1992 - Buenos Aires, Argentina (Claudio Friedzon)

1993 - Sunday 2 May - Brisbane, Australia (Neil Miers)

1994 - Thursday 20 January - Toronto, Canada (John Arnott, Randy Clark)

1994 - Sunday 29 May - Brompton, London (Eleanor Mumford)

1994 - Sunday 14 August - Sunderland, England (Ken Gott)

1995 - Sunday 1 January - Melbourne, Florida (Randy Clark)

1995 - Sunday 15 January - Modesto, California (Glenn and Debbie Berteau)

1995 - January - Pasadena, California (John Arnott)

1995 - Sunday 22 January - Brownwood, Texas (College Revivals)

1995 - Sunday 18 June - Pensacola, Florida (Steve Hill)

1995 - Friday 27 October - Mexico (David Hogan)

1996 - Sunday 20 October - Houston, Texas (Richard Heard)

 1992

Karin Detert of Berlin, Germany, reported on revival in Argentina.

"The prelude to these events was in the early 1980s, at which time God raised up Carlos Annacondia, a businessman turned evangelist. Crowds gathered together to hear him preach because his ministry was accompanied by signs and wonders, healings (for instance, filling of teeth) and deliverances. In mass crusades thousands of people accepted Christ as Saviour. Virtually every church grew.

"In 1992, a second wave of revival began with Claudio Freidzon, founder of a Buenos Aires church that in four years has grown to 3000 people. Pastor Claudio, who was very busy in all areas of his church felt a need to really come to know the Holy Spirit. Whilst he was seeking an encounter with God, the Holy Spirit touched him one day in a powerful way and his ministry changed dramatically. An unusual presence of the Holy Spirit started accompanying him in his meetings.

"During the services, as people entered into adoration and worship, some became drunk in the Spirit and could not stand up. Some had to be taken home by others because they could not drive or walk on their own. Others laughed in the Spirit or fell under the power of God. The services were very long (4-5 hours), many miraculous healings were reported. Other pastors came to see and to receive the same anointing. Claudio prayed for them and they received a fresh and new anointing and took it back to their churches. A hallmark of this revival is an emphasis on worship and praise. God's presence descends as we immerse ourselves in adoring Him. Some people weep throughout an entire service; others rejoice with laughter. Many are led to deep repentance, pastors and congregation.

"An emphasis on personal holiness has caused many to change their lifestyles. Less time spent watching television, for example. Critics have accused some of faking religious experiences. But the emphasis on holiness, the desire of the people to praise and worship, and increase in concern for reaching others with the Gospel are genuine. And although the revival started in Claudio's church, it has spread to hundreds of pastors and churches in Argentina.

"God has also opened doors for a world-wide ministry and, wherever he goes he ministers in this same anointing, which then remains in those places; and so this revival could be brought to many other places around the world, like for instance, also to my own church in Berlin, where God started moving in a tremendous way since September, 1993, when Claudio came to minister in our church.

"This new wave of the Holy Spirit started about two and a half years ago in Claudio's church and is still going on. I had the privilege of being part of their wonderful services where people were always caught up in a tremendous worship, sometimes weeping in the services, sometimes laughing. The presence of God was always very powerful. The people in the church are very healthy and spiritually strong in the Word. There is a bold emphasis on the need for balance between the Word and the Spirit" (Riss 1995).

Neil Miers, International President of the Christian Outreach Centre (COC) arranged for Jill Austin to speak at their pastors' conference in New Zealand in April 1993.

Jill is from Kansas City where she is a part of the prophetic team at Metro Christian Fellowship. God has used her to impart his manifest presence to congregations; to bring refreshment, prophetic vision and proclamation, and to ignite the fires of God among them. That happened in New Zealand, causing drunkenness in the Spirit, visions, prophecies, laughter, tears, and people overwhelmed on the floor.

Neil and Nance Miers returned to Brisbane, their headquarters, to lead the national conference for their regional pastors. Neil preached at their headquarters church in Mansfield, Brisbane on Sunday night 2 May. Fire fell.

Darren Trinder, editor of their magazine A New Way of Living (now Outreach), wrote:

'Some staggered drunkenly, others had fits of laughter, others lay prostrate on the floor, still more were on their knees while others joined hands in an impromptu dance. Others, although showing no physical signs, praised the Lord anyway, at the same time trying to take it all in.

'People who had never prayed publicly for others moved among the crowd and laid hands on those present.

'"When we first saw it in New Zealand early in April we were sceptical," said Nance Miers, wife of Christian Outreach Centre International President, Pastor Neil Miers. "I've seen the Holy Spirit move like this here and there over the years. But this was different. In the past it seemed to have affected a few individuals, but this time it was a corporate thing."

'Neil Miers himself was physically affected, along with several other senior COC pastors, early in this Holy Ghost phenomenon. Later he viewed the series of events objectively.

'"It started in New Zealand and then broke out in New Guinea, and now it's here. If I know the Holy Ghost, it will break out across the world ­ wherever people are truly seeking revival. "For the moment this is what God is saying to do, and we're doing it. It's that simple."

'But despite the informal nature of the events, Pastor Miers, adopting his shepherd role, was careful to monitor the situation.

'"There are some who are going overboard with it; just like when someone gets drunk on earthly wine for the first time. The next time it happens they'll understand it a little better."

'God is doing many things. He's loosening up the church. He's working deep repentance in certain individuals, and healing deep hurts in others.

'Just like the outpouring in Acts, it was the public ministry that followed which really changed the world. First God has to shake up the church and then He uses these people to shake up the world.

'Splashes of this revival have touched people's lives throughout the Christian Outreach Centre movement around the nation and the world.'

At Mansfield people were overwhelmed for weeks, or months. The Bible College had to cancel lectures as staff and students were powerfully affected and often 'drunk in the Spirit'. They had vivid visions, and prayed for others constantly. Children in the primary and high schools were similarly overwhelmed, saw visions, and worshipped and prayed s never before. Many people now in full time ministry were powerfully impacted then, and the COC movement continues to grow rapidly internationally.

John Arnott, senior pastor at the Toronto Airport Christian Fellowship (then called the Toronto Airport Vineyard Christian Fellowship) tells how the Father's blessing came to them in 1994:

'In October 1992, Carol and I started giving our entire mornings to the Lord, spending time worshipping, reading, praying and being with him. For a year and a half we did this, and we fell in love with Jesus all over again. ...

'We heard about the revival in Argentina, so we travelled there in November 1993 hoping God's anointing would rub off on us somehow. We were powerfully touched in meetings led by Claudio Freidzon, a leader in the Assemblies of God in Argentina. ...

'We came back from Argentina with a great expectation that God would do something new in our church.

'We had a taste of what the Lord had planned for us during our New Year's Eve service as we brought in 1994. People were prayed for and powerfully touched by God. They were lying all over the floor by the time the meeting ended. We thought, "This is wonderful, Lord. Every now and then you move in power." But we did not think in terms of sustaining this blessing.

'We invited Randy Clark, a casual friend and pastor of the Vineyard Christian Fellowship in St. Louis, Missouri, to speak because we heard that people were being touched powerfully by God when he ministered. We hoped that this anointing would follow him to our church.

'Yet Randy and I were in fear and trembling, hoping God would show up in power, but uncertain about what would happen. We were not exactly full of faith - but God was faithful anyway.

'On January 20, 1994, the Father's blessing fell on the 120 people attending that Thursday night meeting in our church. Randy gave his testimony, and ministry time began. People fell all over the floor under the power of the Holy Spirit, laughing and crying. We had to stack up all the chairs to make room for everyone. Some people even had to be carried out.

'We had been praying for God to move, and our assumption was that we would see more people saved and healed, along with the excitement that these would generate. It never occurred to us that God would throw a massive party where people would laugh, roll, cry and become so empowered that emotional hurts from childhood were just lifted off them. The phenomena may be strange, but the fruit this is producing is extremely good' (Arnott 1995:58-59).

People were saved and healed - more in the next two years there than ever before. However, thousands of Christians experienced this renewal, discovering a new deep love for the Lord which then impacted others.

Word spread. Thousands flew or drove to visit the little church at the end of the runway at Toronto international airport. The church had to relocate into larger premises. The blessing still continues. British journalists nicknamed this renewal the 'Toronto Blessing'.

The impact of the Spirit in Toronto continues. Steve Long, a pastor at Toronto Airport Christian Fellowship sent this E-mail message to John Arnott on 29 August 1996:

'At the Intercession Prayer Meeting ­ Today:

'The Presence of God was particularly strong to­day and one gentleman came forward to share what I thought [would be what] God was saying to the Intercession Group, but actually he shared that the he was put to sleep by the Holy Spirit in the meeting and when he woke up his back was completely healed. He shared that he had blown three discs in his back and he knows that he was healed. John, it turns out that he is a chiropractor. No one prayed for him. He shared his testimony at the evening service. Praise be to God! Perhaps the new paradigm is being ushered

in with a new level of power and sovereign healings.

'A Jewish mom & dad plus their daughter and her boyfriend were saved last night after being powerfully impacted by the Holy Spirit.'

One of the first and most highly publicised 'hot spots' for the awakening in England was an Anglican Church, Holy Trinity Brompton (HTB), in London. Richard Riss (1995:WWW) reported:

'At about 11:30 a.m. on May 24, 1994, Eleanor Mumford, assistant pastor of the South­West London Vineyard and wife of John Mumford (pastor of South­West London Vineyard and overseer of the Vineyard Churches in Britain) met with a group of friends, many of whom were leaders of other churches, to describe her recent visit to the Toronto Airport Vineyard. As she explained her remarkable experiences of the power of God and prayed for them to be filled with the Holy Spirit, everyone was profoundly affected.

'Nicky Gumbel, Curate of Holy Trinity Brompton, suddenly realised that he was very late for a staff meeting at his own church, and rushed back from this meeting with his wife, Pippa, to HTB church office in South Kensington. The meeting was getting ready to adjourn, so he apologised and spoke briefly about what had happened. He was then asked to pray the concluding prayer. He asked the Holy Spirit to fill everyone in the room. According to

the church newspaper, 'HTB in Focus,' 12 June 1994:

'"The effect was instantaneous. People fell to the ground again and again. There were remarkable scenes as the Holy Spirit touched all those present in ways few had ever experienced or seen. Staff members walking past the room were also affected. Two hours later some of those present went to tell others in different offices and prayed with them where they found them. They too were powerfully affected by the Holy Spirit ­ many falling to the ground. Prayer was still continuing after 5 pm." ...

'The church leaders invited Eleanor Mumford to preach at Holy Trinity Brompton that Sunday, May 29, at both the morning and evening services. After both talks, she asked the Holy Spirit to come. Wallace Boulton in The Impact of Toronto (Crowborough: Monarch, 1994), p. 21, wrote of the morning service:

'"There was a time of silence. Then slowly, members of the congregation began to cry quietly, and some to laugh. As the Holy Spirit came, Eleanor asked people to come forward if they wanted prayer. Many did so. As Eleanor's team and members of the church ministry team started to pray, people began to fall in the power of the Spirit. Soon the whole church was affected. There were scenes that few had ever seen before. The children arrived from their own groups and may of them were deeply touched and began praying for each other."

'People lingered for a long time after each service. Audiotapes of Eleanor Mumford's evening

talk soon gained wide circulation in over one thousand churches of all kinds throughout England and served to pave the way for a massive reawakening among Anglicans and others.

Richard Riss (1995 WNW) continues:

'Ken and Lois Gott founded Sunderland Christian Centre (SCC) in 1987 in the north­east part of England. Although they moved into a new building in 1992, by the summer of 1994 they felt very dry spiritually. Then, in August of that year, Ken Gott visited Holy Trinity Brompton in London with four other Pentecostal leaders, and he was deeply humbled by the sense of God among Anglicans.

'Andy and Jane Fitz­Gibbon wrote in Renewal (Issue 227, April 1995, p. 11), that "stereotypes were shattered as Ken and the other Pentecostals received a new baptism in the Spirit at the

hands of Bishop David Pytches. The change was so profound in Ken that the members at SCC took up an offering and sent Ken, Lois and their youth leader for a week to Toronto. Like most of us who have made the same pilgrimage, they were profoundly touched, soaking in God for a week, never to be the same again."

'Upon their return from the Toronto Airport Vineyard, the Gotts decided not to tell the church about the phenomena they had seen. Ken said, "We wanted to have a visitation, not an imitation."'

The Fitz-Gibbons, who are associated with SCC, wrote (1995:15):

'On August 14th, the first Sunday morning back from Toronto, the effect on the church was staggering. Virtually the whole congregation responded to Ken's appeal to receive the same touch from God that he and Lois had received. They decided to met again in the evening, although normal meetings had been postponed for the summer recess. The same experience occurred. They gathered again the next evening and the next . . . in fact for two weeks without a night off. Quickly, numbers grew from around a hundred-and-fifty to six hundred. Word reached the region and, without advertising, people began the pilgrimage to Sunderland from a radius of around 70 miles.

'By September a pattern of nightly meetings (bar Mondays) was established and each night the same overwhelming sense of God was present. That pattern has continued ever since, with monthly leaders' meeting on a Wednesday or Thursday afternoon (with usually around 300 in attendance) and a daily "place" of prayer being added.

'The effect on many churches and on thousands of individuals has been profound.'

In January 1995 they began two meetings a day with a daily afternoon prayer meeting. Conversions increasingly impact the community, including a growing number of former criminals. Alpha magazine reported later that year that car theft had allegedly dropped by 45% in the city area over the previous year.

Philip Le Dune, an associate pastor at Sunderland, send this E-mail message in August, 1996:

'Sunderland Christian Centre is located in a high density low cost housing area with all the problems associated with inner city deprivation. Prior to the start of Renewal we had had very little contact with the local population, and gave very little indication that we really wanted anything to do with them! The church was heavily protected against burglary with shutters and polycarbonate windows, and a high security fence and video cameras helped the security guards protect the cars ­ not a very welcoming sight to any would­be church attenders from the area. Our neighbours saw us turning up in our nice cars, wearing our smart clothes and carrying big black bibles. Many of the on lookers had no car, no nice clothes and some had no food.

'Renewal has changed us forever. When God pinned a local gangster to the floor of the church one evening, only God knew that he was soon to be employed by the church, together with his wife, as youth workers. Jim & Marie now hold daily "meetings" with the people from the local community who are increasingly coming to see SCC as "theirs".

'Recently the atmosphere in the youth club, held upstairs in the church hall while the Renewal meetings are held in the sanctuary downstairs, changed significantly. The youths, many of whom are already well experienced in criminal activities, had begun to take less interest in the usual youth club activities like pool and became much more interested in the ministry time that Jim & Marie had introduced. Last week all of the kids decided to stay behind for prayer and the Holy Spirit turned up! One young lad, aged about 12, called Billy received prayer, and the Holy Spirit laid him out on the carpet.

'Billy is notorious in the area and is considered by many, including his social workers to be beyond control. He has tried to break in to the church on numerous occasions and has been involved in petty theft as well as assaulting members of the church staff! Despite this he has been welcome to join with his peers in the youth meeting and has been enjoying himself! Jim asked him, "Why do you come out for prayer Billy?" and he replied, "It's the only time in the week I feel clean."

'A few days ago three teenagers turned up one evening to the youth meeting. They were well known as "hard cases' in the community and they stood at the bottom of the stairs mocking Jim and his team and calling them "Bible bashers" and other less savoury names! Jim invited them up, but when it came to ministry time they stayed put in their seats, laughing at the others who were receiving prayer. Jim called them out. "I'm going to pray for you three now," he said. "What are you going to do?" they asked. "I'm going to do nothing. I'm not even going to touch you. I'm just going to pray and the Holy Spirit is going to do the rest."

'Jim began to pray and the three of them froze. After 16 minutes, with everyone else having left the room Jim came back and the three of them were still standing stock still, eyes closed in total silence. When they came round one of them said, "Well, what can you say? Now I know that God exists, but what do I do about it?" Jim was able to explain what he should do and he went away with a lot to think about, but came back the next night saying, "I want Jim to pray for me again!" One of his two companions described how he had felt hands pressing on his chest and face but when he'd opened his eyes there was no­one there. The other said he felt like he'd been "pulled in all different directions inside."

'Keep praying, as this is surely the start of the Youth Church that we want to establish here in Sunderland.'

Richard Riss tells of further awakenings (1995, WNW):

'On New Year's day of 1995, Randy Clark was guest speaker at the Tabernacle Church in Melbourne, Florida, for a series of meetings sponsored by five local churches. An unusual revival broke out immediately, accompanied with holy laughter, falling under the power of the Spirit, and many dramatic physical healings. From the first day, thousands of people flocked to meetings held six days a week. The services were hosted on a rotating basis by pastors and musicians from fifteen different congregations in the local area, including Presbyterian (PCA), Southern Baptist, Episcopal, Methodist, and Assemblies of God churches (National & International Religion Report, vol. 9, no. 8 [April 3, 1995], p. 2).'

The report goes on in Randy Clark's words:

'In 1994 I spent about 150 [days] in renewal meetings. During that time I never was in a meeting which I felt had the potential to become another Toronto type experience. That was until I went to Melbourne, Florida [on] January 1, 1995. Another revival has broken out. Many sovereign things have occurred which indicate this place too will be [the site of] usual renewal meetings. I shall share some of these.

'First, what made me expect something special at these meetings? I never schedule over four days for meetings, but I scheduled fifteen days for this meeting. Why? I believed there were things going on which indicated a major move of the Spirit was imminent. The Black and White ministerial associations merged a few months prior to my going. The charismatic pastors had been meeting together for prayer for six years, and pastors from evangelical and charismatic and pentecostal churches had been meeting and praying together for over two years. There was a unity built which would be able to withstand the pressures of diverse traditions working together in one renewal/revival meeting.

'The meetings are held at the Tabernacle, the largest church in the area. It holds 950 comfortably. This was Jamie Buckingham's church, now pastored by Michael Thompson. The church sanctuary is filled by 6:15 with meetings beginning at 7:00. About 1,200 are crowded into the sanctuary, another 150 fills a small overflow room, and another 200­300 sit outside watching on a large screen.'

Numbers grew to over a thousand a night, gathering from Florida's 'Space Coast' and then from across America and throughout the world as word of the revival spread.

On Friday 6 January, Randy Clark was interviewed on the Christian radio station WSCF, FM 92 at Vero Beach, Florida, an hour's drive south of Melbourne. Randy Clark wrote, 'During [the] interview a DJ fell out [under the power of the Spirit] in front of the station manager who was interviewing me. He shook violently. Other station employees fell out under the power. After we left the station kept on sharing [on the air] what was occurring live for hours. People

were healed listening to the broadcast. Others came under conviction, drove to the station and gave their lives to God. Others were rededicated while listening. One man had to go home

from work unable to continue driving his truck because the Spirit was so strong upon him' (Riss 1995: WWW).

The revival continues with unprecedented co-opeartion among the churches.

Richard Riss continues his account of the current awakening (1995: WWW):

'In January 1994, when Glenn and Debbie Berteau became pastors of Calvary Temple Worship Centre in Modesto, California, they had a strong sense from the Lord that revival would take place there. In one of their sermons, 'Why not Modesto?', they asked why Modesto couldn't be known as a city that had been visited by revival. In early 1994, they presented the congregation with the vision that God had given them. After this 'vision Sunday,' the congregation went into a forty day fast. Individuals signed up for specific days on which to fast and pray. The entire procedure was repeated again a year later. In early January, a three day fast was declared, and the church building was kept open throughout the day. Those who could do so met together for prayer daily at noon. Members of the congregation came and prayed over names on cards that were placed on the altar. The cards were then left on the altar for the next team of intercessors. Pastors of many congregations in the Modesto area began meeting together weekly to pray for the city.

'On January 15, 1995, the church began holding performances of a play, Heaven's Gates and Hell's Flames, directed by a husband and wife team from Reality Outreach of Niagara Falls, New York, a group founded by Rudy and Karen Krulik which makes use of local church members to produce dramas. The play was originally scheduled for three days, but due to popular demand, a total of twenty­eight performances were held for a period of seven weeks,

ending March 16. In an Article entitled "Prayer and Fasting Precedes Revival in Modesto, CA," Jann Mathies, pastoral secretary of Calvary Temple reported in the April, 1995 edition of the Island Christian Herald (pp. 1, 17), that most nights, over nine hundred people responded to the altar call, in an auditorium that seats 2200 people.

'According to Jann Mathies, "As of this writing, approximately 81,000 have attended the performance with 90% each night seeing it for the first time. At time of printing, 33,000 decision packets have been handed out, and of that, (confirmed) 20,000 returned with signed decision cards. Over 250 churches have been represented with hundreds of people added to the churches in our city and surrounding communities in less than one month. People come as early as 3:30 pm for a 7:00 pm performance. There are over 1,000 people waiting to get in at 5:00 pm, and by 5:30 pm the building is full. Thousands of people have been turned away; some from over 100 miles away. . . . Husbands and wives are reconciling through salvation; teenagers are bringing their unsaved parents; over 6,000 young people have been saved, including gang members who are laying down gang affiliation and turning in gang paraphernalia. . . . The revival is crossing every age, religion and socio­economic status. . . . We have many volunteers coming in every day, and through the evening hours to contact 500 to 600 new believers by phone; special classes have also been established so that new believers may be established in the faith." ...

'Revival was beginning to sweep through Modesto and the outlying areas. Some churches moved their Sunday evening service to Calvary Temple encouraging their congregation to attend the drama and bring unsaved friends and family members. Churches from many miles surrounding Modesto have been affected by the drama. Local Pastors and Priests of various denominations said there is a new passion and love for God in those who already had a relationship with the Lord, they have received many new converts and their churches are filling up. One local church had to add a third Sunday morning service and another had to ask their members to give up their seats so visitors could have a place to sit. . . . Local Bible book stores said they were selling more Bibles than usual. A local psychologist said much healing had happened in the lives of some of his clients who had attended the drama ­ far more than what the usual counselling sessions had ben able to do.

In Australia in September 1996, a church on Queensland's Gold Coast performed the play for a month and saw over 750 converted. Beenleigh Christian Outreach Centre is the second Australian church to perform it, commencing in November 1996.

'Similar in intensity to Toronto and Melbourne is what happened at Mott Auditorium on the campus of the U. S. Centre for World Mission. Beginning in January of 1995, John Arnott of the Toronto Airport Vineyard and Wes Campbell of New Life Vineyard Fellowship in Kelowna, B.C. began taking various trips of two or three days each as guest speakers at Mott Auditorium. By March 24, nightly meetings had begun, lasting far into the night five nights per week' (Riss 1995: WNW).

John Arnott conducted powerful meetings again at Mott Auditorium hosted by Harvest Rock Church, a Vineyard Fellowship, on Friday-Sunday 24-26 March. Then the combined churches in the area continued with nightly meetings from Monday 27 March. Later they settled on meetings from Wednesday to Sunday each week. Now Wednesdays are reserved for cell groups and meetings continue from Thursday to Sunday nights.

Che Ahn, senior pastor of Harvest Rock Church wrote in their monthly magazine 'Wine Press' of August:

'I am absolutely amazed at what God has done during the past five months. After John Arnott exploded onto the scene with three glorious and unforgettable renewal meetings, he encouraged the pastors of our church to begin nightly protracted meetings. My mind immediately rejected the idea. I thought to myself, "The meetings were great because you were here, but how can we sustain nightly meetings without someone like John Arnott to draw the crowd?" The answer to my question was an obvious one. Someone greater than John Arnott would show up each night at the meetings ­ Jesus. And each night since we began March 27, 1995, God has shown up to heal, to save, and to touch thousands of lives. There is no accurate way to measure the impact

that the renewal meetings are having in our city. I do believe that we are making church history, and we are in the midst of another move of the Holy Spirit that is sweeping the world. From March 27 to July 27, we have had 99 nightly renewal meetings. We have averaged about 300 people per night, some nights with more that 1200 people and others with a small crowd of 120.

More that 25,000 people have walked through the doors of Mott Auditorium, many of them happy, repeat customers. We have seen more that 300 people come forward to rededicate their lives or give their hearts to Jesus Christ. These statistics don't come close to representing other

evangelistic fruit of those who have attended the meetings. For example, two church members, Justine Bateman and Jeff Eastridge, had an outreach at Arroyo High School and more than 60 young people gave their hearts to the Lord!

'We have seen marvellous healings from the hand of the Lord, many of them spontaneous without anyone specifically praying for the healing. I wish I had the time and space to share all the wonderful fruit I have seen at the renewal meetings. Seeing the need to share what God is doing, I felt that we are producing this church newsletter to share these testimonies of lives that have been impacted by God during this current outpouring of the Holy Spirit.'

Richard Riss has gathered accounts of revival sweeping colleges across America beginning with Howard Payne University in Brownwood, Texas.

'On January 22, 1995, at Coggin Avenue Baptist Church in Brownwood, Texas, two students from Howard Payne University, a Christian institution, stood up and confessed their sins. As a

result of this incident, many others started to confess their own sins before the congregation. On January 26, a similar event took place on the campus of Howard Payne. Word quickly spread to other colleges, and Howard Payne students were soon being invited to other college campuses, which experienced similar revivals. From these schools, more students were invited to still other schools, where there were further revivals (Chronicle of Higher Education, May 19, 1995, pp. A39­A40).

'One of the first two students from Howard Payne to confess his sins was Chris Robeson. As he testified about his own life and the spiritual condition of his classmates, "People just started

streaming down the aisles" in order to prayer, confess their sins, and restore seemingly doomed relationships, according to John Avant, pastor of Coggin Avenue Baptist Church. From this

time forward, the church began holding three­and­a­half­hour services. Avant said, "This is not something we're trying to manufacture. I''s the most wonderful thing we've ever experienced" (National & International Religion Report, vol. 9, no. 7 [20 March 1995], p. 1). ...

'Avant said that after the events on January 22, the motto among several local high school students had become, "God's going to rock the world, and it's starting in Brownwood," and that "Southern Baptists, Nazarenes, Pentecostals, Independent Baptists, and Presbyterians are getting together just to kneel and pray for revival" (ibid).

'At Howard Payne, revival broke out during a January 26 "celebration" service, as students praised God in song and shared their testimonies. Students then started to schedule all­night prayer meetings in dormitories. (Christian Week, 11 April 1995, p. 1 and Ken Camp, "'Activity of God' Produces Renewal in Texas City's Church", Campus, 1 March 1995).

'Then, on February 13­15, during five meetings at Howard Payne, Henry Blackaby, a Southern Baptist revival leader ministered at a series of five worship services, attended by guests from up to 200 miles away. On Tuesday, February 14, more than six hundred attended, and students leaders went up to the platform to confess publicly their secret sins. About two hundred stayed afterward to continue praying. One of the students, Andrea Cullins, said, 'Once we saw the Spirit move, we didn't want to leave' (ibid). Blackaby's "Experiencing God" discipleship curriculum had been used recently in many of the Brownwood area churches that became affected by the revival.

'After Howard Payne, some of the first schools to be affected were Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Forth Worth, Texas, Beeson School of Divinity in Birmingham, Alabama, Olivet Nazarene University in Kankakee, Ill., The Criswell College in Dallas, Moorehead State University in Moorehead, Ky., Murray State University in Murray, Ky., Wheaton College in Wheaton, Ill., Louisiana Tech University in Ruston, La., Gordon College in Wenham, Mass., and Trinity Evangelical Divinity School in Deerfield, Illinois. In each case, students went forward during long services to repent of pride, lust, bondage to materialism, bitterness, and racism.

These revivals continued throughout 1995. Details are given in Accounts of a Campus Revival: Wheaton College 1995, edited by Timothy Beougher and Lyle Dorsett (Wheaton: Harold Shaw Publishers, 1995).

Over 26,000 conversions were registered in the first year of the 'Pensacola Revival'.

'On Father's Day, June 18, 1995, evangelist Steve Hill spoke at Brownsville Assembly of God, just outside of Pensacola, Florida. Although he was planning to be there for only one day, the power of God fell, and the pastor, John Kilpatrick, fell out under the power of God for a period of about 48 hours. The first meeting, which had been scheduled to conclude at noon, lasted until 4:00 pm. During a 5 1/2 hour service that evening, the church asked Hill to extend his visit, and he began cancelling his appointments, including a planned trip to Russia. Crowds of 2,500 came five nights a week, from Methodist, Baptist, Episcopal, Nazarene, Catholic, and Church of Christ denominations. According to the National & International Religion Report (vol. 9, no. 19, September 4, 1995, p. 2) "Buses brought visitors from around the Southeast and other areas of the United States. Some came from overseas."

'On July 3, Scott D. Weberg of the new­wine list wrote of his visit at the end of June: "The church 'comfortably' seats 2100, and they said that there were between 2400 and 2600 people every night. We all felt the power of God increase every night that we were there. We stayed each night til about 2:00 in the morning, and at that hour there was still about 1000 people standing, sitting, laying around the altar! Even on the week nights! And the evangelist and prayer ministry teams kept praying for people right on into the morning hours.

'"They asked all first­time visitors to raise their hands each night ­ and there were probably several hundred first timers every night. They estimate that over 10,000 people have attended during the first 2 weeks, and that over 3,000 have been saved, either in the meetings, or as a result of people going out from the meetings and leading someone to the Lord." ...

'On July 31, he wrote, "now there are about 4000 people attending nightly services (except Saturdays). The awesome part of the report was that [a total of] about 800 people got saved during the last 2 meetings of last week! . . . The meetings are usually going until 3:00 in the morning, and people are coming in buses!" ...

'By early September, 116,000 people, including 35,000 first­time visitors, had attended the church since mid­June. According to the assistant pastor, Richard Crisco, an average of more than 100 people became Christians each night. Many of these people came directly from local bars to attend services, which usually lasted until about 2:00 am. "Prostitutes and drunkards stand next to men in three­piece suits at the services," one woman said (National & International Religion Report, vol. 9, no. 19, September 4, 1995, p. 2). Crisco reported that he has received telephone calls almost daily from visitors reporting that the Spirit of God is moving powerfully during meetings at their own churches after they have visited Brownsville' (Riss 1995:WWW).

Robert McQuillan, editor of the Australian Evangel, the Assemblies of God national magazine, wrote in the August 1996 issue (p. 29):

'Suddenly the name is on the lips of almost every minister wanting fresh fire renewal along with the question: "Where's Pensacola? I hear incredible revival is happening there."

'Indeed it is! It's called 'the Brownsville harvest'. As I compile this article I have before me a fax from Evangelist Steve Hill in Pensacola, Florida, dated 24 June, 1996, which reads: "The revival here is more intense than ever before. The pace is ever increasing ­ with no end in sight."

'People continue coming from all over the United States and the world. Over 26,000 have received Christ as Saviour! ... [that

'Despite the overwhelming nature of all that has happened and the growing worldwide publicity, the Brownsville assembly remains humble and mystified as to why the Spirit has visited them in this way. But they are rejoicing in the Lord at the results which haven't stopped coming since the fire fell' (Riss 1995).

David Hogan, founder of Freedom Ministries, a mission to remote hill tribes in Mexico told in a sermon about the outpouring of the Spirit there in a three day conference. This is a small part of his account:

"On the first day, Wednesday 25 October 1995, there were about 200 pastors there, and the whole church that was hosting us. That made about 450 people. The first day was awesome. God hit us powerfully. There were healings. I was happy. The people were encouraged.

"The second day, Thursday, was even better. It was stronger. I thought we were peaking out on the second day. I got there at eight o'clock in the morning and left a ten o'clock at night, and there was ministry all day. We were fixing problems, and God was working through the ministry. It was wonderful. But I tell you, I was not ready for the third day.

"I don't have words to describe what happened to us when the Holy Spirit fell on us on Friday 27 October 1995. If you had been there, you wouldn't have words to describe it either. It's an awesome thing I've been able to witness. The river of God is here, and it's full. There's plenty for all.

"We were coming in from different areas. The Indians were all there. I didn't know they had been in an all night prayer meeting. I didn't know that the Holy Spirit had fallen on them and they couldn't get up. I didn't know that they had been pinned down by the Holy Spirit all night long, all over the place, stuck to the ground. Some of them had fallen on ant beds, but not one ant bit them.

"I was staying about 45 minutes away. I got in my 4 wheel drive and as I drove there I began listening on the two-way radio. Some of our missionaries were already there, and were talking on the two-way radio saying, 'What's happening here. I can't walk.'

"As I listened to them on the radio I felt power come on me. And the closer I came, the more heat I felt settling on me. I could feel heat, and I had my air conditioner going! When I got to the little church, I opened the door of the truck and instantly became hot. Sweat poured off me. I was about 300 yards from the church. The closer I got, the more intense was the heat. I could hardly walk through it, it was so thick. I'm talking about the presence of God. That was 7.30 in the morning!

"I walked around the corner of the building. People were all over the place. Some were knocked out. Some were on the ground. Some were moaning and wailing. It was very unusual. By the time I got to the front of the church where the elders were I could hardly walk. I was holding on to things to get there. I could hardly breathe. The heat of the presence of God was amazing.

"The people had been singing for two hours before I got there. At 8.15 on the morning of October 27th, 1995, I walked up there and lay my Bible down on that little wobbly Indian table. Hundreds were looking at me. Some were knocked out, lying on the ground. I could hardly talk.

"I called the nine elders to the front and told them the Holy Ghost was there and we needed to make a covenant together, even to martyrdom. We made a covenant there that the entire country of Mexico would be saved. They asked me to join them in that pact. When we lifted our hands in agreement all nine fell at once. I was hurled backward and fell under the table. When I got up the people in front fell over. In less than a minute every pastor there was knocked out.

"We were ringed with unbelievers, coming to see what was going on. The anointing presence of God came and knocked them all out, dozens of them. Every unbeliever outside, and everyone on the fence was knocked out and fell to the ground. There were dozens of them. From the church at the top of the hill we could see people in the village below running out screaming from their huts and falling out under the Holy Ghost. It was amazing.

"We always have a section for the sick and afflicted. They bring them in from miles around, some on stretchers. There were 25-30 of them there. Every sick person at the meeting was healed: the blind, the cancerous, lupus, tumours, epilepsy, demon possession. Nobody touched them but Jesus. There was instant reconciliation between people who had been against each other. They were laying on top of each other, sobbing and repenting.

"I was afraid when I saw all of that going on. I looked up to heaven and said, 'God what are you - ?' and that was the end of it. He didn't want to hear any questions. Bang! I was about three or four metres from the table. When I woke up some hours later, I was under the table. When I finally woke up my legs wouldn't work. I scooted myself around looking at what was going on. It was pandemonium! When some people tried to get up, they would go flying. It was awesome.

"'And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb' (Revelation 22:1). I saw that river. I actually saw the river, it's pure water of life from God's throne. If I could see it again I would know it, I saw it, I experienced it, I tasted it.

"We had five open-eyed visions. One small pastor was hanging onto a pole to hold himself up. He was there, but he wasn't there. He said to me, 'Brother David, look at him. Look at him, Brother David! Who is it? Look how big he is! Oh, he's got his white robe on. He's got a golden girdle.' It was Jesus. He said, 'Brother David, how did we get into this big palace?'

"I looked around. I was still on the dirt floor. I still had a grass roof over me, but he was in a marble palace, pure white. I crawled over to look at him. He was seeing things we could not see. Another of the elders, a prophet from America, who had been working with me for thirteen years, crawled over and we were watching this pastor who was in a trance. It was amazing.

"The three of us were inside something like a force field of energy. Anybody who tried to come into it was knocked out. It was scary. The pastor said, 'He's got a list, Brother David.' And the pastor started reading out aloud from the list. I was looking around, and as he was reading from the list people went flying through the air, getting healed and delivered. It was phenomenal, what God was doing. And he's done it in every service in our work that I've been in since then. It's been over a year. It's amazing. Wonderful.

"Between 150 and 500 people per month are being saved because of it, just through what the North American missionaries are doing" (Renewal Journal #9, 1997).

Richard Heard led the Christian Tabernacle in Houston in growth from 250 to 3,000 members. On Sunday October 20, 1996, a move of God exploded in the church which dramatically affected it. This is part of an edited selection of Richard Heard's comments.

"I felt the presence of the Lord come on me so powerfully I grabbed the podium, the pulpit, to keep from falling, and that was a mistake. Instantly I was hurled a number of feet in a different direction, and the people said it was like someone just threw me across the platform. The pulpit fell over that I had been holding for support, and I was out for an hour and a half. ... I could not move. And I saw a manifestation of the glory of God. ... There were thick clouds, dark clouds, edged in golden white and the clouds would - there would be bursts of light that would come through that, that would just go through me absolutely like electricity. ... There was literally a pulsating feeling of - as though I was being fanned by the presence of the glory of God. ... There were angelic manifestations that surrounded the glory and I didn't know how long I was out. They said later that I was there for an hour and a half.

"In the meanwhile, all across the building people, they tell me, were falling under the presence of God. That's not something that has happened much in our church, but people were stretched out everywhere. And the altar. We have three services on Sunday and people would enter the hallways that lead to the foyer and then into the auditorium and they would enter the hallways and begin to weep. There was such a glory of God and they would come into the foyer and not stop - they would just go straight to the altar - people stretched out everywhere. ... There were all kinds of angelic visitations that people had experienced. And we've got professional people in our church - doctors, professors, their bodies were strewn everywhere.

"When I felt the glory of God lift, I tried to get up and couldn't. It was as though every electrical mechanism in my body had short-circuited. I couldn't make my hands or my feet respond to what I was trying to tell them to do. It was as though I was paralyzed. ... And we had one service that day, and the service literally never ended - it went all the way through the day until 2:00 that morning. It had started at 8:30, and we decided to have church the next night, and I didn't want to be presumptuous, but we went on a nightly basis on that order, just announcing one night at a time, and as we got deeper into the week I could begin to see that God was doing something that was probably going to be more extended.

"There have been numerous healings. The evangelist didn't speak at all that Sunday. In fact, the entire week he spoke maybe twenty minutes. There's been a really deep call of God to repentance. People come in and they just fall on their faces. ...

"I think that this is probably going to end up - whatever this season is that the Holy Spirit is bringing us through in terms of our commitment to Him and the deep searching of our own hearts, it has the feeling at this point like it's going to - like it's building toward even a greater evangelistic outpouring.

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Revival visitations ignite millions of people in the world today. Amid growing darkness, the light shines. The cross is still the power of God for salvation to all who believe. The risen Lord empowers his people with his Spirit, which was his final promise:

'You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you and you shall be my witnesses ... to the ends of the earth.'

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