In mid-December, Mike and I traveled to several cities in Brazil on a trip arranged by a young apostolic leader named Fernando Guilian. While we normally do not travel much at this time of year, we felt a tug from the Holy Spirit to invest in this land of revival.

Brasilia, the Capital

I had not been to Brazil’s capital, Brasilia, since my first trip with Peter and Doris Wagner 20 years ago. At that time, we participated in major prayer efforts to deal with occult and Masonic roots in both Brasilia and the nation as a whole. There was also repentance for the enormous influence of spiritism in the nation (some believe that Brazil is home to the largest spiritist following in the world).

Over the years, I believe that the significant prayer journeys made not only by our team, but also by many others, have been the catalyst for remarkable, on-going revival in Brazil. The expansion of Christianity has been tremendous, and the churches I’m acquainted with have experienced significant growth.

Returning to Brasilia after so many years, plus being with Mike as he experienced it for the first time, was amazing. At this first stop, we preached twice for the annual conference at Comunidade das Nacões; the word of the Lord for them was strong.

Rio Branco

Immediately following the second service, we headed to the airport for a very late flight to a lovely, quaint town near the border with Bolivia, called Rio Branco. The next day we enjoyed a wonderful meal at a Brazilian churrascaria—a traditional steakhouse where they continually bring out skewers of meat until you’re stuffed!

That night I preached in a sports stadium. The warfare felt very intense as I shared, but we saw the power of God fall across the arena. I felt the Holy Spirit say someone there had recently purchased a gun with the intent of committing suicide, and I urged them to come forward. A young man responded for prayer. Overall, around 50 came to Christ.

After such an intense night of ministry, we struggled to stay awake for our flight, which left at 3:55am; we arrived at our third destination, Manaus, by 8am. Manaus has a population of around 2 million people and sits right on the enormous Amazon River. Mike and I were both excited to see the Amazon and delighted to find that our hotel was located right on the river.

Manaus

An even greater delight, however, was getting to see the work that Apostle Rene Terranova is doing with his 70,000 member church, Ministerio Internacional da Restauracão, which meets in 200 locations throughout the city. There are roughly six million people throughout the nation connected to his church that consider him an apostle or spiritual father.

The building where they meet can only hold about 7,000 people at a time, so only certain cell groups came to the church each service by assignment. It was church done Brazilian-style, which means a God-sized party. Those Brazilians worship the Lord with such intensity and fervor; it’s inspiring! To have the opportunity to preach in such a place was very close to heaven for me!

Any time I get to preach to a gathering of over 5,000 people at one time, it seems as if the anointing intensifies. It is as if God says, “I’m going to give you faith to touch all these people; you’re going to move in greater power.” This time was no different.

During the first of three services we did in Manaus, as soon as I stood up to speak, the power of the Holy Spirit swept across the people in waves of glory. God’s power fell on people as I prophesied to them; the words were very specific and sharp.

The next day, I preached two more times, and again, the power of God was mighty. In the final evening service, I felt led to leave the platform and go down among the people to prophesy. The anointing for healing was released; a number of people who were previously unable to run because of conditions such as asthma, injuries from auto accidents, and various other conditions were healed.

There were many words of knowledge—when God gives supernatural insight into people’s lives.  But then the tone changed, and I really began to operate in the office of the prophet; when this happens, the weight, authority and depth of insight come on a whole new level.

The conviction of the Holy Spirit was strong, but so was the manifestation of the love of God. Many tough young men came forward; I had a word about a woman too. They all reacted in a similar way as they came forward—they began to weep.

As God worked in these hearts, I felt compelled to make another appeal: “There is someone here, and you are in a gang, and you are a very violent man. The Lord is saying to you that, ‘You are mine!’ Come right now! You know you are in trouble, and God is trying to save your life!”

No one moved, and I persisted, knowing with certainty what I’d heard. After a few minutes, I turned and there was the one God was pursuing. I opened my arms, and he fell into them with sobs that shook his body. I have tears in my own eyes as I recall that moment; the love of God is so rich and deep!

He prayed and repented. I wish you could have seen the look on his face afterwards. The realization that he was forgiven caused such joy to pour out of his heart and soul.

After that service, we headed to the airport one last time for a 1:05am flight to Miami. What a whirlwind trip! As we sat on the plane, preparing for takeoff, we were totally exhausted but so full of joy. Reflecting on that night’s service and the changed lives,

I thought, “Tonight was a great example of why we traveled 280 days, preaching the gospel in 18 nations and 65 cities this past year.”

I went to sleep with a smile on my face and a full, grateful heart.

Jesus died for sinners, and this is the Lamb’s reward for His suffering—lives healed and hope given. This is what we live for, and this is the passion we hope to impart to everyone we encounter.