I have been a Christian my whole life, but never really understood what that meant until I started going
to the Nazarene Church. I lived with anger and bitterness in my heart and a lot of the time used alcohol to bury those feelings.
I felt like everyone was against me, even the people that love me the most and I frequently lashed out at those people and
pushed them away. On April 4, 2010 I went to Revival services and I really listened and took it all in, but I was still hesitant
because I knew that God would show what was in my heart to Pastor Chuck and he would point it out to me and everyone around
me. I went back the next night knowing that I was done living how I had been living and I was ready to lay it down. I went
down to the altar as Pastor Chuck was praying for everyone around me I started to get scared that he was going to forget me
and I wanted it so bad I was ready to chase him down the aisle on my broken foot. He finally got to me very last, but he
didn't say what I thought he was going to. What he said to me went to the very root of all my anger, bitterness and unhappiness
and literally ripped it right out of me. I cried all night that night and all the next day. I have never felt such immense
sorrow in my life. I did not understand at the time why I felt so sad but now I know. God was healing me. I woke up the
next morning terrified that I would still be consumed with sadness, but it was the exact opposite, all I felt was overwhelming
JOY. All those awful feelings I had kept bottled inside me where completely gone! I had forgiven people that I never imagined
I would ever forgive. That day my whole life changed. Yes, there have been bad days when some of those old feelings return,
but only on the days I am living in self. The moment I wake up and remember to die to self and live in Jesus it all goes
away again and JOY returns. I could literally write a book on the many ways God has blessed me in the last 6 months. I am
in complete awe of it all, He is so Amazing! Ebony Cortez, CO *********************************************
God is Good. I think it's got me fired up for church tomorrow...oh yeah.
But it's so true how people come in dragging, doing their part, and going out the same way they come in. No, no,
no. I want to experience Jesus, I want to be fed Jesus, I want to see Him in every circumstance, and I want that relationship
with the Father to just grow. I love Him. I get all that......except maybe the feeding part. I do rely more
on revival for that. I want them to know this is real. I want reality Jesus.......not theology Jesus. Theology
I'll get when I have to take a class, not during service. Anyway, I won't gripe.....I praise God I have a pastor
and a church family. JJ
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I am a product of revival and I have been blessed abundantly by the ministry of the LaCombe's.
In Philippians two, we are called to not only look to the needs of ourselves but to the needs of others.
In the Greek that literally means to put the needs of our brothers before our own. In "The Message"it
says "Put yourself aside and help others get ahead. Don't be obsessed with getting you own advantage.
Forget yourselves long enough to lend a helping hand"(2:4). Isn't that what Christ did?
My life
and the life of my family will never be the same because of the obedience of these two servants of Christ. Nicki
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My
name is Kyle Griffin and God has radically changed my life through revival and the cross. At a young age
I experienced church division, church fights, and foolishness and all because people weren’t dying
to self and letting Jesus live in them. My heart was torn apart to see what was going on around me.
I experienced revival for the first time in seventh grade
where I learned about the cross and who Jesus really was. He wasn’t about the foolishness I grew
up in. I surrendered my life to Jesus and I will continue to daily. From there I formed
an everlasting friendship with Him and He became my best friend.
______________________
My life altering experience:
Having grown up in
a mostly Christian home, going to church every Sunday and Wednesday night, I knew allll about the bible, Jesus and God…or
at least I thought I did. I even participated in Teen Bible Quizzing for years, memorizing entire books
of the bible…and yet it never really stuck with me. In fact, after getting out on my own at the
ripe old age of 18, fresh from High School, I quickly became religiously cynical. I had a lot
of trouble with hypocritical people who tried to tell me right from wrong. I couldn’t understand
why a God who supposedly created this world would allow such horrible, evil things happen to good people all the time.
This led me to about seven years of complete and utter religious-LESS living. In fact…the
more I saw and learned of the world, the less I believed and the more bitter I became….If there was a God, I HATED
him.
Move ahead…Thursday, June 19, 2008
I agreed to attend a revival service with my step-sister Missy. The speaker was an evangelist that had
been at my Dad’s church. I thought I would go to spend quality time with Missy. I
found out it was a healing service and started wondering what I was getting into. Since putting on all
of the weight my useless thyroid brought me, I’ve been very shy about getting up in front of people anywhere.
There was NO WAY shy Amy was getting up in front of a church full of people and having some guy tell her she was healed.
Well…after listening to his mind blowing service, and yes, it was MIND BLOWING…
I did just that, except he never said the words, you’re healed.” He simply prayed for and anointed
me, with Missy, Pastor Mike and Candi all holding onto me tightly. I the cynic actually gave my life to
the Lord right then and there. No more did I focus on hypocrites and things I couldn’t understand and control.
I simply gave it all to Him.
Two miraculous
things happened there in that little church…1) For the first time in a long time, I instantly felt calm and serene…nothing,
no pessimistic thoughts, no worries, NOTHING could bring me down…2) I had actually called and made a doctor’s
appt. because my lymph node, the one covered in cancer was throbbing and swollen. I was even having trouble
swallowing because of it and I was really worried. But…after that service it instantly quit hurting
and felt normal and hasn’t bothered me since.
I don’t understand everything that happened and I am still trying to figure it all out. All I know
is that something incredible happened to me, and I truly feel more at ease, and more brave than I have in a really long time.
I know that I now have the strength to deal with whatever the future holds for me.
AMY
