CONFESSIONS OF AN OLD TIME, NEW WAVE HOLY GHOST MIRACLE MAN…
I am an “Old Time Holy Ghost Miracle Man.” I make no apologies for it. I was born again, (in the true sense of the phrase, not in the usual “give your heart to Jesus and get a ticket to heaven while you’re going through hell on earth” evangelical sense), in a Holy Ghost Miracle Revival church where there was a genuine move of the Spirit. What we lacked in theology we made up for in anointing. I understand theology—I’d rather have the anointing. I’m writing this for my readers who want to better understand the anointing.
It is significant that most religions, and most people, recognize the flow of spiritual energy that we call the anointing. Philosophical Buddhism, and The Tao call it chi. Hindu’s mana. Spirit filled Christians call it the anointing. I put the emphasis on Spirit filled because one of the leading evangelical pastors has declared that there isn’t any such a thing as the anointing—and he seemed to think that he was anointed when he said it! But we Spirit filled Christians recognize the anointing. We don’t just recognize it—we revel in it! As Andre Crouch sang, “There’s something about the power of the Holy Ghost, I can’t explain it, but I got it.”
You make take exception to the idea that Buddhists, Taoists, and Hindus may recognize the anointing, but I suppose that they recognize lightning too. And sunlight. And any other manifestation of power. If you actually believe that God is omnipresent, and omnipotent, (not to mention omnipotent!), it is impossible to believe that He limits Himself to our limited perceptions of Himself. (Including the perception that He is a “He”—Jesus said, “God is a spirit” and spirits have no need of gender.) Paul made the point clear when told the men on Mars Hill to consider their devotion to “The Unknown God.” They knew God. They just didn’t know God. Like many of us.
When I describe myself as “And Old Time Holy Ghost Miracle Man,” I’m not referring to my age, nor to a nostalgic longing for the “good old days.” I’m referring rather, to the understanding that I have about the anointing that I received from them—some first hand, some second hand, and some from reading. There have been several scholarly books written about the “Voice of Healing Revival,” and they all agree that whatever the faults and foibles of it’s leaders, miracles did happen—often on a wholesale basis.
My old pastor was one of them.
W.V. Grant Sr. testified of himself, “I can’t sing and I can’t preach, and if it weren’t for the anointing I couldn’t do anything.” And he was right—he couldn’t preach. Really, he couldn’t preach. But he had the anointing. In the church’s prayer room there were large photo’s of his meetings. Huge crowds, but more significantly, visible miracles. Before and after pictures of goiters as big as a baseball that disappeared during the meetings. You did notice the plural tense? He wasn’t dynamic, just an Arkansas shopkeeper wearing a conservative blue suit, who prayed the same prayer over every person—“In the name of Jesus, Ka-busha-na-na-na!” and as I have often said, “They got Ka-busha-na-na-nahed.” He understood the anointing.
Most of the major players in the Voice Of Healing Revival weren’t theologians, or especially learned. The only exception was Charles Price, who had been a denominational pastor before attending an Aimee Temple McPherson meeting to scoff, only to come away convinced. The rest were often extremely intelligent, but not especially interested in either theology or orthodoxy. A few could barely spell Jesus. But all of them at one time or another testified to a powerful experience with God. For some, like Oral Roberts, W.V. Grant Sr., Leroy Jenkins, and the like, it was being personally healed from an incurable, life threatening disease. For Leroy it was the instantaneous healing of his arm after it had been severed in an accident with the diagnosis that he would never be able to use it. That became his “anointed arm.” (BTW—I talked with Leroy on the phone one time. A man that knew him was in my office and asked, “Want to talk to Leroy?” I said, “Sure.” He made the call, introduced me, and Leroy said, “How ya doin brother? I’m baking buttermilk biscuits.” After a few pleasantries I hung up. I think butter milk biscuits was as deep as he ever got.) Those that didn’t have a remarkable testimony of healing generally had a deep encounter in the realm of Spirit that brought tangible results.
That’s one reason that I’m sharing this—tangible results.
The “sons of the prophets” have always been a problem. They see a move of God, or an anointing, endeavor mimic it, and generally mess it up. There is a lot of crazy that goes on under the banner of the move of the Spirit. The baseline should be tangible results.
I have always said that if it is real it should work in the local church setting. It’s easy to “prophesy” when you’re traveling ministry, here today and gone tomorrow. It’s another thing to be accountable to the same people week after week. If you prophesy you’d better get it right, or there won’t be any people to prophesy to after a while. There should be tangible results. And I’m happy to say that I have a church full of people in Dayton, Ohio, and across the nation, that tell me, “You got it right!” and testify to miracles. Tangible results.
If you’d like tangible results read on with an open mind. I’m changing the format of my blog somewhat in that the password is free. This month it is POWER. Why am I doing that? Because I am trending in a more spiritual bent and I want you to get it. And I know that if you really get it you’ll sow a seed into the ministry, and if you don’t you won’t. One way to connect with an anointing is by sowing into that anointing. That’s in the Bible ya’know. Join me “Behind The Door” and I’ll tell you a story.
