Category Archives: Travel

The picture alongside the post, of Alejandrina with me, will live in my memory for many, many years: it’s something very precious to hug and hold and talk to and laugh with someone who should have been dead 6 months ago…. so amazing, God, you’re just so awesomely amazing….

It was a tremendous day yesterday, though in respect of preaching I had the morning off in Beny and Paty’s church! – but that didn’t stop a good number of people c0ming up to me afterwards and asking for prayer!

Beny got one particular lady from last week to testify as to her healing: My ‘report’ on Luz Maria last week was this:

• Luz Maria, a lovely lady suffered from a problem that both bothered her ‘cosmetically’, but also caused pain in her back. One shoulder was considerably and visibly higher than the other, which of course, meant her back was out of alignment (ifI recall, she’d had a bad fall some time ago), so the ‘leg lengthening’ had its day today. I know, it isn’t the leg that grows (normally! – sometimes it is, like in India 22 years ago!). There were a few church folk around watching, Luz’s right leg was a good 2-3 cms shorter than the left. But only for a few moments more… funny thing is, it kept ‘growing’ on the palm of my hand, and was soon about a centimetre longer than the left, so that one had to ‘comeLuz Maria, with skeletal problems following an accident, one shoulder lower than the other: blown away as her back re-aligned and her leg grew 2-3 cmsdown’ too, which it did! A taller lady: why doesn’t that happen to me? I’d love to be taller! She was totally blown away as she felt movement inside her right leg. Her shoulders were level when she stood up  …

Here’s the link to her telling the story herself yesterday:   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CP6I72t0cYA

Rodrigo, a young boxer with a tumour in his shoulder, had this to say yesterday:   http://youtu.be/VlfjM0OZJKI

Others came up to me privately after the meeting just to hug me for what God did last Sunday – a bit of a privilege getting hugged for something you haven’t done!

Last night, I spoke in Danny & Paty Ortiz’s church, and it was ‘interesting’ how much of the healing at that meeting was emotional rather than physical. Fiorella once again wrote down all the names for me – and then disappeared off back to Cuernavaca at 5.30 am without giving them to me! One lady, whose policeman son is in jail on ‘trumped up’ kidnap charges, was absolutely desperate. The transformation in her face, which had been full of fear, pain, and hurt, was incredible.

There was a young guy, Giovanni, 19, who had been shot in 2012, and hospitalised for much of 2013: paralysed totally from the waist down as the bullet had passed through his lung and wrecked his spine, wheelchair-bound. His mum was there, too: both ‘Christians in waiting’ (!). Had a lovely time chatting to Giovanni, and asked him if he’d forgiven the shooter…. no, he hadn’t, he’d been far more concerned with revenge. I didn’t push the issue, but ‘suggested’ (quite strongly, maybe!) that he visualise the guy – though he’d been fully face-masked – and spoke out ‘ Lord, I forgive him’ – a pretty tough assignment, I knew that, but – he did it. I prayed for him, asking God to bless him, and begin to restore the very wasted-away lower part of his body. and give him feeling back.

Wow… he did! Not only feeling, in his right knee and foot, but movement that was not involuntary, and as our chat/prayer went on, he felt more and more sensation in his legs… I also suggested to him that God was on his case, and wanted to not only transform his body, but his life. Mum was weeping, I think we all were…. he didn’t make any commitment last night, but took a Bible away and promised to read Mark’s gospel, and I told him that I felt he’d wake this morning with more feeling than last night, and with muscle, flesh, and tissue beginning to return. His pastor, Danny, is with me in Cali in 6 weeks, and Giovanni and mum said they’d go to their church each Wednesday and Sunday… so I’ll see what news Danny has then!

I didn’t finish praying for people until 11.30 pm, though I’d finished speaking at about 9.15 pm, so a trip to the best taco restaurant in that area was very welcome. Gorgeous chilli pineapple salsa!! Veeery late night home though, but well worth it!

“One of the most memorable days of my life was when I had lunch with Paul and he introduced me to a young girl  (18) called Johana. Paul had met her one year before in a local hospital, on her deathbed, just hours before her death, having been read the last rites by her priest. Paul prayed with her that first day for two hours and here we were, talking, eating and laughing with her one year later after she was healed by the love of our Lord Jesus. A living walking talking breathing testimony to the work Paul does in Jesus’ name.”

Those are words written by my great mate, Paul Silvester, about a young lady whom, a year before, had been given a few hours to live, with leuchaemia and lymphoma. Paul wrote that 12 years ago: and it changed his life. Something happens deep inside of you when you spend time with people who SHOULD have been dead – even more, like China 27 years or more ago, when I shook hands with, and greeted, two ladies who HAD been dead, one 4 days, one 7 days – it’s a humbling, mend-bending experience. You can never be the same again.

If I could have taken photos of Johana when I went to the hospital to pray for her, with a friend, you would never have believe she could survive. A skeleton with skin, somehow still breathing, and a ‘look’ of fear and death on her face that will stay with me forever.

This afternoon and maybe into early evening, I’m spending it with a lovely lady Alejandrina, and her family. It’s to celebrate her total healing 6 months ago, when she;d been sent home from hospital to die. The doctors in the hospital could do no more for her, cancer pretty much everywhere, and her GP, my friend in the house I’m staying in, and who has given me such wonderful care this fortnight, asked if I’d go to her home (Ecatapec, about 2 hours north of Mexico City), to pray for her.  She’d got a couple of days to live. Alejandrina, too, had that ‘death’ look about her: sitting with her, gathered around the dining table with her husband, daughters, sons, son in laws, I confess that I know I can’t heal a cold in my own strength, and the first thing I prayed was for me – that God would remove the weight of expectation on ME from her family – a weight I wholly and utterly understand, when YOU are their last hope….

And today, more than 6 months later, she and her family (others of them were healed that day too), want to celebrate with me – but of course it wasn’t me, it was God – her healing, her life, and her joy. I think among the great rejoicing this afternoon will be a fair few tears…

I wasn’t to try and get a short video ‘interview’ with her: if we can make it work, I’ll post it here….(if I know how!!)

I had a feeling when I wrote the last blog post that today was going to be something special. It most certainly was. Along with the privilege of preaching in Beny & Paty Osorio’s church, Mundo de Fe, Barak, it was great to have at the meeting a lovely friend whom I met in Lisieux, France, 18 months ago, Fiorella Ramirez, now back home in Cuernavaca, Mexico – and, more than both those things put together, seeing God touch virtually everyone who came up for prayer with an instant miracle….

I love this church: and it’s humbling to know that they love me. Beny & Paty’s friendship with me gets stronger and stronger, so it was especially a blessing to see God do his stuff again in the meeting….

Bless her, Fiorella wrote down the names and ‘problems’ of everyone who came for prayer, she’d obviously had a word of knowledge about my memory!

Rodrigo, a young man who is a promising boxer, had to give up 3 months ago after pain in his left shoulder was diagnosed as a tumour, which sat under his collar bone, pushing it up and forward, and with a lot of pain. He had ben able to feel the tumour, and, as you can imagine, there was a lot of fear attached to it, especially for a young man of about 20. The tumour disappeared – he and we knew because his shoulder and collar bone were back in their right place, and the pain had gone. For a few moments he laughed, then burst into tears: it was very moving.

Luz Maria, a lovely lady suffered from a problem that both bothered her ‘cosmetically’, but also caused pain in her back. One shoulder was considerably and visibly higher than the other, which of course, meant her back was out of alignment (ifI recall, she’d had a bad fall some time ago), so the ‘leg lengthening’ had its day today. I know, it isn’t the leg that grows (normally! – sometimes it is, like in India 22 years ago!). There were a few church folk around watching, Luz’s right leg was a good 2-3 cms shorter than the left. But only for a few moments more… funny thing is, it kept ‘growing’ on the palm of my hand, and was soon about a centimetre longer than the left, so that one had to ‘come

down’ too, which it did! A taller lady: why doesn’t that happen to me? I’d love to be taller! She was totally blown away as she felt movement inside her right leg. Her shoulders were level when she stood up :)…

A lovely lady, rather older than Luz, had chronic – yeas, you’ve got it! – osteoarthritis in both knees…. extreme pain, needless to say (I know…) – it went, instantly, and she was up and walking back and fro across the front of the church. I rejoiced with her, and Fiorella, and quietly reminded God about other knees that need dealing with! A lady whose name escaped both Fiorella and me, had no cartilage in either knee (I whistled a ‘happy’ tune under my breath! – nor have I!) – God gave her new ones, the pain went, and off she went walking to and fro at the front of the church!

America, a young lady with great pain in her lower back and hips, was healed instantly – you should have seen her smile! There was no one with a camera around at the time, sadly! Maria Barbara had bad ligament damage in her left arm and shoulder: again, needless to say, in a lot of pain, unable to lift anything, or trust using her left arm for very much at all. Prayer one, the pain went down by about 50%: prayer two, down by about 80%, prayer three gone… she went over and lifted, in her left arm, the floor standing fan – not light! – above her shoulder, with no pain.

Some folk felt internal healing, or felt strange things going on inside, perhaps better to say: but they’re going to need tests to prove their healing. Alejandro had great fear from diagnosis/prognosis of more than double the ‘good’ level of triglycerides: his dad, also Alejandro, has been pre-diagnosed with prostate cancer. It was his forst ever time in church, you could see the fear go from his face, and the smile that said ‘it’s not going to happen!’.

Oscar Uribe, long-time friend, had virtually no function in the left side of his brain, has been under ‘attack’ in a ‘Job sort of way’ for many months, dreadful problems with sleeping. His wife, Alejandra, had been given medication for a severe pain in her right leg, the side effects of which had made her celiac – allergic to all things gluten. I told her to go home and eat bread for the rest of the day!

Fiorella and I also prayed by proxy for two of her family/friends needs: mum, Theresa (Tere) with bad colon problems, and friend Norma, just diagnosed with cancer of the womb. Again, time will tell….

The people from the church, though, all being well, I’ll see next Sunday, so some will have gone for tests, and others will know after a week of experience!

I was blown away at the end of the service when Beny honoured me wonderfully to the church: his late dad, Enrique, he said, was a man with few friends, but I was one of

them close to his heart, and talked about his and Paty’s wedding, at which I spoke…. it’s amazing what honour does for you, and it’s a gift often missing in church life.

Then we all went out to Chilis for lunch, followed by delightful frozen yoghurt and fresh fruit. Suffering for the gospel again today, then…. 🙂

Those of you who have known me a long time will know that I’m one of those ‘odd-balls’ who (and HOW I hate this expression, but it’s the one the church seems to use!!) ‘lives by faith’. The truth is, we ALL live by faith, whether it’s in ministry, like me and countless others: or in a job: as an employer (who lives by faith not only for himself, but for his employees!).

What it means for me is, that I trust God for provision in every area of my life: I have no ‘known’ income. Why am I writing this today? Well, there’s a great reason!

When I left school at 18, mum – already a widow then for 6 years – couldn’t afford to ‘keep’ me through university (even though in those days, we got grants, they were never enough), so I went to work, in a bank (you might remember I failed Maths ‘O’ level 5 times!! – got a grade 6 pass – the lowest pass grade – at the 6th attempt, 3 years into my banking career!). To be honest, I hated it: but it was (then) one of the most secure jobs you could have, job for life unless you put your hand in the till for the wrong reason!), cheap mortgage (commercial mortgages – then – were around 11-12%, mine was 2½%), and a good pension….I knew after about 4-5 years that God was ‘on my case’ wanting me to leave, to work alongside the guy I’d got saved through, Clive Calver: but I liked the security of salary, subsidised mortgage and other loans, and the pension…. I argued with God for 5 years…. 🙁

When I finally realised that God wasn’t going to give up, get off my case, and that I’d spend my life hating the job more and more, being more and more unhappy as I knew what God wanted, but was afraid to do it ‘just in case it didn’t work out’…. how many of us have not seen God’s best for us because of that particular argument, I wonder? I read, many years ago, this quote (I don’t even remember who said it, but it was a life-changing turning point): ‘The passion that causes us to achieve HAS to be strong enough to make us uncomfortable‘ ….found a similar one, which I posted on Facebook a few days ago:

Here’s why I’m posting this….!

Tomorrow, January 18th, 1979, was the date I received my last-ever pay cheque, from the bank! 35 years of God’s abundant faithfulness, and I’m not anorexic-looking to prove it! It’s not just the provision for daily needs that God has come up with – food, bills, clothes, etc: it’s all the years (28 this year) of travel, airline tickets, expenses when I’m away… you know, this is testimony to God’s goodness, and not a boast, I can promise you – but I’ve been to Romania 127 times, the USA over 100 times (and, of course, the last 5 years of the USA and NOT being able to get there! cost  a fortune), Colombia 60 times+ (Cali alone 51 times), Mexico (I think next month’s visit will be) 30 times, Africa goodness know how many times, Australia double figures, India the same….106 countries altogether….

And who am I to have been ‘selected’ for this blessing? No one, not famous (don’t want to be): just a Son of the Living God, who fulfils ALL of his promises (2 Cor 1:20) to the glory of God. If you had any idea how much fear there was in me back at the start of 1979, you would have said – and so would I – that following God’s call wouldn’t last long…but here, today, sitting in my house that God has provided rent for (in excess of £20,000 since I came here – £20,000 I DIDN’T HAVE, and still don’t have the required £400 a month until I know the landlord – a friend, which makes it impossible to avoid the rent!! – needs it….

35 years. About 60% of my WHOLE life….God has been faithful. In 1 Samuel 7:12, Samuel, in making an altar to the Lord, said ‘Thus far has the Lord helped us’. The unspoken add on to that is – ‘If God’s helped us up until now, he’ll go on helping us’. I can genuinely say that has been my story up until now: and I know, that unless God has other plans, it will be the story in the years ahead. I’m 61 years old now: humanly speaking, looking forward (hmm!) to retirement in 4 years. Humanly speaking, I CAN’T retire in 4 years, as my bank pension – which I just can’t WAIT to receive! – is £10 a week (based on 9½ years service), and my state pension: that’s it. It’s a good job I don’t WANT to retire, huh?

God’s faithfulness has continued right through the current era of recessions: even though my regular ‘committed’ support has dropped by a good 50% over the last 5 years. I have a few people occasionally ‘bend my ear’ telling me I ought to ‘charge’ a daily ‘fee’ to the places I go: often bandied about is a figure like £300 a day, plus expenses, going up to – well, the sky’s the limit from some people! My reading of God’s call ‘to go’ – especially as it’s mostly very poor countries that I go to – is ‘freely you have received, freely give’ – not ‘fee-ly give’!

This weekend is celebration for me: 35 years. Of course, I’d love to know that I might get more every month than I do: that’s a human reaction, of course. This might be a good point to say that if God prompts you to help me each month/year, then I’d be overjoyed. There’s a page on the website that tells you how to do that! But more than anything, your prayers are coveted, and especially prayers of thanksgiving, to a wonderful Father, whose faithfulness is proven up to now….and from now on….

Thank you, Dad…..(tears in my eyes at this point, as even now I find it overwhelming and unbelievable)…..