Hold On... It's Coming!

When I was in Bible School, I remember the president of the college telling us during one of his classes that his father, who was a well-known evangelist/teacher who was active in the Great Healing Revival that officially went from 1947-1957, but actually continued at a slower pace into the 1960’s, always carried three books with him whenever he went out on the road.  As I think about that today, I can acknowledge that I also have three books that I have repeatedly read over the years. 

One is what many consider to be the textbook on God’s healing according to the scriptures (and is one of the books that our instructor’s father always packed with him), another is the personal story of one of the major leaders of the Charismatic movement, and the last, written by our instructor’s father, is the book that first ignited in me the hunger for God’s Word and the authority that we as believers have in Christ.

Each of these books rekindles the fire of God in me!  A couple of years ago I picked up another book that talks about a currently active Baptist Pastor’s journey into the modern beginnings of what I referenced yesterday as being similar to the Charismatic movement of the 1960’s and 70’s.  I have already read this book multiple times and it may be destined to become the fourth book I read over and over again!

This last book was the second in a row that I read of denominational churches in current times that are experiencing powerful moves of God in their congregations.  One in the Northwest and the other in the Southern area of the United States.  Over the last ten years or so there have been sporadic “revivals” going on in churches all over the US, Canada, South America as well as overseas in Europe and Asia that included many mighty showings of the power of God with phenomenal healings and hundreds being saved.

This week my wife and I have been watching a series on TV where the two evangelists have been sharing how we seem to be in the beginning stages of an even greater move of God than was experienced all around the world at the turn of the last century and the Healing Revival I previously mentioned.

Last night they showed actual footage of a young lady that was miraculously healed of a muscular disease at a meeting a few years back which they held in St Louis, Missouri.  It was incredible to watch as the gal sat down on a chair after being prayed for and become to take off all the metal braces she had on from her neck down to her ankles!  Then she slowly arose and shakily began to walk around the stage.  The speakers then went on to explain how she refused to get on the bus to her hotel and walked along side it for quite a while, getting stronger all the time.  A year later she stood up at the convention when the evangelist’s returned to her city and demonstrated her complete and whole recovery!

Well… let me tell you… I had all that I could do to contain myself with that testimony!  I jumped up from the couch and with tears flowing found myself lifting my arms in praise to Papa God!  That’s pretty exciting, wouldn’t you agree?  It seems that what God has been doing here and there around the world over the last few years is beginning to come into a focused effort to point humanity to Him.

All this came to my mind this morning as I read from multiple scriptures concluding with 1 John 4:17 where the author declares: “As He is, so are we in this world.” (MKJV)  My first thought after looking at this verse was “Where is He?”  And the answer being that Jesus is now sitting at the right hand of Papa God exercising His role as our great High Priest.  When we look at the verses that surround that statement, we discover that His position and responsibilities in that role are infused, empowered and led by love… just like He was when He walked on this earth.

Scriptures like Matthew 14:14 tell us that “Jesus… was moved with compassion…” (Young’s Literal Translation)  It is interesting to note that the term “compassion” is used 14 times in the King James Version within the gospels and each time it relates to the compassion of Jesus toward those He ministered to and always resulted in the performance of a miracle.

That is exactly what I sense is going on today!  Sure things in the natural world seem to be getting worse with more wars and rumors of wars, more blatant sin being accepted as the norm by society, horrendous and destructive weather patterns and many other signs of the last day’s as prophesized in the Bible.  But in the midst of it all, God’s love seems to be increasing to the point where He is about ready to make some major and well-advertised visitations, manifestations and demonstrations of His power to our needy and hurting world!

Sounds pretty exciting to me… how about you?  So get ready folks!  Something tells me that what we’ve seen in the past moves of God will be nothing compared to what He has planned within the very near future!  Have a great day.  Stay in tune to His Word, and keep asking yourself… “What or Whose powerful signs and wonders am I expecting to witness today?”