taking the revival all around the world. As for the future of the revival, Lohman said, “God started it and we are going to let him do what he is doing.”
Steve and Kathy Gray
When a two-year revival breaks out in any church, the lives of the pastors are forever changed. This is especially true for Steve and Kathy Gray, pastors of Smithton Community Church in Smithton, Missouri. The Grays pioneered this small country church twelve years ago, after seven years travelling the country in a singing, preaching, and teaching ministry.
Not only does Gray have the responsibilities of pastoring the church and preaching in revival services that are held five nights each week, but the revival has opened many doors for his ministry. Although he seldom is gone from the Smithton pulpit on Sunday morning, he and Kathy often minister across the country and around the world on his “days off.” They have also appeared on many national and local religious television programs. In the past six months, Steve has travelled to Israel three times. Gray says his travels have had a good effect on the church, “keeping them nationally and world minded.” To be sure the church shares in the expanded ministry; he often takes teams of four to twenty with him as he travels.
According to Gray, “The longer we are in this (revival), the more I realize how badly it is needed. I didn’t realize how sick the church in America is.” The biggest challenge he has had, according to Gray, “Is to keep out the wolves that come to ruin the purity and unity.” The revival has had persecution and critics, but Gray feels that is to be expected.
He was surprised, however, that he has had to “mobilize staff” to beware of “others who come to infiltrate and cause division.” Gray realizes that God is doing a great work in many places today and is glad God has raised the level of humility in the church “so we can bless those who are being blessed even if we don’t do it the same way they do.” Despite all the changes and challenges, Gray says the last two years have been “the best years of our lives.”
Samuel Autman wrote this article in the Everyday Magazine, a Sunday paper in Missouri, on 7 June 1998.
Tiny Smithton in Missouri has no sidewalk, no coke machines, no gas > stations, > no traffic lights, no motel rooms, no restaurants. But 100,000 people > believe > it’s where you go to find the Holy Spirit.>
And it will come about after this that I will pour out My Spirit on > all > mankind; and your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will > dream > dreams, your young men will see visions. And even on the male and female > servants I will pour out My Spirit in those days. > Joel 2:28
Under sweltering skies on a late spring Friday evening, more than 500 > worshipers are packed into the Smithton Community Church for powerful > encounters with the Holy Spirit. For two years now, seekers have driven or > flown in from all 50 states and every corner of the globe to this > white-frame > country church. Easily 100,000 have traveled from as far away as Africa, > Canada, France, Japan, Germany, Australia, Korea, Israel, England and > Malaysia.
This night, not unlike many others, the church will cram in more souls > than > live in this mid-Missouri town, population 532, seven miles east of > Sedalia > on > Highway 50. > The audience is in high gear for another Pentecostal revival meeting.
Outside, men in vests, walkie-talkies in hand, circulate through the > gravel > parking lot, directing traffic. Inside the gymnasium-turned-sanctuary, > fathers > and mothers clutch their small children. People embrace newfound friends. > It’s > a yackfest before the holy explosive celebration begins.
By 7:30 p.m., a joyful musical roar goes up. Hundreds of bodies bounce > up > and down in unison, vibrating as if at a rock concert. They clap their > hands. > They speak in tongues. They dance and they shriek. The volume is > deafening. > Elderly women and small children alike lift their hands.
“Praise the Lord!”
“Hallellujah!”
“Thank you, Jesus!”
The four-hour Pentecostal service has only begun.
Eyes look toward heaven to see the slides projected overhead. That’s > where > the song lyrics are displayed. > In one voice they yell: “Revival is in the land! Come and see what the Lord has done! Revival! Revival! Revival!”
Eric Nuzum, 28, a former forklift driver turned associate pastor, leads > a > full band with drums, guitars and synthesizers on the stage. The music > blares. > The room reverberates.
An hour and a dozen songs later, quiet blankets the room after the > high-octane worship. The shouts have ceased. Nuzum leads a one-word chorus > slowly of “Hallelujah” on his acoustic guitar. All over the building, they > are > singing and swaying in unison.
After a few announcements, the offering is taken. The music picks back > up. > The bespectacled pastor, Steve Gray, 46, jumps to the lectern and sings > “One More Time” and “Return to the Lord,” two songs he wrote himself.
He opens his Bible to Mark, chapter 1, verse 1.
“The beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.”
Gray, is an unassuming man in a 5-foot-8 frame, with ocean-blue eyes > and > fiery blond hair. He is intent on not becoming a celebrity or drawing > attention to himself. He berates what he called the American humanistic > gospel, which has taken the focus off Jesus Christ. His oration goes for > an > hour.
“It’s not about us! It’s the gospel about Jesus Christ,” he thunders.
“Amen!” the crowd responds.
“We are missing the point,” Gray says, raising his voice. “Jesus didn’t > say > ‘I have come to follow you.’ He said ‘Get behind me. Follow me. Do what I > do. > Go where I go. Feel what I feel. Pray what I prayed. Live how I lived and, > if > necessary, die how I died.’”
It’s an old-fashioned message that was spelled out in the book of Acts. > Gray sprinkles in comments about hellfire.
The ‘Smithton outpouring’
Like many Christian groups, Pentecostal and charismatic Christians > believe > that the Bible is the inspired word of God; that salvation comes through > Jesus > Christ, the Son of God; that baptism is accomplished through total > immersion. > They believe that all people will be raised from the dead to face a final > judgment, and then eternal salvation or damnation.
What distinguishes the charismatics/Pentecostals is not simply > believing > in > the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity, but allowing the Holy > Spirit > to manifest himself through physical behavior such as speaking in tongues, > casting out demons and singing in words inspired by the power of the > Spirit.
Jesus is the center of their religious attention; worship of Him is greatly enhanced by the gifts of the Holy Spirit. > Throughout the preaching, and in subsequent conversations, Gray stresses that when anyone puts aside self-interest and assumes the interests of > God, > things happen.
He’s not interested in numbers, he says, only spiritual > intensity. He believes that God has selected the little church in Smithton > to > prove that revival can occur anywhere.
“These are men and women, that when they pray, fire from heaven falls. When they pray, blind eyes are open. When they pray, lives are changed. When > they > pray, miracles happen. When they pray, the whole world is stirred up and > whole > cities are changed,” Gray said.
The “Cornfield Revival” or “Smithton Outpouring” has stirred up this Pettis County community, so tiny it barely shows up on a map. There are no soda > machines, traffic lights, gas stations or sidewalks in sight. At least > seven > times a day, trains zip across the track, blocking entrance to the town.
The international attention, the high-octane music and the snarled > traffic > anger Smithton residents. However, travellers needing food and shelter are > welcomed by the motel and restaurant owners in nearby Sedalia.
‘Slain in the Spirit’
Once Gray’s preaching concludes, he turns the service over to trained > prayer leaders. The prayer sessions seem violent. > Many worshipers pray, weep, tremble and are knocked to the floor by > what > they consider to be the hand of God. By evening’s end, this room will > resemble > a battlefield littered with human bodies, many supine on the gray carpet, > “slain in the Spirit.”
They say they are so overcome by the Holy Spirit, they shake, quake, > roll, > jerk or even faint. > Within minutes, a jubilant energy fills the room, almost like > electricity. > The faithful believe the Spirit has come with power to heal broken hearts, > to > transform lives and get them on the road to glory.
Tears roll down many cheeks. > Cheeks are mostly white, although there are a few black and yellow > faces > in > the mix. Upper and lower income. Young and old. Urban and rural dwellers, all under one roof.
The Rev. Robert Clement drove 1,700 miles from San Diego. His own > church > has been struggling. He has wrestled with fear, rejection and failure. > “Each time I go up and get prayer, it’s like layers peeling off,” he > said. > “Layers of fear, failure and rejection.”
Missouri ties to movement
Smithton is the third place in North America in the last four years to > be > engulfed in one of the longest Pentecostal revivals of this century. All > three > sites have Missouri ties.
In January 1994, Randy Clark, pastor of the Vineyard Christian Fellowship of St. Louis, Missouri, was ministering at the Airport Vineyard Church in Toronto, Ontario, when the so-called “Toronto Blessing” hit. People in the > congregation > burst into fits of uncontrollable laughter. Others fell into people’s arms > and > shook. That revival is ongoing.
On Father’s Day 1995, an appearance by visiting evangelist Steve Hill > at > the Brownsville Assembly of God in Pensacola, Florida, marked the similar > emotional manifestations. More than 1.5 million seekers have made > pilgrimages > to Brownsville, where the revival is ongoing. Springfield, Missouri, is the > worldwide headquarters of the Assemblies of God.
As the century and the second millennium of the Christian era draw to a close, Pentecostal revivalists say more is to come. Newsweek magazine said there were 20 million Pentecostals/charismatics in the United States and 400 million worldwide (600 million by 2010).
Revivalism seems to be characterized by an expectation of Jesus Christ’s returning to Earth. At the end of the 19th century, there were similar expectations of some cataclysmic event, and there was revival fever.
“There will be a great revival before the Second Coming of Jesus Christ,” said Clark. “This could be the beginning of it, but I am not saying it is.”
With revival comes stinging backlash. The California-based Vineyard Fellowship ousted the Toronto organization for going “over the edge.”
The lightning of the Spirit
Steve Gray grew up in Sedalia, a town of 20,000 well known as the site of the Missouri State Fair. He and his wife, Kathy, to whom he’s been married 23 years, spent seven years in a travelling music ministry. Then in 1984, the Grays stopped their itinerant ministry and opened a church in a building that had been closed for four years.
The building, now called Smithton Community Church, had been built as the Christian Church in Farmer’s City in 1859. As people deserted Farmer’s City and moved to the nearby “Smith City” because of the railroad, the church moved. In 1873, the building was disassembled into into four parts and pulled by ox cart to what is Smithton today.
The Christian Church changed hands a number of times by the time it closed its doors in 1980. By 1996, the Grays’ ministry and marriage had reached crisis point. They had considered splitting. Gray had wondered whether pastoring in a rural community had been the right choice.
“I was ready to quit,” Gray said.
Gray drove 1,000 miles to the revival in Pensacola, hoping to figure out a way to dissolve his ministry and maybe to sell insurance or become a teacher.
For 10 days, he waited in his hotel room for an experience with God. At night, he went to meetings at the Brownsville church. Ultimately, Gray felt that God wanted him to return to his community and have a revival. He was slightly hopeful.
When he arrived back in Smithton, he walked into his church after an > evening service had concluded. He took eight steps toward Kathy and the lightning of the Spirit hit him, he said. His hands shot up in the air. The people in the congregation rushed forward and began weeping and rejoicing.
As the story goes, the entire congregation of the church at Clay and Chestnut streets in Smithton was transformed by the Spirit. They started to gather day after day to pray. By the third week, the curious showed up. The multitudes followed from outside of Smithton in Missouri and way beyond.
Jennifer Dieckmann remembers. Before the revival, Dieckmann, 23, described her life as miserable. Her family had been kicked out of a church in Sedalia in a theological dispute, and she was resentful.
“I was happy holding on to anger and bitterness and hate,” Dieckmann said. “When the revival hit, it hit me personally.”
Now she talks about forgiveness and loving her enemies. “In an instant, it was like the weight was gone,” she said. “I have forgiven those people who kicked us out of our church.”
Linda Byrd, 28, is co-pastor of Jubilee Worship Center in Junction City, Kansas. She and her husband drive down many weekends for spiritual refreshment.
“Most Americans know religion is their effort to find God,” she said. “What is happening here is not just talk about Christ but demonstrations of Christ. He demonstrated that He was the Son of God. He did not say ‘Take my word.’ He proved it through miracles. That’s what this is, demonstrations.”
‘I realized God loves me’
Rhonda Wagner, 44, of Springdale, Arkansas, was back. She had come once before in March. Wagner had attended the Toronto meetings some time ago.
“We kept going to the Lord with our problems, but we never actually gave them to him. I can’t tell you all of the dynamics of what happened to me in Toronto, except it was up there I realized God really loves me.”
In the process of receiving prayer there, she shook for 12 hours. What made her shake?
“The spirit of the Lord is way more powerful than an electric shock. When the Holy Spirit comes upon us, our physical bodies will react by shaking, shouting or falling.”
Her friend Kathy Johnson, 48, of Amarillo, Texas, has now been to all three revival hot spots. She said a hunger and thirst for spiritual things cause her to travel to revival meetings.
“I have realized that I have only just begun to know him who draws me to Pensacola, to Smithton and Toronto. He’s so much bigger than I thought.”
Reproduced from the Awakening e-mail, 9 June 1998.
(c) Renewal Journal 12: Harvest, 1998, 2011.
Reproduction is allowed with the copyright included in the text.
I will not give sleep to my eyes or slumber to my eyelids; until I find a place for the LORD, a dwelling for the Mighty One of Jacob. … Let us go into his dwelling place; let us worship at his footstool. Arise, O LORD, to thy resting place; thou and the ark of thy strength. Let thy priests be clothed with righteousness; and let thy godly ones sing for joy.
Psalm 32:4,5,7,8,9.
Though we are one body, as seen in Ephesians 4:4-6, we in the church have come together with many individual agendas. This generation of people has often been called the “bless me” generation. We need healing, comfort, wisdom, spiritual and emotional nurture, material provision, protection, ability to overcome problems in our lives, power to defeat the enemy, answers to our questions, direction, a place to belong, an opportunity to serve in a way that would somehow make a difference, and much more.
We also come to worship and praise the Lord. But how diversified our expectations and priorities can be! How disappointed, critical, and angry we can become when our personal agenda is not fulfilled.
The Lord is returning for His Bride, the Church. That’s us. A husband should be able to rest in His wife’s heart. He laid down His life for us – and we wear His robe of righteousness. But He also called us to lay down our lives for one another. Only as we let Him purify our hearts can we come into unity and the kind of harmony in which the Lord Himself can rest in us, individually and corporately.
Many in the Body of Christ are beginning to change their focus, repenting of self-centred seeking, and consciously choosing to seek God’s presence and to bless the Lord for His sake. The Lord is doing something that even goes beyond those personal choices, and blessing a new kind of “fellowship” in Him.
From June 27 through June 30, 1996, I attended The Gathering of the Nations, at the Memorial Arena in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. More than 2,000 people from many nations, races, cultures, and denominations came together to worship and seek the face and glory of the Lord, to tune into His heart, to listen to His voice, and to respond to His leading.
A meeting without an agenda
Personal agendas were set aside. No musicians were appointed beforehand to lead worship, no speakers invited, no topics chosen, and no projects planned. A group of “fathers in Christ” and other leaders met daily to pray for session-by-session direction. They also reviewed and discerned which words should be shared from the larger body.
Musicians were chosen who were young and old, native and white, representing varieties of cultures. Speakers were appointed on very short notice, and the order and content of their messages were built well, one upon another, always with exhortation to focus on the Lord: “We are here to bless the Lord and to follow His direction.” By divine direction, the Holy Spirit indicated at a 6 p.m. leaders meting that He wanted communion served to the entire gathering; it was done in reverence and order less than two hours later.
A chief of the local indigenous people gave a gracious welcome to the assembly. He was not a Christian, but he spoke appreciatively of the spirit he felt in the worship, unlike what he had experienced before in Christian meetings. Prayers of blessing were said for the Indian children, and people who chose to give for the education of Indian children – including the restoration of native language – came to tables at the front of the auditorium to leave gifts totalling nearly $27,000.
A crowd of teenagers sat on the concrete floor in front of the stage, attentive and prayerful during 2- and 3-hour sessions. When the Indian member of the Canadian parliament greeted the gathering, the young people came up on the stage to pray blessing for him, and he prayed blessing for them. The teens then prayed for the babies in the congregation.
The days progressed with repeated encouragement to drop agendas, focus on the Lord Jesus, and to seek the face of God in preparation for the return of the Lord. There was strong emphasis on humility, trust, honour, and the glory of the Lord. Anointing was increasingly powerful, and I think that some half-expected a cloud or pillar of fire to appear, or a heavenly bomb to drop, leaving nothing but ashes. In a sense that did happen on the final day.
During the final evening session, two pastors spoke on fathering. I also spoke, but on the topic of mothering, with emphasis on nurturing, repentance, forgiveness, reconciliation, freeing young people to become all they can be, and what it is to honour parents. Two powerfully anointed teen-age boys stood to repent on behalf of the teens for rebellion, and to express forgiveness toward parents. Fathers and mothers all rose to repent publicly for sins against their children. Then the Lord broke people open wide, and repentance was spoken for all manner of sins. Gut-level weeping and wailing was heard all over the auditorium. Some were on their faces on the floor, while many were praying for one another. Then parents prayed blessing for their children, and children for parents. This continued until after midnight.
After prayers of forgiveness and healing, the musicians began to play celebration music, and when I left with others to go to bed there were still 500 to 600 people dancing in the ashes of repentance for joy in the Lord. The agenda of the Lord’s seemed to be fulfilled, without our help at all! May He continue to do that in all of our lives, and wherever His Body gathers together.
Gems from the last day of The Gathering of the Nations
Maturity comes from discerning the Spirit of God and walking in a healthy fear of God.
The Lord is taking us into a revelation of who He is.
Our emotions must be brought into the purpose and will of God.
We need a teachable heart, ever growing, and listening, and welcoming correction.
Counsellors must lead to the centrality of Jesus.
You can’t function in authority if you carry a spirit of rebellion. Repent for your generation.
The enemy hits you in the area of your anointing.
Whatever your abuse or wounding, the Lord will transform it into your power.
The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.
The glory and fear of the Lord will be known all over the world.
The world will not take note of who you are, but when the Spirit moves they’ll know God
Used by permission from Elijah House News.
(c) 2011, 2nd edition. Reproduction allowed with copyright included in text.
Dr Rodney and Adonica Howard-Brown are pastors and revival evangelists.
Critics focus on the rip-roaring style of his revivalist “camp meetings”, but this US-based South African evangelist says all he’s interested in is God touching people’s lives.
The Holy Spirit wants to touch the lives of real people.
I don’t spend much time wondering about God’s ability
to do what he said he could do. I just trust him.
______________________________________________
On previous visits to Australia, Rodney Howard-Browne has attracted both crowds and controversy. But vigorous debate about his methods and the “phenomena” seen at his meetings has not kept thousands away. … The US-based South African evangelist spoke with Rob Buckingham about spiritual power, the simplicity of faith, and how it feels to be surprised by God.
Buckingham: Things took off for you number of years ago. Can you tell us what took place at that time?
Howard-Browne: We’d moved to America in December ‘87 and travelled wherever the doors opened. One pastor in upstate New York asked us to have two meetings a day and invited the whole congregation. So in April 1989 we went to [a town called] Clifton Park to a church with about 250 members.
I was amazed to see people so hungry for the things of God. On the Monday morning 60 people came to the morning service. This was amazing, especially in America at that time – there had been some major set backs with different major ministries crumbling, and people were disillusioned. Next day we had 100 people at the service – nearly a third of the church coming out on a Tuesday morning!
While I was teaching, just like I normally do, the praises of God just filled the room, and people started falling out of their seats. It looked like someone was sitting in the balcony and shooting people with an invisible gun. Some were crying, some were laughing, others were rolling on the floor. It took a little getting used to.
The presence of God literally filled that place. We saw an outbreak of a revival that now, this April, is nine years old. It’s gone around the world, touched the lives of millions of people, an it hasn’t subsided or stopped. It’s been a great adventure.
Buckingham: What are your reflections now on what took place back then?
Howard-Browne: I see it as an outpouring of the Holy Spirit. It’s not like we weren’t expecting it. We were crying out to God to come and move; we just didn’t know how or when it was going to happen. So when it happened the way it did it totally took us by surprise.
Buckingham: Is there any change in what took place then compared to what’s happening now?
Howard-Browne: It’s just multiplied many times over. In the beginning it was 100 people and now it’s thousands. Whether we’ve been in China or Japan, Holland, Germany, Russia or the islands of the sea, it’s the same. People are the same and they have the same needs. The Holy Spirit wants to touch the lives of real people. There are many religions in the world, but religions will leave you empty because it’s man’s vain attempt to reach God. But Christianity is God reaching man through the person of Jesus Christ.
Buckingham: There are reports of physical healings at your meetings. Do these happen in every country?
Howard-Browne: It happens everywhere. We look at it this way. When people come to a meeting where the Holy Spirit is moving, whatever their needs are God will touch them at that point. Healing is just one of these. People come with cancer, arthritis, different diseases, and the presence of god touches them. Some are healed in their seat without even having hands laid on them, and it’s only later they find out that they’ve been healed.
Dolly, a little Alaskan native lady, came to our meetings in a wheelchair. She’d had arthritis for 18 years, the last five confined to a wheelchair and the final two years bedridden. She came as a last resort, asking God to please touch her. We laid hands on her, but we didn’t really pray that she’s be able to get out of the wheelchair, just that she’d get some joy and that God would touch her. I said, “Lady, what do you want to do?” She responded, “I want to get out of this chair.” So I said, “Well then, go ahead.” Then she climbed out of the chair and walked around the building and was totally healed of crippling arthritis. This happened back in 1991 and we’ve seen her subsequently. She’s still totally healed with no trace of arthritis in her body.
Buckingham: That’s physical healing. What about emotional healing? People can carry a lot of baggage around inside.
Howard-Browne: There are many examples. One is about a woman in North Dakota who was raped by a so-called friend. She contracted two venereal diseases, the worst the doctor said he’d seen. He told her that she’d never be able to have children.
This woman came to the meeting pretty traumatized – this had only happened weeks before. The power of God touched her, she fell on the floor and as she was lying there she felt like there was a fireman standing over her with a big fire hose washing her clean. For about two-and-a-half hours she felt this water washing her clean. When she got up she could remember the rape but it was like it happened to somebody else. God had totally removed the hurt from her. When she went back to the doctor there was no trace of the diseases. That was over five years ago. Today she’s married to one of the pastors of the church. They’ve had children with nothing wrong.
Buckingham: What about other stories?
Howard-Browne: An executive-type lady came to a meeting with a lot of deep hurt in her heart. About 20 years ago she’d had an abortion, and every time she was around things of God she felt guilty and condemned with thoughts like “God’s never going to bless you because of what you did.”
We prayed for her and she was overcome, lying there filled with joy. Laughing hysterically. Later she told us it was as if she was taken up to heaven to see a little girl dancing around, with Jesus standing to the side. The little girl said, “Look Jesus, Mummy’s laughing”. When that happened, she said it felt like a hand reached down inside her and pulled out all the hurt. When she got up from the floor she didn’t feel guilty any more. She knew that God had forgiven her and everything was all right.
Buckingham: Are these incidents isolated events?
Howard-Browne: No. People are healed from depression, a lot from fear, even from wanting to commit suicide. There’s so much pressure on people today. People feel like they can’t make it. So they come to the meetings. God touches them and sets them free. It’s wonderful to see.
Buckingham: Australians are quite different from Americans, and you minister in America a lot. How do you respond to that difference in your meetings when you come to Australia?
Howard-Browne: Because I’m a South African, I think it’s probably easier for me to respond than it would be for an American. I find the Aussies very direct, which I like. There’s no airs or graces, nobody’s pretending. I think maybe that’s why we’ve had such a great response in Australia.
Buckingham: You travel extensively around the world. That must be draining on you. How do you handle the pace?
Howard-Browne: Actually, I find the travel exhilarating, so that by the time I get to a new place I’m refreshed. We travel 46 weeks of the year, and it’s awesome to see people’s lives touched and changed. That’s the thing that’s refreshing. When we get tired, we try to take a break for two or three days.
Buckingham: Rodney, how do you describe your own relationship with God?
Howard-Browne: I would describe my relationship as very, very simple. I don’t understand some people when they always want to complicate God. I just see him as God – nothing is impossible to him. I have a very childlike faith that God honours his word. I don’t spend much time arguing about it or wondering about his ability to do what he said he could do. I just trust him.
Buckingham: How does your relationship with God impact your life personally?
Howard-Browne: Well, because nothing is impossible for him, I always want to believe him for big things. When you think that he made the heavens and the earth, then everything we come up with after that is really so small. I just think sometimes people make everything so difficult when there’s nothing too hard for God.
Buckingham: What about your relationship with others? How does your faith impact that?
Howard-Browne: I want God to do for them what he’s done for me. I’m not anything special or different. I’m just an ordinary person. But I know that if he can do great things for me, he can do great things for them.
Buckingham: How does your faith impact your care for the world around you?
Howard-Browne: When I see a need, my wife has to calm me down; she says, “You can’t do everything.” God leads you into areas where you can minister effectively to touch the needs of people. We all want to reach out and feed the poor or help those less fortunate than we are, yet because I’m busy doing what I’m doing, I can’t do it. So I try to find other ministries and get behind them. I don’t have to do what they’re doing: I just finance and support them.
Buckingham: What can people expect at your meetings this year?
Howard-Browne: Pretty much like two years ago, we’re going to focus on he person of Jesus – people being touched by the Lord and coming back to their “first love”.
Buckingham: What do you mean by “first love”?
Howard-Browne: “First love” is the love you have when you first give your life to Christ – the joy that you’ve just met him, that he’s set you free from sin, that all the guilt and condemnation is gone. It’s like a young guy and a girl; when they first fall in love, they’re just beside themselves.
It’s so easy as a child of God to get caught up in the daily grind, trying to please God, caught up in rituals and traditions. You end up losing that joy and peace. Revival is about people falling in love with Jesus all over again.
Anything can happen when people come back to their first love.
This is an edited version of an interview conducted by Rob Buckingham for use in On Being ALIVE and his weekly radio program “Rob Buckingham and Friends”. It was originally broadcast on 3MP on 29 March, 1998.
Reprinted with permission from On Being ALIVE Magazine, No. 4, May 1998, pages 30-34.
(c) 2011, 2nd edition. Reproduction allowed with copyright included in text.
You can’t help being affected by the climate of revival.
It may take a paradigm shift or two, but if you are open to God,
you’ll definitely get soaked by the revival rain.
It’s hard not to get wet in Argentina. In Australia it is relatively easy to stay dry. I’m not talking about the weather, but about the effects of Holy Spirit revival.
In October and November of 1996 I was one of twenty-five Australians who attended the International Institute conducted for the last seven years by Harvest Evangelism. Ed Silvoso, the Founder and President of Harvest Evangelism has visited Australia a number of times during the past five years and has introduced a strategy for reaching cities, regions and the nation called, “Prayer Evangelism.”
Argentina has been experiencing a revival for the last eleven years that has increased in impact each year. The struggling evangelical churches in Argentina prior to the revival would rejoice if one or two new converts were added to their churches in any single calendar year. These churches were always small and very segregated. They were generally hated by the Catholic Church and were often persecuted by the pro‑Catholic governments. This was the established status quo.
These evangelical/pentecostal churches had their share of dedicated and gifted leaders with every brand and emphasis in the protestant spectrum. They had good examples of everything: the right message, examples of fine theology and healthy spiritual ethos. Mission organizations from many nations had sown faithfully and persistently. But there was little power to impact the ruggedly proud and fiercely independent Argentine hearts. The cities and provinces remained seemingly impervious to their efforts.
Now things have changed. In more than sixteen city regions of the nation, the church overall is seeing consistent growth after the proportions of the parable that Jesus taught about seed and ground. Each year they are seeing “a crop, yielding a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown” (Matthew 13:23). It is now customary for the whole church in a city to see an increase in people being added to the church of 100% per year.
We spent fifteen days in Argentina for three major reasons:
a) to attend the International Institute, a gathering of Christian leaders from every part of Argentina and most nations of South America,
b) to receive a commitment from wonderful South American Christian pastors and leaders to pray for a million hours for revival in Australia
c) to visit with leaders in some of the cities and gain some understanding of the practicalities of reaching whole regions for Christ.
Factors leading to revival
Our expectations were exceeded on every count. What I wanted to know was, “How did a fragmented unattached bunch of small churches ever begin to see revival?” There are probably many reasons: sovereign ones and human ones. I can’t do much about the sovereign matters, except be fully committed to them. I wanted to see what identifiable human factors may have led to the church in a nation seeing revival. Here are three that were observed.
1. Unity through relational networks has given the ministry of the church greater authority.
It’s hard to know who’s who in Argentina. Just looking at people in a crowded room would not give a clue as to who were the most anointed leaders, nor which “tag” they wore. I’m not implying that it was an insipid example of people striving to find their “lowest common denominator.” It was fiery and focused. It’s just that you couldn’t pick the Baptists from the Pentecostals. It seems that they have made a strong commitment to proclaim absolutes, not interpretations, when they come together.
As Ted Haggard says, “Inside the walls of our churches, let’s teach and practice the full menu of what we believe. …. outside the church we must focus on the absolutes. … The result is that the non‑Christian community hears the same basic absolutes from … a variety of churches.” What is similarly encouraging is that because the major leaders have not bought the western cultural value of status and importance, they have less to protect and therefore more to give away. We had the great joy and benefit of receiving and receiving. “Recibe! recibe! recibe” was often heard.
The other result is that the key leaders around the nation love each other enough to form a very strong relationship bond. They can give leadership to the church and help to acknowledge what God is saying and doing because they can speak with a voice that comes from being one in heart and soul.
In the cities, the pastors talk collectively about the church in the city. They actually think of themselves as one church even though they form different congregations with sometimes very different flavours. They give leadership to the church in the city from the perspective of a very jealously guarded unity. The pastors of the larger churches don’t dominate and operate independently and the pastors of the smaller churches don’t feel threatened. We saw it, heard it and felt it. It was the kingdom of God right enough.
This unity is not just for enjoyment value. It has given the church in a given locality greater authority. It is not to be measured in political or social terms, but spiritual. The powers of darkness have little power to blind the minds of unbelievers when the church operates in unity.
2. Uncompromised commitment to evangelism has created a sharper focus
Whatever the strategies to be used, the underlying strength comes from a heart to reach the people who are lost from God. There are meetings in the churches just about every night. There is very little emphasis on home groups and home group structures. Mostly people come to the meetings: teaching, prayer, evangelistic. The message is preached like any regular evangelical pastor would preach it in Australia. It would be more demonstrative of course as reflecting the culture, but there is no “secret” message associated with the revival.
People in Argentina are coming to Christ in one of two main ways:
They come in thousands to the altar rail of Carlos Annacondia crusades. This little dynamic Argentine exudes a measure of faith that has nothing to do with presentation, and everything to do with heart – from spending a lot of time in the presence of God no doubt.
People are also coming to Christ through the prayer supported lifestyle of the average members of the churches. So much of it is one to one. If anything this seems to be the growing edge.
As the pastors and intercessors knock out the enemy missile launching sites, the regular soldiers are able to take captives with much greater frequency; I wouldn’t say ‘automatically’, but I would say ‘more readily’. They can do this not because they have a level of faith much in excess of that of the average believer in Australia, but because they are focused on evangelism. It is their chosen lifestyle focus.
This focus allows all the activities of the church to be measured more objectively. We tend to measure programs on how they will affect the members. They tend to measure programs on how they will affect the non‑members. The ministry of evangelism gets the first second and third bite of the cherry in Argentine churches. People will sacrifice anything. The pastoral staff of a church all sold their cars at one time in order to make possible a particular evangelistic ministry. They mean business. That’s the bottom line.
3. A commitment to the harvest has uncovered important principles of prayer and spiritual warfare
South America in general and Argentina in particular have become synonymous with prayer and spiritual warfare. Sometimes this has been a bit controversial in its expression. I discovered something in Argentina that helped me to put this in a clearer context. Basically the principles of things like “spiritual mapping” have come from the experience of evangelism, not from a study of spiritual warfare.
No finer example of this process could be found than the experience of Baptist leaders Victor Lorenzo and his father Eduardo. They had begun to evangelize and found that they have had little impact in some places.
A typically ‘Australian’ conclusion would be to say that it was a ‘hard place’. These men would be more likely to say that ‘no harvest’ was not an option. When they looked for the reason for no harvest they began to find that the hardness was due to the exercise of some form of demonic power or influence. They would give themselves to dealing with the powers as the Bible describes those encounters. As a result, hundreds and even thousands of people were saved and added to the church.
There were places where successive attempts to plant churches had totally failed. When they began to deal with the spiritual forces of darkness that held these areas in bondage, the same attempts were successful. This evidence was compelling, but the process was even more enlightening. The spiritual warfare comes out of a bold commitment to preach the gospel, not out of a textbook on spiritual warfare.
This is the emphasis of the New Testament of course. Spiritual warfare is not a department of the church where people hive off and play with demons. Evangelism and spiritual warfare are the same thing. It’s just that they have discovered that evangelism is more than communication, it is warfare. The evangelists must be committed to the intercessors and the intercessors must be committed to the evangelists. The apostles and prophets must work together with the pastors and teachers and they must all work together with the evangelists. God is raising up these ministries within regions. Not only in South America, but on every continent.
Conclusion: Not exactly new, but very, very different !
There were some compelling conclusions for me. The first was the realization that there is really nothing there that’s mysterious or new. It is different but not new. The difference will be found in the measure.
While we tend to fill our shelves with books and tapes on prayer, they tend to fill heaven with bowls of incense (Rev. 5:8; 8:3,4).
While we tend to spend our time reading “fishing” magazines, they tend to spend their time boldly proclaiming the kingdom of God.
While we tend to skirt around the edge of our community picking up the few “strays” and adding them to the church, they tend to focus on “binding the strongman” (Mark 3:27) and robbing the whole house.
While we tend to languish in our cultural and ecclesiastical baggage, they tend to take seriously the matter of finding every way they can to become one, so that the world will know.
That’s exactly what is happening. The difference in Argentina is that they are so much further down the same road. They have put in the effort, and paid the price. They have very little excess baggage. They set aside non‑essentials. They have more energy for the main event on the program. The result is that the kingdom of God is coming not only to Argentina, but to the rest of the world. As they continue and as they pray for the nations of the world, their “faith is being reported all over the world” (Romans 1:8).
It’s hard not to get wet in Argentina. You can’t help being affected by the climate of revival. It may take a paradigm shift or two, but if you are open to God, you’ll definitely get soaked by the revival rain. In Australia we are still looking to the sky for rain. Our main danger is that when the rain comes we are just as likely to take out two umbrellas, a full length driz‑a‑bone and some gumboots just in case we might get wet. Wet theology and wet and crinkled church traditions are so messy. I wonder what the weather man will say on TV tonight? Praise the Lord !
Reprinted by permission from New Day, February 1997, pages 18-20.
(c) 2011, 2nd edition. Reproduction allowed with copyright included in text.
Dr Geoff Waugh reports on recent and current revival movements in the South Pacific nations of Vanuatu, the Solomon Islands, Fiji and Papua New Guinea, as examples of radical and effective discipleship.
Transforming Revivals includes a chapter by George Otis Jr , Snapshots of Glory
Revivals in the South Pacific
Transforming revival continues to spread exponentially. The Sentinel Group (www.glowtorch.org) DVDs report on community transformation around the world, especially in Transformations I and II, and Fiji reports in Let the Seas Resound. This brief update describes recent revivals in the South Pacific islands, representative of revivals multiplying in the twenty-first century.
Vanuatu, South Pacific
Law School students at their Christian Fellowship (CF) in University of the South Pacific developed a powerfully discipling community through their CF, which led to effective evangelism, mission to many nations, and involvement in revival movements. Peer discipling with committed leaders encouraged personal growth and enabled powerful ministry.
The Lord moved in a surprising way at the Christian Fellowship (CF) in the School of Law in Port Vila, Vanuatu on Saturday night, April 6, the weekend after Easter 2002.
The university’s CF held an outreach meeting on the lawn and steps of the grassy university square near the main lecture buildings, school administration and library. God moved strongly there that night.
Unusual lightning hovered around in the sky that night, and as soon as the prayer teams had finished praying with those who rushed forward at the altar call, the tropical rain pelted down on that open field area.
God poured out his Spirit on many lives that night, including Jerry Waqainabete and Simon Kofe. Both of them played rugby in the popular university teams and enjoyed drinking and the night club scene. Both changed dramatically. Many of their friends said it would not last. It did.
A team of eleven from their CF visited Australia for a month in November-December 2002 involved in outreach and revival meetings in many denominations and as well as in visiting home prayer groups. They drove 6,000 kilometres in a 12-seater van, including a trip from Brisbane to Sydney and back to visit Hillsong.
South Pacific team on mision in Australia
The team prayed for hundreds of people in various churches and home groups – as in the cover photograph of this book. They led worship at the daily 6 am prayer group at Kenmore Baptist Church, with Calvin Ziru on guitar. That followed their own 5 am daily prayer meeting in the house provided miraculously for them.
Miracle House bought with “no money” (and sold later for $80,000 profit!)
Mission team at their Brisbane house
Philip and Dhamika George from Sri Lanka bought that rental house with no money and made it freely available. They had recently befriended a back packer stranger who advised them to buy a rental property because Brisbane house prices then began to increase rapidly in value. They had no spare money but their new friend loaned them a deposit of $10,000, interest free, to get a bank loan and buy the house. They sold the house two years later for $80,000 profit, returned the deposit loan, and used the profits for Kingdom purposes especially in mission.
The law students from the CF grew strong in faith. Jerry, one of the students from Fiji, returned home for Christmas vacation after the visit to Australia, and prayed for over 70 sick people in his village, seeing many miraculous healings. His transformed life challenged the village because he had been converted at CF after a wild time as a youth in the village. The following December vacation, 2004, Jerry led revival in his village. He prayed early every morning in the Methodist Church. Eventually some children and then some of the youth joined him early each morning. By 2005 he had 50 young people involved, evangelising, praying for the sick, casting out spirits, and encouraging revival. By 2009 Jerry was a lawyer and pastor of a church in Suva and had planted a new church in his village as well.
Simon, returned to his island of Tuvalu, also transformed at university through CF. He witnessed to his relatives and friends all through the vacation in December-January, bringing many of them to the Lord. He led a team of youth involved in Youth Alive meetings, and prayed with the leaders each morning from 4 a.m. Simon became President of the Christian Fellowship at the Law School from October 2003 for a year.
Pentecost Island, Vanuatu
In May 2003 a team from the CF flew to Pentecost Island in Vanuatu for a weekend of outreach meetings on South Pentecost. The national Vanuatu Churches of Christ Bible College, at Banmatmat, stands near the site of the first Christian martyrdom there.
Worship in the chapel at the Bible College on Pentecost Island, Vanuatu
Tomas Tumtum had been an indentured worker on cane farms in Queensland, Australia. He was converted there and returned around 1901 to his village on South Pentecost with a new young disciple from a neighbouring island. They arrived when the village was tabu (taboo) because a baby had died a few days earlier, so no one was allowed near the village. Ancient tradition dictated that anyone breaking tabu must be killed, so they were going to kill Tomas, but his disciple Lulkon asked Tomas to tell them to kill him instead so that Tomas could evangelise his own people. Just before he was clubbed to death at a sacred mele palm tree, he read John 3:16, then closed his eyes and prayed for them.
Tomas became the pioneer of the church in South Pentecost, establishing Churches of Christ there.
Mathias, a young man who repented deeply with over 15 minutes of tearful sobbing, is now the main worship leader in revival meetings. When he was leading and speaking at a revival meeting at the national Bible College, a huge supernatural fire blazed in the hills directly opposite the Bible College chapel in 2005, but no bush was burned.
Pentecost Bible College
Bible College Chapel on Pentecost Island, Vanuatu
By 2004, the Churches of Christ national Bible College at Banmatmat on Pentecost Island became a centre for revival. Pastor Lewis Wari and his wife Marilyn hosted these gatherings at the Bible College, and later on Lewis spoke at many island churches as the President of the Churches of Christ. Lewis had been a leader in strong revival movements on South Pentecost as a young pastor from 1988.
Every weekend the team from the college led revival meetings in village churches. Many of these went late as the Spirit moved on the people with deep repentance, reconciliation, forgiveness, and prayer for healing and empowering.
Pentecost on Pentecost
Grant Shaw accompanied Geoff Waugh to Pentecost Island in Vanuatu in September-October 2006. Grant grew up with missionary parents, saw many persecutions and miracles, and had his dad recounting amazing, miraculous answers to prayer as a daily routine. They often needed to pray for miracles, and miracles happened. From 14 years old Grant participated in mission teams travelling internationally in Asia. Then he attended a youth camp at Toronto Airport Christian Fellowship which has had revival since 1994. He then worked there as an associate youth pastor for 18 months before studying at Bible College in Brisbane. So he is used to revival – all his life! In Vanuatu he was getting clear words of knowledge, and seeing people healed daily in meetings and in the villages. That inspired and challenged everyone.
Raised from the dead
At sharing time in the Upper Room service in Port Vila the capital, Leah Waqa, a nurse, told how she had been on duty that week when parents brought in their young daughter who had been badly hit in a car accident, and showed no signs of life – the monitor registered zero – no pulse. Leah felt unusual boldness, so commanded the girl to live, and prayed for her for an hour – mostly in tongues – and after an hour the monitor started beeping and the girl recovered.
Grant Shaw with Leah Waqa
The mission trip continued on South Pentecost once more, based in the village of Panlimsi where Mathias was then the young pastor. The Spirit moved strongly in all the meetings. Repentance. Reconciliations. Confessions. Anointing. Healings every day. The healings included Pastor Rolanson’s young son able to hear clearly after partially deaf from birth. Rolanson leads evangelism teams, and helped lead this mission.
South Pentecost attracts tourists with its land diving – men jumping from high towers with vines attached to their ankles. Grant prayed for a jumper who had hurt his neck, and the neck crackled back into place. An elderly man no longer needed a walking stick to come up the hill to the meetings. Grant prayed for a son of the paramount chief of South Pentecost from Bunlap, a heathen village. He was healed from a painful groin and he invited the team to come to his village to pray for the sick. No white people had been invited there to minister previously.
The team, including the two Australians, trekked for a week into mountain villages. They literally obeyed Luke 10 – most going with no extra shirt, no sandals, and no money. The trek began with a 5 hour walk across the island to Ranwas on the eastern side. Mathias led worship, with strong moves of the Spirit touching everyone. At one point the preacher spat on the dirt floor, making mud to show what Jesus did once. Marilyn Wari, wife of the President of the Churches of Christ in Vanuatu, then jumped up asking for prayer for her eyes. Later she testified that the Lord told her to do that, and then she found she could read her small Bible without glasses.
Glory in a remote village
The team trekked through the ‘custom’ heathen village (where the paramount chief’s sons lived), and prayed for more sick people. Some had pain leave immediately, and people there became more open to the gospel. Then the team trekked for 7 hours to Ponra, a remote village further north on the east coast.
Revival meetings erupted there! The Spirit just took over. Visions. Revelations. Reconciliations. Healings. People drunk in the Spirit. Many resting on the floor getting blessed in various ways. When they heard about healing through ‘mud in the eye’ at Ranwas some came straight out asking for mud packs also!
One of the girls in the team had a vision of the village children there paddling in a pure sea, crystal clear. They were like that – so pure. Not polluted at all by TV, videos, movies, magazines, worldliness. Their lives were so clean and holy. Just pure love for the Lord, especially among the young.
Angels singing filled the air about 3 am. It sounded as though the village church was packed. The harmonies in high descant declared “For You are great and You do wondrous things. You are God alone” and then harmonies, without words until words again for “I will praise You O Lord my God with all my heart, and I will glorify Your name for evermore” with long, long harmonies on “forever more.” Just worship.
The Upper Room church continues to move in the Spirit and has seen strong touches of God in the islands, especially Tanna Island. They planted churches there in ‘custom’ villages, invited by the chiefs because the chiefs have seen their people healed and transformed.
During missions there in 2006, many young boys asked to be ‘ordained’ as evangelists in the power of the Spirit. They returned to their villages and many of those young boys established churches as they spoke, told Bible stories, and sang original songs inspired by the Spirit.
Solomon Islands
Powerful revival in the Solomon Islands back in 1970 spread throughout the South Pacific. Everywhere pastors and leaders when they sparked more revival, repentance, conversions and many healings and miracles.
The Lord also poured out his Spirit in fresh and surprising ways in New Georgia in the Western District of the Solomon Islands in 2003, and touched many churches in the capital Honiara with strong moves of the Holy Spirit. God’s Spirit moved powerfully especially on youth and children. This included many conversions, many filled with the Spirit, many having visions and revelations.
An anointed pastor from PNG spoke at an Easter Camp in 2003 attended by many youth leaders from the Western Solomons. Those leaders returned on fire. The weekend following Easter, from the end of April, 2003, youth and children in the huge, scenic Marovo Lagoon area were filled with the Spirit, with many lives transformed. Revival began with the Spirit moving on youth and children in village churches. They had extended worship in revival songs, many visions and revelations and lives being changed with strong love for the Lord. Children and youth began meeting daily from 5 pm for hours of praise, worship and testimonies. A police officer reported reduced crimes and that former rebels attending daily worship and prayer meetings.
Revival continues to spread throughout the region. Revival movements brought moral change and built stronger communities in villages in the Solomon Islands, including these lasting developments:
1. Higher moral standards. People involved in the revival have quit crime and drunkeness, and now promote good behaviour and co-operation.
2. Christians who once kept their Christianity inside churches and meetings now talk more freely about their lifestyle in the community and among friends.
3. Revival groups, especially youth, enjoy working together in unity and community, including a stronger emphasis on helping others in the community.
4. Families are strengthened in the revival. Parents spend more time with their youth and children to encourage and help them, often leading them in Bible readings and family prayers now.
5. Many new gifts and ministries are being used by more people than before, including revelations and healing. Even children receive revelations or words of knowledge about hidden magic artifacts or ginger plants related to spirit power and remove them.
6. Churches are growing. Many church buildings in the Marovo Lagoon have been pulled down to be replaced by much bigger buildings to fit in the crowds. Offerings and community support have increased.
7. Unity. Increasingly Christians unite in reconciliation for revival meetings, prayer and service to the community.
Western Solomon Islands
A team of law students from the University of the South Pacific CF in Port Vila, Vanuatu, visited Honiara and the Western Solomon Islands in mid-2003. Sir Peter and Lady Margaret Kenilorea hosted the team in Honiara. Sir Peter was the first Prime Minister of the independent Solomon Islands, and then the Speaker in the Parliament.
South Pacific team at the Kenilorea home
Dr Ronald Ziru, then the administrator of the United Church Hospital in Munda in the western islands hosted the team there, which included his son Calvin. The team had to follow Jesus’ instructions about taking nothing extra on mission because the airline left all their checked luggage behind in Port Vila! They found it at Honiara after their return from the western islands.
At Seghe and in the Marovo Lagoon the revival spread since Easter. Some adults became involved, also repenting and seeking more of the Holy Spirit. Many outpourings and gifts of the Spirit have emerged, including the following:
Transformed lives – Many youths that the police used to check on because of alcohol and drug abuse became sober and on fire for God attending daily worship and prayer meetings. A man who rarely went to church led the youth singing group at Seghe. Adults publicly reconciled after years of old rifts or strife.
Long worship – This included prophetic words or actions and visions. About 200 youth and children led worship at both Sunday services with 1,000 attending in Patutiva village where the revival began. They sang revival songs and choruses accompanied by their youth band.
Visions – Children saw visions of Jesus (smiling at worship, weeping at hard hearts), angels, hell (with relatives sitting close to a lake of fire, so the children warned them). Some saw Jesus with a foot in heaven and a foot on earth, like Mt 28:18 – “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” One boy preached (prophesied) for 1½ hours, Spirit-led.
Revelations – especially ‘words of knowledge’ about hidden things, including magic artefacts and good luck charms. Children show parents where they hid these things! If other adults did that there would be anger and feuds, but they accept it from their children. One boy told police that a man accused of stealing a chain saw (and sacked) was innocent as he claimed, and gave them the name of the culprit, by word of knowledge. The accused man returned to work.
Spiritual Gifts – teaching sessions discussed traditional and revival worship, deliverance, discernment of spirits, gifts of the Spirit, understanding and interpreting visions, tongues, healing, Spirit-led worship and preaching, and leadership in revival. Many young people became leaders moving strongly in many spiritual gifts.
These effects continued to spread throughout the Solomon Islands.
Solomon Islands Mission
In the Solomon Islands the revival team of 15 from Vanuatu and 6 from Brisbane visited villages in the Guadalcanal Mountains, three hours drive and seven hours trekking from Honiara, and held revival meetings in November 2006 especially to encourage revival leaders. They walked up mountain tracks to where revival is spreading, especially among youth. Now those young people have teams going to the villages to sing, testify, and pray for people. Many gifts of the Spirit are new to them. The team prayed for the sick and for anointing and filling with the Spirit. They prayed both in the meetings and in the villages.
Revival in Guadalcanal Mountains
Revival in the Guadalcanal Mountains started at the Bubunuhu Christian Community High School on July 10, 2006, on their first night back from holidays. They took teams of students to the villages to sing, testify, and pray for people, especially youth. Many gifts of the Spirit were new to them – prophecies, revelations (e.g., about where magic stuff is hidden) healings, and tongues.
Choiseul Island
Gideon, Grant and Geoff participated for five days in the National Christian Youth Convention (NCYC) in the north-west at Choiseul Island – 2 hours flight from Honiara. Around 1500 youth gathered from across the nation, many arriving by outboard motor canoes.
The group coming from Simbo Island in two canoes ran into trouble when their outboard motors failed. Two of their young men swam from noon for nine hours in rough seas to reach land and get help for their stranded friends. The following day they arrived with a repaired outboard motor minus their food which they had to throw overboard in the rough seas.
The Friday night convention meeting saw a huge response as Grant challenged them to be fully committed to God. Most of the youth came out immediately so there were hundreds to pray for.
The anointed worship team led the crowd in “He touched me” for nearly half an hour as prayer continued for them, including many wanting healing.
Here is Grant’s description of that youth crusade night:
We were invited to speak for their huge night rally. Geoff began and God moved on the young people in a special way. Then he handed it over to me at about halfway and I gave some words of knowledge for healing. They came forward and we prayed for them most of them fell under the Spirit’s power and all of them testified that all the pain left their body. After that, I continued to speak for a bit and then gave an altar call for any youth who choose to give their lives fully to Jesus, no turning back!
Most of a thousand youth came forward, some ran to the altar, some crying! There was an amazing outpouring of the Spirit and because there were so many people Geoff and I split up and started laying hands on as many people as we could. People were falling under the power everywhere (some testified later to having visions). There were bodies all over the field (some people landing on top of each other).
Then I did a general healing prayer and asked them to put their hand on the place where they had pain. After we prayed people began to come forward sharing testimonies of how the pain had left their bodies and they were completely healed! The meeting stretched on late into the night with more healing and many more people getting deep touches.
It was one of the most amazing nights. I was deeply touched and feel like I have left a part of my self in Choiseul. God did an amazing thing that night with the young people and I really believe that he is raising some of them up to be mighty leaders in Revival.
A young man healed that night returned to his nearby village and prayed for his sick mother and brother. Both were healed immediately. He told about that the next morning at the convention, adding that he had never done that before.
The delegation from Karika, in the Shortland Islands further west, returned the following Monday. The next night they led a meeting where the Spirit of God moved in revival. Many were filled with the Spirit, had visions, were healed, and discovered many spiritual gifts including discerning spirits and tongues. That revival has continued, and spread.
Transforming Revival
An unusual pattern of discipleship has emerged in whole villages in the South Pacific during the 12st Century. Applying the principles of 2 Chronicles 7:14, complete village communities have experienced not only revival but ecological and social transformation. Mentors and leaders from among their own people have led them into radical repentance, reconciliation, and communal commitment to Jesus as Lord in all of life.
The following stories of community transformation from Fiji, Papua New Guinea, and Vanuatu come from pages 58-70 of A Manual for Healing the Land by Vuniani Nakanyaca and Walo Ani, 3rd edition, 2009, published by Toowoomba City Church, Australia, reproduced by permission. Reports by Harry Tura from Vanuatu are added here.
Fiji
The twenty-first century has already seen many village communities transformed. Rev Ratu Vunaiani Nakauyaca describes community transformation in Fiji. The most powerful events in this ongoing revival are the direct results of repentance, reconciliation and unity,
One of the first instances of this occurred in 2002, when Chief Mataitoga of Sabeto village (between Nadi and Lautoka) had a dream from the Lord. The village had a lot of social problems as well as enmity and divisions. As a result of the dream, he called his people together to pray and fast to seek God for answers and healing. Over a period of two weeks, many of the clans spent time with the Chief to sort out their differences. They had meetings every night and God brought about reconciliation and unity in the church and village, many relationships being healed.
There had only been one church in the area until the Pentecostal revival of the 1960s which spread across the cities and towns and into the rural areas during that period. Because of the rejection of the Pentecostal experience by some people, many villages had two churches, one Methodist and one Pentecostal. This caused division between friends and family, with many people not communicating and carrying bitterness and resentment for decades.
When Ratu Mataitoga directed his people to come together as one, there was a move of the Holy Spirit with real repentance and forgiveness, and unity in the village was restored. The long term results of this action were only revealed with the passing of time. Productivity of the soil increased and long absent fish varieties returned to the reef. Mangroves that had died and disappeared have begun to grow again. The mangroves are very important for the ecology, providing shelter and breeding grounds for all kinds of fish, crabs, etc. all of which were part of the staple diet of these villages.
Healing the Land
The Healing the Land (HTL) Process, as it is now officially recognized, was really started on the initiative of Pastor Vuniani Nakauyaca. For him it was a personal journey that resulted from an accumulation of various events.
The Pacific Prayer movement had a desire to see that prayer, repentance and reconciliation were carried out where necessary on location – where missionaries had been killed or where tribal conflict had taken place. These were all based on a bottom-up or grassroots approach to bring healing and reconciliation.
Vuniani had visited Argentina and seen the beneficial results of reconciliation with the British over the Faulklands war. He also visited Guatemala to see the Almolonga transformation (see Transformation Series DVD/Video). This was a singularly dramatic community change. Jails and public bars closed, land fertility increased and crop production levels had to be seen to be believed.
What he saw brought a deeper desire in his heart to see this happen in Fiji, to give room for God to bring about community and national transformation in similar ways to what he had seen overseas. He saw the need to appropriately respond to the circumstances and use the spiritual tools available to see the nation transformed.
Nuku Village
After returning to Fiji, he called some people together to seek God for solutions. They felt they should begin at Nuku, and this took place 1-10 April, 2003. Nuku is about 65 kilometres north of Suva, on the main island of Viti Levu.
The inhabitants of Nuku had been suffering feuds, infertility, mental illness and social problems for decades. The water of the stream that flowed through the village had been polluted since a day 42 years previously, the water and banks being filled with slime. At that time, children were swimming in the stream when the water suddenly turned white and they all ran for their lives. Fish died and grass died. Vuniani, as a child, was swimming in the river when this happened, so he knew the background story. It was believed that the polluted water caused blindness, infertility, madness and even death.
Vuniani and the team went up to Nuku to activate the Process. The key Scripture they went with was 2 Chronicles 7:14, “If my people, who are called by My name, will humble themselves and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land”.
They had two weeks of prayer meetings, the Methodist, Assemblies of God and Seventh Day Adventist churches being represented. They spent time studying Bible references on defilement and Healing the Land. This lead them to repent and confess their sins and the sins of their forefathers, in the same way as Nehemiah did. These included killing and cannibalism, idolatry, witchcraft, bloodshed, immorality
They went to the high places in the area to cleanse them of the sinful acts that had taken place there. The elders confessed sins of their forefathers. Reconciliation first took place within families, then clans and finally within the tribe. The chief of the area led a corporate prayer of repentance with the whole tribe.
On the third day of the Process, some women came running and shouting into the village, announcing that the water in the stream had become pure again. It is still pure today.
Nuku village had been heavily populated, but because of feuds and disputes, people were chased out or just left and went to live in other villages. Deputations were sent out to these to apologise for the past offenses. A matanigasau (traditional apology) was sent to two villages, inviting the people to return if they wished.
The whole community now count themselves as very blessed. The productivity of the land has increased. The stream water is pure and since that time shrimps and fish have returned to the waters. The fertility of the banks and agriculture has radically improved. Some people have even reported that the water has demonstrated healing properties.
Nabitu Village, East of Nausori, Viti Levu
What occurred in this village was very much a follow on from what was happening around the country at the time. There was a split in the tribe and there were a lot of unresolved issues. During a business meeting in the local church, which was situated right in the middle of the village, a fist fight broke out. There was always a heaviness in the village, like a hovering dark cloud. This affected people negatively and there were not a lot of jobs available.
On the advice of chiefs, the people came together on their own initiative for a time of corporate repentance. A lay preacher in the Methodist Church facilitated the Process. There was instantly a change in the atmosphere. The heaviness that had been there had lifted and everyone could feel it. The division in the church was healed.
The lesson learned from there is that satan’s hold over people and places is tenuous to say the least. It only takes one man to lead many into forgiveness and healing. Satan has to leave, along with the oppression and curses.
Vunibau (Serua Island) in the mouth of Navua River
The HTL Process in this place was scheduled over a 14 day period. During the Process the mixture of elements was poured out onto the sand on the beach. Later that day, an elderly lady and her son went fishing on the beach. They cast the net out but when they tried to haul it back in, it seemed to be stuck. They thought that perhaps it had been caught on a stump or rock, but they found that the net was actually so full of fish that they could not pull it in.
They started walking back to the village to tell everyone, and the lady was following her son walking along the beach. Wherever his footprints were in the sand a red liquid appeared. As she walked in his footsteps she was healed of migraine, knee ailments and severe back pain, all of which she had suffered for many years. This healing has been permanent. As soon as they returned to the village she told the whole community what had happened.
All the people rushed down to the beach to see this phenomenon, including the HTL team that was still there at the time. To their amazement, right on the spot where the elements had been poured onto the sand, there was blood coming out of the sand and flowing into the sea. A backslidden Catholic man gave his life to the Lord on the spot. Photos were taken. Vuniani was called from Suva (about an hour away) and he also witnessed the blood coming out of the sand. This actually happened twice.
It was understood to be a confirming sign from the Lord that He was at work in the reconciliation and healing Process. 1 John 5:6-7, “There are three that bear witness on earth, the Spirit, the water and the blood.”
This was similar to the miracle of the healing of the waters in Nuku, which was also recognized as a sign of God’s cleansing and healing that was taking place amongst the people. God is authenticating what He is doing.
At Vunibau many other signs quickly followed. Large fish returned to their fishing grounds. On one occasion, considerable quantities of prawns came ashore so that people could just pick them up. Crabs and lobsters have also returned, and they have been able to sell the large lobsters for up to $25-$30 each.
After this sign of the blood, Pastor Vuniani recalled the scripture in Acts 2:19 where the Lord had spoken through the prophet Joel that “I will grant wonders (signs) in the sky above, and signs on the earth below, blood, and fire and vapour (pillars) of smoke” (NASB). He wondered what would come next after the sign of the blood and felt that the next sign would be fire.
Nataliera, Nailevu North
In Nataliera village there were four churches. There was no communication between their members, affecting even closely related families within the village. Traditional witchcraft was still being practised and there were about eight sorcerers there. In addition, there had been many more deaths than would be normal.
After forgiveness and reconciliation, the members of these four churches would meet every Wednesday for prayer and fasting. On the first Sunday of every month, the four congregations would combine for one large gathering. An Eco Lodge, previously closed, is now prospering after the HTL Process.
For many years the fishing on the reef had become lean. Large fish were very scarce and for many years the catch had only ever comprised “bait fish” – the very small ones. Much of the coral reef was dead and what was left seemed to be dying.
After reconciliation, on two separate occasions fire was seen to fall from the sky onto the reef. After this, large fish returned in abundance. The coral is now regenerating and new growth can be seen in abundance.
When stormy weather strikes and the boats can’t go out, the women pray and large fish swim in close to the shore and become trapped in a small pond so that the women are able to just wade in and catch them. When women from neighbouring villages heard of this, they tried praying for the same provision, but without the same result.
Draubuta, Navosa highlands, north of Sigatoka
Vuniani’s son, Savanaca, was working with two teams in the highlands. While they were there, pillars of smoke descended on the villages. This was seen by many neighbouring villagers who described it as thick bloodstained smoke. This sign was seen at almost exactly the same time as fire was seen to fall on the reef at Nataliera.
In this area there were many marijuana plantations. The Nadroga council had been trying to prevent the plantings. During the HTL Process, a deputation of marijuana growers approached the team and asked what the Government would do for them if they destroyed their crops. They had a list of demands which they presented to the team.
The marijuana crop was large, and estimated to be worth about $11 million. There were 9 growers involved. The team leaders told the farmers that it was their choice, that they should obey God and trust Him for their livelihood, without any promises from anyone to do anything for them. If they could not, then they should not participate in the Healing Process.
By the time the Process had finished, the people had destroyed the crop as part of the reconciliation Process. After the HTL ministry, a total of 13,864 plants were uprooted and burnt by the growers themselves. There were 6,000 seedlings as well.
These are a few of the many miraculous events that have occurred in Fiji since 2001. Every week, more such events are happening as the forgiveness, reconciliation and HTL processes are being experienced.
Burning idols
Papua New Guinea
Rev Walo Ani and his wife Namana describe community transformation through Healing the Land in Papua New Guinea.
Karawa Village
It was a very exciting week in August 2006 where we saw the Lord move mightily in the lives of the village elders, chiefs, church leaders and the people. A group of dedicated young people’s prayer ministry team started praying and fasting from 1st of July for the HTL Process. We witnessed repentance, forgiveness and reconciliations between family and clan members, and between individuals.
The Lord went ahead and prepared the hearts of people in every home as we visited. They were ready to confess their sins and ask for forgiveness from each other and reconcile. In some homes, members of families gave their hearts to the Lord. Visitation of homes took two days. On the third morning, after the dedication of the elements of salt, oil and water, the village elders and chiefs publicly repented as they identified with sins of their forebears; and each of them publicly gave their clans to the Lord.
Three dinghies and a big canoe with people all went in different directions up several rivers and along the nearby coast to anoint specific places for cleansing that were defiled through deaths and killings in the past.
That night there was a time of public confession and renouncement of things that were a hindrance in the lives of the people around a huge bonfire. It was a solemn night; the presence of the Lord was so powerful that people were coming forward and burning their witchcraft and charms publicly. No one could hold back, even the deacons and church elders, village elders, women and young people were all coming forward. Young people started confessing their sins and renouncing and burning drugs, cigarettes and things that were hindering their lives from following Christ.
A young man, who had murdered another young man about 11 years ago, came forward and publicly confessed his sin and asked for forgiveness from the family of the murdered man. That was a big thing; there was a pause and we waited and prayed for someone from the other side to respond. Only the Lord could do this. The younger brother of the man who was killed came out finally, and offered forgiveness. We could hear crying among the people; it was a moving moment where God just took control. Mothers, brothers and members of both extended families became reconciled in front of the whole village. We could sense the release upon both families and village. It was an awesome time; the meeting went on into the early hours of the next morning. At the end of all this at about 2am the pastor stood up and said the prayer to invite Jesus into the community.
The village is not the same; you can sense the release and freedom of Christ in the lives of the people. The Holy Spirit is still moving in people’s lives and they are coming to their pastor for prayer. Recently, a young man surrendered two guns to the pastor. News of what God has done and is still doing has spread to neighbouring villages. God birthed a new thing in our area and I believe that many more villages will see the transforming power of God because they are hungry and desperate to see change in their communities.
There is abundance of fruit and garden food and two harvests of fruit on the orange trees have been observed so far.
A hunger for prayer has risen among the young people. Straight after HTL Process young people from one of the clans started a prayer group which is still going on. Two other clans started prayer groups after a lot of struggle to get going over the years. The HTL team was the main support behind “Kids Games” which were held December 2006 in the neighbouring village of Keapara.
The studies were on Joseph and when they came to the section on forgiveness the Lord moved in a powerful way and revival started among the children. They stood and asked for forgiveness from their parents. There was crying and reconciliation between children and parents.
The Lord is arresting the hearts of the young, the old and the children and there is no holding back.
Makirupu Village
Makirupu is about 2 hours drive east of Port Moresby, with a population of about 600. The United Church was the established church there and CRC and AOG have also planted churches there in recent years which caused a lot of offences between families.
The Lord moved in a mighty way convicting people of land disputes, immorality and fornication, fear of witchcraft and sorcery (fear was at its peak when the HTL Process began), lies, gambling, stealing, marriage problems, witchcraft, sorcery and charms and many other issues. Miracles of healing started from day one; people who were deaf began to hear, their ears were healed.
The presence of the Lord was very heavy in the church. I asked if there was anyone to repent on behalf of the young people and the young girl who had committed fornication and adultery with the last pastor came forward, trembling and crying, confessing, repenting and asking for forgiveness from God and the whole village. The people were amazed at what God was doing. Only He could do that. The girl who had denied outright what she had done 18 months ago was arrested by God’s presence and could not hide any more. A Sunday School representative came forward and repented and asked for forgiveness. A former deacon could not hold back. He came forward and confessed that he had been the messenger boy for the pastor and the girl and he said sorry to the Lord for denying Him.
Because of this incident 18 months ago, all the young people had left the church but when the air was cleared, the next day all the young people came and the church building was full to capacity. The fear of the Lord entered the hearts of the people. That same night the anointing elements were mixed and the mission land was anointed, cleansed and rededicated to God. It was an awesome time. The AOG pastor also asked for forgiveness from the United Church for leaving the church and causing division. He and his wife and all his church members were part of the prayer warrior team right from day one of the Process. A couple of days later the CRC members started joining us and by the end of the Process all three churches were united to see change in the community. The prayer warrior team grew from 7 to 40. Praise God!
The next day news of what had happened had reached everyone in the village and the nearby villages and more people came for the meetings. They were hungry to hear the Word of the Lord. The next few days people were seeing signs and wonders, something they had never experienced before. Revival had started and the fear of God came upon the people. Also on the third day the village chief invited Jesus into the community.
On the last day the whole village gathered at the spot where the village was started some five or six generations ago. Anointing oil was mixed and all the chiefs and village elders were anointed and reinstated. After that, groups of people and prayer team took oil to certain places defiled because of bloodshed in the past on garden land. They anointed these places while deacons took oil to the boundaries of the village and the beach and dedicated the land back to God.
After lunch everyone came back to the village and started a bonfire. Church deacons and leaders were the first ones to come forward with confessions of adultery, immorality and witchcraft. Families with land disputes came out and reconciled with people they had taken to court. Young people came out with charms and magic and burnt them in the fire. A mother came out with her ten-year-old daughter and confessed she had handed down her sorcery and magic to her and said she was sorry, asking for forgiveness from God. Both were prayed for. Husbands and wives reconciled, artifacts of magic and idolatry were burnt. God was doing His cleaning up in the lives of the people.
The next day we had a time of celebration and you could see the release and freedom in people’s lives, singing was coming from their hearts and joy was bubbling over. The Lord had again touched people’s hearts and His presence was so evident that the people did not want to stop celebrating, although it was getting dark and there was no light.
The land and the people are being healed. The day after the Process a couple of men went crabbing and caught bigger and more crabs than usual. A week later a lady went to her garden to find that the bad weed which had been a problem to most gardens had started to wither and die. She went back to the village and told everyone. The fear that had gripped the hearts of the people had also been broken in prayer and now women are going to their gardens on their own – something they could not do before. A few days after the HTL Process, men began to go fishing and to their surprise they were catching more and bigger fish than before.
There has been a case of instant healing of a patient with a stroke after the AOG pastor and his wife shared with her family about Roots and Foundations and how curses come into lives. The whole family confessed, repented and reconciled with each other. The pastor’s wife had some of the oil that was mixed in the village the week before and began anointing the lady while they prayed. To their surprise, she was healed instantly. She began to speak and eat on her own. The pastor said he had never experienced anything like this before. The presence of the Lord was so great they all started worshipping Him and time was not an issue anymore. Praise God for this miracle!
During the Process, the pastors of the AOG, the United Church and an Elder of the CRC church, standing on behalf of the pastor, all repented of all the offences and misunderstandings between them in the past. So now the three churches have decided to have a combined service once a month in the middle of the village.
The young people from all three churches are already having combined prayer meetings and they are in the process of building a big shelter in the middle of the village for the combined church services.
The villagers reported there has not been any stealing since the men were employed. There has also been increase in their garden produce, fruit and nut trees. The people are able to see their own produce come to maturity and sell it, whereas in the past it would have been stolen.
Makirupu and one of the nearby villages are known for getting floods during heavy rains. One month before we got there, it had been raining heavily but the Lord has kept the floods away. This is an answer to the people’s prayers. However, the other village got the floods and we got to see some of the houses still surrounded by floodwaters when we were there. It surely is amazing!
Kalo Village
Kalo is the village where about 126 years ago in 1881, four Cook Island missionaries and their families were killed. The killings were led by the chief of one of the clans.
The outcome of the talks is that the leaders of this clan called all their families together, from far and near to come and start the repentance and reconciliation Process. This was supported by the pastor and all the Church and clan leaders of Kalo. It was a moving occasion and the leaders agreed to proceed with the HTL Process and a bigger reconciliation event with the relatives of the Cook Island missionaries present in the near future.
Healing The Land in Vanuatu
Pastors Walo Ani and Harry Tura report on transforming revival in Vanuatu.
Hog Harbour, Espirito Santo
The island was named Espiritu Santo because that is the island where over 400 years ago in May 1606 Ferdinand de Quiros named the lands from there to the South Pole the Great Southland of the Holy Spirit.
In April 2006 the Fraternal, under the leadership of Pastor Raynold Bori, conducted protocol discussions with the Hog Harbour community leaders and explained to them what the Process involves. In May 2006 six pastors from Luganville did the HTL Process and God’s presence came on the people that week.
Here are some of the stories of Healing the Land in a village of 800 people:
Married couples were reconciled.
Schools of big fish came to the shores during the reconciliation.
A three year old conflict, bloodshed and tribal fighting that could not be stopped by the Police, ended and reconciliation was made.
The presence of the Lord came down on the village.
In June of 2006, 12 pastors from the Luganville Fraternal were invited by the Litzlitz village on Malekula Island to do the HTL Process there. These Pastors spent three weeks teaching and doing the Process during which many instances of reconciliation and corporate repentance were witnessed. Village Chiefs and the people committed their community to God.
One year later the President of Vanuatu re-covenanted the Nation to God on the island of Espiritu Santo.
Litzlitz Village, Malekula Island
The presence of the Lord was so real and manifested and many miracles were seen such a people healed, dried brooks turned to running streams of water, fish and other sea creatures came back to the sea shores in great number and even the garden crops came alive again and produced great harvests.
Miracles happened three days after the HTL Process:
The poison fish that usually killed or made people sick became edible and tasty again.
The snails that were destroying gardens all died suddenly and didn’t return.
As a sign of God’s transforming work a coconut tree in the village which naturally bore orange coconuts started bearing bunches of green coconuts side by side with the red ones.
A spring gushed out from a dried river bed and the river started flowing again after the anointing oil was poured on it when people prayed and repented of all the sins of defilement over the area.
A kindergarten was established in the village one week after the HTL Process took place.
Crops are now blessed and growing well in their gardens.
Vilakalak Village, West Ambae Island
A lot of things had been transformed such as people’s lives had been changed as they accepted Christ and were filled with the Holy Spirit for effective ministries of the Gospel of Christ. The Shekinah glory came down to the very spot where we did the process of healing the land during the night of July 1. That great light (Shekinah glory) came down. People described it as a living person with tremendous and powerful light shining over the whole of the village community, confirming the Lord’s presence at that specific village community area. On the following day people started to testify that a lot of fish and shell fish were beginning to occupy the reefs and they felt a different touch of a changed atmosphere in the village community.
The lands and garden crops then started to produce for great harvests and coconut crabs and island crabs came back in great abundance for people’s daily meals these days. The people were very surprised at the look of the big sizes of coconut crabs harvested in that area. I went there a month later to see it. You can’t believe it that the two big claws or arms were like my wrist when I compared them with my left wrist. That proved that the God we serve is so real and He is the owner of all the creatures.
Lovanualikoutu, West Ambae
They saw many miracles of people restored to the Lord and witchcraft destroyed. The Chief said the sinner’s prayer on behalf of the community one night and they all surrendered their lives to the Lord as he invited Jesus into the village.
A team of people swam out to sea with the anointing oil to worship there and dedicate the sea and reef back to God. The day after the team’s departure from the village a pastor who went out spear fishing saw a large migration of fish. He in fact reportedly speared two fish together at one stage. When he reported this to the Chief there was dancing and rejoicing under the cocoa trees where the Chief and some young people had been working.
During the reconciliation when the Chief began to speak, a light shower fell from the sky. There were no clouds but only a sky full of millions of stars. Surely God was in this Process! The prayer team continues to see visions and witness miracles of more reconciliation and repentance. Harvests from sea and land have begun to be more abundant than ever before witnessed.
Dedicating the sea to God
The reports of transforming revival confirm that God’s purposes for us include far more than personal, family, or church renewal and revival. They also include community transformation, including social and ecological renewal and revival.
These accounts of transforming revival continue to multiply in the twenty-first century, calling us all to deeper repentance, reconciliation, renewal and revival.
Celebrating with a feast
(c) 2011, 2nd edition. Reproduction allowed with copyright included in text.
Transforming Revivals transform ecology (the land) as well as individuals, churches, communities, and even nations. They are the literal fulfilment of God’s promise: If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray, and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land (2 Chronicles 7:14).
The first chapters of this book survey transforming revivals in Australia and the South Pacific islands – selected from my book South Pacific Revivals (2nd edition, 2010).
Then in Chapter 5 this book expands to cover global transforming revivals researched and documented by George Otis Jr and the Sentinel Group. See their website.
As you read these stories, you too can pray for revival, including asking God to touch you in new ways. This is God’s purpose right now, everywhere. God promised to pour out his Spirit on everyone – not just on good people, and not only on church people. Jesus promised that the Holy Spirit would fill us with power to be his witnesses.
That can happen as you read this book. I pray that it will.
Some photos from the book
South Pacific Mission Team in HoniaraMissioon Team with Sir Peter & Lady Margaret KeniloreaSir Peter & Lady Margaret KeniloreaRev Ratu Vuniami Nakauyaca reports on Fiji transformationsFiji artifactsIdols destroyed in FijiRev Walo Ani reports on PNG and VanuatuDedicating the ocean to GodCali, ColumbiaAlmolonga, GuatemalaAbundant harvests in AlmolongaJesus is Lord of AlmolongaAlgodao de Jandaira – transformed after 24 years droughtBaptised in the damSteve Loopstra with Vitoria who had dreams about the unknown townEneas & Simnone Araujo, pastors at Valentina Baptist Church in Joao Pessoa, north east BrazilGeorge Otis Jr
George Otis Jr reports on global transformation in one chapter here, and in many books and the Sentinel Group Transformation DVDs – www.glowtorch.org
Book Review: Flashpoints of Revival & Revival Fires
Share good news – Share this page freely Copy and share this link on your media, eg Facebook, Instagram, Emails: Renewal Journal 10: Evangelism https://renewaljournal.com/2011/07/22/evangelism/
Review from the Foreword by Dr C. Peter Wagner (1998)
Geoff Waugh and I agree that our generation is likely to be an eye witness to the greatest outpouring of the Holy Spirit that history has ever known. Many others join us in this expectation, some of them sensing that it will come in the next few years.
I have heard more reports of revival‑like activity in the past three years than in the previous thirty. This has caused revival to be a more frequent topic of Christian conversation than I have ever seen. There is an extraordinary hunger for learning more about how the hand of God works in revival.
That is a major reason why Flashpoints of Revival is such a timely book. Christian libraries are well stocked with detailed accounts of certain revivals as well as scholarly analytical histories of revival. But I know of no other book like this one that provides rapid‑fire, easy‑to‑read, factual literary snapshots of virtually every well‑known revival since Pentecost.
As I read this book, I was thrilled to see how God has been so mightily at work in so many different times and places. I felt like I had grasped the overall picture of revival for the first time, and I was moved to pray that God, indeed, would allow me not to be just an observer, but rather a literal participant in the worldwide outpouring that will soon come. As you read the book, I am sure you will be saying the same thing.
**********
Comments on Flashpoints of Revival
Geoff Waugh’s comprehensive and up-to-date book provides a global perspective of the unexpected and transforming work of the Holy Spirit. Read, be inspired and encouraged. Rev Dr John Olley
The first time I read this book, I couldn’t put it down. Not only were the stories researched with clear and concise data, but they provide an account of revivals that blew my mind away. An inspirational read. Romulo Nayacalevu, Fiji
This work is of great significance. It is a comprehensive overview of the major revivals during the last three centuries. Churches and Christians around the world will benefit greatly from this timely contribution. Rev Prof Dr James Haire
It will be a compendium for historians and others interested in the subject for a long time to come. I doubt if there is a resource quite like it for logical progression and comprehensive treatment. Rev Tony Cupit
It is very informative and up to date concerning revivals both past and present. I am confident that this book will be well received by many scholars and historians. Rev Dr Naomi Dowdy
This is a great reference book providing information of when, where and how God has touched regions and people groups with his manifest presence over history. Many of these events are included and reported on providing the reader with an overview and insight into when revival has broken out and its impact on people, church and society. Martin Mitchell (Amazon)
Historian Dr Richard Riss (left with wife Kathryn) has written books on revival including A Survey of 20th-Century Revival Movements in North America (1988) and Images of Revival (1997). His doctoral research at Drew University included study of the current revival awakening.
During the course of my study of revivals over the past twenty‑three years, one of the things that has fascinated me is the extent to which they are misrepresented. These misrepresentations are usually widely believed, creating stumbling blocks which prevent many people from partaking in the forgiveness, love, joy, refreshing, healing, reconciliation, character development, and other benefits which are freely available through a move of God of this kind.
Jonathan Edwards wrote of this phenomenon in connection with the outset of the Great Awakening, which began at his church in Northampton, Massachusetts in December of 1734. In the introductory portion of his Narrative of the Surprising Work of God, he said that the Great Awakening was being “exceedingly misrepresented by reports that were spread . . . [to] distant parts of the land.” These reports were spread by other Christians, many of whom were in positions of leadership in the churches. Edwards wrote that, “When this work of God first appeared, and was so extraordinarily carried on among us in the winter, others round about us seemed not to know what to make of it, and there were many that scoffed at and ridiculed it; and some compared what we called conversion to certain distempers. “Because people really didn’t understand what was happening, they began to say negative things about it.
These bad reports spread throughout the entire country, and this had a lasting effect on peoples’ willingness to accept that what was happening was a work of God. He wrote, “A great part of the country have not received the most favorable thoughts of this affair, and to this day many retain a jealousy concerning it, and prejudice against it.” Unfortunately, when people begin to become predisposed against something, it is no longer an easy matter for them to benefit from it, and they will sometimes attempt to put a stop to it.
In the concluding remarks of the same work, Edwards referred again to “the innumerable misrepresentations which have gone abroad” concerning the revival that began in his church. He stated that because of this, it had been necessary for him to go into great detail about what God was actually doing within the context of the beginning of what we now know as the Great Awakening.
One of the reasons that people misunderstand revival is that it tends to create a great deal of chaos and disorder. Normal church programs are usually suspended. People are caught up in the things of God. They often fall to the ground or make unusual noises; they weep or laugh or act as though drunk. This was as true for the Great Awakening as it was for any other revival (for details, see Images of Revivals).
During the Second Awakening in America, Charles Finney said some of the same things about misrepresentation of what God was doing. He lamented in his Memoirs that “it has been common for good men, in referring to those revivals, to assume that although they were upon the whole, revivals of religion, yet . . . they were so conducted that great disorders were manifest in them, and that there was much to deplore in their results. Now all this is an entire mistake.”
This is a very common phenomenon during revivals. People will assume, based upon misleading reports, that there is a great deal of mixture in them and that there is “much to deplore in their results.” Yet, one could be a perfect leader and still encounter storms of criticism; this is exactly what happened to Jesus Christ.
A little bit later, Finney wrote, “Until I arrived at Auburn, I was not fully aware of the amount of opposition I was destined to meet from the ministry; not the ministry in the region where I had laboured, but from ministers where I had not labored, and who knew personally nothing of me, but were influenced by the false reports which they heard.” Finney found it amazing that his critics would believe so many of the reports that they had heard.
However, there is a sense in which this phenomenon is not surprising at all. The spread of false reports and negative attitudes with respect to a work of God is a sure sign that it is genuine, because it indicates that the enemy is at work, attempting to discredit it.
The temptation to belittle the work of God is greatest among those who might have a tendency to feel that they would have something to lose if people were allowed to partake in it. There are strong temptations to jealously even among Christian leaders. Those who yield to such temptations are in danger of undermining the work of God by belittling the very thing that is bringing life and blessing to those who love Him.
God, in His wisdom, has His own reasons for allowing false reports to arise concerning His work. The stumbling blocks will therefore inevitably come, but woe to those through whom the stumbling blocks come.
The following summary indicates characteristics common to revivals and awakenings.
Characteristics of Revivals and Awakenings
1. How Awakenings Arise
a. They always emerge against a backdrop of very serious spiritual decline or intense spiritual dryness.
b. They are the product of intense prayer.
c. When people pray for reawakening, God seems to give the answer to their prayers in places that they least expect it.
d. At the beginning of an awakening, there is often an exhilarating sense of expectancy.
e. Revivals are often brought about by telling people about the revivals of the past.
f. There is often a specific point in time at the outset of an outpouring of the Holy Spirit at which God’s presence is suddenly recognized by the people. The power of God falls spontaneously.
g. Revivals of this kind seem to emerge at the same time in many different places.
2. Who becomes involved?
a. The Lord breathes new life into the Church.
b. He brings multitudes of new believers into His body.
c. Those who are already Christian enter more deeply into the fullness of salvation.
d. People recognize a similarity of the revival to any previous revivals they have experienced.
e. Backsliders are reclaimed.
f. People often come out of curiosity or skepticism and become believers.
g. There are conversions of ministers.
3. The Spread of the News
a. At the outset of revival, there is very little organization.
b. Advertizing is largely by word of mouth.
c. People are sometimes drawn to the scene of revival by an irresistible power.
d. People come from miles away.
e. People flock from everywhere.
f. There are crowds.
g. It is contagious.
h. There are often secular newspaper accounts of an awakening.
4. Conviction of Sin, Righteousness, and Judgment
a. Revival is characterized by widespread repentance and brokenness.
b. There is a great deal of meditation upon God’s character.
c. There is an awakening of conscience.
d. There is conviction of sin.
e. People are given an immediate revelation of God’s glory and of their own sinfulness and inadequacy before him.
f. In some cases, people for blocks around are confronted with their own sin and God’s majesty.
g. People suddenly become deeply convinced of their lostness.
h. An awesome fear of God and His judgment comes upon everyone.
i. Revivals bring the individual face to face with the eternal questions of one’s nature and destiny.
j. People suddenly become aware of the terrors of hell.
k. This is accompanied by deep distress over one’s wickedness.
l. The urge to pray, especially for salvation, is irresistible.
m. There are sometimes manifestations of shaking or trembling.
n. There are often strange manifestations of emotion in people in response to these experiences, including laughter, weeping, barking or yelping, and roaring.
o. People therefore seek forgiveness from God through Christ’s shed blood.
p. They then find redemption in His blood; they are given assurance of forgiveness of sin and of salvation.
q. This is accompanied with joy and peace.
r. Even the skeptical and stubborn will also grieve over their sins until they find assurance.
5. Freedom & Reconciliation
a. God frees people from bondage to sinful habits, bad attitudes, and emotional disturbances, breaking the power of ‘cancelled sin,’ as Charles Wesley put it.
b. Old prejudices are changed radically.
c. Broken homes are reunited.
d. There is widespread reconciliation.
e. There comes a depth of love for one’s brothers and sisters in Christ beyond measure.
f. People receive a fresh sense of the unity of believers in all times and places.
g. It puts an end to cursing, blasphemy, drunkenness and uncleanness in a town. There is a cessation of fighting, clamor, bitterness, and so forth.
h. Rather, joy and peace become predominant in a place that has experienced an awakening.
6. Heaven Upon Earth
a. People become so preoccupied with the things of God that they don’t want to talk about anything else.
b. There is an unusually vivid sense of God’s presence, and of joy, love and peace.
c. There are sometimes manifestations of laughter and speechlessness.
d. There is a completely different, refreshing atmosphere where God is present.
e. People experience heaven upon earth.
f. Meetings are often of protracted length. Time passes very quickly.
g. There is a feeling of release, or freedom in the Spirit.
h. People feel refreshed. There is a new lilt to everyone’s steps.
i. People suddenly have an intense enthusiasm about the things of God.
j. There is considerable praise to God.
k. There is singing in the Spirit of such harmonies as are almost never heard on earth.
l. There is dancing in the Spirit.
m. There are manifestations of spiritual gifts.
n. Children prophesy.
7. Ministry During Divine Visitations
a. God often raises up people as instruments for bringing about revival who have few natural talents and abilities.
b. Women and lay people find a greater place for leadership in revival.
c. His Word goes forth in power.
d. The Lord anoints with the Spirit the preaching, teaching, counselling, and music such that it has an ability to penetrate the hearts of the people.
e. There is always considerable revelation upon God’s Word, which takes on a new freshness.
f. People in a revival are almost invariably orthodox theologically on the great basics of the Christian faith. There is a great emphasis upon the Bible and its teachings.
g. There is a great stress usually laid upon the suffering, cross, blood and death of Jesus Christ.
h. People fall under God’s power.
i. People begin to laugh or cry, or develop characteristics similar to drunkenness.
j. Physical ailments are sometimes healed.
k. These phenomena are accompanied by the healing of shattered lives.
8. Enthusiasm for God’ Precious Word
a. The Bible comes alive for people
b. There is always a deep thirst for the Word of God.
c. People hang upon every word that is preached.
d. There are phenomenal increases in the sales of New Testaments and Bibles.
e. Those who are used of God in bringing about revival receive far more calls to preach than they can ever answer, and are harried mercilessly.
9. Beyond Superficialities
a. A spirit of sacrifice is often prevalent in a revival.
b. People spend whole nights in prayer.
c. Revival usually produces a zeal for the saving of the lost and, there, for missions.
d. God brings revelation.
e. People gather together to share in the faith for mutual upbuilding.
f. Superficial profession, baptism and church membership pale in significance, with an emphasis being placed upon spiritual life, of which the former things are merely tokens.
g. Old institutional forms often begin to seem inadequate to people who are experiencing an awakening.
10. The Rise of Impurities
a. Human frailty is inevitably an ingredient in any revival.
b. It is case for amazement even to seasoned preachers and evangelists to see what happens during seasons of awakening.
c. Belief in the imminent coming of Christ has characterized every movement of awakening since the first century. This has often led to the setting of dates for Christ’s return.
d. Those who try to mold a revival to their own tastes or control it are usually swept aside.
e. Because so many young, inexperienced converts are involved, there will be many extravagances.
f. There is a temptation to spiritual pride, and to take ones own imagination for impressions from God.
g. In a revival, there will always be some who violate Biblical truth.
h. Belief that they alone are instrumental in the accomplishment of God’s purposes often characterizes both individuals and groups experiencing revival.
11. Controversy During Outpourings of God’s Spirit
a. There are always bad reports about what goes on in a revival, both true and false.
b. Many people remain aloof for this reason.
c. A revival is always accompanied with a great deal of controversy.
d. There is always intense opposition and persecution.
e. There is reproach upon every revival.
f. Revival always involves an advance of God’s kingdom in spiritual warfare against the strongholds of Satan.
g. The enemy will attempt to hinder the work of God at all costs.
h. Satan attempts to discredit revival by mimicking God’s work.
12. The Decline of an Awakening
a. A revival will crest to a high point and then decrease.
b. After a revival crests, offenses will come.
c. Many people will feel ill will instead of good will toward the leaders of a revival.
d. They will begin to disapprove of what they formerly approved.
e. They will fasten upon bad reports, true or false, in order to justify their changes in attitude.
f. Many of those who were more or less convinced will be afraid or ashamed to acknowledge their conviction of faith.
13. The Long Term Effects
a. A new flood of hymns and scriptures set to music gains widespread circulation and use.
b. It has lasting, profound effects upon the lives of many of the people involved.
c. It spawns great ministries which then thrive well past the time of the revival.
d. There is a tremendous impact on society and many social reforms are effected.
Being aware of these characteristics can help us avoid the extremes of blindly accepting everything in a revival as from God or of resisting and quenching the Spirit by opposing what God is doing, even if the impacts of the Spirit are overwhelming.
Used with permission from the Awakening E-mail and Second Wind.
Dr Mike Brown, of Global Resource Ministries International, taught at Brownsville Assemblies of God in Pensacola, Florida. He wrote the Pensacola Update report in December 1996 when the revival had been going for a year and a half with over 60,000 commitments to Christ. Over 100,000 conversions were reported in 5 years.
I thought it would be appropriate to send you a 1996 revival update. We can then join together in giving thanks for these glorious days of visitation in which we are living. Who knows what God will do in 1997 ‑ if we seek Him with all our hearts, walk humbly before Him, and are careful to obey His Word? The possibilities are staggering.
With no attempt to be systematic or to follow any chronological order, let me give you some of the highlights from the last few months. (This would have come sooner, but with the intensity of the revival schedule, the relocation of our ministry offices ‑ and family! ‑ to Pensacola, and the raising up of our ministry training school, it was almost impossible to get out a timely update.) Here is just a small glimpse of what has been happening (and as I write, it is sometimes difficult to hold back the tears of joy).
Youth Revival
The Spirit continues to fall among the young people ‑ dramatically. One Saturday night service, multiplied hundreds of students, from grade school to college, were called to the front of the church. There were far too many to put on the platform, so they filled the front area. When we prayed for them in mass, the Spirit fell on them in awesome power, and most of them collapsed to the floor, consumed with God’s presence. After we continued to worship and intercede for our schools (‘God, give us our schools!’), we were about to dismiss the young people back to their seats when, suddenly and unexpectedly, some of them began to weep and wail in intercession.
Soon, most of them were caught up with the burden for their lost generation ‑ and the weeping and intercession became intense. There was no formal preaching that night, but the altars were filled with lost and backslidden people. If there ever was a service to attend, it was Saturday night, 12 October, 1996 (The video is called Intercession for Our Schools).
During a Thursday night youth service with about 700 in attendance (this is the one night that the teens have their own meeting), conviction fell during the worship. One of the Brownsville young people had a word about some of the kids having sinful, idolatrous things in their possession. There were about 300 kids visiting that night.
Spontaneously, they began to throw dozens of packs of cigarettes on the platform, then condoms, then joint paper, then joints (and, apparently, other drugs), then diet and prescription pills. The pile was so big that it filled a large, kitchen‑size garbage bag! When the sheriff of the county, who happened to be in the main sanctuary that night, heard what was happening in the youth chapel, he was escorted over to see things first hand. His comment? ‘This is what will change America!’ Several weeks later, his daughter was saved in one of the services. Yes Lord!
Depth of Conviction
It seems that everything is increasing in intensity: the levels of praise, worship, and warfare, sometimes breaking out spontaneously and continuing for long periods of time; the numbers of souls responding to the altar calls; the depth of conviction. It is very common to see repentant sinners and backsliders drop their heads when you look at them ‑ even when you’re trying to encourage them with a gentle smile. They’re too ashamed of their sins ‑ until they know they have all been washed away.
At other times, even after my daytime teaching sessions for leaders and hungry believers, the Lord’s presence has been so heavy that people have tried to make it out to their cars, only to collapse on their faces, or on their backs, or to their knees on the grass outside. It is a sight to see!
On one such day, the Spirit began to move on the line outside (they line up as early as 4 am now, or even sleep in the parking lot at night so as to be the first on line), and people began to fall under the power and repent of sin right there in the public lot ‑ without anyone even praying for them. You can’t contain revival in a building!
One night, three young black women made their way to the altar, all of them shaking, and the middle teenager literally being carried down by her friends. She was coming forward to get saved and was under such conviction that her friends had to support her as she tried to walk, her arms draped over the other girls, much like an injured football player is helped to the sidelines. That’s the way to come to the Lord ‑ utterly helpless and dependent.
Another night, early in his message, Steve Hill had a word for an unsaved young man named Scott. The Lord revealed his desperate condition to Steve, so he urged him to get right that night. At the end of the altar call ‑ to which, we learned later from Scott’s brother, he did not respond ‑‑ Steve had a word for a military man that had resisted God all his life. He told him to respond now. At that moment, a young man came rushing forward to surrender his life to the Lord. It was Scott, the military man. Talk about being singled out by the Lord!
A few weeks ago, two lesbians who had been living together and using drugs for years got right with God, ending their sinful relationship. Their baptismal testimonies the week following were glorious. One of the women had previously been married, and she had brought her son into the home with this other woman to live with them. (She confessed this with great sorrow at her baptism.) The night she got saved, she went home and told her son what happened. He said, ‘My prayers have been answered!’
Transformed lives
At this point, you might be wondering, ‘Well, what happens to all these people who get saved? Are they going on with God?’ Yes they are. Of course, I can’t account for every single one, but I can account for many. In fact, some of them are coming to our School of Ministry beginning next month!
To give you one case in point, a man from Chicago named Mark was an alcoholic for seventeen years, with a terrible family life as a result. He was dramatically saved and instantly delivered right in his home, watching a 700 Club report on the revival.
That was in September. When I saw him in November, he looked so different. He was in the midst of a 40 day fast; his marriage and home were transformed; his brother and wife were wonderfully touched; and he and his brother had brought their construction crew to Pensacola with them (they own a construction company). The whole crew got saved! Some of these men are now candidates to attend our school.
You may have heard the testimony of Robert Lowell, the wealthy businessman who was radically converted when we came to the revival at the beginning of 1996 to pull his wife out. The whole family has been touched, and in the Fall, one of their daughters got married to an Iranian Muslim, her fiancé who had also been saved in the revival. They got married on a Saturday afternoon and were in church that night. That’s revival! Why? They had so many unsaved friends and relatives with them that they couldn’t miss the opportunity to bring them to the evening meeting. At the end of the altar call, the young bride turned to her lifelong close friend (and member of her bridal party), asking her if she wanted to give her life to Jesus. I could only weep as I saw the two them make their way to the altar, dissolving in tears as they knelt side by side. What a wedding present! A good number of weeks later, I asked the bride what happened to her friends. She told me that all of her unsaved friends in the bridal party (along with one tragically backslidden girl) got right with God that week ‑ and all of them were on fire. What can you say?
The life and death urgency of the hour has been underscored to us when we hear of lost sinners getting saved, and then suddenly dying one or two days later. And there was no warning that they were sick or in ill health. They got saved, and then they were gone. This has happened several times now.
Even more striking was the case of a man who was in the meeting, felt conviction, and ran from it, ending up at the pool hall playing pool with three of his drinking buddies. But the conviction there was even more intense, so he left his three friends and returned to the church, giving his life to Jesus at the end of the night. It was just in time. He found out later that, shortly after he left the pool hall, the three friends drove off in their Chevy Corvette which was almost totally disintegrated moments later after a 100 mile per hour crash. Two were killed instantly; the third critically injured. This man would have been among them, had he not responded to the Spirit’s pull. He was literally snatched out of the fire!
Interest in the revival has increased. In recent months, the Pentecostal Evangel ‑ the international magazine of the Assemblies of God ‑ devoted 15 pages to the revival, the Dallas Morning News ran a front‑page story about the outpouring in its Sunday morning edition (by the way, it was the front page of the main section of the paper, not the religion section), and Charisma Now aired a powerful TV special on the revival. Denominational leaders in the Church of God, Southern Baptists, and United Methodists (among others) have been wonderfully touched, and our recent ministers conference was attended by leaders from about forty nations. This is in addition to the large number of leaders ‑ ranging from 300‑500 ‑ who attend every week. And best of all, the fire is spreading!
Fire is spreading
A Southern Baptist testified to a dramatic rise in spiritual hunger in his church since he attended the meetings. His son, the youth pastor was living in compromise and hardness ‑ until God sternly dealt with him and totally turned him around. Back at the pastor’s church, after a special series of meetings ended, congregants showed up at the church anyway, even though the services had ended. They were so hungry for the Lord that they climbed into the building through a hole in a broken window. And these are Southern Baptists!
Friends of mine from Phoenix visited Pensacola and went back ignited. The Spirit began moving freely in the services, the power of God fell in unprecedented ways for that fellowship, people began repenting, some of then fasting and gathering for 6 am prayer, the young people got turned on and starting witnessing to all their friends, winning some of them to the Lord. Such stories are common now around the country!
One Spanish‑speaking youth pastor from Texas with a teens group averaging 8‑10 kids returned from Pensacola on fire, and he and his wife began preaching repentance to their group. Six weeks later they were running 120 kids in the meetings! And in many cities, where disunity and lack of cooperation had been the rule, pastors are now gathering together in sizable numbers for special leadership meetings, repenting with many tears, confessing their sins, and committing to pray and cry out … That’s the key!
One of my former students, an associate pastor in a Messianic congregation, showed the children at the congregational school the video featuring eight year old Whitney Lane sharing her burden for the lost ‑ until she breaks down crying. He invited the kids who wanted a similar burden to come forward for prayer and then, to his amazement, the younger kids there (ages 5‑8 especially) began to weep, sob, and shake ‑ for forty‑five minutes! A number of them had visions of heaven, hell, and Jesus, some of them dramatic. He arrived home with a plastic bag full of the tissues these little ones had soaked with their tears. Jesus is moving in the land!
And here’s a personal illustration of the love of God. A Filipino pastor from Chicago felt that he just had to attend the revival services. He arrived at the church by way of Orlando on 10 December, only to find out they we were in the midst of a break until 3 January. He was totally crestfallen, coming back the next day with the hope that the services would somehow resume. Of course, they did not; but the revival itself continues. He then received an out‑of‑the‑blue invitation to speak in Toms River, New Jersey that weekend. It was there that he learned that the very next day ‑ this past Monday ‑ I would be speaking at a special ministers’ gathering in – you guessed it! ‑ Toms River. So, from Chicago to Orlando to Pensacola to Orlando to Toms River ‑ he got in the river! You can’t limit the goodness of God.
Finally, I should mention that there seems to be an increase in powerful healings these days, and this too is often taking place outside of Pensacola. A well‑respected pastor in Wisconsin, a man whose church has been in the midst of an outpouring since visiting us in June, told me personally about the documented healing of a baby born blind. She is fine today, after receiving prayer from the leaders in that church. Isn’t God awesome?
When God starts moving, everyone falls into place: The hungry press forward and are filled, the lost are drawn in and the backsliders drawn home, the laborers are raised up and thrust out ‑ and the critics criticize! What else could we expect?
Actually, we ought to pity those who cannot recognize the glorious fruit of tens of thousands of radically changed lives because of a little shaking (as if God’s presence makes mountains and houses shake ‑ but not people!) or falling (as if it is illogical or unscriptural for someone to be overcome by God’s power). They reject the Spirit because they don’t like the style. Pity their souls and pray for those whom they mislead. We don’t want anyone to be left out.
A few months ago the Lord said to me that soon it will be an embarrassment to be associated with the critics. Day by day, the truth of that word is becoming clearer and clearer. I would hate to find myself standing in the path of a divine tidal wave, shaking my skeptical fist and shouting, ‘That’s not God!’
Please hear my heart: We are literally on the verge of seeing the Spirit’s fire sweep through whole public schools, ignite whole regions, and shake our nation from bottom to top. Young and old will meet their God, and the nation could very well be transformed. For the first time in my life, real revival across America is within range. Let’s press in without compromise until the whole country is ablaze. It really is time. As Steve Hill often cries out at the altar calls, What are you waiting for?
Reviews: Building a Better World by Dave Andrews, Surprised by the Power of the Spirit & Surprised by the Voice of God both by Jack Deere, Secrets of the Argentine Revival, by R Edward Miller
Writer Joel Kilpatrick describes revival in Mobile, Alabama.
The Spirit told us what to do, by Carl Lawrence 
