by Marc Dupont, May 2008
In September of 06’ I wrote an article entitled “Something Wonderful is Happening”. The gist of the article had to do with the increase of freedom for healings and miracles the Holy Spirit was releasing. I equated the season with the “certain seasons” of John 5, when an angel of the Lord would stir the waters of the Pool of Bethesda. As well, I related in the article how I had sensed the Lord say to me in the mid 80’s that many in leadership at that time would live to see a great freedom for healing, miracles, and evangelism such as experienced in parts of Africa, Asia, and S. America that have helped produce authentic revivals.
We received quite a bit of positive feedback from a number of ministries globally who, basically, were experiencing the same sort of increase for healings, miracles, and signs and wonders. Since that time, some 18 months ago, there has continued to be consistent increases of the Kingdom of God moving in the power of God’s compassion.
Now, however, in the spring of 08’ (for those nations in the Northern hemisphere) there is a definite increase again! The picture, as I see it, consists of huge waves coming in to shore, but also with the tide coming in. When the tide is out even if there are waves they don’t have much impact unless one is far out in the waters. When the tide is in, however, you don’t have to go very far to experience the might of the ocean.
There are two occasions in the gospel books of Jesus instructing disciples who were fishing to try again. The first occasion is in Luke 5 when Peter, James, and John (future disciples at that moment) had been fishing all night without any catch of fish. Jesus, having had Peter take him out in his boat in order to speak to the crowd then instructed him to merely go out to deeper waters and let out the nets. Peter, although doubtful, did as Jesus instructed and then had to signal for the other boats to come out and join him because of the size of the catch. Peter, according to Luke 5.8 &9, was seized with amazement and immediately humbled himself before Jesus in the boat and, essentially, worshipped Jesus. As I wrote about in the afore mentioned article, God is doing things that are truly wonderful so that again the church might be caught up with a sense of awe and wonder regarding the person of God.
Some 3 years later, after the crucifixion and resurrection, Peter and six of the other disciples have turned back to fishing as they are not quite sure where Jesus is at and what He is doing. And just like that meeting of Peter with Jesus in Luke 5 they have again fished all night but have not caught any fish. This time however, rather than telling them to go out to deeper waters Jesus, standing on the shore, simply told them to let out the nets on the right hand side of the boat. John 21. 6 reads: “So they cast, and then they were not able to haul it in because of the great number of fish”. Many, many churches and leaders have over the last many years, including the last 18 months gone into the deeper waters of the Holy Spirit. And for sure, all of our lives should be characterized by growth in God, and learning to walk more fully in the ways of God. Knowing, however, that even though sanctification and consecration are life long pursuits, there does come God’s sovereign times of reaping exponentially where we have been sowing. Two years ago it was a time for going into the deeper waters of faith, intimacy with God, and pursuing the Kingdom. Now, however, the tide has come in and we don’t have struggle so far out in the waters to catch the wave the Holy Spirit is bringing. It’s not a matter of going into deeper waters, but simply, go to the other side of the boat, if where we’re at is not happening.
Over the last 4 weeks, or so, I have had numerous calls and emails asking me what I think about the outbreak of revival in Lakeland, Florida. Without having had the opportunity to visit the meetings I can only say I am tremendously excited. Several days after the meetings began I received a group email that Todd Bentley’s ministry sent out to many leaders. As I read it I felt a leap of the Holy Spirit with in me. Along with many others, I have believed for years now that we would live to see times when our stadiums would be filled with people worshipping God and experiencing the power and glory of God. While this sort of thing is common in parts of Africa and a few other places it is very uncommon in our western world cities. I believe Lakeland to be a picture of what’s going to come about on a wide level.
While there have been and, indeed are a few evangelists who do pack out large venues and move in the Holy Spirit’s gifts; for the most part they are old school. They are old school in the sense that although they are there to see people get saved, healed, and delivered, their ministry very much centers around their ministry, their gifting, and their calling. While the kingdom does move through them they are to some degree less than fully Biblical in their focus. The apostle Paul wrote to the church of Ephesus that the pastors, teachers, evangelists, prophets, and apostles are not given to the church merely to do ministry but rather “for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ: until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ.”
If we talk about “new school” evangelistic and prophetic ministries we can say that they not only move themselves in the power and revelatory gifts of the Spirit, but more importantly, they impart gifts to others and train everyday Christians in the gifts of the Holy Spirit. In the times I have been with Todd Bentley I have been impressed by His heart and passion for not just ministering in the gifts, but for training and equipping every day saints to do the same. In short, I believe Lakeland is a torch of faith and encouragement for Christians everywhere that we are very much in the deeper waters and it’s very much a time to just let out the nets and begin to see the exponential increase of the catch God wants to bring.
One of many noteworthy miracles I have recently seen the Lord do originated while I was in Johannesburg, S. Africa in December of last year. While ministering in some meetings there I received words of knowledge from the Lord to pray for people with various types of cancer. One of the types, in particular, was cancer of the blood. At the end of the meeting a lady came up and asked if she could receive prayer in proxy for a friend dying of this type of cancer in Scotland. I agreed and laid hands on her as she stood in for her friend thousands and thousands of miles away.After receiving prayer for her friend she went home and called her friend in Scotland and related the prayer and prayed for her. Almost immediately, her friend reported back a dramatic improvement in health. After several days the doctors were seeing a great improvement in her and ordered a round of blood tests. When they saw the results they thought they had mixed up the chart with another patient’s as these tests showed a cancer free patient!
The day I began to write this article I received a phone call from a businessman in Norway who is very involved with church leaders throughout the body of Christ in his nation. He related to me that recently while I was ministering at a prophetic conference in Kristiansand, Norway a man experienced a very significant healing. He is, in fact, the father of one of the conference organizers. Over 30 years ago, while in a foreign country he was severely beaten to the point of having many bones broken. For over 30 years he has been in great pain. While in the prophetic seminar he was completely healed!
The first healing mentioned transcended thousands and thousands of miles. The second transcended over 3 decades. Like the man at the pool of Bethesda who had been lame for 38 years, or like the man born blind in John 9, we are definitely in a Kingdom season where God is rending the heavens and releasing the power of His compassion in the western world nations. It is very much a time for those who know the times and seasons- like the Sons of Issachar, to rise up. It’s time for fresh vision, focus, and energy to throw out the nets, for the harvest is, indeed ripe and the catch is ready to be caught!
“The sons of Issachar, were men who understood the times, with knowledge of what Israel should do” 1 Chron. 12.32
