Houston, TexasOctober 11, 2010
Dear Friends & Partners in the Great Commission,
Two months ago in August we held the Basic Training in Louisiana. One of the brothers from the group which hosted the event was Thomas Keiffer, an attorney who is about to go into full-time ministry with e3 Partners. Shortly after the Basic Training, Thomas and a team of trained disciples went to Romania on a mission trip. Below Thomas shares some of the miraculous healings they witnessed on the trip. Equally significant is the mysterious reaction to the miracles on the part of the Romanian church leaders who hosted them. Read about it below ~
Thomas' Report:
"There are numerous stories to share with you concerning Romania. People were healed, delivered and saved. Here are only a few:
* A 10-year-old was instantly healed of a vision problem. When asked to explain to a bystander what Jesus had done for him, the boy simply said, “He made my eyes good.”
* A woman walking with her husband of 46 years was on her way to market, carrying a load of socks and shirts to sell. She had a back injury from an automobile accident. She was instantly healed of pain while her husband wept tears of joy. Both were saved.
* A woman leaving a makeshift medical clinic was instantly freed of arthritis pain in her legs (yes, before taking any medication). She put her faith in the Lord as her savior.
* A pastor still suffering pain after back surgery was instantly relieved of pain. He exclaimed loudly, “This is very interesting! What are you doing to me? That pain is gone. You must explain this to me!” And we did.
* A nervous woman reported hearing a voice at night, telling her to commit suicide by throwing herself down a well. She was delivered of that evil spirit. Asked how she was doing, she responded, “bene (good)!”
Miraculous demonstrations of the power of God based on the authority of Jesus Christ – or delusional anecdotes?
Jesus said, "Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also ….” John 14:12
After sending you the last e-mail about the grip of religion on Romania, I received a phone call confirming that we are on the right track.
I learned that I am not welcome to return to Romania because local religious leaders are not comfortable with my taking the initiative in regard to healing and spiritual warfare. Although I was told I had done nothing wrong, I nevertheless “blew some fuses.”
My friend Gary made me laugh when he said to me, “What happened – you got caught healing on the Sabbath?”
My daughter Charley put it this way – “You mean that they are more comfortable with disease and demons [then with healing and deliverance]?”
We love Romania. The people, history, culture and food. I've been there five times, and was looking forward to bringing my family there next summer. We have had two Romanian students live with us. We helped build a house to establish a local village church. We have a Romanian flag in our home, and even named a stray dog that we recently adopted, “Gypsy.” We were really looking forward to the privilege of serving in Romania.
Where does this leave us? On an adventure of course!
I've been asked to take on the role of country strategist; meaning that I can choose from a list of target countries and start church planting from scratch. So, I've gone from a team leader to a country leader in one phone call (and still don't know exactly what a “church planter” is). Could this be the Peter Principle at work? Perhaps, but I'm not the one who's going to accomplish anything anyway. It's all up to the Lord. My goal is simply to be turned over to Him.
I certainly have some mixed feelings, especially since I don't know where to go next. It's like being dumped by your first girlfriend, and the right one hasn't come along yet. Please pray for (my wife) Lisa and me to know the Lord's will for us."
Thank you for partnering with us in prayer, dear ones!
Pastor William & Lucille
Founders and Directors
The Elijah Challenge
www.TheElijahChallenge.org
www.TheElijahChallenge.org
