Around the end of 2017 I felt strongly in my heart a future call to America. There’s not much to do about it, but just waiting. Those prophetic signs are just to let us know that when doors open in that direction, it is God who is behind it. Still, we need to be careful that we discern correctly God’s timing and purpose.
In February 2018, while in South Africa with Torben and other guys from TLR, Torben told us about a pastor requesting someone who could train his church in what he called “power evangelism,” meaning to evangelize with the use of signs and wonders. So since it had been in my heart already for a while, I volunteered to contact that pastor and see what their needs were and if I could meet them in any way.
So we had some very interesting video calls. I had not been in many regular congregations in my years with TLR, so it was an interesting mission: to serve a community that serves God in the kind of system I had left in 2015. Now exactly four years later, I got the chance to travel there and get acquainted with the pastor, their vision, their heart and their needs.
While been there I had the chance to attend their services, and get familiar with the American church culture… a very different experience than any other culture I had been in. I liked that these brothers were not sugar-coating the gospel, preached radically about sin, repentance and holiness, and the leaders really had a passion to serve instead of being bosses. I got the chance to share a teaching on Sunday evening, where many people got healed not only through my laying on of hands, but through the prayers of each other. In short, I felt welcome and could see there were definitely areas in which I could help them reach the calling God had placed in their hearts. Of course there were non-vital differences, that we could look over. I got invited to spend 6 months there, with my family, working for them. The idea was to create catalyzing teams who would transform the church-goers into disciples of Jesus, and training them in power evangelism.
This invitation felt really good for my family and me, all expenses covered. We homeschool, but where we live that is not normal and it is a very difficult road. My wife is really a pioneer on that here. There, on the contrary, is very accepted and there are many mothers doing it. It would be a refreshment and inspiration for us. Also the focusing on just one very central mission would allow me to spend much more time with my children. But… was it God’s will and timing?
Since the local work for us here in our hometown began to take off, and became solid, and the work in Europe started to open up, we chose to wait until the Lord would really send us there. The doors are open, and we are still planning to try it out next year. We don’t know exactly if it will really happen. Our flesh and soul say yes, but we need to think with the Spirit and discern the times of God. We keep contact with the pastor there, Ernest, who kindly received me in his home and took me to see him hunting rabbits.
In all of this there’s a lesson: if we really want things to work, we need to wait for Isaac and not run to Hagar. We could “help” God to fulfill His promises, but that only creates Ismaels. Let’s be faithful, let’s trust Him, even if it costs a price. His thoughts are not ours, He knows what He is doing. The time will come when we will need to leave this local work to the local workers, and retreat for a while. Maybe then the Lord will send us, maybe not. As by now, what is important is to do what is before us.
Remember, the next step is your immediate responsibility. Not the last step, at least not yet.