Glory Reborn, which offers free maternity care to poor and homeless women, has delivered 400 babies since 2003
A 20-something woman from Texas has launched a midwifery ministry in the Philippines, causing hundreds of expectant women to experience new birth.
Since September 2003, Hilary Overton’s Glory Reborn Organization (GRO) has provided free maternity care to the homeless and poor mothers of Cebu City, located 365 miles south of Manila.

Overton, 24, said GRO has delivered more than 400 healthy babies and helped many more women in the community through medical care and services. Expectant mothers are offered prenatal and post-natal checkups, vitamins, health teachings and a feeding program, as well as weekly prayer and worship sessions before their babies are delivered.

Overton estimates that at least 200 women have accepted Jesus. “It is amazing to see the many lives that have been transformed not just physically but spiritually throughout the course of pregnancy and delivery, and how many little lives will be impacted to live for Jesus,” Overton said.

A native of El Paso, Overton is part of a family of ministers. Her uncle is popular worship leader Tommy Walker. Her aunt and uncle, Janey and Sam Stewart, head a worldwide feeding ministry called Charlie’s Lunch. Another uncle, Dale Walker, is founder of Heart for the World Mission Organization. And her father, Steve Walker, was founding pastor of Jesus Chapel West in El Paso.

Overton said she fell in love with ministering in Cebu during a June 2000 missions trip with Youth With a Mission. In September 2000, she moved to Cebu and lived there for 15 months while working on her midwifery degree through a New Mexico school.

She went back to Texas for five months to plan her June 6, 2003, wedding to David Overton, also 24. “I came back to Cebu in September 2003 to start Glory Reborn in my apartment, where we delivered our first baby,” said Overton, noting that her husband is GRO’s clinic administrator and “fix-it” man.

Overton said Glory Reborn’s name is based on 2 Corinthians 3:18. “We chose ‘Glory Reborn’ because it sums up the process of going from glory to glory after we are born again,” said Overton, who doesn’t have any children. “The name really has to do with the ministry being a birthing center for new life.”

Mercy Sanchez, 32, knows this firsthand. Shortly after she came to GRO, she learned her baby had died in her womb. “In the midst of all my sadness and despair, I had to look to Jesus for hope, and through this struggle I gave my heart and my baby to Jesus,” Sanchez said. “When I went home, I felt freedom and happiness for the first time, and I knew that my baby was in heaven with Jesus. Now Jesus is helping me change my life.”

According to a newspaper in Cebu City, which has a population of 610,000, only four of 10 births in the region occur at a health facility. Three out of 10 infants in the area die before reaching age 1, and 20 percent of newborns are born with a low birth weight. For every 100,000 births in Cebu City, 200 mothers will die.

Overton said GRO has outgrown her apartment, and she hopes they will soon be able to purchase a facility for the ministry. Support comes mostly from churches and individuals, though GRO (www.gloryreborn.com) hopes to receive a grant soon.

Ron Acton, pastor of 300-member Jesus Chapel West, said God is using Overton “in a mighty way.”

“She is able to do so much with so little,” Acton, 54, said. “She is able to train others to do what they never thought they could do. She gives the glory to God.”

Overton’s mother, Sharon Walker, echoed his point. “At the age of 24, Hilary experiences daily what many of us will never experience in a lifetime,” said Walker, 50. “There are great joys and deep sorrows. Hilary literally handles life and death daily. Even if I was not Hilary’s mom, it is so utterly amazing to see someone so young with such unwavering passion.”
Eric Tiansay

Organizer Cindy Jacobs hopes the event will empower Christians to engage in healing and deliverance ministry

The time has come for all Christians to be anointed to do healing and deliverance. So says prayer leader Cindy Jacobs, who is leading a 40-day prayer and fasting event that she hopes will encourage believers to step into this ministry.

“The days of the traveling evangelist being the only person flowing in healing and miracles are over,” said Jacobs, who founded Dallas-based Generals International with her husband, Mike. “With all of my heart I believe that we have entered into the time of the ‘saints movement,’ the time when every believer can lay hands on the sick and see them recover.”

Jacobs’ 40 Days of Prayer and Fasting is to be held in Dallas Sept. 22 through Oct. 31 at the campus of Christ for the Nations Institute, which was founded by healing evangelist Gordon Lindsay. Participants will pray, fast, worship and give to the poor. “Miracle services” will be held the last 10 nights-from Oct. 22 to Oct. 31-and people will be able to bring in the sick to receive ministry. Keynote speakers include Morris Cerullo, John Kilpatrick, Ché Ahn, Guillermo Maldonado, Dutch Sheets, Steve Hill and Mahesh Chavda.

Jacobs said she believes the event will impact Christians around the globe. “The Lord impressed upon me during a time of prayer that we were to set aside 40 days to seek Him,” she said. “He revealed that we should go to a major well of revival for intense prayer, fasting, spiritual warfare and worship that would result in a tidal wave of signs and wonders sweeping the globe.”

Jacobs said Dallas is one such well, noting that pioneering healing evangelists such as Lindsay, F.F. Bosworth, Maria Woodworth-Etter and Oral Roberts ministered there before becoming prominent.

Steve Hill, pastor of Heartland Fellowship Church in Dallas and a former leader in the Brownsville Revival, agrees. “Never in my life have I seen hunger like I have seen here in Dallas,” Hill said. “Hunger is the prerequisite to a move of God.”

The late Ruth Ward Heflin also identified Dallas as the next epicenter of revival. During a 1997 conference held at Brownsville Assembly of God in Pensacola, Fla., Heflin said, “I know this may come as a surprise to those of you who live in Pensacola, but a much larger revival than this one will be coming out of Dallas.”

Jacobs considers hosting the event at Christ for the Nations an integral part of tapping into a “major well of revival.” The ministry has reached out to 120 nations in the last 54 years through its Bible schools, churches and Christian materials.
Renée DeLoriea

Billy Graham

Regarding your very good article about Billy Graham (“A Faithful Witness” by Sandra Chambers, July), I must say that he has no mantle to pass on. Like D.L. Moody, C.H. Spurgeon, Billy Sunday and others, Billy Graham will stand as one of God’s unique chosen few.
Rev. Michael A. Albert
Damascus Road Ministries
Mount Wolf, Pennsylvania

I saw Billy Graham on Larry King Live when he said he was a Democrat and that he thought Hillary Clinton would make a good president. There are many high-profile Christians who vote Democrat. I’m sure they aren’t too dumb to realize when they’re voting for a person who supports abortion and same-sex marriage. Should Clinton be elected president, she will put a stop to the gospel message.
Betty Lemmon
Ellicott City, Maryland

Healing in the Delta

Thank you for the article “Healing in the Delta” (by Ernest Herndon, July). It was so heartening to read about the work that reformer Dolphus Weary is doing in the state of Mississippi. When I left there, I didn’t want to return because of the racist attitudes I encountered. (I’m white, but I saw many hurtful things while growing up there.) Churches are still segregated, but I hope that is changing because of Mission Mississippi and Weary’s work. Hats off to him!
Dianne Lang
Broken Arrow, Oklahoma

More on catholics

I want to thank J. Lee Grady for his excellent column about the need for a fresh wave of the Spirit in Catholic and Protestant churches (“Do It Again, Lord,” June). I say: “Lord, turn all of our churches upside down.” We need God—no more business as usual but a radical hunger for the things of the Holy Spirit and the voice of the Lord in our midst.
Marietta Alexander
Everett, Washington

As a former Catholic baptized in the Spirit, I have been grieved by the slander of Catholic Christians. Even though I am now part of a Pentecostal church, I still have respect and affection for my “separated brethren.” I implore Christians who disagree with Catholic theology (I am among them) to embrace Catholics as fellow believers and allow the Spirit to renew their minds.
Marilyn Rej
Columbia, South Carolina

It’s true that some fundamentalists would deny there are any Christians in Catholicism. But Catholicism is more like the church at Sardis in Revelation 3:1-5; a church Christ described as having the reputation of being alive, though it actually was dead. Still, Jesus said it had “a few who have not soiled their garments and will walk with Me in white.” Be careful about judgments.
Janelle Olney
Lubbock, Texas

It was good to point out that Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict are traditionalists. Sometimes Protestants don’t like to hear much about the Catholic Church, but we are part of the body of Christ too.
Berta Medina
St. Johns, Michigan

If you can write an article about Pope John Paul II, will you do one about the Dalai Lama next? I am surprised that your editorial is warming up to Catholics.
Jeff Mills
Antigua, Guatemala

Your story about the pope gives the impression Charisma endorses the view that salvation is obtained by works. Catholic doctrines such as the theology of purgatory speak to the fact that Roman Catholicism does not reflect Christianity. In fact, it opposes it.
Bruce C. Bennett
Medford, New York

How can the Catholic Church make the front cover of a supposedly Christian magazine? Has anyone studied its teachings? Just because the name of Jesus is used by this group doesn’t make them holy.
Rev. Robert Johnson
Word of Faith Church
Sumter, South Carolina

I’m sure it wasn’t your intention to imply that John Paul II was the Holy Spirit’s substitute, but calling him “Vicar of the Spirit” means exactly that. I’m happy he was godly, but long-standing aberrations still exist in the Catholic Church. They, and we, need cleaning by the real Holy Spirit.
Maurice L. Fuller
Calgary, Alberta

I was shocked to receive your glowing articles about Pope John Paul II. The pope was known for his energetic search for common ground not only with Protestants but also with other religious affiliations. This approach is not condoned in Scripture. His interest in the Holy Spirit should not negate the fact that “one God, many paths” isn’t what the Bible teaches.
Karen Johnson
Tehachapi, California

Mixed Signals

I love your editorials and look forward to reading them, but they confuse me. I am getting mixed signals. I read your editorials about the mess the charismatic preachers are making in the area of false prosperity—but then I see your magazine full of articles and pictures of preachers who are of the very school you are against in your editorials. Please explain.
Rev. Raffoul Najem
via e-mail

I am beginning to object to your taking advertising dollars from the very people who are preaching “another gospel.” We are straying from the message that Jesus preached. He taught self-denial, self-control and holiness.
Carmela Croteau
East Branch, New York

BOOKS

The Supernatural Life
By Cindy Jacobs, Regal, hardcover, 224 pages, $17.99.

Cindy Jacobs wants believers to realize that they can experience the supernatural power of God. In her latest book, The Supernatural Life: Experience the Power of God in Your Everyday Life, Jacobs shares experiences and adventures she has had with the supernatural life.

Using a simple, informal approach, Jacobs teaches about speaking in tongues, healing and miracles, laying hands on the sick, testing the spirits (but, she warns, “Don’t go overboard and think there’s a demon behind every bush”), the gift of discernment, words of knowledge, and a phrase she coined, “prophetic evangelism,” or reaching others through a word of knowledge. This book is for those who have never experienced the supernatural life firsthand or those in the Pentecostal-charismatic movement who want to return to their first love, Christ.

The anecdotal style and examples from the lives of past charismatic leaders, such as Smith Wigglesworth and Aimee Semple McPherson, help demonstrate that the supernatural life is available to all believers.
Tracee N. Mason

Losers and Winners Saints and Sinners
By Greg Laurie, Warner Faith, hardcover, 336 pages, $18.99.

In his latest book, the founder of Harvest Crusades weaves lessons from the lives of familiar biblical characters with modern-day vignettes to sound the call for Christians to remain faithful.

Subtitled How to Finish Strong in the Spiritual Race, the book shows how faithful men kept going after they stumbled. Such perseverance makes the difference between those who finish life well and dropouts who crash and burn.

In a world of relativism that is blunting the church’s impact, this book is a dynamic reminder that our actions matter. As Laurie notes, too many people excuse their participation in sinful activities by shrugging, “God will forgive me.”

With 22 chapters, this book is a bit long for a weekly study. But by combining multiple chapters on one character, it can be shortened for use in cell groups, home churches and Bible classes.
Ken Walker

CollegeBound
By Thomas A. Shaw, Moody Publishers,
softcover, 224 pages, $12.99.

For more than 20 years, Thomas A. Shaw has been involved in Christian higher education as an administrator and as a parent. Now, as an author, he hopes to pass along an informed perspective to other parents.

In his book Collegebound: What Christian Parents Need to Know About Helping Their Kids Choose a College, Shaw covers topics such as determining whether college is right for your child, choosing a major and understanding the different types of schools. Perhaps the most important aspect Shaw discusses with parents is striking a balance between being either too controlling or too uninvolved in the choices. It is important to stay between these two extremes because kids need both their parents’ input and to be respected as young adults who take ownership for the direction of their lives.

This book is a helpful resource for parents and teens in finding the best environment not only for career preparation, but for the development of their faith walk as well.
Deborah L. Delk

God@Work, Vol. 2
By Rich Marshall with Ken Walker,
Destiny Image, softcover, 192 pages, $13.99.

The world seeks evidence that Christians will bring practical solutions to problems they face. In his book God @ Work, Vol. 2, Rich Marshall details how “marketplace ministers,” business people who do the work of an evangelist, are that “evidence.”

Because God never stops seeking the lost, those He finds may not come from the aisles of a traditional church but might instead be reached in a bank lobby or on the call-in line of a late-night TV program. The author points out that God has found individuals who not only make profits but also become prophets in an increasingly global work place.

Marshall describes how these Monday-to-Friday ministers cannot afford to rely on anything other than solid foundational truths from the Bible in the fiercely competitive settings where they work. He documents some amazing signs and wonders that follow these servant leaders who pastor “congregants” on the job.
J. James Estrada

Biblical Principles for Releasing Financial Provision!
By Frank Damazio, Rich Brott; City Christian Publishing,
softcover, 439 pages, $19.99.

“Fantastic” describes this huge resource produced by pastor Frank Damazio and leadership guru Rich Brott. In this day and age of rampant materialism and self-serving doctrines that present God the Father as some divine sugar daddy, Releasing Financial Provision is a welcome relief.

The book is divided into seven “keys” for opening the heavens and obtaining the favor of God in your personal and vocational life. Biblical principles about finances bolster each key, enabling the book to read like a daily devotional, with each principle including specific Scriptures and a short teaching on the subject that is always practical and often pleasantly insightful. In addition to the 98 or so principles expounded upon throughout the book, there are at least 100 pages of Scripture references on everything financial, as well as an excellent bibliography of printed and electronic financial resources.

This book is a must-have for anyone who is serious about understanding and applying a biblical approach to finances.
Eric Wilbanks

SHE TEEN

By Rebecca St. James, Tyndale House,
softcover, 208 pages, $12.99.

Today’s teens face countless opportunities to make wrong choices, which seemingly are becoming the norm.

With her latest book, SHE Teen, music artist Rebecca St. James comes along as a big sister, mentor and friend to tell teen girls that they can be “safe, healthy and empowered” by allowing Christ to define their identity.

Packaged as a magazine, SHE Teen offers a fresh, culturally relevant tool for girls to acknowledge their own questions, fears and concerns. It also offers practical everyday advice on relationships and self-esteem. There’s even a recipe for “a fruit smoothie that will change your life”!

Although the style of this book might make you think it’s made for a quick, one-time read, the truth the book conveys is not sugar-coated. Mixed with the lighter segments are tough questions. One quiz helps girls analyze what their makeup communicates (harsh? lazy? seductive?). Throughout the magazine, readers are reminded by biblical truths of how beautiful and valuable they are to God.

Today’s teens respect those who speak the truth yet are vulnerable, and St. James fits that bill. As she shares her own struggles and triumphs, young women will be encourage to choose the freedom, protection and power God’s higher standard provides.
Leigh DeVore

MUSIC

Rock of Ages: Hymn & Faith
By Amy Grant, Word Entertainment.

Rock of Ages: Hymns & Faith is a follow-up to 2002’s Legacy: Hymns & Faith that showcased hymns that have had an influence in artist Amy Grant’s life. Certainly Grant has been the premier artist of Christian music for nearly three decades, having many awards and platinum records, so the idea of her returning to the hymns of her youth at this time in her career is understandable.

Produced by Grant’s husband, Vince Gill, and her longtime producer, Brown Bannister, Rock of Ages features some beautiful hymns, great studio production and lovely vocals, but it would be stronger if it were expressed by Grant with more intimacy. The hints of country, blues and Americana used in the production perhaps could have been stronger as well, which might have made the hymns come to life more.

The title track, “Rock of Ages,” is a duet with Gill, whose strong, passionate vocals are out of balance with Grant’s, which sound almost weary. The compilation “Jesus Loves Me/They’ll Know We Are Christians by Our Love/Helping Hand” weaves together a single thought, which helps the listener reflect on older and newer texts together.

Other highlights are “Abide With Me” and “Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus”—which includes Grant’s sisters singing harmony and her father doing a speaking part—”I Surrender All” and “Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee,” which has an upbeat and simplistic arrangement that allows the true nature of the hymn to emerge.

Although this disc could have delved further to find common ground with a younger audience, Rock of Ages: Hymns & Faith is soothing and uplifting.
Debbie Gibboney

Reflection of Something
By Todd Agnew, Ardent Records.

The latest CD from Todd Agnew is a guitar-driven and edgy mix of blues, rock, gospel and contemporary sound.

His flexibility is highlighted on such cuts as “New Name,” with its blues feel and sassy guitar sound and the slow, soft ballad “Blood on My Hands.”

Agnew tackles trials of faith such as battered self-esteem and doubts. His rugged sound reveals some of his musical influences, such as Led Zeppelin and Memphis blues. On Agnew’s second CD, his background as a worship leader comes through on songs such as “Unchanging One.”

Reflection of Something will satisfy the most devoted of Agnew’s fans and likely bring in new ones.

Tracee N. Mason

Rescue
By New Song, Integrity Music

Although NewSong is a veteran to the music industry, Rescue is the group’s first worship album and live recording. Yet, this award-winning band still displays the fresh sound listeners expect and enjoy.

Rescue’s 12 tracks combine several well-known worship songs such as “How Great Thou Art” and “You Are Holy” with new songs and a new version of a NewSong classic, “Arise My Love.”

“You Are Holy” is a fun, fast, call-and-response song while “Blessed Be Your Name” is soothing and mellow. The title cut is a modern, worshipful love song to Jesus that stands out as an anthem, and “I’ll Rise” is inspirational and romantic.

If NewSong’s 16th album is any indication, the band shows no signs of slowing down in delivering powerful music, and they have found a comfortable fit with their first worship CD.
Tracee N. Mason

Movies

Aimee Semple McPherson
By Richard Rossi Productions, $29.95.

The new movie Aimee Semple McPherson (currently on DVD) is as provocative as it is touching and explores the human side of one of America’s towering spiritual icons.

Get past the shoestring production values by former minister turned producer Richard Rossi and you’ll find a sensitive script, ample acting and a story that portrays the Pentecostal woman, who, like the rest of us, lived in a skin of real flesh.

In Sister Aimee’s acutely dichotomous world, she founded the International
Church of the Foursquare Gospel and the first Christian radio station and used illustrated sermons. Thousands were healed at her crusades, and millions came to Christ through her ministry.

Sister Aimee, played by screen newcomer Mimi Michaels, was friend to the famous and a provider to the poor. Yet her ministry was rife with controversy. History records arguments with her mother, church-leader shake-ups, lawsuits, court appearances, a kidnapping by the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) and two divorces.

A study in contrasts, she is seen as a creative genius who was vulnerable, often melancholy and most of all lonely. “A lot of leaders anointed by God with spiritual gifts feel they have to hide their despair because they would be considered unfit for leadership,” Rossi says. “Healers, especially, pour out into everyone else and come to find out they are depleted.”

In a life that was as amazing as plagued, the movie is fairly accurate historically. Critically, the film is middle-of-the-road. The viewer must decide its merits.

The movie traces Sister Aimee’s early life as daughter of Canadian farmer James Kennedy, portrayed by Ron Howard’s father, Rance, and her shrewd, strong-willed mother, Minnie, played by Teres Byrne.

Her conversion, aided by traveling evangelist and future husband Robert Semple, and her husband’s death on the China mission field are treated with sensitivity. She returns, pregnant with daughter Roberta, and soon marries Harold McPherson, a kind man who does not fully understand her call to preach and leaves her evangelistic tent.

Yet the movie best explores Sister Aimee’s aching earthliness through her short third marriage to former Angelus Temple singer David Hutton, her strange 39-day disappearance and her death by an accidental overdose of barbiturates.

On May 18, 1926, three years after she opened Angelus Temple in Los Angeles, Sister Aimee walked into the surf at nearby Ocean Park for a swim and disappeared. Many thought she had drowned. But 39 days later she walked in from the desert near Douglas, Arizona.

Newspaper writers and the local district attorney, Asa Keyes, alleged she had spent at least some of that missing time in a cottage with her married audio-engineer Kenneth Ormiston. Sister Aimee insisted she was kidnapped by the KKK. Hundreds of journalists and two courts of law spent five years and more than a half-million dollars, but never proved otherwise.

In 1931, she married singer David Hutton, who may have been slightly less of a scoundrel than the movie indicates. Her second divorce in 1934 was especially painful, and the movie touches on her well-documented bouts with depression. It ends in 1944 with her unusual death from an overdose of barbiturates.

Because the movie explores both sides of her disappearance and her bipolarlike personality, controversy will likely hound it as it did her ministry. Yet, the movie as well as Sister Aimee’s life adds a dynamic dimension when draped with frail flesh.

“In a sense, we’re all wounded soldiers,” Rossi says. “She was a powerful conduit for the Holy Spirit, yet she struggled. It’s ironic that a lot of churches today would reject her because she was divorced twice. But hers is a story of grace, and it’s grace that gives all us sinners hope.”

After she won the legal battle regarding her disappearance in the movie, her father tells her, “But whether you’ve done something wrong or … something right [Christ] is there for forgiveness.”

And that is the proper way to view Sister Aimee’s life and this movie. If you can believe that Christian legends still wear skin that longs to be touched, this movie is a must-see. Rossi says he believes depicting her humanness will attract non-Christian viewers. And he hopes church leaders, especially those in her denomination, will view the movie with objectivity.

The film will be in select theaters this fall. The DVD is now available. For a copy send a donation of $29.95 or more to Eternal Grace, 5030 Whitsett Ave., #1, Valley Village, CA 91607. Movie-related news can be found at www.aimeesemple mcphersonmovie.com.
E.C. Donnally

More than 240,000 believers and seekers endured 90-degree weather to hear evangelist Billy Graham speak at his final mass crusade June 24-26.

The crowd at the Greater New York Billy Graham Crusade at Flushing Meadows-Corona Park in Queens was a mosaic of colors, ages and ethnic backgrounds. Many came to see Graham in person for the first and last time. “I have listened to Billy Graham all my life and read his books,” said Gail Yawn, a member of Shirley Hills Baptist Church who traveled from Warner Robins, Ga., to hear Graham. “I know he’s a man anointed of God. I felt led to be a part of [the crusade]. I felt the Spirit of the Lord moving.”

“God uses Billy Graham in a tremendous way,” said Patrick Necerato of Jackson, N.J. “You get encouraged in the Lord. I’m blown away.”

Muddying the waters about his future, Graham, 86, told the audience at the beginning of his sermon on June 26: “This is not the end. They may think so, but I don’t.”

However, insiders report that his health problems make another mass crusade unlikely. In July he declined an invitation to hold a crusade in London later this year. Graham suffers from prostate cancer and hydrocephalus (water on the brain), a condition that mimics symptoms of Parkinson’s disease. A frequent patient at the Mayo Clinic, he wears a hearing aid and needs a walker to get around. Graham told CNN talk-show host Larry King during a pre-crusade interview that he travels with a nurse, who also attends to his medical needs at home.

Steered to the podium by his son Franklin Graham, the evangelist appeared fit as he delivered his final sermon holding on to the podium. In a surprisingly strong voice, he warned the audience of 90,000 about the approaching end of the world system and the return of Jesus Christ. “I believe today that God is warning the United States,” he said.

“When he began to share God’s word I saw such power and the anointing come over his frail body, ” said Jimmy Jack, director of Long Island Teen Challenge. “God took over. He doesn’t preach as fast as he used to, but it’s more clear.”

Thousands crammed the platform area each night when Graham invited seekers to accept Christ as Lord and Savior. Counselors fanned out, assisting seekers in 20 languages. The crusade generated 9,445 decisions for Christ, half of which were said to be first-time conversions. “God is saving,” said prayer counselor Mary Roacher. “It’s incredible what He does.”

About 1,400 churches representing 82 denominations backed the crusade with 11,000 volunteers, prayer and help in raising the $6.8 million budget. A.R. Bernard, senior pastor of the Christian Cultural Center in Brooklyn and chairman of the crusade executive committee, said the event coalesced both charismatic and non-charismatic evangelicals in metro New York—a trend that he believes will continue. “The crusade brought diverse evangelical groups to the forefront,” he said.
Peter K. Johnson in Queens, N.Y.

Syvelle Phillips has spent the last 30 years working to make the Scriptures available in every language
In an effort to make the gospel accessible to the more than 500 million people who don’t have a Bible in their mother tongue, a former Assemblies of God pastor has taken up the task of translating the Scriptures into little-known languages spoken in remote regions around the world.

During the early 1970s, while he was pastoring an Assemblies of God church in
Southern California, Syvelle Phillips says he felt God calling him to translate the
Bible. Through relationships with church members who worked for Wycliff e Bible
Translators, Phillips learned the importance of their unique ministry.

“I had never been aware of the need for Bible translation,” Phillips said. “I thought
the entire world had the King James Bible, and it was good enough for everyone.”

After much prayer and research, Phillips founded Evangel Bible Translators, which is based in Rockwall, Texas. Since 1976, he and his team have devoted millions
of hours to studying and recording the nearly 7,000 languages spoken worldwide. “When I said goodbye to my church, I had no missionaries and no money,” Phillips said, “but I attacked the project with great zeal, and there was tremendous
response.”

More than 30 translators and their families, located primarily in Africa and India, currently direct Evangel projects. Most work in their native countries. They receive both biblical and linguistic training before journeying to the mission field, and they are equipped with laptop computers to aid in their translation work.

“One of our first translators was a Quechua Indian who took up a project Wycliff e had abandoned and returned to his native people,” Phillips said. “After we trained him, he completed an entire Bible before he was killed by guerillas in Peru.”

Evangel also encourages missionaries to plant local churches and lead the
congregations in worship and Bible study. “I’m highly committed to the church,”
he said. “I tell our people when Sunday comes to get their guitars, go sing and tell
someone about Jesus. It will be therapy for your souls.”

Evangel trained 15 translators last year and expects another 30 to complete their
preparation this year. Although the ministry is grateful for the increased interest,
the growing demand also requires more financial resources. To fund these needs,
the 76-year-old Phillips preaches more than 200 times annually in local churches
and at conferences.

“God called me from the start to challenge the charismatic, Full Gospel churches
into involvement with Bible translation,” he said. “He began us at a point we
could comprehend and moved us into an area we had never known. We’ve seen
God raise up our mother-tongue speakers and connect us with them.”
JOHN HILLMAN IN ROCKWALL, TEXAS

Through their Oasis of Hollywood outreach, Ron and Judy Radachy are sharing the love of Jesus with needy families
Nestled in Hollywood’s inner city, a Christian outreach and drop-in center is shining a different kind of light in a city filled with stars.

Oasis of Hollywood, founded in its current location by pastors Ron and Judy Radachy in 1993, is located a half dozen blocks away from the famous Walk of Fame sidewalk and the Kodak Theater, site of the Academy Awards and the
crowning episodes of American Idol.

But within another 10 minutes’ walk is Santa Monica and Highland, a haven for
male, female or transsexual prostitutes of almost any age and drugs of all kinds. Two blocks farther is Panpipes Magickal Marketplace, a supermarket for occult shoppers and spiritual home to local Satanists.

“This is a very oppressive area,” Ron Radachy said. “It’s like someone handed
you a 10-pound weight to carry around and you carry it easily for a while, but
then it starts to wear you down. There’s obviously a spiritual influence on the
kids here.”

Judy Radachy recounts the details of their ministry in her book, Walk of Faith on the Walk of Fame. Included in its short chapters are accounts of their Jesus Night
Patrol, a fistfight at the center’s front door and a 9-year-old who overdosed on drugs during a suicide attempt.

But the most poignant moment in the book-and perhaps in Judy Radachy’s life came in 1982. Three years after she and husband Charles McPheeters arrived
in Hollywood, he suddenly died, leaving her with two young children and a leaderless ministry. A talented speaker and musician, McPheeters had found Christ after a nearly fatal drug overdose and became one of the best-known ministers and anti-drug advocates of the 1970s’ Jesus Revolution.

After Charles’ death, Judy Radachy’s family wanted her to move home to Texas.
“Charles was the source of all my financial support, and I just couldn’t see how I could go on,” she said. “I opened my Bible and out popped Joshua 1: ‘Moses my servant is dead. Now arise and take his place.'”

She started another nearby drop in center for teens and continued their House of Magdalene, a residential facility for local street prostitutes. During a midnight
outreach to nearby Pasadena Rose Parade revelers four years later, she met the
Rev. Ron Radachy. Both now licensed Foursquare ministers, the two married in
1986 and six years later made an offer on their current facility, $300,000 below an
already reduced price.

In an area where few outreach ministries survive, Oasis has flourished. Reaching
gangbangers, prostitutes, homeless alcoholics, single moms and “good” kids
with abusive parents, the center offers after-school programs, tutoring, emergency
food and shelter for families, and a Sunday evening youth service.

Yet the Radachys believe their most vital program is the Urban School of
Evangelism, a one-week mission trip for youth and college-age groups from across
the nation. They stay in the center and minister in Hollywood streets, on skid row and on the Santa Monica beach.

“Both of our hearts are not just in sitting in a pew in a blessing club,” Judy
Radachy said. “But a world where God is real and people see it because we meet
them where they are.”
ED DONNALLY IN HOLLYWOOD

Organizers believe God is positioning the church for’ a new Europe’
by restoring the continent’s’ apostolic and prophetic foundations’
A Channel Islander-whose homeland was the only part of the British Isles to be occupied by Nazi forces-found himself praying with a German. He conferred a “blessing” on a nation that his own people had despised as a wartime enemy.

That was just one of the moving scenes at Target Europe-a recent event that drew
nearly 400 people from 20 nations to the strategic naval port of Portsmouth, England.
“The last thing I expected was to be praying with a German church leader,” said attendee Ray Tostevin, who was born on Guernsey.

Now an idyllic island retreat, Guernsey once was part of Hitler’s frontier. Back in the 1940s, swastikas were draped from civic buildings, Jewish businesses had to
display a yellow notice and listening to the BBC on a clandestine radio set was
punishable by imprisonment.

“My father and grandparents lived through fi ve years of that,” Tostevin explained.
“My father might be forgiven for feeling a sense of harshness toward the German people. Far from it.

“It’s a real irony that, 60 years on, my father recently found himself in a German
hospital being operated on for a serious spinal condition by a German surgeon.
The operation was a complete success.”

Tostevin, who runs an independent TV company called GRACE Productions, said he participated in the event because he wanted to express his thanks for the way German people cared for his father. He ended up praying with Michael Schiffman, a leading German pastor.

“I didn’t realize who this guy was only that his lapel badge said he was from
Germany,” Tostevin said. “I prayed that God would bless the German people, thanking Michael, as their representative, for the kindness they’d shown toward my dad.”

Tostevin’s personal story summed up the Target Europe event-which was officially
opened by the Lord Mayor of Portsmouth Jason Fazakerley. Uniting former enemies and praying blessings on one another’s nations was high on the agenda at this conference. “This event is for those following the Spirit,” said speaker and writer Roger Mitchell, who was one of the key facilitators for Target Europe, “as He positions the church for a new Europe.”

Delegates packed out a meeting suite overlooking the English Channel, a narrow
stretch of water that separates Great Britain from the rest of Europe. But people
were also crossing more symbolic gulfs as they prayed and worshiped together.
The event was jointly hosted by a French mission group called Cibler L’Europe, which is translated Target Europe, and an English network dubbed Building Together. The aim was to play their part in “restoring the apostolic and
prophetic foundations of our continent.”

That included praying for reconciliation between Europe and Africa and sending a representative group to attend the Make Poverty History protest event that happened to be under way at the same time in central London.

Among the intercessors at Portsmouth were Dutch intercessory leader Pieter Bos, national coordinator for Holland’s City Prayer Movements; and Martin Scott, author of Gaining Ground, which discusses prophetic intercession. “We lift up the cross this day into the very heavens above,” Scott cried out, “and we thank You that the cross speaks of justice. It speaks for an end-and it speaks for a new beginning.”

Mitchell described the effort as “a kind of rallying cry-not an organization.” The
initiative had resulted from various groups and networks working together. “I see
some incredibly exciting new expressions of the body of Christ happening across
Europe, with the help of the faith of Africa, South America and Asia,” he said. “I see seeds that make me incredibly hopeful.” In particular, he believes the spiritual
landscape of France has been changing, an observation other Christian leaders have been making recently.

“There is a lot of encouragement in France now, but we sense that the Lord is making a shift,” said French Christian leader Samuel Rhein, another Target Europe
facilitator. “There’s a lot of disappointment at the same time because it’s not the breakthrough that we were waiting for. But still we see a lot of changes.”

Rhein cited one example as the fact that he had brought 70 French people to the conference. “That’s a major thing,” he said with a smile. “I thought I was the only Frenchman in love with England.”

CLIVE PRICE IN PORTSMOUTH, ENGLAND

CHARLES COLSON ‘SHOCKED ‘ BY DEEP THROAT REVELATION

Prison Fellowship founder Charles Colson said he was “shocked” to
discover that W. Mark Felt, 91, former deputy director of the FBI, was the notorious informant who helped expose the Watergate scandal. In a statement on his ministry’s Web site, the former senior Nixon adviser said he knew Felt well and considered him trustworthy. “No matter how Felt may justify his actions, it is not honorable to leak
classified information to the press,” Colson said of the man who became known as Deep Throat. Ironically, the crime that led to Colson’s seven-month imprisonment was leaking a secret FBI report to the media. He believes going to prison was good for him, and he said he realizes that the end doesn’t justify the means. That’s why he says Felt is no hero. “I am disappointed in Mark for choosing the media as the way to expose the corruption,” Colson said. “If he felt that the wrongs of the Nixon administration had to be remedied, he should have walked into the FBI director’s office and told him so, and if necessary walked in to the president.”

JUDGE OFFERS OFFENDERS ‘WORSHIP
SERVICES’ OPTION INSTEAD OF JAIL

A Kentucky judge has been offering some drug and alcohol off enders the option of going to God’s house instead of going to the “Big House” or rehab. District Judge Michael Caperton, 50, a devout Christian, believes church attendance could help some of those convicted find spiritual guidance, the Associated Press reported. But
critics say the practice violates the separation of church and state. “The goal is to help people and their families,” said Caperton, who requires defendants who choose the church option to get a signed affi davit from a pastor or spiritual leader after attending 10 services. “I don’t think there’s a churchstate issue because it’s not mandatory and I say worship services instead of church.” A district judge since 1994, Caperton has offered the option about 50 times to repeat drug and alcohol off enders in Laurel and Knox counties since early spring.

PASTORS MEET WITH WHITE HOUSE TO DISCUSS AFRICA INITIATIVE

More than two dozen African-American ministers met with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and senior White House offi cials in May to discuss how the faith-based initiative could be expanded to fight AIDS in Africa and care for orphaned children, the Los Angeles Times reported. Attendees at the private meeting included Bishop T.D. Jakes, Bishop Eddie Long, Bishop Charles Blake, the Rev. Eugene Rivers, the Rev. Frank Reid and pastor Donnie McClurkin, as well as civil rights veteran Andrew Young and the Rev. William Shaw, president of the National Baptist Convention. Observers say the meeting was an attempt to woo African-American voters to the Republican Party by expanding black church participation in the faith-based initiative. The meeting was held the same day as a Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) summit with 200 black clergy. Some saw the timing as an attempt to upstage the CBC’s eff ort to
strengthen ties between Democrats and religious leaders. Several of the delegates at the Rice meeting also attended the CBC event.

PASTOR PLANS TO RETURN TO PULPIT AFTER
REHAB.

An Arlington, Texas, pastor is expected to return to the pulpit of his church after his June release from a second drug-treatment facility.
Charged in March with drug possession and sexually assaulting three church members, Bishop Terry Hornbuckle was reinstated as pastor
of Agape Christian Fellowship in April after a six-week suspension, the Fort Worth Star Telegram reported. After being rearrested in May for failing to pass a drug test, Hornbuckle checked himself into a drug-treatment facility May 16. On June 1 he checked himself into another “after care” center, his attorney, Mike Heiskell, told the newspaper. Hornbuckle maintains his innocence and says he is a victim of extortion. His wife, Renee, has been leading the church since his arrest and suspension.

MINNESOTA CHURCH HIRES TRANS-GENDER MINISTER

A Minneapolis church has hired a minister who had surgery to change
sexes from a woman to a man, the Associated Press (AP) reported. The Rev. Malcolm Himschoot, 27, is to serve as an outreach minister
at 1,800-member Plymouth Congregational Church. Himschoot, who is married to a woman, is the subject of a documentary titled Call Me
Malcolm, which was produced by the United Church of Christ, the denomination that ordained Himschoot, the AP said.

RONALD WINANS DIES

Gospel recording artist Ronald Winans died June 17 of heart complications. He was 48. The second oldest of 10 siblings, Winans was part of the five-time Grammy winning quartet The Winans and a member of a famed musical family. He had suffered a massive heart attack in 1997, but experienced a miraculous recovery. In recent weeks, he had been admitted to a Detroit hospital for observation because he was retaining an unusual amount of fluid, the family said. In addition to recording with his brothers, Winans released solo projects, the most recent of which, Ron Winans Family & Friends V: A Celebration, came out in January. A musical tribute was to be held June 23 at Perfecting Church in Detroit. Funeral services were to be held June 24 at Straight Gate Church, also in Detroit.

These well-known Christians all have something in common. They encountered the power of the Holy Spirit-and were changed forever.
Christianity is more than following a set of intellectual beliefs about Jesus Christ. It’s more than going to church or doing religious duties. The abundant life that Jesus promised us involves a personal experience with the Holy Spirit. The earliest Christians had this experience on the day of Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit poured out His fire on 120 disciples in Jerusalem (see Acts 2:1-4). But the miracle of Pentecost did not end there. Today, millions of people have discovered what it means to be filled, or “baptized,” with the Holy Spirit. This heavenly blessing has energized their lives. We asked nine people-including four popular recording artists, a talk-show host, a 1960s Hollywood legend and a former Miss America-to share how they came to discover the power of the Spirit. We hope their testimonies will invite you to seek a deeper experience with God.

Jeff Deyo
MUSICIAN. NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE

I grew up in a strong Christian family and was very involved in a mainline denominational church. My walk with God was strong, but I always imagined there was more.

After my wife, Martha, and I graduated from college we moved to Nashville, Tennessee, and started attending a charismatic church. We loved it and after a few months were asked to join the volunteer youth staff .

I began to feel as if my home church had taught me nothing about the Holy Spirit. I couldn’t understand how it was possible for me to be a passionate Christian and
a full-time minister and still not be “filled” with the Holy Spirit. Why did I need this infilling?

Later, our pastor used the analogy of a bottle of Coke and the infilling of the Holy Spirit: The Coke in the bottle doesn’t become powerful until you shake it up. Then it gushes out!

Suddenly it clicked. Being filled with the Holy Spirit was more about getting the Spirit of God out of me than into me. The baptism of the Holy Spirit releases an explosion!

Debbye Turner
Formers Miss America New York, New York

I gave my heart to the Lord when I was 7 years old while sitting at my mother’s kitchen table. I remember her telling me that I could not get to heaven on her apron string.She said I would have to know God for myself and know how to pray and read the Bible on my own.

That day, she opened her Bible and showed me verses about what it means to be saved. When she asked me if I was ready, I said yes. Mom prayed the prayer of salvation with me, and I gave my heart to Jesus.

Many times I heard my mother, who was an evangelist, preach about the Holy Spirit. She often would quote Luke 11:13: “If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!”

She recited that verse to countless people. She told them it is great to have salvation but that it is absolutely essential to be filled with the Holy Spirit to come into the fullness of what God has for us. That made sense to me, even at age 7.

Mom sent me to a youth Bible study being held in the balcony of a local theater
in Jonesboro, Arkansas, where I grew up. One night, the Bible-study leader invited
those who wanted the evidence of being filled with the Holy Spirit, which meant speaking in tongues, to come forward for prayer. I sensed it was time for me be filled with the Holy Spirit. I was ready. I wanted everything that God had for me, so I went forward.

All the young people gathered around me and stretched out their hands toward
me. Some touched my head and shoulders. I was not afraid when they prayed. It
didn’t seem weird. I sincerely wanted the gift of the Holy Spirit.

As I began to pray, “God give me everything that You have for me,” I felt as
if God was standing right there with me. I submitted to Him. There was never a
question in my mind about whether this was real. I felt like this was the final piece
of the puzzle for me.

DARLENE ZSCHECH
Worship Leader
Sydney, Australia

I became a Christian at age 15. I was radically and beautifully saved, never to be the same, and eternally grateful that Jesus would give Himself for someone like me. A few months later I responded to an altar call for anyone who wanted to serve in full-time in ministry. My youth pastor at the time prayed for me, and I started to speak in this unusual language.

Rather than being freaked out by it, even though it felt initially strange, I was overwhelmed by how easy and voluntarily this language came. It was as if I was speaking a language I had always known yet never used.

I felt a great sense of the sovereign presence of God. I felt empowered, as if someone had plugged me into an electrical socket.

I started to study about this “baptism of the Holy Spirit.” I knew that when I had received Christ by faith I had also received the Holy Spirit, but this was definitely an experience I could not deny.

Suddenly the Acts-church experience became real to me in a fresh new way. I began to understand the fire I had read about but never completely understood.

The baptism of the Holy Spirit has definitely changed my life forever. I use my gift of praying in the Spirit as a real weapon of warfare, especially because as a lead worshiper I face much spiritual opposition.

I encourage you to embrace the friendship of the Holy Spirit. I have learned to praise, worship, and live for Christ regardless of my feelings.

I have grown to accept the entire Word of God, even when it makes me feel quite uncomfortable. This is our journey of faith-and what a wonderful, wonderful journey it is.

Rebecca St. James
Recording Artist
Nashville, Tennessee

The strongest way in which I have experienced the Holy Spirit at work in my
life is through His inspiration. His influence has been especially obvious to me during interviews or speaking engagements when I have been in special need of
God’s inspired words.

When I first started in music, I was only 16 years old. A lot of people wondered
if I would have anything of real value to say. At times I wondered myself
what I had to share that would be meaningful to other teenagers and adults!

In those days, we had an interview section in the middle of my concert during
which the audience could ask me any questions they wanted. I remember praying
while the questions were being asked, “Lord, give me the words to say.” God
would always fill my mouth with words that I knew came from the Holy Spirit.

Prayer was-and is-a big part of my ministry. Many times since those teenage
years I’ve come to God, not knowing what I needed to share in certain situations
but knowing that He would provide.

One recent time in particular I felt the Holy Spirit guiding me miraculously.
I had the opportunity to be on Hannity & Colmes during a Valentine’s Day telecast.
The question up for debate that night was “Should people save sex for marriage?”

I was scheduled to be on the segment with a liberal sex therapist who took the
opposite position on this subject. The producers were hoping our exchange
would be an entertaining debate.

Immediately before the show I performed in a concert with the Newsboys.
One of the people hosting the concert asked the audience to pray for me-that
I would be inspired by the Holy Spirit during the upcoming program. On the
spot thousands of people joined together to pray. Moments later I saw God answer
their prayer!

Right before I went on the air, God gave me certain points to make
in relation to the issue of saving sex for marriage-points that had never occurred
to me in 10 years of speaking on the subject. I wrote myself notes hoping I
would have a chance to share them.

Miraculously, during the interview, I was able to use every thought I had
written down! It was as if every question or challenge thrown at me was a direct
request for the words God had given me! In a very high-profile, mainstream
situation with people from all walks of life watching, God-through His Holy
Spirit-answered the prayer to “fill my mouth.”

I saw God move through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. He is faithful to
provide all our needs when we trust Him.

Ben Kinchlow
FORMER HOST FOR THE 700 CLUB
VIRGINIA BEACH, VIRGINIA.

I met Jesus Christ while I was hurtling toward hell in a vehicle with no brakes. That
“vehicle” was my life.

I thought Christianity was dull and restrictive. It was for old people. I thought you had to die before you could have any fun. And I thought it was a white man’s religion.

The drama of my conversion drove me to find what would lead people to give their lives for Christ. I read the Bible, then other books.

I was determined to receive the infilling of the Holy Spirit. I went into my bathroom at 9 a.m. and waited for hours. Nothing happened.

Then I read how one writer had been filled with the Spirit while he sat near “a white brick fireplace in the white carpeted living room of a prominent attorney.” I would find the same-and a white attorney who knew about the baptism in the Holy Spirit and would let me in his house!

God honors sincerity. I remember sitting in a straight-back chair in front of a white fireplace on a white carpet while being prayed for by rabid charismatics. After half an hour, it seemed, they all said, “Amen!” Again, nothing.

I went home, upset at God for not doing what He promised in His Word. The next day I gave Him the silent treatment. Suddenly, however, I was in a two-way conversation with Him, aloud and in my mind.

He questioned what proof I had that I had not received the baptism. I argued that I hadn’t felt “warm and bubbly” like others had. He said He never promised anyone that feeling. His Word, He convincingly reminded me, promised power.

Then He challenged me-had I asked Him for the Holy Spirit? I answered that I had. He then simply said, “I did what I promised to do.”

This understanding gave me a new surge of excitement. I looked up and said, “OK, I’m going to open my mouth and speak.”

I opened my mouth and my tongue crimped-it was a definite physical sensation. The next second, a beautiful foreign-sounding language poured from my mouth.

I was afraid if I stopped, it would go away. Finally, I thought, I’d better write down the last word till I catch my breath so I’ll know where to start! But in my mind I heard: “You don’t have to do that. It’s yours to keep.”

The baptism in the Holy Spirit didn’t make me a better Christian than anyone else. It made me a better me. It opened Scriptures to me in a new way. It made God’s presence more real. It certified that my being born again was not an experience but an actual fact.

Pat Boone
Entertainer, Los Angeles, California

I gave my life to Christ when I was 13, but it wasn’t until I was much older that I came to see my need for the infilling of the Holy Spirit. At the time, I was a successful performer facing an immense financial problem, which I brought in lawyers and financial experts to help me resolve. But ultimately I came to the conclusion that only God was going to solve the problem. And I knew I couldn’t expect Him to solve it unless I belonged totally to Him.

So I found myself searching for a closeness to my Father-with a willingness to surrender completely. In January of 1969, I decided that the gift of the Holy
Spirit could be for me-if I was willing to claim it. That evening I went over to the home of George Otis, a businessman and friend. I had determined that above everything else, I wanted the Lord in control of my life.

George read to me what the Bible has to say about God, the Holy Spirit, and how a man can meet Him through faith. We talked about Peter and how he responded
when he saw Jesus walking to him on the water in Matthew 14. Peter wanted to go to Jesus; but to get there he needed the “gift” of being able to walk on the water, and Peter asked Jesus for it.

Peter didn’t wait for some overwhelming power to pick him up and take him to Jesus’ side. He knew he had to throw his legs over the side of the boat and step
out on the waves. I believed this thrilling story; and right then I wanted, just like Peter, to go to Jesus. I knew I had the promise-but faith had to take over.

The moment had come. George and I raised our arms to God, and I prayed. “O Father, this is it-I give up. I yield my life to You. Please take it, Lord, and
make of it whatever You want to. Forgive me of every sin, wash me clean; and Jesus, oh, precious Jesus, be my Baptizer. Baptize me right now in Your Spirit, the Spirit of the living God.”

When I prayed I sensed the Lord’s presence in a remarkable way. I began by simply off ering my voice to Jesus and supporting a tone. As I did, a beautiful
melody came out, and words began to fl oat in on the melody! It was such a graceful and beautiful thing that I hardly recognized the voice as mine.

I had a deep sense of knowing that I was singing a new song to God. Since then I have praised the Lord in a prayer language as well.

The result of my baptism in the Holy Spirit-and my wife’s-was complete transformation in our family. Shirley and I fell in love all over again: with each other
and with our four children. Soon, our four daughters had received the gift of the Holy Spirit as well.

God also resolved the huge fi nancial issue we were facing and opened many doors of opportunity for me, both to further my career and to share the gospel. He
is truly an awesome God!

Cece Winans
Gospel Recording Artist, Brentwood, Tennessee

I was about 9 years old when I received the Holy Spirit-and at 40 I am still on fi re and in love with the Lord! Though I am a Grammy-winning vocalist today, my walk in life has not been easy. I grew up with nine siblings, and the good things of my life haven’t been served to me on a silver platter.

But early on, God became a cornerstone from which I would build my life. His Word clearly marked my steps. I was captured by the Holy Spirit at the altar of my grandfather’s small Detroit Church of God in Christ. I was kneeling, surrounded by other children and older saints.

I was always at the altar doing what was called at that time “tarrying for the Holy Spirit.” At that moment, I remember a wonderful feeling coming over me, the eminent covering of God’s presence. It was awesome to me then and still is. I recall being overcome with an overwhelming sense of peace and safety that permeated my spirit.

No particular physical or supernatural manifestation marked the moment. Speaking in tongues came later.

After that experience I really, really loved God and knew I wanted to spend the rest of my life pleasing Him. I believe my parents had a tremendous amount to do with that moment-and all the other moments when God really touched my life-because they kept me in the right spiritual atmosphere.

I believe that I was called to be who I am in God from my mother’s womb. I am intensely aware of how God has used me and continues to use me to bring others closer to Him. God has allowed my light to shine in so many places to so many people, and they are able to see Him in my personal and professional life.

Being filled with the Holy Spirit has helped me to be more consistent in my
relationship with God, and I know it is because I allow the Holy Spirit to do His job. It really is simple for me, in that I realize without God and the Holy Spirit, I can do nothing, but with Him all things are possible. I know that the intimacy I experience with Jesus would not be what it is if the Holy Spirit had not come into my life.

I want you to know the Holy Spirit will keep you close to God if you allow Him to. The Holy Spirit is indeed a Comforter and all the things the Word of God says He is. With the Holy Spirit in your heart, you will never be alone or without hope or strength.

The older saints in church used to say: “He’s a keeper! And He will keep you!” If you want the Holy Spirit you can have Him-if you believe!

Marilyn Hickey
International Bible Teacher, Denver Colorado

I have been a Spirit-filled believer for 50 years. I was raised a Methodist-in fact, quite a liberal Methodist. When my father was committed to a mental institution, my mother really pressed into Christ and became a Spirit-filled believer. She began praying for my brother and me, as we both were turned off by the Spirit-filled church.

During this time I met Wally, my husband to be. Wally had just been Spirit-filled. We dated, but he wouldn’t take me anywhere except to church or out for dinner. He wouldn’t take me dancing or to movies. He had such a hunger for God-he always wanted to be in church.

I did not care for his Spirit-filled church. The people clapped their hands, cried and spoke in tongues. I was very offended by it all.

One night, Wally told me he was fasting for me. He said he had served the devil with all his heart and that now he was going to serve God with all his heart. He felt I was not a committed believer. He knew I was born again but that I wasn’t interested in the baptism of the Holy Spirit. God had told Wally he had to put Jesus first in his life and I would have to be second.

I was quite offended by this, but that night God started to deal with me. I couldn’t sleep, but I continued to resist God. For three nights I didn’t sleep while God dealt with my heart.

Finally the Lord said to me: “I have dealt with you for four years for the baptism of the Holy Spirit. If you do not yield to Me now, I will never deal with you about this matter again. You are born again and you belong to Me, and I’m going to show you what your decision will do if you turn down the baptism in the Holy
Spirit this time.

“You will never marry Wallace Hickey. You will move to California, get your master’s degree, be a good schoolteacher, marry, have a good life, and when you die you’ll go to heaven. But if you choose to be Spiritfilled,
then I have something so wonderful for you it is beyond your imagination.”

When God spoke to me like that, it broke me into a thousand pieces. I simply said: “Lord, if I never marry Wallace Hickey, I want more of You. I commit myself to be baptized in the Holy Spirit.”

The next night the Spirit-filled church in our city was having an all-night prayer meeting. I called Wally and said I wanted to go. I prayed that night to be Spirit-filled, but I wasn’t until three days later.

My life dramatically changed. I was a very shy believer, but I became very bold. It wasn’t long before Wally and I were engaged. Today, I cannot tell you all the ways the Holy Spirit has brought His power into my life. How could I ever get enough of Him?

Ted Haggard
President, National Association of Evangelicals,

Colorado Springs, Colorado

I became a Christian in high school, and for several years-even well after I started attending Oral Roberts University (ORU)-I thought some of the charismatic theology on the Holy Spirit was half-baked at best. I wanted little to do with it.

I was perfectly happy with my Christian walk. I had a fantastic prayer life. I read my Bible every day. I was part of a great Christian community and had plenty of opportunities to do ministry.

I was a dispensationalist with a strong understanding of cessationist theology. I won debates on the subject of spiritual gifts, and I knew character, obedience and integrity were more important than edgy, charismatic experiences.

Then, during my private Bible study, I found a hole in my theology. It began in John 20:22, when Jesus breathed on His disciples and said, “’Receive the Holy Spirit.’”

I realized that at that point in their walk with the Lord the disciples were just like me. They knew Christ and saw manifestations of God’s power in their lives.

I also saw, in the next book of the Bible, Jesus telling this very same group He had breathed on to wait in Jerusalem for the gift their Father had for them (see Acts 1:4-5). Then Jesus labeled the gift. He said, “’For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit’” (NIV).

I realized there are two separate, distinct experiences with the Holy Spirit.

Then one night at ORU, a friend named Tom came to my room determined to receive the baptism in the Holy Spirit. I had a tape on the subject, so I offered
to listen to it with him.

We went out to my car and popped in the tape. For the next hour, I prayed silently for Tom. I was afraid of what would happen if he started taking this stuff
seriously.

While Tom sat listening intently and preparing himself to receive the Holy Spirit, I prayed God would protect him from spiritual chicanery.

After their sermon, the speakers prayed for everyone listening to receive. Tom opened his hands to God and prayed along.

While he said: “Please, God, I want it. I want more of You,” I silently prayed: “Please, God, protect Tom! Don’t let him think he can pray in tongues!”

Nothing happened to Tom, but suddenly I started praying in tongues! I was being baptized in the Holy Spirit!

It was the most surprising, exhilarating experience, but I embraced it. Tom did, too. A few hours later he was baptized, and together we prayed in the Spirit
all night.

Now, more than 20 years later, I still love praying as we did that night.