THE LOCAL CHURCH

THE LOCAL CHURCH
 
 - an cxerpt from Ben's soon-to-be-released book - "WITH ME".
 
Shortly after the “in the same country” revelation, Brenda and I were in Mozambique with a team of about twenty North Americans.  Again I had an experience where a statement went through my mind.  It was early one morning and I was just partially awake.  It was a statement that had never crossed my mind before, nor did it have a place in my theology. 
 
Common sense would dictate that I shouldn’t repeat this statement in a book, especially in a chapter for pastors.  I have no desire to offend pastors, since a significant part of our ministry and family income flows through pastors who invite us to speak in their churches.  I may be somewhat lacking in wisdom or intelligence, but I am sharing this because of a passion to reach the lost throughout the whole world and build the Kingdom of God. 
 
So please understand that having been in pastoral ministry for about thirty years, I am not trying to insult or offend pastors.  I must also say that we are seeing a wonderful trend among pastors and churches to correct the problems we will discuss in the following paragraphs.  But please read on and see if you can agree with me that God desires to bring some changes in the way we “do” church.
 
The statement that I heard was this:  “The biggest hindrance to the spreading of the gospel is the local church.”  What a shocker!  It didn’t make any sense to me either.  I know that “local churches” send and support thousands of missionaries and do street evangelism and soup kitchens, etc., etc. 
 
So what was the Holy Spirit saying to me when He said the local church was the biggest hindrance to the spreading of the gospel?  I believe God was shocking me and challenging me to analyze the statement until it made some sense. 
 
I had to study the wording and definitions.  First the Holy Spirit focused me on the word “local”.  Then I had to think of the concept of “spreading the gospel”.  I also realized that the enemy has never been able to stop the spreading of the gospel, even with persecution.  But I realized that almost all Christians are at least somewhat submitted to the vision and philosophy of some “local” church. 
 
Thus that local church has significant control of what individual Christians do with their gifts and callings in the Kingdom, as well as their finances.  Therefore if the local church does not foster and promote missions and evangelism outside of it’s four walls, it can greatly reduce the amount of missions and evangelism that would occur if they did foster and promote those ministries.
 
The biggest help in understanding the statement came from studying the word “local” itself.  When I finally got to a dictionary on the internet, this is what Webster had to say about the word “local”.  I have highlighted several significant parts of the definition, which I copied directly from Webster’s Dictionary on the internet.
 
Main Entry: 1lo·cal Pronunciation: 'lO-k&lFunction: adjectiveEtymology: Middle English localle, from Middle French local, from Late Latin localis, from Latin locus place -- more at STALL1 : characterized by or relating to position in space : having a definite spatial form or location2 a : of, relating to, or characteristic of a particular place : not general or widespread b : of, relating to, or applicable to part of a whole3 a : primarily serving the needs of a particular limited district b of a public conveyance : making all the stops on a route4 : involving or affecting only a restricted part of the organism : TOPICAL5 : of or relating to telephone communication within a specified area
 
These definitions are quite interesting.  Read them carefully, noticing the concept of “not widespread”, “limited” and “restricted”.   I have often found Webster’s definitions to be a great source of understanding and inspiration.  Daniel Webster was an amazing Christian and his definitions often reflect it.  For instance look up the word “glory” for some great insights.
 
At any rate, I believe that the term “local church” is not the best term, but unfortunately the definitions of the word, “local” do describe our western churches to some extent.  Keep in mind that I was there in Mozambique with Rolland and Heidi Baker, where we had just been on several outreaches to villages which were totally Muslim.  Most of the people received the Lord.  Many powerful miracles happened, accompanied by mass conversions. Churches were being planted frequently throughout the region.  I was witnessing the biblical standard of “spreading the gospel. 
 
In contrast, in the western church we often primarily serve the needs of “a particular limited district”. (See definition above)  Our vision that motivates and drives us as pastors is so often the building of “our” church, not the universal body of Christ or His Kingdom.  I speak as a former pastor, knowing my own experience and being acquainted with many others in pastoral ministry.
 
We tend to be too satisfied with “affecting only a restricted part of the organism” of the Kingdom of God.  So much of our local church structure in our culture is geared to the strength and security of the people who are involved in the particular local church, basically the leadership and their followers.  As leaders, we often want to bring them in and keep them in.  We want to count “nickels and noses” to quote a speaker I recently heard.  We focus on the sheepfold much more than the harvest field. 
 
Part of the reason for this is that almost all church leaders are called, “pastors”, even if their gifting is one of the other ministries.  We have senior pastors, associate pastors, youth pastors, children’s pastors, seniors pastors, singles pastors and a few other types of pastors.  Those who fill these rolls feel the expectations of people to “pastor” their group. 
 
Many of them actually need to be freed up to be apostles, prophets, evangelists and teachers.  True pastors are very important and necessary, and the majority of them are incredibly hard workers and have great hearts for the flock, but they can’t do it all.  And they can’t do a really great job of something God never called them to do. 
 
Apostles will proclaim the “Kingdom” mandate to bring the Kingdom to the King and cast vision for accomplishing greater things for God.  Prophets will stir up the spirit of the warriors and shake up those who are “at ease in Zion”.  Evangelists will carry the gospel to the ends of the earth and the teachers will bring appropriate levels of revelation to the babes and also to those who are more mature.
 
The dominant “pastoral” control of the direction and focus of the church does not emphasize the Kingdom, it emphasizes the “local” church, its people and leadership.  Finances are directed to the needs of the flock and the shepherds, while very little in comparison goes to outreach and harvest.
 
The gospel is spreading in Africa and especially in places like Mozambique, Uganda and Nigeria, because most of the focus is on the Kingdom and the task of going and getting the Bride of Jesus Christ, rather than managing and growing the local church.  Thousands of new churches have sprung up, but every church leader is made to be so aware of the heart of Jesus for the lost.  Those called “pastors” are also released to be evangelists who take in orphans and spread the gospel throughout their villages and surrounding communities.  Many are more apostolic in gifting and plant numerous churches and help train leaders.
 
Rolland and Heidi Baker and other “trailblazers” are shaking up the western church whenever they minister in churches and conferences here.  Western leaders are made to wonder what is going on when so much is being accomplished by so few who are using such unsophisticated methods and styles of ministry. 
 
Our professionalism and pursuit of excellence (which is a good thing) is being overshadowed and outdone by those without education and sophistication, who function mostly on passion, simplicity and love for Jesus and the lost.  I, myself, have been radically renewed in my mind, just observing them, and have now powerfully witnessed what I have preached about for so many years – the restoration of the book of Acts in our day.
 
The expression “local church” was of course never used in the Bible.  There was the church of Ephesus, Corinth, etc., and the “church that is in your house”, but they didn’t use the limiting word “local”.  The church of the city would work as one unit, interacting with the apostles and prophets and teachers who would come and go, but a portion of the church of the city could meet in a house and still be “the church”. 
 
The word, “church” means “called out”.  Unfortunately, too many times our main focus is on calling people “in”.  We want them “in” our “local” church.  And of course, they need to be part of a church and nourished into some level of maturity.  But God is calling many young and old Christians “out” of the safe, the secure and the comfortable and into the more unpredictable, unsafe harvest fields of the world.  It takes work, sacrifice and it requires taking a risk.  Protection is needed for new born babies, but young men and women want adventure and challenge.  Unfortunately, many weary and burned-out leaders are at the stage where they desire peace and security for themselves, more than they want to lead their people on risky adventures into uncharted territory.
 
But make no mistake about it – going after the harvest is the most thrilling and fulfilling thing we could ever do.  Just ask any of the team members that journeyed with us to Mozambique, who saw the miracles and the hundreds of Muslim hands raised to accept Jesus at every single outreach.  Ask a young lady named Liz.  Ask her parents or her sister, Sarah.  Ask the older missionaries who didn’t formerly believe in the supernatural power of God.  Ask the almost two hundred “Holy Given” mission students on the field, who flocked to Mozambique to learn from Rolland and Heidi Baker, their associate, Lesley-Anne Leighton, and numerous other outstanding contemporary Christian trailblazers.
 
So how do we apply this?  As leaders we need to search our hearts and motives.  How passionate are we about the harvest?  Are we and others encouraged and activated to do the work of an evangelist?  Are we “Kingdom” leaders or just “local” church builders? 
 
When we build the “local” church, and achieve some level of “success” in doing so, there is a lot of personal blessing that comes to us as pastors in the area of prestige, financial security and influence.  That can be a reward for faithful and difficult work, but it can also be a subtle and wrong motive for that success.  When we simply focus on building the Kingdom however, we often have to lay those things down.  We may have to “lose” our life before we “find” it. 
 
We found the above to be true when we made commitments to overseas trips without the finances.  We almost came home to financial disaster, but God had put faith in our hearts to believe for miracles and He came through for us, and we didn’t have to tell anyone our needs.
 
Recently I visited a church where I was not speaking, and I heard numerous complimentary references to the local church and the denomination.  But there was no mention of supporting other churches or denominations or working in harmony for the harvest and the Kingdom.  In the same community, a local church had a sign which read, “We don’t put on a show, we preach the Bible.”  This was clearly a dig against a newer church in the community which was growing rapidly, and clearly revealed a spirit of competition.
 
And I find that is all too typical.  We want to be right and we want to be successful.  It produces the “local church” and “our denomination” or “our movement” mentality that pervades the western church.  We want to build what will make us look and feel successful.  It is such a subtle and pervasive drive within us.  Again, I speak from experience, not to judge or criticize, but to motivate you as I have been motivated by others.
 
It would be helpful to change much of our terminology that boxes us into the old mold and compares us to other churches and movements, as if we are in competition with them.  The expression “our church” may be a dead giveaway of our concepts.  We may be running the risk of having taken ownership of what belongs only to God.
 
Perhaps the term “mobile church” would convey a better concept.  We want to be known as people who are the church wherever the church is needed.  When we think of “church”, we should not be thinking of a building or anything that boxes us in.  We should be thinking of God’s people out in the community, serving Him in every part of society and coming together frequently to exchange “war stories” and encourage one another.
 
Jesus told us to go into the world and make disciples, and said, “I will build MY church.”  Let’s go out of the box and into the harvest.  Let’s make disciples of Jesus and not of ourselves.  Let’s help Him build His church and be His stewards of His church but not the owners.  Let’s fulfill our apostolic call if we have received one and not be held back by a label that doesn’t really fit us. 
 
Let’s rethink our financial budget and focus more on “out there” and less on “in here”.  Let’s empower the younger people who possess the zeal and energy and send them to places where God is moving, without fear that we will lose control of them or that they will join another church or movement.  Fear of loss is a terrible chain around many leaders’ necks.  That chain is a very useful tool for our enemy to keep people from fulfilling their destiny.  I don’t want to criticize the church, but I have seen it too often.
 
The best way to restructure our churches is to ensure that apostles and prophets and evangelists are released into leadership, along with the pastors and teachers, and given freedom to function in their giftings.  They should be chosen not based on their personal proclamations of who they are, but based on humble service to the body through their respective giftings.  Apostles and prophets, being foundation stones in the house of God will see the bigger picture and, along with the evangelists, they will care more about Kingdom issues than internal ministry.
 
Confidentially, pastors, we are discovering very quickly that there is a whole generation of young people, as well as folk of all ages, that are really tired of “church” as we have traditionally know it.  They love Jesus, but want to be led into something more challenging than sermons on how to fix their problems.  They want to be equipped to impact and change the world.  God put that desire in them.  If we say, “They’ll mature eventually and become less idealistic and more realistic and find their place in the local church” we will have really missed our opportunity to mobilize God’s army to win the world for Christ.
 
Of course they won’t be mature at the beginning.  And they will have character defects.  But we don’t have to give them titles or positions.  They don’t need to be deacons or elders.  We just have to empower them to serve Jesus.  God gave me a word of wisdom in Mozambique that goes like this:  “The youth of today will be matured and refined in the fires of revival.”  Preaching guilt and condemnation won’t mature them, but letting them partake of true revival will.  I experienced it in my own life, and I have seen it in many others, including those who went with us on our recent trip to Mozambique.
 
I mentioned above the concept of “spreading” the gospel.  The thought came to me that we spread peanut butter on our bread, after we extract a clump of it from the jar and place it on the slice of bread.  We don’t leave it in a lump in the middle.  We spread it to every part of the bread.  In the west, we often have the gospel in lumps we call churches, but God wants to spread it over the whole city or region or nation. 
 
I don’t have all the answers.  I don’t even know all the questions.  But I’m sure we can do better than we are doing now if we get low enough in the presence of Jesus and ask Him what we can change to bring our ministry into conformity with His vision for it. 
 
God never rejects a humble heart, but He has promised to resist the proud.  Humility needs to be worked at.  Pride doesn’t.  It comes naturally, even to us in ministry leadership.  It has infected us all and keeps coming up like last summer’s weeds that you’ve already pulled over and over again.  I have been in pastoral ministry for almost thirty years and I know the battles that I and my fellow-pastors in our communities had to deal with all the time.
 
Before concluding this chapter, I want to report the exciting news that changes are happening in the western church that are extremely encouraging.  Just in the past few years and especially the last month or so, I have heard of numerous cases of churches doing things that were unheard of in previous decades.  Many apostolic “pastors” have led their churches to give large amounts of money to help other churches in their cities.  In addition, they have given more of their personal time and resources for missions projects and evangelism, often working sacrificially to help other ministries in their cities to flourish.
 
Some of the leading examples of a “Kingdom mindset” included Colorado Springs pastor, Ted Haggard, author of “Primary Purpose” and now president of the American Association of Evangelicals.  Other wonderful examples include Bill Johnson of Redding California and Che Ahn of Pasadena, California. 
 
But many others in smaller ministries are also leading by example.  Right here in Douglasville, Georgia, a suburb of Atlanta, where we are presently ministering, a young fiery pastor/evangelist, named Vance Murphy, leads a fairly small church that joins forces with another ministry in Kentucky, establishing “Father’s House” homes for abandoned children in many nations.  In nine months, since we met in Mozambique, he has gone to India, the Ukraine, Brazil and Guatemala, helping abandoned children in these needy nations.  In addition, they serve the poor in their city in various outreaches.  They are such an example of Kingdom passion and a church that is not just “local”, a church that embraces the apostolic, prophetic and evangelistic ministries along with the pastors and teachers.
 
I know that it seems like finances are not available for such adventures for most church leaders.  Even though I loved missions, having journeyed to other nations four times, when we started a new church in a small town, I never left North America for eighteen years.  We had a very tight budget and although much of our ministry was reaching out to the lost, we had very little immediate impact on the Kingdom of God at large.
 
The good news is that today, there is a major shift in Kingdom financing.  And I believe that every church leader who catches the vision and feels the passion for the great Kingdom harvest, which is now in full swing, will see miraculous provision to finance those who want to be a part of the harvest.  God is moving in powerful ways among the youth, as we so clearly witness in meetings from city to city.  The older generation is becoming more challenged to help finance the younger generation and there is a tremendous increase in short term mission trips by both younger and older Christians.
 
God is also raising up many “Market Place Apostles”, who are being used to generate large amounts of money to support world wide evangelism.  Exciting new technologies and business opportunities are being released from Heaven at this writing to empower the harvesters.  God knows how ripe the harvest is and He is not willing to let it be lost for lack of finances. 
 
Let’s get excited, renew our minds, shift our priorities and participate in the world wide harvest.  Let’s spread the gospel, make the whole world our parish and let Jesus build His church. 
 
May those with spiritual ears hear what the Spirit is saying to the churches.  Amen!
 
 
 

Greetings Saints,

We join many ministries in calling on Christians to pray for God's intervention in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. Several prophetic leaders had spoken of waters washing the south, floods and warnings of disaster. They included Cindy Jacobs, Chuck Pierce (exactly one year before Katrina and Kim Clement (a few months ago).

The opportunities for the church are great to touch lives and minister in supernatural love and authority. People are in desperate need of hope and encouragement. It's time for God's prophetic people to go and tell people God will come and help them (Is. 35:3,4), and then be God's hand extended.

Recent Meetings
No time for details, but God moved powerfully in Douglasville, Georgia and Henderson, Kentucky. There is great hunger there. We had people from eight different churches in a theatre facility and we had at least one miraculous healing from a life-threatening blood disease. Many lives were turned around for Jesus. It was truly wonderful.

We arrived home just in time for Brenda to drive with Andrea back to Washington State. They are somewhere in Montana right now. Brenda will be visiting her parents and sisters as well as Ken and Barbie and the grandkids, etc. She will fly back on Wednesday of next week.

Important Announcements regarding Shara's visit and coming events - Please read if you live near Chicago

1. Elgin FGBM Meeting:
Shara, Heidi Baker's very prophetic Personal Assistant, will be arriving in Chicago on Thursday, Sept 8. She may be with us at the Elgin FGBM meeting that night. This will be held in Dundee at the Milk Pail Restaurant, 14N630 Route 25 Dundee,Il. The meeting will be held in the Terrace Room from 7-10 pm.

2. Missions Prep 101: Kickoff and informational meeting in crystal lake at christian fellowship on Friday, September 9, at 7 PM.
Shara will be sharing what is happening in Africa and why it would be a blessing to prepare to come to Mozambique and other mission fields. This meeting is for everyone interested in the Missions Prep Course and anyone who just wants to hang out with us and our team. It will be a very special night.

3. Shara will be ministering somewhere near Wheaton College on Saturday, September 10th at 7 pm. Location is yet to be announced. Stay tuned.
The focus at Wheaton will be partly the campus revival movement and partly the Missions Prep course presented by our Chicago Sending Center.

4. Schedule for the actual Missions Prep 101 Course
We have chosen the weekends, but not the locations as yet. The wonderful news is that Felito, Iris Ministries' Director of Outreaches will be with us for the first weekend. We will conduct the course on two back to back weekends beginning on Friday, October 14. Fridays will be at 7 pm - 9:30. Saturdays will run 9:30 - 12 noon, 1:30 - 4 pm, 6:30 - 9 pm.

5. Requirements for the course
We will require watching MAMA HEIDI video or DVD, and reading the following:

• THERE IS ALWAYS ENOUGH,
• VISIONS BEYOND THE VEIL
• CATCHING UP TO THE THIRD WORLD
• GOD'S FAVORITE NUMBER

One other choice of books from our available supply. We will have these available at the meetings with Shara. It would be very good to have much of the reading done by the time we get together.

You can get all of these and other helpful works from us or anywhere else you can find them, but we will have the best price.

Please pray for us. We face many challenges and always need to hear God's voice and we need His hand of power to help us.

We love you all!!!

Ben and Brenda Peters

Hi again,

I just had to update you with some new info. I just talked to Shara in Mozambique and she does not have malaria. She actually has pneumonia, which is probably what Brenda had when she came home.

The other piece of good news for us Illinois folk is that Shara and several friends will be with us in Chicago, probably in early September. They could be with us here for the kickoff of our first Chicago Sending Center class, Missions Prep 101, as we may call it.

For friends in Canada, the Southwest USA, the Northeast USA, the South and the Northwest and everywhere else in the world, we would like to visit you all as soon as possible, so we ask you to pray that God directs our paths according to His will.

Our vision is to first establish a model Sending Center in Chicagoland and then plant other Sending Centers in other places like Calgary, Las Vegas, New York State, Four Corners, etc. Sending Centers would work well teamed up with International Houses of Prayer and Healing Rooms. Our goal is to send as many qualified workers to the harvest fields of Iris Ministries, under Heidi and Rolland Baker. We know that is what God wants us doing right now. We will work with pastors and churches that have the vision to send workers where the harvest is incredibly ripe.

The classes and open doors for mission work are for both younger and older folk. They are for both those who have dedicated their lives to "the ministry" and to business people and students, etc., who are also just as called to "the ministry".

Keep us in your prayers as we seek the Lord for wisdom and direction in these important days of history.

Blessings in Jesus' love,

Ben and Brenda

Greetings Friends,

The drug accusation situation in Mozambique is improving. I will copy a letter I got from Teisa, the gal they threatened to put in jail.

Unfortunately Shara, Heidi's personal assistant apparently has malaria and is in bed, with many things to get done before they come to the USA. Please pray earnestly for her.

Also please pray for our scheduling the rest of the summer and fall. We do have some scheduling conflicts to work out and they are all important events.

Tonight we will be ministering to many young adults along with others in a very full house in Lake Zurich. Please pray for a strong anointing and wisdom for how to minister best to everyone.

We love you all and thank you so much for your love and prayers. God has been answering your prayers. And to those who have felt led to help us with finances, including a couple of anonymous donors, you have no idea what a timely blessing your gift has been.

Ben and Brenda

Here's the letter from Teisa:

Dearest Pastor Ben and Brenda,

Thank you, thank you, thank you! His word has carried me! I am so grateful for your love and support--Jesus spoils me thru awesome lover-warriors like you!

Did you get this update? Just in case....

Dearest Friends and Prayer Warriors,

Greetings from a most blessed Pemba, Mozambique!

Thank you so much for praying for me/Iris Ministries during this intense
time! We are so encouraged by your love, prayers, and partnership in the Kingdom. We are so grateful for the glorious intercession going forth from the Body of Christ around the world. Thank you for your emails and scriptures-what an awesome sources of confirmation and strength. Although the drug allegations are not completely resolved, we know God is turning everything around for His glory. We wanted to testify about the greatness of Jesus and update everyone on the current situation (so you can keep praying!!!!)

Personally, I had total peace until I called the US Embassy last Monday.
The officials told me some horrific stories of foreigners dealing with the
Mozambican justice system..especially Christian foreigners in a Muslim
province. Two different officials encouraged me to leave the country. When I got off the phone, I began to cry out to God with all my "whys and what if" questions. The Holy Spirit brought me to 1 Peter 4:12-15. "Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trail you are suffering as though something strange was happening to you. But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when His glory is revealed. If you are insulted because of the name of Christ, you are blessed for the Spirit of glory and of God rests on you." Wow.ya know..this situation (threats, slander, imprisonment) should not be a surprise. This is all part of a normal Christian life! This is why I am in Mozambique-- normal stuff like this.

We continued to make daily trips to the police station. By the grace of
God, our staff was never officially arrested or detained in prison.
Mid-week we experienced an amazing breakthrough in the Spirit. After hours of dark, ominous clouds hovering over Pemba, it suddenly began to rain! Everyone was shocked by the downpour because it never rains in July (winter in Moz). Soon we knew why.our wonderful Father in heaven sent us the most unbelievable double rainbow!!! Most people know the ministry is named after the Portuguese translation of rainbow Arco Iris. Indeed, Jesus wrote His promise to us in the sky (Gen. 9:13). Our children and staff excitedly danced about in the puddles rejoicing in God's covenant. People ran to get their cameras and capture the moment. His magnificent colors filled the sky and His overwhelming love filled our hearts. Nothing is impossible with our
God! Our Jesus is amazing!!!

We are still under "mild suspicion" for drugs. We believe this is due to
the inadequate testing within the Maputo laboratories. When initially
tested, the vitamins failed the test due to a "stimulant." Therefore, the
assumption was made that the stimulant was cocaine or heroin. The vitamins are currently being retested. Please keep praying with us for proof needed to drop the charges completely. Currently the vitamins are in police custody in Maputo.

Please continue to pray:

1. Reversal and complete vindication from all charges and threats from the police.
2. Release of all our vitamins.
3. Abundant blessings over Iris Ministries and Heidi & Rolland Baker.
4. More normal Jesus stuff in my life.
5. Full salvation and transformation of Pemba/Cabo Delgado through the
saving power of Jesus.

God continues to speak "Shalom" over us. Because we have His peace, we press on! Every day we are seeing signs and wonders among the previously unreached Makua and Macondie tribe. Hundreds of people are getting saved weekly. On Sunday, we baptized many new believers (ex-Muslims) in the Indian Ocean. This week, we welcomed twenty new children into our big family. Praise Jesus, lots of normal Kingdom stuff.

Friends, thank you again for standing with us in prayer. Please keep
praying! May God arise and His enemies be scattered.

I love you!!!!

Teisa

Liz's Testimony I didn't want to go to Africa. It...

Liz's Testimony

I didn’t want to go to Africa. It took me about five days of swaying back and forth between going and not going, until I finally made the decision. However, my heart was not in the right place. For the past couple years I had been wrestling with God. I have grown up going to church and my beliefs were pretty much just handed to me. I struggled to find out what I truly believed in my heart, and not what I believed just because others had told me to. Although I said I was searching to find out what I believed, in my heart I had pretty much become complacent. I just sort of accepted the world and my life the way it was and although I was not happy, did not make much of an effort to change that. I lived my life the way I wanted, made decisions that I shouldn’t have, and for the most part turned my back on God. Little did I know the plan that God would have for me in Africa.

In the beginning of the trip, I wrote in my journal, "God, I want to walk away from this trip changed. I am sick of being complacent. I want to experience you and your love. I want to experience the you that heals the sick and the you that others have seen. Can you do that God? I want passion and fire inside of me." Well, I can truly say that God answered my prayer.
The first night we were in Mozambique, God right away got my attention. It was like he was saying, "Ok, we have no time to waste, let’s get moving". While sitting at dinner with our team, Brenda turned to me and started to prophecy. I had never heard anybody do this before, much less not to me. It was amazing, and I knew the words she was speaking came directly from God. Alright God, you have my attention!

A few days into the trip, our team was invited to the meeting for all the leaders of Iris ministries. Ben and Brenda were going to prophecy over each of them and offer encouragement, and the rest of us were there to pray and encourage with them. All of the leaders were asked to stand up and Ben and Brenda went around to each person individually to prophecy and encourage. The second or third women they were speaking to started to shake with the Holy Spirit as soon as Brenda started speaking. She started to weep and the shaking increased, until it looked to me like she was getting electrocuted she was shaking so much. I was watching her, and all of a sudden I heard a sparking noise and I saw a flame shoot out of her chest like she had just caught on fire. Immediately after I saw this, the women fell to the floor, still weeping and shaking. I looked around me to see if anyone was as shocked and amazed as I was at what my eyes just saw. No one seemed to look as if they had just seen what I saw. I thought to myself, Ok, either what I saw is totally normal and people just aren’t phased by it, or I saw something that others didn’t see. After the meeting ended, I asked several people if they had seen the flame. Nobody I asked had seen anything. Ok God, what’s that all about?!? I still don’t understand exactly why God allowed me to see that, but I know that through seeing that, my faith was increased and I knew that God was real. But God didn’t stop there.

The next night our team was sent on an outreach to a village nearby. After arriving to the village and dancing with the people there, the Jesus film was shown. People were saved and came to Jesus, which was very powerful to see of course. After people were saved, people who needed healing were asked to come up and our team was sent out to pray for them. At first I was hesitant to join in, because I had never been a part of something like this before. However, I wanted so badly to see healings and miracles, so I walked up to where my sister and Kimberly, a woman on our team, were standing. They were praying for a man who was deaf, and after a short prayer, we saw this man get healed. I saw this happen, and I didn’t really no what to do. Of course I was excited, but I just didn’t know where to put this event into my brain. How do you process and store something you have never seen and maybe didn’t even really believe could happen? After the man was healed, Kimberly shared with me that her and my sister had been talking about the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. She proceeded to inform me about what this was, because I didn’t have a clue, and then we all prayed together to be baptized in the Holy Spirit. It was a short prayer and I didn’t really feel changed. After that, another man came up to us who was also deaf. We all prayed for him, and he was healed by God. Wow. A third man came up, he was deaf, we prayed, he was healed. I see a pattern here. A fourth man came up, he was deaf, we prayed, he was healed. We prayed and saw four deaf men in one village be healed that night!!! Oh and along with the four deaf men, we saw a baby who was paralyzed on one side of her body be healed. It was incredible!

After all of the healings, Kimberly said she felt God leading her to take my sister and I away from the crowds and talk to us more about getting baptized by the Holy Spirit. We all stood in a circle and held hands and Kimberly began to pray. She began to pray in tongues, and I started to shake. I had seen this happen to other people throughout the week, but not me. At first I it was just my arms that shook and then my legs began to tremble. Had Kimberly and Sarah not been holding my hands, I would have fallen to the ground because my legs were shaking so much. My sister began to speak in tongues and then later I began to also. I started softly and then my voice grew louder. My heart was crying out to God, and I began weeping, but without tears. I have no idea what I was saying to God, but I know my soul was being transformed by Him. I don’t know how long all of this went on for, but after it was over, I felt different. I knew that from this point on, my life would be different. I could no longer claim that I didn’t know if God was real, because I saw and experienced Him in an amazing and powerful way. I had this fire and passion that burned inside of me after this experience. I knew the Holy Spirit was living inside of me.

The fire and passion has continued to grow since we have been home from the trip. I have had joy and peace like never before. I have had a passion to tell my friends and others about my experience and about what God has done. God is using these conversations that I have had with people for His glory and to bring people closer to Him. I am just the vessel by which He does this. I know that Satan can no longer have the power that he had before over my life, although I know he is going to try. God has changed my heart. All I had to do was fly across the globe to Africa to let Him do it. Haha God.    

Testimony Anisa Baker

7/17/05

Giving up my western comforts to experience the Kingdom of God in action. How very rewarding! I was hungry and thirsty to shed my excess in exchange for Kingdom! Some things were difficult—no question. But oh, how lovely to be faced with difficulty for the sake of the Kingdom!

Team…community within our own team and with the Iris staff, African pastors, and Holy Given students. Mr. And Mrs. Worley and Audra were constantly watching out for me. They were so kind to offer their advice and supplies to me and others when we needed them. The same with Theresa, others on the team, and dorm mates from other groups. When we were on our bush outreaches, all of us from different teams pulled together as one.

The way God would wreck us every day at the Holy Given school and meet us with his precious presence. The same thing happened at the missionary services and soaking sessions. What an awesome thing to encounter God with passionate, like-hearted worshipers!

I was impressed by the power of Ben and Brenda’s ministry to the Holy Given students and to the Iris staff. Their prophetic words encouraged many and brought new life to their ministries. Their teachings were powerful. In one session, Ben spoke about how the western church needs to catch up with the third world church. He ended with a time where the westerners were all to kneel at the feet of the African pastors, asking them for forgiveness for how the western world and church has lorded it over them in many ways. We prayed for them, that their feet would go into the nations, bringing the revival that God had brought them in their brokenness. And they prayed for us, too, that revival and miracles would come to the western church. It was a powerful time of weeping and repentance and crying out to the Lord.

The precious, precious children who would cling to us and look to us with a combination of joy, peace, and sometimes desperation. Though poor in some ways, these kids are rich with a community of people who love them and teach them about the Lord! No mistake—more help is needed. But they’ve got the basics!

Esperanza (her name means hope), a precious girl of about eight to ten years old who lives at the compound. She was very hardened and ruined by the world when I first met her. She dared anyone to love her. So I did. I loved her and accepted her where she was at. Gradually, over a period of a few days, she really warmed up to me and to the other children. She would want to sit on my lap for hours, and she started playing with the other children. She was transformed in a new way!

The sound of roosters crowing in the early dawn hours… the sound of the African pastors waking up and clanging their gong at 6 a.m. for worship (They are early to bed and early to rise! A lesson for the rest of us!). I loved listening to their harmonies of native worship each morning. Most of the pastors are so poor in material things but rich in humility and love. They were so friendly and welcoming to us. I saw Jesus in their eyes, and we shared the understanding of Jesus’ fellowship and love even though we couldn’t understand each other’s language.

The overwhelming joy and awe at going out into the bush to bring the love and message to Jesus to people who’d perhaps never even heard his name! How awesome is that?! I’d waited my whole life for such a privilege….

As we were journeying out to the bush, I couldn’t believe how far out we were going! As our Land Rover left town, the landscape turned into a vast, rolling land of dry, brown grass and bush that reached over the top of our vehicle! African men and women were walking along the deserted road, carrying heavy loads on their heads. Huts and villages were scattered along the roadside. As dusk approached, fires were seen burning outside of the huts… we’d stepped back in time! We drove 200 kilometers on a paved road and then turned off onto a dirt road. It was bumpier than you can imagine! But I was lucky—I was inside the Land Rover! Most of the team (20+?) were piled in the back of a pickup truck, along with everyone’s camping equipment and backpacks….Potholes, old bridges, washed out portions of the road….. we drove for over an hour on this section. Our team in the back of the truck were having the ride of their lives! Out, out, out, out into the deep bush! Darkness everywhere… occasionally catching in the headlights glimpses of villages, fires, people, and huts nestled along the road ….

The look on the people’s faces when we arrived out in the bush. So many were happy; some were a bit frightened and perplexed. Many had a very haunted look in their eyes. I can’t quite explain it. At later prayer meetings, several did ask for prayer for deliverance from demons that haunted them.

The honor of praying for people who were blind, deaf, or infirmed in other ways…. Their lack of pretension in admitting their need and desperation…. It was such an honor to stand with them and let God’s love and compassion come upon me and flow into them. Oh, how he loves them!

The bush children…. They loved us! They were so excited by our presence! They would follow us wherever we went. They surrounded our living quarters and would peek in at us through the fence. A few times, the fence almost came down because of all the people leaning against it! The very first morning, all of us were awakened at dawn by a VERY LOUD, ringing chorus of happy cries from the children! My team mate, Audra, was on a different bush outreach and described how she awakened in the morning to a sea of children’s faces staring at her through her tent. The night before, they’d received some Veggie Tales band-aids (the team had run out of stickers) and were happily singing the Veggie Tales chorus the next morning J

Fellito, Iris Ministries’ fearless outreach leader! He’s a young man of 22 years but with the wisdom of much age! He tirelessly spends himself on 2-night, 3-day outreaches into the bush every week, with one-night outreaches sprinkled in between. He faithfully and powerfully preaches the gospel each time. The love and power of Jesus are reflected beautifully in his eyes.

The African family that allowed us to stay within their bamboo-fenced-in village. An extended family, all living together…. Old, young, middle-aged, babies… all together in one hut. I hung out with a few of the younger girls, and we communicated as best we could. Fellito asked if he could buy their outside bamboo roof in order to build a church in the village. They said yes! What an honor to clear ground and help build the village’s first church—all in one day! The next day, the village had its first church service. We danced and sang, one of our team gave a testimony, Fellito preached, and we prayed for the sick. It was a powerful time. Iris just finished training a pastor from the village, so he will continue the work.

The African stars…….. unbelievable. No lights for miles and miles…… a different hemisphere…… the Milky Way was incredible. And LOTS of shooting stars! Pretty cool to look at in the middle of the African bush J

Seeing a myriad of African faces standing to watch the Jesus film for the first time. This was the first motion picture most of them had ever seen. Seeing their faces… listening to their expressions as they watched… wondering what they were thinking as they heard the story of Jesus for the first time…

After the film... seeing so many hands raised to receive Jesus as their Lord and Savior. AMAZING AND AWESOME! THE GREATEST MIRACLE OF ALL! Hearing them repeat the prayer and knowing that more precious kids had been added to the Father’s house……

Identifying with the African women and children who came up for prayer. We exchanged looks between us that communicated mutual understanding of the difficulties and pains of life… the love and compassion of the Father just flowed through me for them… I would pray for them and just stand and hug them for a long minute, and they would receive it. In that minute, we communicated more than spoken language ever could…. I saw some tears in their eyes… release had come…

I especially remember praying for a young man whose eyesight was greatly diminshed. As I was praying, I sensed that he needed to accept Jesus first. Another teammate came along and confirmed this sense, and with the help of interpreters, we heard the man say that he did believe in God. He said as he worked in the fields every day, he thought about how there was a God who had created him. He said that his family were Muslims, and they would be angry with him for accepting Jesus Christ, but he was ready to do so. He spoke the prayer of salvation with our interpreter. Another powerful moment!

On our way home from the bush, two people had asked us to stop and pray for others. One was a woman who had many ailments and couldn’t walk on her own. She was from another village but had heard about our presence. She was brought to the village so we could pray for her. We went to the hut where she was staying, and we found out that she’d been going to the witch doctor for two years but hadn’t gotten any better. One of the African pastors on our team asked her if she was willing to stop going to the witch doctor and not go back. She said yes… she believed God could heal her, and she wouldn’t go back. The pastor told her she needed to burn her witch doctor items. So they brought them out of the hut. There were some stones and other things wrapped up in a skin. They tossed them into the fire, and we started to pray for her. After about five minutes, the woman got up and walked on her own and even did a little celebration shuffle!]

We stopped to pray for another man a few villages down. He was very old and was blind. He looked so frail and tattered and torn coming out of his hut. He sat down on the porch, and we gathered around him to pray. He started to see light where there was only darkness, so we prayed some more. He didn’t get his full sight back right then, but we’ll continue to remember him. It’s encouraging to know that sometimes, healing takes place later. We received a letter from someone in a village where an outreach took place simultaneous to the outreach our team was on. Someone from the village wrote to say that the team had prayed for a blind person, and nothing happened. But the next morning, that person woke up, opened their eyes, and saw the roof of their hut! We’ve heard other stories of healings taking place later, too.

It impressed me how hard the Africans lives were… they have to walk long distances for basics like food and water. It’s amazing how they balance such heavy loads on their heads! They grow their own food, cook with fires, have no electricity or running water or usual western wares… it’s like stepping back in time!

Our team faced constant struggles regarding the poverty we saw. How do you handle children begging for food, water, and goods? How do you handle seeing them in such need? Which ones were telling the truth? What about the African pastors? We could go and eat at the nearby restaurant whenever we were particularly hungry. But they could not. And yet, we are brothers and sisters in the Lord…. Was it right that we have options and they do not?

Testimony from Gayle Worley

MOZAMBIQUE TRIP JUNE 25 TO JULY 9, 2005


When I attended the Surprise Sithole meetings, my husband and Peter
Beck were already planning on joining the group going to Mozambique. I
was having health problems and thought that I would be a hindrance. At
the conference I tried to make a deal with God that if he healed me I
would go, but I heard if you go I will heal you. Bibianna prayed over
me about the decision and about my fear of going. As I told our church
family, I believe the Lord wanted me to get out of the boat again. It
didn’t make sense to me at my age or the tremendous cost, not to
mention my health, but I began more and more to understand that it was
a matter of obedience.

I was aware of the inconveniences of not having potable water, of being
hot, and facing cultural differences. Right from the beginning there
were disappointments. Four of us were scheduled to travel a day later
than the rest of the group, but each obstacle seemed to cement the
decision more. We had a lot of support from our church family in
encouragement and prayer. Many told me we would be bringing something
back for everyone. The Lord reminded me that those who stayed behind
with the stuff would also share in the “spoils of war”. I Sam.
30:24-25. As time grew closer He gave me this promise. II Peter 1:16
“For we were not making up clever stories when we told you about the
power of our Lord Jesus Christ and his coming again. We have seen his
majestic splendor with our own eyes.” I believe He was telling me I
would see the miracles myself and I did. I saw a man’s back healed, and
a baby paralyzed on one side move her arms. I saw Mary’s broken foot
healed. I saw hundreds of Moslems come to Christ. And Kimberly’s
passport was returned miraculously, the only stolen thing that couldn’t
be replaced.

I saw so many other amazing things. The first day we attended the Holy
Given School, we came in at the end of a session on repentance. I was
so moved by their transparency, humility, and support for one another.
The Lord spoke to me about how these young people with a destiny for
him had been ravaged by the enemy of our souls. But the greater truth
was that He was calling them out and healing them. Often waiting in
line for meals I heard stories of the miraculous ways these students
had been drawn to this school. Some had never heard of Heidi or Roland
Baker until a few months ago. God has a plan and he used dreams,
visions, and prophetic words to get each one there, not to mention the
provision for the cost of coming. Ian Ross spoke on the fatherhood of
God, then on functional and dysfunctional families. God spoke to me
about people needing fathering and mothering.

I saw such humility and desire to follow the Lord in the leadership.
One day we had lunch with Jerry and her son, Demetri. Jerry was a
single mom living in the U.S. who adopted a black crack baby with
alcohol dependency and aids. Demetri cried for 7 months while he went
through withdrawal. His immune system was about zero, continuously on
medication. Jerry with the support of intercessors in her church prayed
for Demetri. When he was eight, the Lord healed him of aids. No doctor
would sign him off as healed. Jerry was taken to court for not giving
him the medicine any longer. There was a long court case in which the
Lord told her not to say anything, that He would defend her. She lost
her job. Finally, the judge decided to throw the case out. Then she
shared how the Lord led them to Mozambique.

I kept getting loud and clear that the Lord was orchestrating this
work. On our three day outreach, I was sitting in the van behind
Felito, the 22 year old evangelistic leading our outreach. I asked him
his testimony. I’ll just share one part. He said the Lord always spoke
to him through fire. He had a vision of Africa with a fire blazing in
southern Mozambique which was spreading up through Africa. The Lord
told him He was taking Africa and asked him if he wanted to come along.
He told him he would be speaking in stadiums in major cities over
Africa. This was Felito’s desire to evangelize. He had the vision
painted on the wall in his office. He also showed us a picture on his
computer during one of the outreaches. There were huge flames of fire
over the heads of the people. I asked him if that was visible only on a
digital camera. No, he said, I took the picture because we could all
see the flames. This humble young man often cooked for us. He worked
along side everyone as well as taking care of the planning.

I was thinking about the news I’d heard at home about Africa. None of
it was very encouraging. To many it looked like Islam was taking
Africa. On the contrary, the Lord was saying, “I’m taking Africa!”
Seeing the work there it was evident that He was doing just what he
said. Psalm 2 came to mind. “ Why do the nations rage? Why do the
people waste their time in futile plans? The kings of the earth prepare
for battle; the rulers plot together against the Lord and against his
anointed one. “Let us break their chains, “they cry, “and free
ourselves from this slavery.” But the one who rules in heaven laughs.
The Lord scoffs at them. God has a plan and as Henry Blackaby says in
the Bible study, Experiencing God, we need to join Him.

One of the young men on the outreach from the school was Travis. He had
been mentored in a deliverance ministry in Modesto, California. On his
heart was the homosexual community in San Francisco. God is raising up
people with a heart to do what is on his heart. Lord, what is on your
heart? What do you want me to do to cooperate with what your plans are?
Have I ever cared about what is on his heart? So many experiences are
coming together. God wants to save the perpetrators as well as the
victims of evil.

It’s about dying to self. Hasn’t God used books and messages to get
this point across to us? Dying to I have to be right. Dying to my
plans. Dying. Dying. Dying. As Ruth Freund said so well recently, “Dead
people can’t be offended. They have no rights.”
It’s about letting God work out his plans and cooperating with him.

One evening we went to a staff prayer meeting. Many people including
Heidi were lying on a mat listening to the worship music. There was a
knock at the gate. The room only had bamboo walls. Several kids wanted
to come in. she opened her arms and they snuggled down next to her and
eventually fell asleep.

There were about 50 children being cared for at Pemba center. Every
week they have a birthday party for the kids who have a birthday that
week. Heidi was out there leading the games & hugging kids. She sees
the one in the midst of the group. There were about six or seven
birthday cakes. The birthday people were passing out pieces. It was
messy. Some of the older boys were getting more than one piece. But
they are changing in that loving atmosphere. I saw the kids also taking
care of one another. Sometimes it looks messy and unorganized when the
Lord is working.

The trip was about Sabboth rest too. Dave has been talking to me for
years about the fact that the Sabboth was also a picture of rest which
we should be experiencing every day. Heb. 4:9 “So there is a special
rest still waiting for the people of God. For all who enter into God’s
rest will find rest from their labors, just as God rested after
creating the world. Let us do our best to enter that place of rest.” I
like to have “all my ducks in a row” so to speak. This trip was about
flexibility and change. Most of the time I had a great peace that God
was working things out according to his plans. I can see how his yoke
can be easy and his burden light when I let him have the responsibility
and don’t fret.

I had read prophetic words that the Lord was going to supply needs as
He moves. Heidi & Roland have a ministry that is literally exploding.
There’s no way they could wait until all the staff & supplies are in
hand. They have to respond to the invitations when it looks like
everything is in disarray. The Holy Given school started before there
were accommodations for all the students. They cleaned out a bodega or
storeroom and stuffed it full of bunks. When people arrive to visit,
Heidi’s instructions are to turn no one away. They’ve come a long way.
Welcome them. We played musical beds. Some moved to tents. There were
never enough plates, and plastic forks were a treasure. There is a home
for kids, a school for pastors, and the Holy Given school all going on
at once. Sometimes it’s messy. People are cutting in the food line. We
all had our rough edges to be filed off. Living in community has a way
of doing that.

Mysterious Fire on Heads at Outreach

Kids begging for candy from Stefan

Anisa at outreach

Brenda and team praying for kids at outreach

Pemba Kids do crafts

Students from Holy Given School

The Holy Given School is Iris Ministries first international, three-month missions training school based in the Moslem northern province of Mozambique. This includes:

-A three-month Bible school with Mozambican pastors and leaders.

-Directed by Heidi Baker and Lesley-Anne Leighton, Founding Directors, and other international ministers and missionaries.

-Live with hundreds of children and the Father's heart experience.

-Gain understanding of how to minister cross culturally.

Young Man Just Healed of Deafness

Team members outside the girls dorm

SPECIAL BOOK OFFER!!!

Because the Lord has given us a better and cheaper way to get our books published, we want to offer the three now available at the cheaper rate, and give them to our newsletter readers at half the website price if they buy at least two books. For just one book, make it $8.00; for ten or more we'll drop the price to $5.00 each. We want these books to get into the hands and hearts of as many people as possible. They all contain critical and transformational revelation for the end-time church and the final harvest of souls we are about to see. We especially hope leaders and pastors will read them. We want to create a hunger for revival in as many churches and individuals as possible.

I'll briefly describe them below.

You can pay through our web site, but not through the book store. Just email me your address and your order and use the financial support tab on the website: www.ohmint.org
to make the payment. Of course, you can order and pay by mail as well.

The three books are:

"God's Favorite Number" This book on unity has many insights and teachings, including "Accessing the Glory", one of our best loved teachings ever. It also includes a new dimension of communion and the "harvest". Several of our prophetic visions are included. Numerous leaders have endorsed this book, including Joanne McFatter, who was given a song containing the main thesis of the book before she read the manuscript.

"Catching Up to the Third World" is a book on revival in the Western Church. It contains critical keys to use to bring us closer to the revival that we desire, as modelled in many "Third World" nations. Che Ahn calls it a great book on revival and highly recommends it. This book should become a very popular book in the western church.

"Folding Five Ministries into One Powerful Team" is also a must read for leaders who want to help the church move into its destiny. Knowing how the different gifts can work together is critical if we want to see the results we want to see. That was profound! This book also tackles the sensitive issue of how the five ministries should be financed. Have an open mind, or don't bother reading this one.

Here's the testimony from Kimberley Thulien:

As for one of the most powerful moments for me, it was probably the last outreach night, with Liz and Sarah Lex. I was able to talk to Sarah privately at first before the movie ended about receiving the Holy Spirit and pray with her to receive. Then we went into the crowd and had Holy Spirit 101. It was awesome to lay hands on the deaf and have them hear and have her understand that nothing she did could cause that to happen and that the Holy Spirit had come, she had received, and now she would never go back to a normal life because she would never want it again. Liz saw us, and soon she prayed, received, and then she joined with us to pray over the next 3 deaf men and watch as all 3 went away hearing, and jumping, and dancing and praising God. Then we prayed over 2 children who were deaf - both were healed and then a baby who was paralyzed down it's right side - eye, arm and leg. Everything was healed. Then I felt the Holy Spirit wanted just to minister to the girls so I pulled them out of the crowd and all the amazing things that were happening and we went behind the second truck and just started praying together. The Holy Spirit came down mightily on them and both were crying, and shaking, and praying in tongues out loud. They had no concept that a crowd of Africans were coming to watch. They had no realization that a crowd of the Holy Given School students were watching; some with prayers on their lips and some with wonder in their eyes. They didn't hear the evening end, they didn't notice people filing past them to get into the truck. Sarah hit the dirt and God kept ministrering to her there, and Liz shot her hands to the heavens and praised God all the more intently. When I thought we had no more time, and we needed to get into the truck so we could leave, I brought their attention out of their worship and to the present moment. They couldn't stop telling people that they had received the Holy Spirit and had seen His power at work. It was a summary of the whole trip. With sincere faith we had all arrived, believing that we were there for a reason, dying to all that was around us, and allowing God to minister to our hearts on individual paths and at different levels. Then we had to walk out that faith and lay hands on people and ask God 8 simple words; "In the name of Jesus, be healed. Amen." More than just deaf heard and blind saw. More than just lame walked and sick recovered. We learned a valuable lesson that God is relevant for any situation today. As we journey back to our homes and try to process the truths that we just walked through, we realize at times we may not have had faith, and the deaf may not have heard and believed, but Jesus had enough faith for all of us, and just wanted us to help show them love in a visable way. I trust Sarah ad Liz are changed forever, just as many of those villagers are changed forever, just as I am changed forever; and that makes the trip all worthwhile. Whether my cat dies, my planes crash, my grandma dies, I lose all my valuables, get ill myself, or have to protect a young boy from the national police through a language barrier. Love and war cannot be separated. If we love, the war is on. And the war is definately on, so we had better start understanding His love. Without the Lord's strength, we cannot go on and our situation looks desparate, but when our strength is on Him, He downloads His joy so we know that strength is there too. When the healings happend, we also know He downloaded His Spirit and the power that comes with it for any situation, in Africa or at home, We cannot lose it or have it fall off us when we sleep. We have to believe we have received His power, His joy, His strength, and His love so we may walk forth in this war, and above all - to stand.

Thank you once again for letting this crazy canadian join you. Blessing multiplied on you both.

Kimberley

New Books this Month

Hi Friends,

I know I've already sent out a long newsletter today, but this is a special bonus for those who like to read and grow in wisdom and knowledge, etc.

As most of you know, I found a much better deal to get my books published, through the help of my Florida friend, Jeff Dole. Not only did he help me with the two newest books, but he is also helping me redo the older books, so I can get a better deal on them too. I just received a box full of the new version of "Folding Five Ministries Into One Powerful Team". Soon I'll have the new version of Brenda's book, "God is So God", and then we'll redo "Go Ahead, Be So Emotional" and "Signs and Wonders - To Seek or Not to Seek". By then I should also have our ninth book done, which will be about Psalm 23 from a whole new perspective.

I really want to see these books get into the hands and hearts of God's people, especially leaders. So I want to make you a deal on the books that I get the better price on. For those who get our newsletters, I want to offer the three books at half price. Instead of $12.00 each, including shipping, we will ship them for just $6 dollars each, if you buy at least two books. If you just want one book, make it $8,00, If you want ten or more total, we can knock that down to $5.00 each. All of these three books are cutting edge concepts that can revolutionize the church. I'll briefly describe them below.

You can pay through our web site, but not through the book store. Just email me your address and your order and use the financial support tab on the website: www.ohmint.org
to make the payment. Of course, you can order and pay by mail as well. The three books are:

"God's Favorite Number" This book on unity has many insights and teachings, including "Accessing the Glory", one of our best loved teachings ever. It also includes a new dimension of communion and the "harvest". Several of our prophetic visions are included. Numerous leaders have endorsed this book, including Joanne McFatter, who was given a song containing the main thesis of the book before she read the manuscript.

"Catching Up to the Third World" is a book on revival in the Western Church. It contains critical keys to use to bring us closer to the revival that we desire, as modelled in many "Third World" nations. Che Ahn calls it a great book on revival and highly recommends it. This book should become a very popular book in the western church.

"Folding Five Ministries into One Powerful Team" is also a must read for leaders who want to help the church move into its destiny. Knowing how the different gifts can work together is critical if we want to see the results we want to see. That was profound! This book also tackles the sensitive issue of how the five ministries should be financed. Have an open mind, or don't bother reading this one.

There was such an interest in these books in Mozambique and I didn't have them available there except a few I was able to bring and give away. I feel that these messages are from God and that they will change the way the west does "church".

So if you like a sale, just give me an email and I'll get them sent out to you asap.

Blessings to you all,

Ben and Brenda

P. S. It looks like Brenda is starting to feel a bit better but is still in need of prayer.



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Trip to Mozambique

Dear Friends,

I want to do what our name suggests and open my heart to you. Our goal is always to open the hearts of others to the open heart of the Father, so there can be two-way communication to bring healing, meaning and destiny to man and joy and love to the Father.

So now I want to share some of our life-changing experiences and also ask you all for earnest prayer for our present situation and our need for wisdom and strength to walk this walk. The challenges and opportunities are getting greater and we are more aware of our need for daily miracles of direction and provision for the vision.

Brenda is quite sick at the moment. Please pray as she was already sick when we left Africa, but got worse when the plane landed in Chicago after circling and then bouncing a bit on the landing. She really needs a touch from God right now. Thanks for your prayers.

But on the positive side, we are both in awe at the glory of God that came down in Mozambique. We fought battles on many fronts, including stolen goods, lost luggage, sickness, and lack of sleep and showers, etc. We were confronted with mockers and perverted youth at times, along with the sincere folk. At one time I was litterly mobbed by youths and kids who wanted to grab the little trinkets I was trying to give away. To save my skin, I flung them as far as I could and they left me alone to pursue the goods.

But the power of God that we saw in response to the preaching, following the Jesus film, was enough to overpower every negative thing that we experienced. We don't know how many deaf people got their hearing in the five or six outreaches we were on, but it was at least a dozen. Several totally blind people were also healed and many other conditions were healed instantly, such as severe back problems.

A young man, Filito, 22 years old, leads most of the outreaches. He sees the same results that Heidi does when she goes out on the outreaches. We expect to be blessed to have him in Illinois for a week or so this fall.

The result was likely over one thousand souls saved and probably many more than that. The first outreach, where I preached, was in a village where they were prepared to start a new church. Our outreach night launched a brand new church.

The next night we were in a larger village where there may have been as many as 1500-2000 people show up. There was even greater receptivity there and the village chief said that he had heard about IRIS Ministries and wondered when we would come to his village. He received us with open arms. Not bad for a Muslim community.

The last few days, Brenda and I found ourselves ministering more to the pastors in training and the Holy Given School of Missions. The response was extremely encouraging. I shared the principles from "Catching Up to the Third World". I gave away all the books I had with me, but could have given away hundreds more. We ended up also ministering to all the staff. I shared a little on unity and other things and then Brenda and I ministered to each of the IRIS staff that could make the meeting. It was the first time that almost all of them were prophetically ministered to by any inside or outside ministry. Again, we saw a powerful impact on so many of them, including the Mozambiquens and Brazilians, who had come to work there.

Before we left, we were favored with a lunch date with Heidi and Lesley-Anne Leighton, who runs the Holy Given School. They so appreciate the fact that we want to help and serve IRIS Ministries by helping prepare people for foreign service. And we are so excited about the people God has put in our lives that want to be a part of this great adventure.

Speaking of people, God gave us an incredible team (21 people) and they were all a tremendous blessing in so many different ways. Each of them had life-changing experiences. One of them, Peter Beck, ended up staying there to join in the Holy Given School. He was a total exception to their policy, but God wanted him to get more completely wrecked for Jesus. When we left, Stacey Campbell was there teaching the school. Many other awesome speakers will follow her until the school ends in mid-August. Brenda and I weren't scheduled to speak there, but after Lesley-Anne saw my books she wanted me to share the message with the students and pastors.

At the end of this letter, I will copy a letter we received from Heidi so you can get a better picture of what we experienced, by someone who could speak the language and get better reports. Then I will add a long letter from Rolland with even more information that will blow your mind.

But first, I want to express that we need your prayers now more than ever. We have a vision that is so huge, as a support to IRIS Ministries, and we have many people that want to be a part of it. We need God's help and wisdom to structure and administrate the nuts and bolts of the vision and the finances that will be required.

We want to continue to do everything by faith, including the Sending Center and the classes we will teach at Wheaton, etc. We were also given more prophetic words by Shara and other young, but strong ministries, regarding changes in the way we administrate. We don't want to respond with natural wisdom or manipulation or any other strategy of the flesh. We cry out for God's strategy and His heart for all our decisions. We will go one step at a time, but we need to know enough to share the vision.

Pray that we will get lower still before Him. Waiting on the Lord is Listening, Obeying, and Worshipping. L-O-W. We need to wait on Him like never before. The harvest is so incredibly ripe and the workers are so few. God commissioned us to prepare the workers so they know how to "Die Well" before they get there and fall apart trying to get along with other leaders, like so many before them.

We are counting on many of you to pray for us during this time. After you read the following letters from Heidi and Rolland, you may understand a little more the urgency we feel.

God bless you all,

Ben and Brenda

P. S. To all who were with us on the team. Could you email me a short testimony of the highlights for you? We will try to send them out to our mailing list.

Quick Report from Africa

Dearest Friends,

Just have a few minutes on Shara's computer. We have been blown away by all the amazing experiences we have had. Amid many attacks and hassles, we have seen the glory of God and the tremendous miracles, including the blind, deaf and dumb and others healed. We have seen many hundreds, maybe more than a thousand, saved in a few meetings and we have spent almost three days in the "bush".

We've had people running to us (five or six men) wanting to get saved as we walked through a mud hut villiage. We had another run to us the next day excitedly trying to communicate that he was healed when the team prayed for him.

We are very excited about what still lies ahead for us. We still need your prayers. We have had a little sickness on the team but everyone is OK. Our team is so fired up they don't know what to do with themselves. They will all have exciting stories to tell. Brenda will have enough amunition for ten conferences and ladies retreats from this one trip.

We love you all and thank you for your support.

God bless,

Ben and Brenda and team