1890 St Louis Tent Meeting
Taken From Biography of Maria Woodworth-Etter, read more here
She had no itinerary, and often changed plans as the Lord led her. Once she was going to California, but in obedience to the Spirit's correction turned and headed for St. Louis instead. The resulting tent meeting at the infamous Kerry Patch, a stronghold of Catholic idolatry and rampant vice, was an epic victory that she describes in her 1918 book, Signs and Wonders. St. Louis, Missouri, 1890: "They had pistols and clubs, and were ready to kill us, and tear down the tent. It looked as if we would all be killed. Several ministers tried to talk, but were stoned down, or their voice drowned out. It looked like surrender or death. "It was an awful sight to see a little band of Christians, sitting nearly frozen to their seats with fear, surrounded by a mob of wild, fierce men and women, many of them half drunk, their eyes and faces red and inflamed. Every effort failed, and we could do nothing with them. I said to my co-workers: "We will never give up, and if they take us out of the tent before we are ready to go, they will take us out dead." I told them to lead in prayer one after the other, and the God of Elijah would answer. "A sister knelt on the pulpit pale as death, her hands and face raised to Heaven, and in a clear ringing voice asked God to save and bless the Judgement-bound multitude. A feeling of the awful Presence of God began to fall on the people. Another sister followed in prayer, then I arose, and stood before them. I raised my hand in the Name of the Lord, and commanded them to listen. I said the Lord had sent me there to do them good, and that I would not leave until the Lord told me to, when our work was done. I told them the Lord would strike dead the first one that tried to harm us or to strike us with a dagger. If any tried to kill us the Lord would strike them dead. The power of God fell, and the fear of God came upon all the multitude. The sweat came on their faces, and they stood like as though in a trance; the men began to take their pipes out of their mouths, and their hats off. The women began to cover up their bare necks and arms with their aprons. They felt they stood naked and guilty before God. They began to get off the seats, and try to sit down, but some fell and lay like dead. Others stood with their mouths open. One Catholic said that I struck him down, and showed him Hell. Tears ran down many faces, through the dirt, leaving streaks. They stood like they were afraid to move, and they all passed out quietly. After that the hoodlum element always respected me."
19 But when they deliver you up, do not worry about how or what you should speak. For it will be given to you in that hour what you should speak; 20 for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father who speaks in you.
http://www.youversion.com/bible/nkjv/matt/10/19
Prayer
We invite you Holy Spirit to strengthen and encourage us. Give us a passion to tell people of the goodness of God toward them. Give us a supernatural courage, remove the fear of man, remove the fear of offending and loose from us the excuses we make for not speaking up. Above all give us a heart of love, especially for those who don't know you, for your names sake, Lord Jesus, Amen
Saturday 27 November 2010
Monday 22 November 2010
Taking New Ground
Or 'Follow my Leader'
Or 'Be a Leader'
One Amazing Man!
Kind of a Billy Graham of his day, only combining a salvation message with healings. John Alexander Dowie had an amazing ministry and founded Zion City, however, he was toward the end of his life a very much flawed character, though one wonders if this was simply a mental illness. Dowie influenced many people and his ministry was going on around the time of the Welsh Revival. Alexander Boddy, a C of E minister from Sunderland (Sunderland Revival), visited Zion City in 1913 and this article from a magazine of the time is very interesting and includes something about Mrs Woodworth-Etter as well (last email's 'Amazing Woman'). This from the article, “Thousands have been made whole of every disease known at this age of the world, including one case of leprosy. Most of the cases that were healed were considered chronic by physicians. Many were brought on beds in a dying condition, given up by the best physicians; and many of them are living today, well and happy. Hundreds were saved and healed at the same time, otherwise they would have died in their sins ,and thousands of unbelievers of all classes were brought to Christ by seeing the mighty works of God”
John G Lake also visited Zion City and the Azusa Street Revival. The picture above is a common one from the time of Dowie's ministry and such pictures often had a banner saying, 'Captured From the Enemy!'
I wanted to look at Psalm 85
6 Will You not revive us again,
That Your people may rejoice in You?
7 Show us Your mercy, Lord,
And grant us Your salvation.
8 I will hear what God the Lord will speak,
For He will speak peace
To His people and to His saints;
But let them not turn back to folly.
9 Surely His salvation is near to those who fear Him,
That glory may dwell in our land.
10 Mercy and truth have met together;
Righteousness and peace have kissed.
11 Truth shall spring out of the earth,
And righteousness shall look down from heaven.
12 Yes, the Lord will give what is good;
And our land will yield its increase.
3 Righteousness will go before Him,
And shall make His footsteps our pathway.
Surely our heartfelt prayer for our nation is verse 6, 'revive us again'. The, 'why', is a bit surprising perhaps, 'that Your people may rejoice in you'. Not so we have reformation? justice? an end to crime? an end to poverty?, families restored? No, primarily that we may rejoice in Him! All these other essentials do follow, righteouseness, truth, increase because of God's goodness. Now verse 13 is interesting. It's as if someone is beating a path through the undergrowth, we are meant to follow that person. It's very hard for our leaders to both have the vision, then the courage and strength to begin beating a path forward, they need us to catch the vision, to help to push forward, to support. Even if sometimes they are mistaken. It's like sometimes they beat and hack a path through and we follow and then we have to turn round because it turns out it wasn't that way - we deviated a bit is all that happened. So we must try again in a slightly different direction.
If we look at these people's lives, they suffered hardship and personal loss. John G Lake's wife died on the mission field in South Africa, many of John G Lake's commissioned workers faced death from starvation. Mrs Woodworth-Etter lost children. Yet these people saw things happen that we can hardly dare believe for today! Yet these things are happening in countries like Mozambique today, so what's the key ? Is it all just about God's sovereign will or can we bring about revival again in our lives and in the lives of those around us? See these testimonies from recent IHOP meetings in Manchester and Bolton testimonies - so maybe we can and we can rightly expect. We know anyway, that we are to lay down down and consecrate our lives . .
Dowie got everyone to say this prayer of consecration (or similar) at the end of his meetings, 'My God and Father in Jesus name I come to Thee. Take me as I am. Make me what I ought to be in spirit, in soul, in body, no matter what it costs. Give me thy Holy Spirit. Lead me to thyself my Father. Take away my sins, and give me a pure heart that I may fervently love Thee and all things pure for Jesus sake. Amen.'
God Bless you
Andy Harper
Email Response
Or 'Be a Leader'
Send to a friendOne Amazing Man!
Kind of a Billy Graham of his day, only combining a salvation message with healings. John Alexander Dowie had an amazing ministry and founded Zion City, however, he was toward the end of his life a very much flawed character, though one wonders if this was simply a mental illness. Dowie influenced many people and his ministry was going on around the time of the Welsh Revival. Alexander Boddy, a C of E minister from Sunderland (Sunderland Revival), visited Zion City in 1913 and this article from a magazine of the time is very interesting and includes something about Mrs Woodworth-Etter as well (last email's 'Amazing Woman'). This from the article, “Thousands have been made whole of every disease known at this age of the world, including one case of leprosy. Most of the cases that were healed were considered chronic by physicians. Many were brought on beds in a dying condition, given up by the best physicians; and many of them are living today, well and happy. Hundreds were saved and healed at the same time, otherwise they would have died in their sins ,and thousands of unbelievers of all classes were brought to Christ by seeing the mighty works of God”
John G Lake also visited Zion City and the Azusa Street Revival. The picture above is a common one from the time of Dowie's ministry and such pictures often had a banner saying, 'Captured From the Enemy!'
I wanted to look at Psalm 85
6 Will You not revive us again,
That Your people may rejoice in You?
7 Show us Your mercy, Lord,
And grant us Your salvation.
8 I will hear what God the Lord will speak,
For He will speak peace
To His people and to His saints;
But let them not turn back to folly.
9 Surely His salvation is near to those who fear Him,
That glory may dwell in our land.
10 Mercy and truth have met together;
Righteousness and peace have kissed.
11 Truth shall spring out of the earth,
And righteousness shall look down from heaven.
12 Yes, the Lord will give what is good;
And our land will yield its increase.
3 Righteousness will go before Him,
And shall make His footsteps our pathway.
Surely our heartfelt prayer for our nation is verse 6, 'revive us again'. The, 'why', is a bit surprising perhaps, 'that Your people may rejoice in you'. Not so we have reformation? justice? an end to crime? an end to poverty?, families restored? No, primarily that we may rejoice in Him! All these other essentials do follow, righteouseness, truth, increase because of God's goodness. Now verse 13 is interesting. It's as if someone is beating a path through the undergrowth, we are meant to follow that person. It's very hard for our leaders to both have the vision, then the courage and strength to begin beating a path forward, they need us to catch the vision, to help to push forward, to support. Even if sometimes they are mistaken. It's like sometimes they beat and hack a path through and we follow and then we have to turn round because it turns out it wasn't that way - we deviated a bit is all that happened. So we must try again in a slightly different direction.
If we look at these people's lives, they suffered hardship and personal loss. John G Lake's wife died on the mission field in South Africa, many of John G Lake's commissioned workers faced death from starvation. Mrs Woodworth-Etter lost children. Yet these people saw things happen that we can hardly dare believe for today! Yet these things are happening in countries like Mozambique today, so what's the key ? Is it all just about God's sovereign will or can we bring about revival again in our lives and in the lives of those around us? See these testimonies from recent IHOP meetings in Manchester and Bolton testimonies - so maybe we can and we can rightly expect. We know anyway, that we are to lay down down and consecrate our lives . .
Dowie got everyone to say this prayer of consecration (or similar) at the end of his meetings, 'My God and Father in Jesus name I come to Thee. Take me as I am. Make me what I ought to be in spirit, in soul, in body, no matter what it costs. Give me thy Holy Spirit. Lead me to thyself my Father. Take away my sins, and give me a pure heart that I may fervently love Thee and all things pure for Jesus sake. Amen.'
God Bless you
Andy Harper
Email Response
Wednesday 10 November 2010
Affirm the Good
“We should affirm what is good” the Rev Paul Hardingham, Sunday night’s (07/11/10) sermon at St Peter’s
"What I have to say touching visions or dreams, is this: I know several persons in whom this great change was wrought in a dream, or during a strong representation to the eye of their mind, of Christ either on the cross or in the glory. This is the fact; let any judge of it as they please. And that such a change was then wrought appears (not from their shedding tears only, or falling into fit, or crying out; these are not the fruits, as you seem to suppose, whereby I judge, but) from the whole tenor of their life, till then many ways wicked; from that time holy, just, and good” John Wesley Journal
Last week we our church hosted a conference organised by Vinelife UK. There were also three evening meetings at Salford University with over 2000 people each evening. A team came from the International House of Prayer, Kansas City, which is also a bible school. They were instrumental about eleven years ago in setting going the 24/7 prayer movement. They now have about a thousand people praying and worshipping 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. About a year ago, after ten years of praying an awakening/revival occurred. In the year since there have over 1500 baptisms/salvations, many healings, for example, emotional from shame, self hatred as a result of sexual abuse, cancer, over twenty people who no longer need glasses, etc.
The conference was amazing! The main teaching was how much God loves us and that we should be chasing after that love, that everything flows from this amazing intimacy we can enjoy with Jesus. Also that healing is a ministry for all believers. We got to practice this and a number of people were healed from bad backs, joint problems, stiff necks, etc. The evening meetings were also astonishing, with healings including, curvature of the spine, asthma, Lupus, legs from needing leg braces, etc. I received healing from asthma, which I need to confirm, when I have a lung function test next week. There certainly has been a huge improvement, for example, I was on three different kinds of inhalers and have awoken every night since spring this year (bar perhaps two occasions) needing to use my rescue inhaler. Since Wednesday night I have slept soundly right through to my alarm! I love it and feel great!
Now I do have to say that some things were going on that could easily draw our focus away from that which we should be affirming as good – namely healings and salvations. We can get over excited in all sorts of different ways about people falling to the ground (see John Wesley above), shaking, laughing, crying, etc. We don’t need to judge these matters nor do we need to go around telling people it is necessary to experience the Holy Spirit in this way. We are all unique as individuals and churches and God has his special plan and unique way of dealing with us. We all earnestly desire that we move forward with salvations and healings and the last thing we want is division over these lesser matters (not lesser to the individuals concerned, but to us watching on, if you get my meaning) We have our biblical model in Jesus and biblical instructions ( for example, the laying on of hands and anointing with oil). Whatever else happens is God’s business!
We all know and love and trust each other enough to push forward, to tolerate, to have our questions along the way. The main thing is let’s get our ‘shoulders to the boulder’ of sickness and sin and see them defeated! In the name of Jesus!
18 And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. 19 May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God 20 Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think Ephesians 3:18-20
Bless you in Jesus name
Andy
"What I have to say touching visions or dreams, is this: I know several persons in whom this great change was wrought in a dream, or during a strong representation to the eye of their mind, of Christ either on the cross or in the glory. This is the fact; let any judge of it as they please. And that such a change was then wrought appears (not from their shedding tears only, or falling into fit, or crying out; these are not the fruits, as you seem to suppose, whereby I judge, but) from the whole tenor of their life, till then many ways wicked; from that time holy, just, and good” John Wesley Journal
Last week we our church hosted a conference organised by Vinelife UK. There were also three evening meetings at Salford University with over 2000 people each evening. A team came from the International House of Prayer, Kansas City, which is also a bible school. They were instrumental about eleven years ago in setting going the 24/7 prayer movement. They now have about a thousand people praying and worshipping 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. About a year ago, after ten years of praying an awakening/revival occurred. In the year since there have over 1500 baptisms/salvations, many healings, for example, emotional from shame, self hatred as a result of sexual abuse, cancer, over twenty people who no longer need glasses, etc.
The conference was amazing! The main teaching was how much God loves us and that we should be chasing after that love, that everything flows from this amazing intimacy we can enjoy with Jesus. Also that healing is a ministry for all believers. We got to practice this and a number of people were healed from bad backs, joint problems, stiff necks, etc. The evening meetings were also astonishing, with healings including, curvature of the spine, asthma, Lupus, legs from needing leg braces, etc. I received healing from asthma, which I need to confirm, when I have a lung function test next week. There certainly has been a huge improvement, for example, I was on three different kinds of inhalers and have awoken every night since spring this year (bar perhaps two occasions) needing to use my rescue inhaler. Since Wednesday night I have slept soundly right through to my alarm! I love it and feel great!
Now I do have to say that some things were going on that could easily draw our focus away from that which we should be affirming as good – namely healings and salvations. We can get over excited in all sorts of different ways about people falling to the ground (see John Wesley above), shaking, laughing, crying, etc. We don’t need to judge these matters nor do we need to go around telling people it is necessary to experience the Holy Spirit in this way. We are all unique as individuals and churches and God has his special plan and unique way of dealing with us. We all earnestly desire that we move forward with salvations and healings and the last thing we want is division over these lesser matters (not lesser to the individuals concerned, but to us watching on, if you get my meaning) We have our biblical model in Jesus and biblical instructions ( for example, the laying on of hands and anointing with oil). Whatever else happens is God’s business!
We all know and love and trust each other enough to push forward, to tolerate, to have our questions along the way. The main thing is let’s get our ‘shoulders to the boulder’ of sickness and sin and see them defeated! In the name of Jesus!
18 And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. 19 May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God 20 Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think Ephesians 3:18-20
Bless you in Jesus name
Andy
Friday 5 November 2010
Joy and Offense
Hi Folks
“Our identity must be rooted in His desire for us” and “the greatest hindrance to prayer is because we don’t believe God enjoys us” - Wes Hall, International House of Prayer, Kansas
Recently, visiting a church, the pastor introduced the speaker this way, “come on William, offend us, shake us up’. Offend us ?!?! Offend us? No thanks! I came here for a quiet sit and to be entertained! How many of us can remember, before we were Christians, being offended by the gospel, the struggle, accepting Jesus, then the joy? Now, how many of us know that that is just the start of a journey (yes, we are saved and nothing can change that). Sometimes it’s like we have let Jesus into the hallway of our lives, we run off and fetch a chair and say, “now Jesus, you just sit here and keep quiet, I’ll handle things from here on in” Then when the kitchen’s on fire we run back into the hall and say, “Jesus, help me, help me, don’t you know the kitchen’s on fire?” Before running back into the kitchen . . So in some ways the ‘struggle, accepting Jesus, joy’ process is meant to be repeated as we journey on. Let’s ask God to make us willing to submit, for wisdom to recognise the devil’s lies. Here’s one I fell for without realising it. Looking back I think that I didn’t fully believe that God is good to me and good all the time. If we don’t fully believe this then the devil can sneak in and during hard times we become resentful. We stay too long with the ‘why has God allowed this to happen’ question and rebellion or self pity become our routes of choice. And to be honest I know I have a good long way to go with this . .
Sometimes we have a problem with Joy, in that we feel it is selfish to seek it or to be seeking to be joyful all the time. I’m not talking about chasing happiness as an end in itself, rather the joy from having an ever more intimate relationship with Jesus. And expecting, as we grow in this relationship, to be more joyful , more of the time. Scripture confirms this, church history also gives some clues, we can trust the Holy Spirit to guide as to what is truth and God has also given us the ability to ‘reason’ ie work things out with our brains! And learning from experience is also valid!
Evan Roberts, one the main characters in the Welsh Revival, was thought by some to be insane because he was, “too happy”. The welsh revival produced 100,000 new Christians, oh that I was that happy!
“Man's chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever”, the Westminster Catechism
“17 For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of what we eat or drink, but of living a life of goodness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. 18 If you serve Christ with this attitude, you will please God, and others will approve of you, too. 19 So then, let us aim for harmony in the church and try to build each other up “ Romans 14: 17-19
Here Paul tells us that living a life of ‘goodness’, ‘peace’ and ‘joy’ in the Holy Spirit will please God. Doing good is linked with living a life of peace and joy
“16 Always be joyful. 17 Never stop praying. 18 Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.
19 Do not stifle the Holy Spirit. 20 Do not scoff at prophecies, 21 but test everything that is said. Hold on to what is good. 22 Stay away from every kind of evil” 1 Thessalonians 5: 16-22
“Always be joyful” is fairly unequivocal – it couldn’t be much clearer really !
My plea to you and for me, is this – submit, ask Him to show you areas of your life you need to hand over. Get hold of “God is good to me, all the time!”, say it out loud! Ask the Holy Spirit to nudge you when you have a thought or say anything contrary to God is good, so that you will say “No, wait a minute God is good to me/you, all the time”. Run after Him, because He is running after you, He totally loves you, you are unique, loved with a unique love, His favourite, with a unique job to do for the Lord that no one else can do! Be humble/courageous enough to ask someone you trust at your church to pray with you (or if you have a regular ministry time, get up there!), ask them to put their hand on your shoulder and tell them , look I always feel rejected like nobody likes me or I just can't believe God loves me, or that God would ever use me or that God would ever heal me or whatever it is - because God has something for you!
Andy
“Our identity must be rooted in His desire for us” and “the greatest hindrance to prayer is because we don’t believe God enjoys us” - Wes Hall, International House of Prayer, Kansas
Recently, visiting a church, the pastor introduced the speaker this way, “come on William, offend us, shake us up’. Offend us ?!?! Offend us? No thanks! I came here for a quiet sit and to be entertained! How many of us can remember, before we were Christians, being offended by the gospel, the struggle, accepting Jesus, then the joy? Now, how many of us know that that is just the start of a journey (yes, we are saved and nothing can change that). Sometimes it’s like we have let Jesus into the hallway of our lives, we run off and fetch a chair and say, “now Jesus, you just sit here and keep quiet, I’ll handle things from here on in” Then when the kitchen’s on fire we run back into the hall and say, “Jesus, help me, help me, don’t you know the kitchen’s on fire?” Before running back into the kitchen . . So in some ways the ‘struggle, accepting Jesus, joy’ process is meant to be repeated as we journey on. Let’s ask God to make us willing to submit, for wisdom to recognise the devil’s lies. Here’s one I fell for without realising it. Looking back I think that I didn’t fully believe that God is good to me and good all the time. If we don’t fully believe this then the devil can sneak in and during hard times we become resentful. We stay too long with the ‘why has God allowed this to happen’ question and rebellion or self pity become our routes of choice. And to be honest I know I have a good long way to go with this . .
Sometimes we have a problem with Joy, in that we feel it is selfish to seek it or to be seeking to be joyful all the time. I’m not talking about chasing happiness as an end in itself, rather the joy from having an ever more intimate relationship with Jesus. And expecting, as we grow in this relationship, to be more joyful , more of the time. Scripture confirms this, church history also gives some clues, we can trust the Holy Spirit to guide as to what is truth and God has also given us the ability to ‘reason’ ie work things out with our brains! And learning from experience is also valid!
Evan Roberts, one the main characters in the Welsh Revival, was thought by some to be insane because he was, “too happy”. The welsh revival produced 100,000 new Christians, oh that I was that happy!
“Man's chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever”, the Westminster Catechism
“17 For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of what we eat or drink, but of living a life of goodness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. 18 If you serve Christ with this attitude, you will please God, and others will approve of you, too. 19 So then, let us aim for harmony in the church and try to build each other up “ Romans 14: 17-19
Here Paul tells us that living a life of ‘goodness’, ‘peace’ and ‘joy’ in the Holy Spirit will please God. Doing good is linked with living a life of peace and joy
“16 Always be joyful. 17 Never stop praying. 18 Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus.
19 Do not stifle the Holy Spirit. 20 Do not scoff at prophecies, 21 but test everything that is said. Hold on to what is good. 22 Stay away from every kind of evil” 1 Thessalonians 5: 16-22
“Always be joyful” is fairly unequivocal – it couldn’t be much clearer really !
My plea to you and for me, is this – submit, ask Him to show you areas of your life you need to hand over. Get hold of “God is good to me, all the time!”, say it out loud! Ask the Holy Spirit to nudge you when you have a thought or say anything contrary to God is good, so that you will say “No, wait a minute God is good to me/you, all the time”. Run after Him, because He is running after you, He totally loves you, you are unique, loved with a unique love, His favourite, with a unique job to do for the Lord that no one else can do! Be humble/courageous enough to ask someone you trust at your church to pray with you (or if you have a regular ministry time, get up there!), ask them to put their hand on your shoulder and tell them , look I always feel rejected like nobody likes me or I just can't believe God loves me, or that God would ever use me or that God would ever heal me or whatever it is - because God has something for you!
Andy
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