PENTECOST COMES TO SOUTH AMERICA
Dr Hoover was an American missionary with a vision for God's reviving work in South America. But not even he could have foreseen the extent of God's blessing...
On the first night of a week of prayer commissioning Dr Hoover's new church in Valparaiso, Chile, a strange thing happened. The whole congregation, numbering more than one hundred, broke forth simultaneously in audible prayer. It was a thing that had never happened before. The prayer lasted ten or fifteen minutes and was described by an eye-witness as "like the sound of many waters".
Following this, Dr Hoover and four others met every day at five o'clock to pray for spiritual awakening. This early morning meeting, after a month or so, was made general and became an important feature of the revival.
During the annual Methodist Conference, held early in February 1909, one of this group of five spoke on the Sunday evening. He called the members of the official board to occupy the front seats at the beginning of the service. After reading from the second chapter of Joel, he said: "You and I are responsible for the condition of this church and we must repent and get right with God even if it takes all night" During the night of prayer one of the congregation saw a brazier of coals within the altar. Others felt the hand of the Lord on their heads as they prayed at the altar.
These all-night prayer meetings continued week by week. Consciences were awakened and repentance, restitution and reconciliation became the order of the day. Members went as far as Santiago (about 30 miles away) and other places to make peace, pay debts which they had forgotten or disregarded, or to return goods or money stolen years before.
Various supernatural occurences began to take place. In a testimony meeting a sister laughed for an hour, a delighted, half-quiet laughter which she was unable to control. She had to retire to a farther corner of the room so as not to disturb anyone. Another fell and began to sing most sweetly. She said the angels were teaching her to sing.
On another occasion a woman, a young lady and a girl of twelve were lying on the floor in different parts of the prayer room. with eyes closed and silent.
Suddenly, as with one voice, they burst forth into a song in a familiar tune but in unknown tongues.
After a verse or two they became silent; then again suddenly, another tune, a verse or two, and silence. This was repeated until they had sung ten tunes, always using the same words and keeping in perfect time together as if led by some invisible chorister. Later on, during the same service, a lad stood with his eyes closed giving a message of repentance, when suddenly he said, "Oh see what a lot of doves! Lord, send more than You did last Thursday. See, one fell upon a brother! Idon't know him; he is new." At that moment he spoke, a new brother began praying with cries and tears.
Another lad, filled with the Spirit, said: "See the Lord with His pierced hands! And His feet, too!" Then bursting into desolate weeping, he said, "And yet people will not believe!"
These are but illustrations of a multitude of marvels that occurred. People began to fall un der the power of the Spirit in their homes, or at work, on the street, anywhere. People looking at such in the church would be taken with a trembling and would hurry out lest they fall.
These amazing scenes brought constantly increasing crowds of curious ones and the congregation grew by leaps and bounds. by September, the same year, the congregation (beginning with about 300) had reached the astonishing figure of 900 to 1000.
This article has been extracted from Revival Fires, available online from the Jesus People Shop.
Source: With Signs Following, by Stanley Frodsharn (Gospel Publishing House, Springfield Missouri)
|
|
Revival Fires
Latest Articles