Annual Convention Results

This past weekend we were blessed to by the ministry of two friends from Columbus, Ohio. They did an awesome job preaching the word. We had a few notable miracles over the weekend, including some healed of conditions that had plagued them for 20+ years! One man came forward on Friday night to receive prayer and testified later of God healing his heart condition. The next night he was at the altar again testifying. In the Saturday night service his daughter, who was born with a hole in her heart, was also healed of her heart condition!
On Sunday night we had our Holy Ghost crusade. It is important to note that this is a local church convention, not a large crusade. As the spirit of God fell we had about 130 people receive the Holy Ghost! In that crowd were several children (which I have rarely seen in this nation) and one man who had a stroke about a year ago. His mouth is completely paralyzed, he cannot speak, yet as the Holy Ghost fell God healed his mouth and loosed his tongue as he spoke in a heavenly language! It was a great weekend and we were thankful for being a part of it!

First Night of Convention

Last night we were out for the first night of our convention with international guests. Curtis preached as the guests were not arriving until this morning. It was a great night. There was a real move of God in the Spirits of people. It set the tone for what we believe will be a great weekend. Pray that hundreds would receive the Holy Ghost this weekend! I have been at this convention for 4 years now, and last night we had over 1000 people which is the largest first night crowd we’ve ever had. And this is in the midst of a time of real terror in this nation. I believe God is choosing to do great things now to show that He is in control! By faith I want to openly thank God for the miracles we are about to see in the next 3 days!

Missions Night in Fredericton

Wednesday night we were privileged to be a part of a great service in Fredericton. The national Bishop from our international work was the featured speaker and he did an awesome job. You could see a real burden for missions on the faces of the young people and the service ended in a great time at the altar where, by faith, I know many were touched and healed by the hand of God!

Awesome!

The power of God was on display this weekend at YC2009! There were many signs that God is ready to do GREAT things in Canada! We ended with a Holy Ghost crusade tonight and, the last I heard, we had 86 receive the Holy Ghost! That is right here in NB! AWESOME!

YC2009

YC2009 has begun! Last night bro Maddix gave his testimony and challenged us all to spend our lives for the kingdom of God. It was timely and important. If just a few would catch that message the world could be changed for Christ! On a personal note, it was great to see more friends last night, everyone is so encouraging. I am really excited about traveling through the district now! We are blessed with so many friends, being away you can forget what New Brunswick hospitality is like.

Home!

Just wanted to let you know, we are home! It took awhile, but we made it. Jet lag is setting in harshly, but we did manage to get to church Sunday night and I had an interview with our district board this afternoon. Not bad for the first 24 hours back in Canada. Tomorrow I head off to District Conference. Here’s hoping I get enough sleep to enjoy it!

The Power of A Testimony

About a week ago we were asked to preach in a neighboring city. It was a long and full day, but we were blessed by the people and by God’s pressence. During that service God impressed me to dust off an old message, the one I did at Miller Lake two years ago. The message was about the sword of Goliath and I made the point that this sword was special because it represented a past victory. It was a testimony. But not just for David, but for all the people of Israel. It was a testimony that allowed others to rise up as giant slayers. My point was, the power of the testimonies happening around the world, including here, are not testimonies of Foreign Missions, they are the testimonies of the body of Christ and we can all rejoice and receive strength from those testimonies. 

Well, God just re-confirmed that for me this morning. Our Sis Shalm sent us an e-mail today saying that they were in a home missions church in North Western USA this morning and a young man came in, seemingly not so interested. She said during the service he responded and sought God. Then she told him my story, my testimony, and it gave him strength and encouragement. It is always awesome to me to hear how one persons testimony can help others in their journey. 

When God created these wonderful bodies of ours he gave us an ability to heal, it’s built into us. And when he created this Body of Christ he intended that we would minister to each other and use what he put into us to help bring healing to the hurting members. That is the power of a testimony! So why not share what God has done for you? I know God is doing amazing things in the church, we just need to learn the power of a testimony and be willing to share. Remember, your testimony is not yours alone, it is for the body and your testimony may be the sword of Goliath to someone else. Your testimony may set someone else free to rise up and slay the giants in their life.

Awesome Quote

I got this in my e-mail today, I thought it was awesome. 

“I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen. Not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else.”

-CS Lewis

Spiritual Insight From an Atheist

So, this morning I was sent a couple of videos. I already commented on the Dove video. The other video I was sent was a clip of a renowned atheist and illusionist. In this video clip from his show or blog, he commented about a man who “witnessed” to him after a show. He used the word proselytize. But he was honestly moved and appreciative of this man’s gesture. He said that he is still convinced that there is no God and no one could convince him otherwise. However, he added how much he respected the man and added this little tidbit. 

He said, if you believe there is a God, and you believe there is a heaven and hell. And if you really believe that some people are going to go to hell. Then how MEAN do you have to be, how much do you have to HATE someone, not to warn them about it?!

That blew me away! Most Christians don’t want to bother anyone or face the ridicule of a judgmental person so we don’t share our faith. This man, a non-believer said the ONLY reason you would not share your faith is not fear, it’s not worry. The ONLY reason we don’t share our faith is because we don’t love people enough to tell them! He said if a truck was barring down on you while you stood in the road, the only reason I wouldn’t warn you is because I don’t love you enough, I don’t care enough to save you. And he added, but this is much more serious that just a truck. 

Let that sink in for a moment. Whether you agree or not those words can change your view on reaching others with the Gospel. The world may not want to hear it, but what excuse will we have in eternity for not telling others?

Dove

 

The above video was sent to me this morning. It made me think, not so much about the point of the ad, but about the church. As an organization we have had a hard stand against TV and popular media. I’m not interested in debating that stance. My question is, why do people love Dove for saying, limit your pop culture intake to protect the minds and souls of your children, but when the church gives the same message people hate us. They say we are dated, irrelevant, etc, etc. Our message is the same, but it’s reception is vastly different. 

Is it because people trust Dove but not the church? Is it the way that Dove presents the message? Or is it the why the church presents the message? If it is presentation, what does that say about us that a large soap company shows people more love then we do?

I know this wasn’t the point of the ad, but it certainly has me thinking about the importance of presentation as well as substance. If people think we are preaching to them out of hate or a misguided sense of social norms, then we have failed. We need to present truth, of which modesty and holiness are a large part, but we must do it in a way that shows the value of living according to God’s principles. We must show holiness in the love of God.