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ACCOUNTS OF DREAMS, PROPHECIES,
I believe that God has given me visions, dreams, revelations and prophecies in the past few years that are of great significance in my life. I felt it necessary to write down my impressions of these experiences so that I would not forget the details with the passing of time and to be able to share them with others for their encouragement and edification.
Early Revelation of the Church In 1966, the Lord ministered to my spirit and revealed what I now call the skeleton vision of the Church of the New Testament. It was simply a compilation of the characteristics of the Early Church from the Scriptures. I had for many years prior to this experience longed for a return to the simplicity and power of early New Testament Church life.
Continued Revelation of the Church In 1968, the Lord put meat on the bones of this skeleton vision and gave me a greater understanding of the Church He was building. It was this vision of the early church that prompted me to attempt to implement these principles when I became the pastor of the First Baptist Church in Winnsboro. But the implementation of these principles was later revealed to me by the Lord as pouring “new wine into old wine skins.”
Revelation of a New Wine Skin In 1976, the Lord revealed to me in a visionary way a revelation of the traditions of men within the church and how He was going to restore His Church to be all that He designed and purposed it to be in these Last Days. (See full Testimony: “In Search of a New Wine Skin”) During the next three years from 1976 to 1979, the Lord began to give me detailed revelations of His Church.
Word From the Lord to Record His Teaching In 1976, the Lord spoke to me in my spirit and told me to clear my office desk, get out a piece of paper and to write down what He was going to reveal. He began to give me the first of many hundreds of teachings from Scripture about the Early Church.
Word From the Lord in 1976 The Lord spoke the following to me in the fall of 1976 concerning His Word and His instruction to me about my recording what He was going to reveal to me in Dreams, Prophecies, Revelations, Teachings and Visions:
Revelation During Ministry Crisis In 1976, after having so many fresh revelations from the Scripture concerning the ekklesia that Lord is building, I became very discouraged with church life as I was experiencing it. This began a difficult but necessary part of my journey in discovering the ekklesia of the Lord. In desperation, I locked myself in my office and got on my face before the Lord. I wept and cried out to God that I needed to hear from Him concerning what I was to do with this inner turmoil of comparing the traditional church, as I knew it to the ekklesia He was building.
Approximately 2:00 AM, the Lord mightily spoke to my spirit and revealed in a very painful way the sins of the traditional church. I was devastated, convicted to the core and wept in repentance. Then I cried out to God and said, “What am I to do, Lord?” He spoke plainly to my spirit and said, “Stop pouring new wine into the old wineskin. Pour My new wine into a new wineskin!” Until that moment, I did not know that was what I was doing.
Then I sought the Lord and asked, “What is this new wine and what is the new wineskin?” He replied, “The new wine is I, drink of Me. The new wineskin is the ekklesia I am building in these closing days of the ages.” I cried out to Him, “What do you want me to do, Lord?” He replied, “I want you to obey Me and begin pouring My Life into the new wineskin of my ekklesia.”
My immediate reaction was one of complete sense of unworthiness and helplessness. I then asked the Lord, “When and where am I do this?” He plainly told me that I was to begin this new ministry of “pouring new wine into a new a wineskin in September of 1979 and I was to begin it in Winnsboro.
Word Spoken by the Lord Concerning Resignation from Traditional Pastorate In September of 1979, I resigned as pastor of the First Baptist Church after serving ten years. In my resignation, the Lord would not allow me to share what He had revealed to me. In fact, He told me not to try to explain. His exact words were, “I would rather they be united against you that divided over you!” Thus I began my journey toward walking out the simple life of the early church with other believers whom God sovereignly sent into our lives.
Word Spoken by the Lord Concerning His Sufficiency That same September of 1979, only two weeks after my resignation, I was in a local restaurant for lunch and was told by some brothers in the Lord, “There is no room at our table for you.” I was devastated and wounded. I sat alone at my table, heartbroken. In my spirit I cried out to the Lord, “Lord this journey is already so hard. It looks like it is just You and me.” The Lord then said, “Son, who else do you need beside Me?” Suddenly I realized as never before, the sufficiency of Jesus! I began to literally laugh with joy in His presence. He then spoke in my spirit and said, “Now, I can trust you with relationships with others.”
Word Spoken by the Lord Concerning My Response to Persecution 1979 was the beginning of many experiences of persecution that we had never known before from other believers. I cried out to the Lord about what others were saying and doing against my family and me. His response was, “Son, I am more interested in your godly response to the persecution than what they are doing to you.” He then led me to a new revelation of Matthew 5:44 “But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you.”
Initial Revelation of House Churches in China Also, in 1979, the Lord encouraged me through an article that appeared in the Dallas Morning News about “House Churches in China.” Until that time, I did not know there were house churches anywhere except in the pages of the Scripture. In fact as I read this article to my wife, I exclaimed to her, “The Chinese and the Hubbell’s are meeting as house churches!” This began a great love affair I had for China. Little did I know then that I would be ministering years later in Mainland China encouraging the “house churches” and equipping Chinese saints for the work of ministry.
Revelation of Spiritual Boot Camp From 1979 to 1987, the Lord allowed my family and me to live out the truths of the Scripture concerning the Lord’s ekklesia. It was like a “boot camp” of preparation for future ministry the Lord had ordained for me. He used me to teach, equip and train many believers to prepare for the future day when He was going to completely restore His ekklesia for the closing ages. He taught me many invaluable lessons both positive and negative for the spiritual journey that lay before me. These were difficult and challenging days but necessary ones to equip us all for the continued journey in “searching for the ekklesia, whose builder and maker is God.”
Word From the Lord Concerning Laying Down “My” Ministry 1987 was a crucial time in my life and ministry when the Lord instructed me to learn to be a “tent maker” in providing for my family and ministry to which He had called me. I was told by the Lord to lay down “my ministry”. I did not realize at that time that I considered it as “my ministry” and not “His ministry,” but God knew my heart better than I. He told me that I was to “learn to serve others,” which I thought I had already learned, but again, He knew my heart. He wanted my wife and me to host people as the owners of a bed and breakfast in Winnsboro. So for twelve years through Thee Hubbell House Bed and Breakfast, my wife and I ministered in serving people, serving the church at large, serving the community and serving through government as mayor and judge. During those twelve years, I was simply told by the Lord to “demonstrate His servant-hood by washing the feet of others in sacrificial service, to be still and simply wait upon Him.”
Revelation of “HIS” Ministry, Not Mine In 1988, the Lord told me to put the suitcase of teachings in the closet and not get it out until He gave further instructions. I had used these teachings in ministering about the simple church of the New Testament. This was part of the “laying down” of “my ministry” so that He could raise it up as “His ministry” in His time.
Word From the Lord to Give HIS Ministry to Others In 1989, the Lord called upon me to be willing to allow someone else to carry out the ministry to which He had called me. This was a devastating experience for me. I could not understand why God would bring me to this point in preparation for His ministry and just put me aside. But in deep grief I yielded to His will. It was such a serious word from the Lord that I thought that He was literally going to take me home to be with Him. It was as if my life and ministry were over. It was so serious a time that I made arrangements for my funeral and instructed my wife about all of our business affairs.
Word From the Lord Concerning Years of Silence From 1989 to 1997 were years of silence. That is not to say that the Lord did not speak to me in the Scripture and in prayer but rather He did not speak as He had previously in dreams, visions, revelations and prophecy. I remember crying out to the Lord during this time, for Him to please speak to me again in the same miraculous ways as before. Then the Lord asked me, “Son, if I never speak to you again in this way, will you still love Me and obey Me?” His word crushed me and I wept and cried out, “Yes, Lord I will still love You and though You slay me, I will love You!”
Word from the Lord to Clean Out the File of Teachings In 1997, the silence was finally broken. I clearly heard the Holy Spirit say to “get the suitcase of teachings out of the closet and place it at your bedside.” I just assumed that God was immediately raising up His ministry through me, but instead the suitcase stayed by the bedside for another year before He spoke to me again. When He finally did speak, it was a clear word for me to “clean out the teachings in the suitcase of everything that was not directly given to me from Him.”
Word from the Lord Concerning the Loss of All Things In 1998, the Lord instructed my wife and me to sell the bed and breakfast tent-making business, which we were finally able to do in May of 1999. This was a time of great disappointment for my wife and me. What we had hoped would be a profitable business sale, turned out to be a loss. We had prayed that the income from the sale of our property and business could be used in ministry to others around the world, but it was not meant to be. The Lord told me that the purpose of this experience was “to be able to teach others who later would go through similar experiences of material loss.” We were to begin to learn what it meant to experience “the loss of all things.” We signed the contract of sale one day and the next day we flew in faith to South Carolina to teach in our first of several national house church gatherings.
Word From the Lord to Downsize and Get Out of Debt In 1999, I heard the Lord say that we were not to own a house any more but rather we were to live in rent/lease properties. He instructed us to “downsize” and to get rid of “things” so that we would not be encumbered with material possessions in order to go anywhere He led us on mission and that we would have the freedom to live anywhere in the world He might direct. We were instructed to get completely out of debt and “to owe no man anything but love.” All of our resources were to be used for His Kingdom purposes as we ministered at home and to the nations.
Word From the Lord Concerning a Hired House In 1999, the Lord instructed us to move to a leased property on Lake Winnsboro and to call that place a “hired house” named after Paul’s “hired house” in Rome where the Scripture describes his ministry in Acts 28:30-31, “Paul dwelt two whole years in his own hired house, and received all that came to him, preaching the kingdom of God and teaching those things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ, with all confidence and no man forbidding him.”
The Lord told me that many would come to the “hired house” for ministry and that I also would travel to the ends of the earth strengthening the church, establishing new churches and equipping saints for the work of ministry. He promised to make provisions for all future ministries and that He would use financial resources through others to help me know when to travel and when to stay at home in the “hired house.”
Dream of Great Destruction and Devastation In 1999, I had dream that was very vivid and graphic. I dreamed that I was in the midst of some great devastation. All around me was death, destruction and a wounded mass of humanity. I did not know what caused the catastrophe but it was horrible. People were screaming and crying out in great pain and desperation. I felt so helpless and useless as I stood in the midst of this carnage.
As I looked upon this scene, I saw many other people standing around but doing nothing to meet the needs of the hurting and crying multitudes. I strongly felt the Spirit urging me to begin singing a song, the words and melody of which, I had never heard. The words of the song were, “I’m learning to serve. I’m learning to serve. I’m learning to serve according to God’s Word. I’m learning to serve. I’m learning to serve. I’m learning to serve as God shows me.”
When I began to sing this song, the Spirit led me to begin doing what I could to alleviate the great pain and suffering. I kept thinking as I began to serve and sing, what can I do, as just one person, to help in this seemingly hopeless situation? But as I became obedient to the Lord in serving, the other people who had previously just been standing around joined me in reaching out to the needs of the suffering and wounded.
As they ministered, they joined me in singing the simple melody that God had given me. The only difference was that they substituted the word “serve” in the song, to words describing what they did in their various ministries to the hurting and wounded, such as “heal, help, feed, clothe, teach, deliver, pray, sing, worship, praise, etc.” The individual voices soon became a chorus of “angelic” music as if it were one voice in united orchestration being lifted in praise to the Lord!
Dream of Emptying the Vessel In 1999, another dream occurred. The Lord was examining my life and casting some kind of a radiant light upon me that showed me clearly everything in my life that was displeasing to Him. I saw some kind of a large earthen like vessel or jar-like container into which I began reaching and pulling out garments that were dirty and worn. In my discernment, these garments seemed to represent the sins of my life. As I removed them, they disappeared.
As I reached into the jar for the final time, I drew out a clean, white garment that the Lord told me to put on. The meaning seemed to be that this was His righteousness with which he clothed me. As I dressed in the robe like apparel, I immediately fell to the ground as if I were dead. My wife was standing with me in the dream and as I fell, she exclaimed something like, “What a wonderful way to go be with the Lord!” But in what seemed to be just a split second, to my wife’s and my amazement, I once again stood to my feet.
The next thing I remember was that I entered what can best be described as a convocation of believers. As I entered this scene, the congregation of people apparently did not see me but rather must have seen the righteousness of Christ exemplified by the garment I was wearing. For one by one they began to change their countenance and behavior from a solemn, sad and serious to jubilant, rejoicing and singing. Some began to dance before the Lord! Soon the entire convocation erupted in a chorus of praise and worship of the Lord! It must be emphasized that the reaction of the people was not to me personally but only the Lord Jesus in me as represented by the garment of His righteousness.
(Addendum: In 2011, the Lord led me to a passage of scripture recorded in Zechariah 3:1-10 that affirmed this experience as being from Him.)
Dream About a New Song In 1999, a dream occurred on Christmas Eve. The Lord gave me another “new song”. Like the previous song He had given me early that year, “Learning to Serve”, the Lord gave me another “song in the night” entitled, “O Bless the Name of Jesus”. The words were based on the passage in Isaiah 9:6. It was a very simple song of praise: “O bless the Name, the Name of Jesus. O bless the Name, the Name of Jesus. O bless the Name, the Name of Jesus. O bless the Name. O bless the Name.” By substituting the Isaiah passage and by addressing the song directly to Jesus, it also included the words, “Wonderful, Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace”.
Dream of the Lord Singing a Song in the Night In 1999, I heard the Lord sing a song in the night while I lay sleeping. It was the most touching and inspiring experience I had ever had. Just the thought of my Lord singing was overpowering and awesome! After I awakened from this dream, the Lord led me to the Hebrew 2:12 passage, where Jesus is speaking “Saying, I will declare Thy name unto my brethren, and in the midst of the church will I sing praise unto thee.”
Revelation of Living Stones Being Hewn In 1999, a special revelation occurred where the Lord described His Remnant Church as “lively stones” (I Peter 2:5) “being prepared and hewn” (I Kings 5:17-18; 6:7) for the building of His Church. It was revealed that His sons and daughters were now being quietly prepared in secluded places throughout the world by God’s work of hewning, sawing and cutting. In God’s perfect timing, He was going to bring these prepared stones together and place them as “lively stones”, “without a sound” into the building of His Remnant Church.
Vision of Globe of the World In 1999, I experienced a vision where I saw a globe of the world of the Lord’s people scattered all over the earth as small-unconnected pools of water. It seemed to be the purposeful design of the Lord to keep these little puddles separated for a season, to purify, to hewn and to burn out the dross. Then I saw in the vision a shower covering the earth that caused a small trickle that became a stream, then a river, connecting the pools. Finally I witnessed pouring rain come upon the earth that caused the pools to flood into one mighty ocean that engulfed the globe.
Vision of Satan’s End Time Deception In 1999, I received a combination of a revelation and vision from the Lord concerning Genesis 3:1-24 in which He strongly warned about a satanic plot which had its beginning in the Garden of Eden with the first woman, Eve. It was as if a curtain were pulled back in the heavens where I saw Satan at work preparing his deception among women today as in the Garden of Eden. Satan was being instrumental in setting up women in places of leadership throughout the world, both in society, government and religion. It was in the relinquishing and degrading of the man’s loving and protecting role both in the home and public, that men would again heed the words of the women and thus be led astray as in the beginning of creation. Satan will again try to deceive men through women in the world.
This was in no way to be understood as degrading the role of women, but rather as a caution of Satan’s end-time scheme to deceive the world. For the Lord led me to Acts 2:16-18 to more clearly understand the role of both men and women in the last days, “This is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel: And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams: And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy:”
Prophecy to the Remnant Church In 1999, a strong prophetic word from the Lord was given to me that was addressed to the Church: “I am shaking everything that can be shaken: governments, economies, schools, churches and individuals to cause you to know whether or not you are built on the Rock. This is the reason I had warned you to build on the Rock. I warned you to build your lives upon a solid Rock foundation in preparation for these and other storms that are to come. I am Jesus, that foundation Rock!”
“My remnant people are like puddles of water scattered and isolated all around the Globe. I am now bringing showers of rain, which are causing my remnant people to connect as trickles of water, little by little, overflowing from puddle to puddle. I will shortly pour out the latter rain and flood the world with My presence and power through My Body, the Remnant Church.”
“My mighty presence and power will bring godly fear into your lives as My People, which will bring about a purging, burning of dross, persecution…a baptism of fire! I will use this to conform you into the image of my dear Son, Jesus Christ the Savior and Lord. You will become my purified and prepared Bride.”
“You will be stirred by My Spirit to begin crying with great shouting toward the heavens, ‘Come, Lord Jesus!’ All my saints will join in crying out, ‘Even so, come, Lord Jesus!’ Then My Spirit will cry out, ‘Come! When My Bride is prepared and ready and when the Spirit and the Bride say ‘Come’, then in My sovereign time I will say, ‘Son, it is time to go get your Bride!’’
Hearing a Sound in My Spirit In 2000, the Lord stirred in my spirit the following experience: I was lying in bed one early morning when I felt the Lord stirring in my spirit a special word. As I got up and began to dress for the day, the Lord began to reveal His message. I heard a SOUND that resembled a clicking or rattling. It was similar to a large wooden puzzle being assembled SUDDENLY. As this occurred, I heard in my spirit the Lord saying, “Now, SUDDENLY, is the time that I am raising up My Church and bringing the “lively stones” together to be jointly fitted in their place.” The Lord gave me the understanding and the revelation of these words through other Christian brothers, by pointing me to Ezekiel 37:1-10, “So I prophesied as I was commanded: and as I prophesied, there was a NOISE, and behold a shaking, and the bones came together, bone to his bone…” Then from Isaiah 48:3 came forth an explanation and confirmation, “I have declared the former things from the beginning; and they went forth out of my mouth, and I showed them; I did them SUDDENLY and they came to pass”.
Revelation of the Church of the City In 2000, my wife Laurel and I were having breakfast at a restaurant, when the Holy Spirit suddenly revealed in minute detail His Church in our city of Winnsboro through the Scriptural examples of the churches in Jerusalem, Antioch and Ephesus. This revelation came with such rapidity that I had to hurriedly put my breakfast plate aside, grab a paper place-mat and borrow a pen to begin writing down all that the Lord was saying to me about His Church.
Revelation of the Barnabas Principle In 2001, the Lord spoke to me the revelation of the “Barnabas principle,” which was to be the way He was to restore the New Testament pattern of using people who had the gift of giving to be connected with Ephesians 4 equipping servants. These givers would serve as one of the Lord’s primary channels of resources for itinerant ministry around the world. He told me “He was raising up saints all over the world who would be blessed materially in order to share their abundance with equipping servants of apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers.”
Dream Explaining Refining Purpose In 2002, the Lord gave me a dream where I found myself in a large corridor with various doors opening into it. As I stood there, I was overwhelmed with the sense of God’s presence assuring me that He was with me and had allowed everything that had happen to me up to this time as a preparation for this very hour. “What man had meant for evil, God had meant for good.” I was so overcome by His love and tenderness that I began to weep uncontrollably.
From the various doors leading to the corridor there came fellow laborers who had gone through the same purifying and refining fires I had experienced. As each one entered the corridor, the Lord showed me in a moment of time everything that they had been through in their spiritual lives. He also showed them all that I had experienced as well. They cried for joy in knowing that their suffering and brokenness had not been for naught. We embraced and wept in each other’s arms.
This parade of spiritual warriors continued until all who were to pass into the corridor had arrived. There was only one person whom I recognized out of the many who joined me in the corridor. I was told not to reveal that person’s name until the fulfillment of this dream had occurred. I woke up from this dream with tears streaming down my face. I was still crying for joy as I awakened my wife to share the dream with her so that she could help me remember what the Lord had just revealed.
Dream of Healing Power Also in 2002, the Lord gave me a dream in which I was empowered with a tremendous healing gifting. The awesome power of God was so strong that I could not even stand, but only lay flat on my back during the entire dream. I was told by the Lord to pray for those who needed healing while “His power to heal was present.” I began to pray for everyone I knew who needed a healing touch from the Lord. As I awakened from this dream, the power of God’s healing presence was so powerful that I continued to pray for miraculous healing for everyone the Lord brought to my remembrance. Even in my waking state I felt the warmth and glow of the healing power and presence of God.
Vision About Unity In 2003, I had a vision as I was praying and seeking the mind of the Lord about unity in the Body of Christ. There was such a deep desire to see oneness in the Church. I was crying out to the Lord for wisdom and a word from Him. The Spirit told me to open my eyes and look around me. As I opened my eyes I saw brothers and sisters all around me who were also pressing into the Lord with great hungering and thirsting. The Lord revealed to me that true unity was in oneness with anyone in the Body of Christ who was in “one accord.” The word for “one accord” in the Greek means of the same temperature, heat, fire, fervency, first love! He showed me that true unity is in the Spirit and that we are to “keep (guard) this unity!”
Word From the Lord Concerning Missions to China In 2003, before our first mission to China, the Lord spoke to me: 1) “Go humbly as a servant” 2) “Teach only My Word not denominational doctrine…Take off your Baptist glasses” 3) “Minister the Balance of My Word” 4) “Bible is the best commentary on the Bible” 5) “Bible does not contradict itself” 6) “Holy Spirit is the Teacher” 7) “Keep all teachings Biblical, Simple and Reproducible” 7) “Take the Bible in one hand and a sword in the other hand”.
Discerning Different Gifts of the Spirit In 2003, as I arrived in China for my first mission there, we as co-laborers gathered in our hotel room for prayer and commitment for the task of ministering to the persecuted church. All of us had committed ourselves to do whatever our Lord commanded on this mission. We were to be fellow servants and co-laborers together with our Lord in encouraging the saints in China.
In order for us to most effectively minister, we had to know what our individual gifts were for this mission. The other brothers had come prepared to teach and I had come to do whatever the Lord desired. After our prayer time, the Holy Spirit spoke prophetically through me concerning the gifting of each of the co-workers. One had the gift of prophecy and the other had the gift of administration and giving. I laid hands upon them and prayed for God’s anointing and power for them to minister their gifts in China on this mission.
When we arrived at the training center, the Lord used all of us in a unique way to minister to the Chinese saints. The prophet-gifted brother shared many powerful words from the Lord to us as co-workers and to the students. The administration and giving gifted brother spent the most effective and fruitful time he had ever experienced in all of his trips on mission to China. The Holy Spirit empowered me for anointed teaching during the remaining time we were at the training center. Each of us ministered in the exact gifts the Lord had ordained for the mission.
Word from the Lord to Teach Ou Our Response to Persecution In 2003, while on mission to China, the Lord told me to change the subject of the teaching session from what I had intended to teach on the subject, “How to Respond to Persecution.” Little did I know that during the teaching on this very subject that we were to be abruptly interrupted by the threat of Chinese security officers looking for us at the training school compound. We miraculously escaped being arrested by the grace of God.
Word from the Lord to Teach Conversational English In 2003, as we were gathered for another mission journey to China for commissioning prayer with the Body of Christ in Winnsboro, the Lord spoke to me that we were to teach English to the students at the training school to prepare them to evangelize the Nations of the world. This was confirmed by the Chinese saints who shared that they had heard a prophetic word from the Lord that they were to evangelize the nations and take the gospel “back to Jerusalem” where it had begun 2000 years ago.
Word From the Lord For Students to Tell Their Story In 2003, I was ministering individually to Chinese students in a private setting with my American Chinese interpreter. As I began the first interview, I was overwhelmed with the awareness of the gravity of their life’s experiences. I listened sometimes for up to three hours to each student as they shared their life story. As the first student began to conclude their story, the Lord told me that I was to let Him minister directly to them. Jesus said to tell them “He came to heal the broken-hearted, bind up the bruised and to set the captives free!” I shared this with each student as I laid my hands upon their heads and remained silent as Jesus ministered to them.
The students began weeping as the power of the Lord swept over them. After the Lord ministered to them, they would stand and embrace me with such griping force that I could hardly breathe. They would once again begin to weep as they hugged me tightly. This was the first embrace many of the students had ever experienced due to their culture and tradition. It was one of the most moving experiences in the Spirit I have ever had in my life.
Power of God Present to Heal the Sick In 2003, a student became ill during the night. I was asked by her classmates to pray for her healing. Several of her friends gathered with me to minister healing prayer. The Lord impressed me to ask the student the questions He often asked during His ministry to the sick, “Wilt thou be made whole?” and “What wilt thou have me to do for you?” Also, the Lord led me to the passage in James about confessing sin that could have a bearing on the sickness.
As I asked the student these probing questions, the answer was “Yes, I want to be made whole and I want the Lord to totally heal me by His power.” When asked about whether there was any sin that might have caused the sickness, the confession was that there was bitterness and unforgiveness toward one of the students who gathered around in the prayer circle.
I asked the sick student to confess and repent of this sin of bitterness and unforgiveness. Then I turned to the circle of her peers to ask of them, who among them had caused this offense. One of my co-workers looked at his watch at that moment and told me later that twelve minutes of silence went by as the Holy Spirit convicted the offending student. Finally, the offending student ran to the sick student and locked her in an emotional embrace begging for forgiveness. All the other students followed this example and relationships were restored with the offended student.
The Lord then led me to take anointing oil and give to the circle of students and together we anointed the sick student with oil and laid on hands in prayer for healing and miraculously by the power of God healing was received!
Word From the Lord to Go to the Post Office In 2004 the Lord spoke to me while I was working on the Internet ministering to various servant leaders in several different nations. What I heard from the Lord was simply, “Go to the Post Office”. As a point on information, I had just been to the Post Office that day, so, my first response was to tell the Lord, as if He didn't already know, that I had just gone to the Post Office. His response to me was, “Son, I didn't ask if you had already been to the Post Office, I said go to the Post Office now!”
I have ultimately learned to just say, “Yes, Sir”, even though I don't understand why. So, I shut off the computer and made my way from our lake house to town. When I arrived at the Post Office, there was only one car parked in front. I went in to see why the Lord had sent me. There was one woman inside getting her mail but her back was to me and thus I didn't recognize her at first. When she turned around, I immediately recognized her as a dear friend and former member of the church that I had been a pastor in Winnsboro.
She literally screamed out to me and embraced me, “Brother Dan, I have been trying to call you over the telephone all day but the line was busy, so, I asked God to tell you that I needed you!” My response was simply, “Well, He told me to come to the Post Office, so here I am. What do you need?” She told me about her husband who had just had a stroke at home and she didn't know what to do. Her children lived far away and she had no one to advise her. I prayed with her and counseled her and assisted her in taking care of the emergency. This incident impressed upon me again the importance of hearing God and being obedient to him in a timely way.
Power of God Present to Save and Heal In 2004, again a similar incident as the above Post Office story occurred. I was again typing on the computer responding to the scores of emails I receive from all over the world. The Lord spoke to me and said, “Go see Ron Lohman!” I had to pause for a moment to remember who this was. Then I remembered that he was in charge of the Counseling Services at our local Substance Abuse Prison in Winnsboro. My wife teaches at this facility, so I called her to inquire about what she knew concerning Ron. She told me that he was in a Tyler hospital and was going to have surgery due to cancer. I told my wife that I felt led of the Lord to go see about him and that I was leaving immediately after calling to see which hospital in Tyler he was a patient.
When I arrived at the hospital and found his room, he was being prepped for his cancer surgery. When he saw me in the room, he cried out, “How did you know to come?” I told him that the Lord had sent me! He shared that he was going into surgery and he was afraid to die and wanted to get right with God. I asked the surgical attendants if they could give us a few minutes of privacy and they agreed. It was then my joy to lead him to Christ as his Savior and Lord. After we prayed together, I told him that I felt strongly from the Lord that He wanted to heal him from his cancer. He and I then agreed in faith for his healing. He was then wheeled to the surgical ward. I left the hospital and returned home.
When I checked on him later after his surgery, he told me that his cancer was in remission. The summary of this story is that he completely recovered and still doing well and is in good health, for which we give all the glory to God!
Word From the Lord for China Servants In 2004, the Lord spoke to me a special word to give to a Chinese apostle that had asked how he could possibly minister to the thousands of believers he had responsibility for and minister to his wife and family at the same time. The Lord gave the words of Jesus on the cross, “John, behold your mother and Mother, behold your son.” I spoke the words of the Lord to the apostle, “While dying on the cross for the sins of all the world, I took the time to minister to my family, surely you can find the time to minister to your family.” The apostle suddenly burst into uncontrollable weeping and repentance before his wife. Then all the other apostles spontaneously repented to their wives as well.
Word From the Lord Fulfilled in China In 2004, as I was visiting with some of the leaders of the training center, the matriarch of the group who had been the host of the house church there for many years, kept looking at me and quietly crying. I asked the interpreter to inquire about why “Mama,” as she was affectionately called, was weeping. Mama replied that she and the church had been praying for many years for someone like Dan Bo Bo (My Chinese name) to come to China to teach the students. I asked her when they had begun to pray for this special person, and she said it was in the late seventies.
I then realized that it coincided with the exact time the Lord had me to leave the traditional pastorate to begin ministering among house churches in America. The Holy Spirit ministered to me the discernment that my being in China to equip these servant workers was one of the reasons for all the preparation the Lord had made in my life. I literally felt at that moment that the Spirit lifted me and placed me in China like a prepared hewn stone among the other living stones of His ekklesia.
Word From the Lord Not to Return In 2004, the Lord spoke prophetically through me that I was not to return to China as I had planned but rather I was to delay any future missions until the Holy Spirit released me to do so. The purpose of this delay was to give time for the Chinese leaders and students at the training center to obey the 180 hours of teachings that God had given them through me during our previous four months of ministry in China.
Word From the Lord to Wash Feet In 2004, on the last night of our ministry at the Chinese training center, the Lord spoke to me that I should wash the feet of the apostle leader of the center. One of our co-workers brought me a pan of water and a towel. As I washed the feet of this leader the students literally gasped aloud as the leader and I wept together as I washed his feet. It was a powerful demonstration of the Lord’s humility granted to both of us and was an example to all the students who were to go throughout China on future missionary journeys.
Prophecy Concerning Raising Up Servants In 2005, the Lord spoke prophetically to me that “He was raising up multiracial, multinational, Ephesians 4 servants: apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry throughout all the nations of the earth.”
Word From the Lord Concerning His Work in China In 2005, I was in California interviewing some potential interpreters for our 2005 Mission to China. There were several possible volunteers who gathered in a home of a dear friend and co-laborer interpreter to China. While waiting for our time to share about the pending trip, a Chinese brother who was a retired agriculture professor gave his testimony of the ministry that he and a team of other brothers had on the Mainland. Their vision was to go to China and work in the Southwest with the Muslims teaching them how to make better use of their farm land. At their own expense, they shipped tractors and other equipment to use for this project.
They had made an understanding with the government to have five years for this program. The night he was giving his testimony, they were in their third year of this endeavor. He showed slides of the tremendous improvements they had made with the farmland soil. The land they were given for this project looked like a salt bed. So they first had to dig a deep well and irrigate the soil. In the pictures that he showed us the results of the three years were amazing. There was a healthy crop of green foliage where once the barren salty land had been.
Their desire was to relationally minister to the Muslims and in time be able to share Christ with them. As he was sharing his testimony, he turned to me and said, “Dan Bo Bo, you have a part in this mission.” I had no idea what he was talking about because I was not a farmer and did not know anything about tractors. Then he astounded me when he said, “You know the training center where you have been serving in the Northeast of China, I have made arrangements with the leader of that center to send the first evangelistic team to the Southwest to minister to the Muslims. I was overwhelmed and realized as never before the mighty way our Lord works to accomplish His purposes in reaching a nation for His Kingdom. Because you see, the distance between these two provinces would be something comparable to the distance from Maine to Southern California!
Word From the Lord Concerning Giving Him Praise in All Things In 2005, I was flying home from an interview with potential interpreters in California. When I landed, I got into my car to drive home. It was late in the evening, about midnight or so. I got within just a few miles from home where I was to turn off the Interstate toward our town. Suddenly, my car lights began to dim and eventually went complete out. I had to immediately pull over to the side of the highway.
I parked the car as far off the busy Interstate as I could because of the danger of oncoming traffic. The night was unusually dark with no moon or stars in site. I was so tired from the long trip to California and I began to have a “pity party” about why God would allow something like this to happen since I was serving him and just completed interviewing prospective interpreters for our pending mission to China. Then I heard the Lord say in my spirit, “Son, are you going to praise Me in all things?” I honestly didn't feel like praising God, but immediately realized that the Lord was going to teach me something.
At first, I began to reluctantly sing some praise songs and my heart was not in it. Then as I continued to sing, I began to feel the presence of the Lord, so I began to sing as loudly as I could. As I was praising the Lord, I began to feel the impression to ask the Lord to provide some kind of light so that I could attract the oncoming traffic and someone would stop to help me. To my utter astonishment, a fire broke out underneath my car! I cried out to God about the fact that it was hard enough to praise Him in all things having to have car problems but this was too much for my car to burn up too.
I ran to the car and got my luggage out and ran as far away from the car as I could because I expected the car to explode. In just a few minutes, a car stopped to try to help me put out the fire and to call 911. The only thing he had to try to extinguish the fire was a carton of water bottles. So, we frantically began to squirt the water under the car in a futile attempt to extinguish the fire.
To our total amazement, the fire went out! What I had thought was the car on fire was rather a grass fire under the car. The exhaust pipe had apparently ignited the grass. In just a few minutes, I had a highway patrol car, fire truck, local police and a tow truck parked alongside me on the Interstate. The tow truck attached my car to his towing equipment and I got into the cab of his truck and he took me to the front door of my house safely and soundly. I call this incident my “burning bush” experience! I learned again to be obedient to the Lord, listen to His voice and praise Him in all things.
Word From the Lord To “Stand Up” In 2005, as I was flying from the USA to Mainland China, I was seated in the middle of the right side of the plane, which is not my preferred seating arrangement due to the difficulty of getting out to exercise or go to the bathroom. I was relaxing and resting for the long flight, when suddenly, I had a pain in my chest, which grew increasingly worse. I then began to have what I would describe as a panic attack. I cried out to the Lord in my spirit to know what I should do. The Lord clearly spoke to me, “Stand up!” Since I was in the middle seat, I couldn't stand up without waking the passenger in the aisle seat. But the Lord again commanded me to, “Stand up!”
I had to awaken the sleeping passenger and then squeeze past his knees to the aisle to stand up. As I stood, I turned around toward the seat behind me and saw two men with shirts that had written on the front, “Christian Relief Ministries.” I had not noticed them when they got on the plane because they had jackets over their shirts. I inquired as to who they were and where they were going. They informed me that they were going to Afghanistan as a part of a Christian ministry.
In our conversation, one of the men told me that he was a businessman in Dallas and said that the other man was a medical doctor from Houston. I inquired as to his specialty and he told me that he was a cardiologist. God had a heart doctor sitting right behind me all the time, which blessed me and made me realize the faithfulness of the Father to take care of me even if I had heart problems. So, I sat back down in my middle seat and rested soundly the rest of the night, praising God for His care.
Prophetic Warning of Danger in China In 2005, I had a strong prophetic warning from the Lord about our mission to China concerning pending danger while we were ministering there. This crisis came to pass during the end of our second week on the Mainland as one of the trusted men betrayed us. God miraculously delivered and protected us.
Lord Confirming the Word With Signs Following In 2005, the Lord brought clearer revelation to me what He meant when He said in Mark 16:20 “And they went forth and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following.” On the mission to China, I found that as I faithfully taught God’s Word, He confirmed the Word with signs following. I was not there to perform signs but rather to teach His Word as He had assigned me.
As an example, I was teaching a group of servant leaders, when a woman suddenly came rushing toward me and proclaimed, “I have just seen a vision and God told me to come up to you and you would interpret it for me.” I had never interpreted a vision for anyone else before, so I was totally unprepared for this experience. I immediately led the group in prayer asking God for wisdom to comply with this sister’s request.
I then asked the woman to share her vision. She told me, “I see an old crippled woman lying on the floor, pulling herself along with her hands and I hear a voice saying to her, ‘Old woman, in the Name of Jesus, get up and walk.’ What does this vision mean?” Before I had time to attempt to answer her, another woman came from the crowd, shouting, “I know that old woman on the floor…She’s my neighbor!” I asked the two sisters if they knew one another and they didn’t for they were from two different provinces.
The second woman went on to say, “The Lord has been leading me to this neighbor next door and tell her to “Get up and walk in the Name of Jesus, but I didn’t have the faith to do it. So, I asked the Lord for a sign to assure me that this was His word to me, and this is that sign!” She also went on to say that this old woman had a nephew in a neighboring village who had a serious blood disease and was not expected to live. She then asked me a question, “Can Jesus heal from a distance?” I assured her that He could. Then she asked me to pray with her for the healing of this old woman’s nephew so Jesus could heal him.
I led the entire group of servant leaders in a pray of faith to heal the dying nephew and to give the woman the courage to go to her old neighbor in obedience to Jesus’ command to her and say, “Old woman, in the Name of Jesus, get up and walk!” The entire room erupted with shouts of praise to the Lord!
Prophetic Word to Servant Leaders In 2005, on this same occasion, the Lord spoke prophetically through me in the presence of these Chinese servant leaders, “You are My mighty warriors who will conquer your nation for My Kingdom.” Upon hearing this word from the Lord, all the leaders began to shout and march in cadence like a regiment of soldiers and after I laid hands upon them in blessing and prayer they left to return to the various provinces from which they had come to begin the task to which God had called them.
Power of God Present to Heal In 2005, I was teaching the Scripture to Chinese servant leaders. A grandmother came toward me with her granddaughter in her arms. The child was limp with a high fever and bleeding in her bowels. The grandmother told me that Jesus instructed her to bring the child to me and she would be healed. In faith, I laid my hands on the child and anointed her with oil. I asked everyone present to extend their hands in prayer for the healing of the child. The Lord heard our prayers, the fever instantly left her body and she was miraculously healed. The grandmother left the room to change the child's diapers and then came running back into the room shouting, “Hallelujah…Hallelujah… There is no blood in her stool… My granddaughter is healed!” The room of servant leaders began to reverberate with shouts of praises to God for the miraculous healing. Many others were also healed that day as Luke 5:17 states, “The power of God was truly present to heal.”
Word From the Lord Concerning His Presence In 2005, I was teaching young Chinese believers in our hotel room, when one of the girls suddenly got off the floor and came rushing toward me and fell at my feet where I was seated. She cried out in Chinese, “God is in this place…I want to know this Jesus…I want to know Him now!” I didn’t realize there was anyone in the room who was not a believer. I turned to my Chinese co-workers inquiring about the girl. They told me that she was not a security risk but rather one they called “a seeker.” Since she could not understand English, I asked one of the Chinese brothers to share Christ with her. What a marvelous confirmation of the faithfulness of God’s Word and the power of His Holy Spirit to convict this girl of her immediate need of Jesus!
Word From the Lord About Reading Two Verses From Malachi In 2005, the Lord spoke prophetically to me that I was to go to the Philippines for a gathering of servant leaders in Manila. I was obedient to this word and the Lord blessed mightily on this mission “restoring the hearts of the fathers to the sons and the sons to the fathers,” as recorded in Malachi 4:5-6 and Luke 1:17, where the Scripture speaks of this miraculous restoration in the last days.
Word of Prophecy to Philippine Servants In 2005, the Lord gave me a prophetic word for the Philippine servant leaders, “Multiply My Church throughout the Nations, one household at a time.” The Philippine servant leaders received this word and committed themselves to obey the Lord and to immediately begin to go to the 190 nations where twenty million Philippine citizens now live, to preach the Gospel, establish new churches and equip saints for the work of ministry.
Revelation About “Looking for a City” In 2006, the Lord gave me a revelation concerning His Church that I have included as a teaching on our website (http:www.churchrestoration.org) entitled, “In Search of a City,” which describes the country/city as one “whose builder and maker is God.” It was first revealed to Abraham (Genesis 4:16-17; Genesis 11:1-4; Genesis 11:5-9; Genesis 11:26-32; Genesis 12:1-5), then to the Hebrew writer (Hebrews 11:8-10; Hebrews 12:22-24; Hebrews 13:10-16) and finally to John in the Book of Revelation (Revelation 21:1-2; Revelation 22:14).
Word From the Lord to “Come Out of Babylon” In 2006, the Lord gave me a prophetic revelation concerning calling His people out of the “Babylon” world system that permeates all societies, governments and religions of this age. He led me to such passages as Revelation 18:4, “Come out of her (Babylon), my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues…” And again the Lord directed me to a passage in Matthew 16:13-17 where Jesus responded to Peter’s confession, “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God,” by saying, “Flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.”
Word From the Lord About “First Fruits”, “Harvest” and “Gleanings” Jesus ministered to me that He will make His ekklesia of these last days known by revelation of the Holy Spirit to all those in whom His Spirit dwells. This revelation of the ekklesia would first come to those of the “first fruits,” that is to those who are called out before others. These would be like pioneers or trailblazers who hear the Spirit and “come out” to prepare the way for others.
The Lord led me to Ephesians 4:11-14 and gave me greater revelation to this passage where He gave to the Body of Christ gifted “apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers who are to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ: That we henceforth be no more children tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ: From whom the whole body fitly joined together and compacted by that which every joint supplieth, according to the effectual working in the measure of every part, maketh increase of the body unto the edifying of itself in love.”
The Lord revealed that among these “first fruits” were these Ephesians 4 gifted equipping servants and likened them to someone going through a jungle cutting away the underbrush with a machete. These would encounter snakes, spiders and vines that would bite, infect and choke. Having encountered these obstacles as over-comers, these trailblazers would then beckon others to “Follow us as we follow Jesus…watch out for the snake that strikes…the spider that bites and the vine that chokes…come on…its alright…God is faithful…He will give you the grace and strength to walk as the people of “the Way!”
Then the Lord revealed that after the “first fruits” will come the “harvest,” which will be a great in-gathering of His remnant people who will hear the Holy Spirit and the prophets say, “Come out of her (Babylon) My people.” The “first fruits” type servants will welcome those of the “harvest” and encourage them to be built together unto Him a holy habitation as the ekklesia of the living Christ for the closing of the age.
Then there will be the final “gleaning,” when those who are last to hear will be called out by the Holy Spirit and the prophets. This will be the final opportunity to respond to God’s call, “Come out of her (Babylon) My people!”
Word From The Lord Concerning Purifying His Church In 2006, the Lord also revealed to me that He is purifying His Church today, and that one of the primary ways is through persecution. Just as God has allowed the persecution of His Church in the Communist and Muslim nations, He will use persecution to purify His Church in the Western world, including the United States. This will primarily come after a collapsing of the economies of the world that will bring global devastation and turmoil.
This persecution has already begun and will increasingly accelerate until His Church is purged of all the old leaven, so that “He might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, that He might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.” Ephesians 5:26-27.
For those in the “Babylon” system of the world economies, societies and religions, this will be a time of terrible devastation, but to the “remnant” ekklesia, it will be a time of opportunity, as an open door, to “preach the gospel of the kingdom in all the world for a witness (martyr) unto all nations; and then shall the end come.” Matthew 24:14
To the overcoming ekklesia, Jesus says: “And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh.” Luke 21:28
Word From the Lord to Rebuke Satan In 2007, my wife, Laurel, took me to Dallas to spend the night before catching an early flight for Seoul, Korea in route to China. I went to bed early to get a good night's sleep but was awakened by an excruciating pain in my back. I had previously had some back problems and I immediately thought that I was having another spasm attack as before. I cried out to the Lord for wisdom to know what I should do. I seriously considered postponing my mission trip but then the Holy Spirit spoke to me that this was an attack of the enemy in an attempt to keep me from going to China on mission. I claimed the blood covering of the Lord over me and spoke out loud, “The Lord rebuke you Satan!” Immediately the pain left and I slept soundly the rest of the night.
Prophecy About Governmental Officials In 2007, the Lord led me by His Spirit to go on mission to the Philippines, Indonesia and China. Representatives of our apostolic team were “sent out” by the Church in Winnsboro. We assembled together with various congregations represented in one of their auditoriums. Several words of prophecy were given including one concerning our coming into contact with “high governmental officials with whom we would have contact that would result in having an impact upon a whole nation.”
This prophetic word came to pass in the Philippines as the Lord led us miraculously in contact with members of the National House of Representatives, Special Assistant to the President of the Philippines and a Special Aide to the Governor of the Manila Province. We were invited to return to the Philippines to meet with these officials.
Macedonian Vision In 2007, as we were preparing to leave the Philippines to travel to our next destination to Indonesia, one of the Philippine servant leaders revealed to me a “Macedonian vision” he had concerning going to Indonesia on mission. I felt led of the Spirit to invite him to travel with me to Indonesia.
While in Jakarta, we were invited to minister to a group of Pentecostal Holiness ministers from the greater Jakarta area. They shared with me that within the past several months, over 90 of their church buildings had been destroyed by militant Muslims. They requested that I come and instruct them how to transition from a denomination, with emphasis upon organization and institutions, to house churches throughout the Indonesian Islands. I spent three days teaching, instructing and dialog with these denominational leaders on how to “go underground” and gather in small assemblies of believers.
They invited me to return to Indonesia and train other denominational leaders, including, Assemblies of God, Baptist, Methodist, etc. upon my return trip. I felt led to encourage them to receive my traveling companion from the Philippines as a gift from the Lord to carry out this future training they had requested. My co-worker shared his testimony of how the Lord had given him a “Macedonian vision” to come to Indonesia and minister among them as a servant. The entire group of ministers gathered around our brother, laid hands upon him and prayed, receiving him as a gift from the Lord to their Islands.
Vision of a Man Who Would Minister Unity In 2007, as I continued my mission journey to China, I was joined by co-laborers in the greater Beijing area, where we spent most of our time ministering during our stay there. While teaching and training at a factory in Beijing, a brother from a province south of Beijing was led by the Spirit to come and invite our team to travel to his province to minister. We felt directed by the Lord to accept his invitation.
We flew to a designated city and were met by this brother and other leaders. They took us to a secret location where we were to gather in a cave below the home of one of the leaders. There were ninety leaders present who represented over one thousand churches in that province. About half of them were from house churches and the other half from the registered government churches.
Their request of me was to spend time with them leading them in Scripture to come to unity in the Spirit. Because of the danger of being arrested, they could only give us one full day with this group of leaders for fear that if we stayed longer, the government authorities would find out about our gathering and come and arrest us all. We had from 7:00 AM to 4:00 PM to teach and minister to these servant leaders from throughout that province.
The Holy Spirit fell upon us in a mighty way as we concluded our time together. The leaders from the house churches and the registered churches repented before the Lord and to one another for not loving and working together. They embraced each other and received one another as fellow servants in the Lord's kingdom work in China.
We had to leave promptly at 4:00 PM to catch our plane, but the ninety workers stayed until night fall to travel back to their respective cities and villages under the cover of night to evade authorities. The Spirit spoke to and through these servant leaders that the Lord was going to use this gathering and unifying experience to spread throughout the Mainland as a great sweeping movement.
Revelation From Scripture During Anniversary Absence In 2007, during our mission to China, my wife and I celebrated our 41st Anniversary apart for the first time in our marriage. On our special day, I was led by the Spirit to read a passage in Psalms 71. When I returned home to the States, I told my wife about this special Scripture the Lord gave me on our Anniversary and to my surprise, she told me that the Lord gave her the same Scripture on the same day! “For thou art my hope, O Lord God: thou art my trust from my youth. By thee have I been holden up from the womb: thou art he that took me out of my mother's bowels: my praise shall be continually of thee...Cast me not off in the time of old age; forsake me not when my strength faileth...O God, thou has taught me from my youth: and hitherto have I declared they wondrous works. Now also when I am old and gray headed, O God, forsake me not; until I have shewed thy strength unto this generation, and thy power to everyone that it so come....” (Psalms 71:1-24)
Word From the Lord Concerning Satan Destroying Children In 2007, having been on missions to China, India, Indonesia, Philippines, etc., I had seen so many orphans in all of these nations. I had such a burden for these precious children. As I was praying and seeking the mind of the Lord about what we could best do to help the orphans of the world, the Spirit spoke to me that we should no longer meet the needs of the orphans via the institutional approach of orphanages but rather we should encourage believers to take the orphans into their homes and help rear them to be kingdom workers. The Lord also spoke to me that just as Satan had tried to kill baby Moses and Jesus as an infant to try to hinder God's plan of redemption of Israel and all mankind, Satan was doing the same today by trying to kill all the babies through abortion as well as children who were orphaned from their parents who died in wars and by diseases. God is raising up the next generation of children and young people as the Kingdom workers for the closing days of the ages.
Word From the Lord to Rebuke a Storm In 2007, before we moved back to town from our “hired house” on the lake, there was a destructive wind storm that swept through our neighborhood. It occurred late one night just as we were retiring for bed. Our lake house was a rented mobile home, which was not safe to be in during a storm. The strong wind began to literally rock the mobile home. The Lord told me to go out on the porch and to “rebuke” the wind. I had never done anything like this before, but in Jesus’ Name I spoke to the storm to cease and prayed for protection from any loss of life or property. By God’s miraculous power the wind ceased and upon examining our house we found no damage at all. The homes on either side of our house were badly damaged by large trees being blown over and crashing through the roofs.
Word From the Lord Concerning Godly Contentment In 2007, the Lord led Laurel and me by His Spirit to move from our rented mobile home where we had lived on Lake Winnsboro for eight years, to another rented “hired house” in the town of Winnsboro. It was in the small quarters of the trailer home, that we both learned to have a greater godly contentment and learned more about how little material “things” mean in the Kingdom view.
I had prayed for the Lord in His timing to give my precious wife the desire of her heart to have a home for which she had waited and prayed so earnestly. The Lord miraculously provided this town home for us in His perfect timing and we knew without any doubt that the move was of Him. We praise Him for His faithfulness to provide more than we could have asked or dreamed. He truly answered our prayers. I am so grateful to the Lord because my dear wife has been such a blessing and support to me during our many years on the journey of “pouring new wine into new wine skins.”
Word From the Lord Not to Go on Mission Because of Pending Danger In 2008, the Lord confirmed in my spirit that I was to go again on mission to the Far East, which was to be my seventh journey there. I felt in my spirit that this trip could possibly include Indonesia, Philippines, India and China. So, I contacted the brothers in each of these nations to see if they confirmed what we had sensed in the Spirit.
The Indonesian brothers did not respond, so I took that to mean a “closed door” to that nation for this particular journey. The Philippine brothers responded that they felt the Lord leading us to come. However, as we came within two weeks of our journey to the Philippines, I had a strong caution from the Lord not go to the Philippines! It was so strong that I emailed my host and canceled this leg of our mission. Before he had time to receive my message of cancellation, he emailed informing me that they felt led not to go to the southern islands to which we had together planned to travel and minister. But that they Lord had rather redirected them to another area of the Philippine Islands.
Later, we discovered that the very day we would have arrived in the Southern Islands, Muslim militants had begun a riot and destroyed church buildings and murdered several church leaders. It became so violent that the national army was called into the area and Martial Law was declared. Even had we survived the riot of destruction and killings, we could not have ministered because of the declaration of Martial Law, which restricted everyone to stay in their homes and no one was allowed on the streets and would be shot on site if they chose to disobey these orders!
Word From the Lord Concerning an Open Door to India In 2008 The Lord however continued to open the door for India. Several circumstances led by the Spirit occurred that directed our journey that included two missionary companions from New Jersey and South Carolina, to focus on the cities of New Delhi and Shillong. When we contacted brothers in neighboring countries to pray for our mission to India, they all responded by asking permission to participate in the training of servant leaders in Shillong. I contacted my host in India about this development and he concurred that this was of the Lord and that I should invite them to participate.
Thus what was intended to be an Indian training gathering, turned out to be a gathering from seven different nations, including India, China, Nepal, Myanmar, Bangladesh, Switzerland and the U.S.A. God mightily blessed this gathering of servant leaders.
God’s Healing From Critical Illness In 2008, several things occurred during this training time that God used to fulfill His purpose for our being in India. The first night after arriving at the training center, I suddenly became very ill with fever and chills. In the middle of the night I was awakened with terrible pain. I discovered that my urinary tract had been closed and possibly uremic poisoning had begun to set in. I woke up my host to take me to a hospital emergency room for immediate treatment.
The Lord provided a hospital that was only a few miles away and it was owned and operated by a Christian physician. I was admitted and immediately, the doctor began a series of x-rays and examined me thoroughly. He diagnosed that I had an enlarged prostate that had restricted the flow of urine from my bladder and that I needed a catheter to drain the urine, which he immediately proceeded to perform.
The doctor advised me to cancel the China leg of my mission and to return to the United States as soon as feasible. I began to change my travel plans and reroute my journey from China directly back to the US. Because of the weakness due to my infection, I realized that I couldn't travel alone but needed someone to assist me. Thus I made arrangements to return with a co-laborer who was to leave in about two weeks.
Word From the Lord to Equip in Spite of Sickness In 2008, I tried to keep pace with my mission schedule of traveling in the Shillong area, training servant leaders, but the jarring of riding in the vehicle was too painful. I recommended to my host that I stay in bed and have the trainees come to me for the equipping, which he readily arranged. Thus for the next two weeks of my stay, I taught the servant leaders from my bed in the training center, hotel and later in the private home of my host.
Also, while I was confined to my bed teaching the workers, I received word of the death of my sister who had previously been diagnosed with terminal cancer. I shared this sad news with my co-laborers and students and they ministered in sympathy and prayer with me.
The servant leaders whom I had trained related to me upon my return to the States that they not only learned from the teaching and equipping but also from my response to my illness and message of my sister's death. So, one never knows how the Lord is going to orchestrate his purposes in our lives.
I was so grieved to have to cancel the China leg of the mission but had no choice but to do so. I notified my China hosts and co-laborers who were supposed to travel with me of the necessity of canceling my part on this journey. However, I encouraged them to continue on the journey, which they did. I encouraged my China hosts to train and equip the co-laborers who were to have been my companions on this trip, which they gladly agreed to do. The China mission was greatly blessed and the Lord accomplished what He had purposed to do.
God’s Miraculous Healing In 2008, before I left India, the leaders from the various nations whom I had equipped gathered around me and anointed me with oil and prayed for my healing. There prayer was that upon my return home, upon going to my personal physician for an examination, he would declare me well. And that's exactly what occurred for which we give our Lord all the glory!
Vision From the Lord Rekindled In 2008, A few days after I had returned home from our mission to India, I received a phone call from a couple from the State of Washington. He was an airline pilot and was in special training in Dallas, Texas. He asked if he and his wife could come to our home and visit. Because I was so weak from my journey and effects of my fever and illness, I hesitated to let them come visit. But the more that we talked the more I convinced that the Lord wanted them to come.
Upon their arrival to our home, they began to share with me about their missionary vision for China and their desire to serve the Lord there as a commercial pilot. He also shared how they had already previously been doing mission work in China. When I told him about our team that had just gone to China, the pilot wanted to meet them in China and co-labor with them on this mission. I hesitated because of the security issues involved but the Lord led me to contact our team and make it possible for the pilot to join them for a couple of days of ministry.
The Lord led this pilot to meet one of the team hosts in China who as a young man from Europe who had a vision from the Lord about being a pilot missionary. But he had given up hope for the fulfillment of this dream because of age. Upon being reassured by the commercial pilot that it was still possible for him to pursue his dream, the young missionary, his wife and two children moved back to his home in Europe where he entered pilot training school. Upon graduation, he will be employed by a commercial airline company and fulfill his dream and vision of being a missionary pilot!
My wife reminded me that if I had not come home early from India due to my illness, I would not have met this commercial pilot and then he would not have gone to China to meet the European young man who might not have had his dream rekindled, renewed and fulfilled. God's ways are truly higher than our ways His wonders to perform!
There were many other things that the Lord did but the above summary shares enough to show forth the greatness of our Lord's leading by “opening and closing doors” according to His will and purposes, to which we willing submitted.
Word From the Lord to Equip Pakistan Son In 2009, the Lord spoke prophetically in Hong Kong to our missionary co-laborer (which I confirmed in the Spirit), that one of our spiritual sons from Pakistan whom I had just equipped and trained in Hong Kong would be in grave danger of someone seeking to take his life upon his return home. He was also told by the Lord that he was not to be afraid but rather to keep alert and watchful. Upon the young man's return home, he reported how God miraculously saved his life.
A Prophetic Warning From God In 2009, also in Hong Kong, a minister and his family from Mainland China felt directed of the Lord to come to visit us. During their visit, again our missionary co-laborer prophesied that someone in their church on the Mainland was going to attempt to bring great division and destruction to their church. I was led of the Spirit to discern that the person who was going to try to destroy the church was from the Eastern Lightning Cult. This is a very dangerous cult in China that is known to kidnap, drug and morally comprise Christian leaders in an attempt to destroy house churches throughout the Mainland.
Upon our return to the USA from this mission to China, I received an email from this Chinese minister that the Lord had mightily dealt with this man and the church was saved from division and destruction!
God’s Revelation of Future Leadership Training In 2009, as we were concluding our 7th personal mission (8th for the mission team) to China, the Holy Spirit began to reveal that Hong Kong, China was to be a base for leadership equipping and training for the servant leaders in the Far East. The Holy Spirit soon expanded this vision to include other regional training locations as well. These included: Nairobi, Kenya for African leadership; Tel Aviv, Israel for Middle Easterners; London, England for Europeans; Moscow, Russia for former Soviet Union block nations and Russians; San Jose', Costa Rico for the Caribbean Islands, Central and South Americans; Sydney, Australia, for the Islands of the Sea; and to the “uttermost”, etc.
Word From the Lord Concerning Raising Up Future Servants In 2009, after the mission to Hong Kong, the Holy Spirit revealed that the prophetic word concerning world-wide regional areas of training like Paul the apostle conducted in Ephesus(Acts 19:8-10), was to be a part of the fulfillment of the prophetic word that He gave me in 2005. That word was, “I am raising up multiracial, multinational Ephesians 4 servants: apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry throughout all the nations of the earth.”
The Lord further revealed that to accomplish this momentous task, it would require the ministry of all the servants whom I had equipped. I was to encourage these servants to work together and to travel as co-laboring teams as they go to these major regions of the world to equip and train others.
Revelation to Train Leadership in a School of Tyrannus In 2009, the Lord revealed that our primary emphasis the remaining part of 2009 should be equipping servants from foreign nations here in our “hired house” in Winnsboro. Thus in February, June and October, we equipped and trained servants from five nations including China, Nepal, Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania. Upon the completion of these equipping sessions, the newly trained servants returned to their respective homelands to teach and train others according to II Timothy 2:2.
Word From the Lord to Call For the Elders of the Church to Pray For Healing In 2010, I faced a very serious and challenging time with the first major health issue in my 74 years of life. I was diagnosed with cancer of the prostate.
I shared this prayer need with our co-laborers and servant leaders from around the world and called for the elders of Winnsboro and surrounding area to come and anoint me with oil and pray for my healing and for the Lord's wisdom and direction. Fifteen elders from different denominational congregations of believers came to our home and anointed me with oil and prayed for the Lord's healing and for His wisdom concerning my illness.
After continued prayer in seeking the mind of our Lord, we were led to have surgery in May to remove the cancerous prostate, which was followed by radiation treatments in August and September. After, PSA tests, MRI's and bone scans, the doctors gave me the good report we were all praying for, that I no longer had any cancer of the prostate, in the attached areas, limp nodes or bones, for which we give God all the glory and praise!
It is important to note that during this time of illness in 2010, we experienced such a wonderful peace of the Lord and faith in Him and His healing power in my body. My ultimate desire was for His Name to be glorified through this whole experience. Also, in fasting and prayer, I sought the Lord about what He wanted to teach me in the health issues I had faced.
As a health precaution, the doctors recommended that I spend at least one full year, from the time of my surgery in May and radiation treatments in August/September, to allow my body time to rest and recuperate. In light of this counsel and after much earnest prayer, I canceled the April 2011 mission to Africa, and the October 2011 mission to Hong Kong, China.
Word From the Lord Concerning the Example of Paul’s Hired House 2011, in light of the health issues of 2010 and after much prayer, I have been led to focus on ministering primarily here in Winnsboro at our “hired house” to those whom the Lord sends, just as Paul did in Acts 28:30-31 “And 1) Paul dwelt two whole years 2) in his own hired house(in Rome), and 3) received all that came in unto him, 4) preaching the kingdom of God, and 5) teaching those things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ, 6) with all confidence, 7) no man forbidding him.”
The ministry in the “hired house” will include the internet, email, telephone, Skype, website teachings and materials, counseling, ministry resources, encouragement to the whole body of Christ as well as equipping those whom God sends to our “hired house” from here and throughout the world.
Also, as in Acts 19:9-10, Paul's ministry in the city of Ephesus made an impact upon a whole region of Asia(present day Western Turkey): 1) “He departed from them(who were hardened, and believed not, but spake evil of that way before the multitude), and 2) separated the disciples, 3) disputing daily 4) in the school of one Tyrannus. 5) And this continued by the space of two years; 6) so that all they which dwelt in Asia 7) heard the word of the Lord Jesus, 8) both Jews and Greeks.”
The Lord revealed that the many servant leaders we have equipped over the past 32 years in the US and around the world, would ultimately fulfill in His time, the visionary, mission mandate and prophetic word He gave me in 2005. He promised that “He was raising up multinational, multiracial Ephesians 4 apostolic teams (apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers) to equip the saints for the work of ministry” and these servants were to focus this ministry on the major regions of the world to make the greatest impact for the Kingdom, as Paul did.
Revelations Learned During Sickness and Healing In 2011, one of the many blessings He gave me during my illness and healing, was the revelation in Scripture of sixty two new teachings, i.e., “Walking With a Limp”, “Seasons in Life”, “Castaway”, “Infirmity & Sickness”, “Wait on the Lord”, God's Sovereign Purposes”, “Forbid, Hinder, Resist”, “Fear of God”, Egypt in Prophecy, Libya in Prophecy, Iraq in Prophecy, etc. All sixty two of these teachings have been placed on our website for the encouragement of the Body of Christ.
In addition to these new teachings, the Lord gave me the following word of revelation, which I want to share for the encouragement of the body of Christ:
Through this whole experience, I can now better understand and live out the words of Paul the apostle when he said in his epistles:
Philippians 1:2 “For me to live is Christ and to die is gain.”
Romans 14:7-8 “For none of us liveth to himself, and no man dieth to himself. For whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die unto the Lord; whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord's.”
II Corinthians 5:6-8 “Therefore we are always confident, knowing that whilst we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord: For we walk by faith not by sight: We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord. Wherefore we labor, that whether present or absent, we may be accepted of Him.”
II Corinthians 12:1-10 “And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure. For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me. And He said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong.”
Assurance From the Lord Concerning Fruitfulness 2011, the Lord assured me that the seed of His Word that I have sown all these many years would come to fruition and bear His fruit in His time. Thus I continue to be committed to the task of training and equipping servant leaders from throughout the nations here in our “hired house”.
In light of my age and the possibility of being confined to our “hired house”, the Lord gave me the prophetic scripture as recorded in John 21:18-19 “1) Verily, verily, I say unto thee (Peter), 2) When thou wast young 3) thou girdest thyself, 4) and walkest whither thou wouldest: 5) but when thou shalt be old, 6) thou shalt stretch forth thy hands, 7) and another shall gird thee, 8) and carry thee whither thou wouldest not. 9) This spake he, signifying by what death he should glorify God. 10) And when he had spoken this, saith unto him (Peter), Follow me.”
PROPHECY OF MILITANT MUSLIM JIHADISTS PERSECUTING CHRISTIANS… In 2011, the Lord revealed to me prophetically that the primary persecutors of the End Time Church will be the Militant Muslim Jihadists. (See Biblical studies on our website http://www.churchrestoration.org including: “Terror on the Earth”, Terror and Fear on the Earth”, Muslim Study #1, Muslim Study #2 and “Understanding the Crisis of Our Times”, etc. Matthew 24:4-14 “And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many. And ye shall hear of wars and rumors of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom again kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. All these are the beginning of sorrows. Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name’s sake. And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.” According to Matthew 24:21-22 “For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no nor shall be. And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened.” Again in John 16:33 “These things I have spoken to you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.” In Acts 14:22 “Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter in the kingdom of God.” And in I Peter 4:12 “Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you: but rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy. If ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are ye; for the spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you: on their part he is evil spoken of, but on your part he is glorified.”
Word From the Lord Gives Peace in a New Season In 2012, I do not know whether I will die like Peter did as a martyr, but I am willing to do so and pray for God's special grace and holy boldness should this occur. Also of course, should the Lord so direct, I must always stand ready to go to other nations of the world as well.
It will be my joy to continue to serve my Lord until He calls me home or until He comes again to receive me upon His triumphant return. When I have “poured out” all that He has entrusted to me, then my task on earth will be “finished”!
Teachings and Revelations Received in 2013 Again in 2013 I was confronted in February with another challenge concerning my health. Having recuperated from cancer surgery and radiation treatments and declared cancer free in 2010, I had to have two additional critical surgeries 2013 because of an inflamed and diseased gallbladder full of stones causing serious life threatening effects on my liver and pancreas. But again, praise be to God, I was healed and am now regaining my health and strength daily.
Even during the illness in 2013, the Lord continued to give me teachings and revelations to record and place on our website to encourage God’s servants around the world. It seems in my experience in life that when one has to “be still” like during a time of sickness and pain, the Lord ministers mightily through revelations and teachings.
These teachings can be read and studied from our website and the new revelations and teachings include the following subjects thus far (through June 2013):
It is most important that we give our Lord all the glory for these revelations and teachings through the leadership of the Holy Spirit! I pray that these teachings will be a blessing and encouragement to believers throughout the world.
Revelation from the Lord in 2013 to Begin the “School of Tyrannus” (Acts 19:8-10) We made contact via the Internet to all of to all of our hundreds of email address concerning the “School of Tyrannus”. The materials for this training were the same as I had used in my 30+ years of mission work around the world in which I equipped/mentored Ephesians 3 servant leaders: apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, teachers. It is a free online, self-paced curriculum available on our website http://www.churchrestoration.org As of this date, we now have 168 trainees from 37 nations enrolled.
Revelation from the Lord in 2014 to Establish a Co-laboring Ministry of Trained Ephesians 4 servants who would serve together within their own native lands, work together in neighboring nations as well as other countries throughout the world. As of this date, we now have 90 Co-Laborers from 28 nations committed to take the Gospel of the Kingdom of our Lord the nations of the world and to equip servants for Kingdom service.
2015 will commemorate our 50th year (1965-2015) of the Lord revealing His mind and heart to me concerning Dreams, Prophecies, Revelations and Visions. These subjects and others will be included in a series of books that the Lord is directing me to write and publish as a legacy for the future generations of servant leaders around the world. Some of these books are In Search of a New Wine Skin, Heavenly Humor, My Life Journey, Unto the Uttermost , Dreams, Prophecies, Revelations & Visions, Bible Prophecies for End Times, God Encounters, Biblical Studies A to Z and Leadership Training Manuals.
Thus 2015 will be a time of focusing upon writing my memoirs and other books to hopefully inspire young servants will discover what their calling and giftings are to fulfill all that God has designed their lives to be and accomplish in His Kingdom for His glory!
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