It is the current slogan being used to promote the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.  Yet I believe the Lord is asking each one of us the same question today.

Dear Child,

Do you BELIEVE in my Amazing Grace?

Do you BELIEVE in my Saving Power?

Do you BELIEVE I conquered the grave?

Do you BELIEVE I came to set you Free?

Do you BELIEVE you can do all things through me?

Yet if each of us were to examine our hearts we would probably admit that our faith has been shaken at times.  I truly believe that the timing of this Olympic slogan is no accident and Christ is asking his church this question at this important time.   

When Jesus was about to raise Lazarus from the dead he said to his sister Martha,  ²⁵“I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; ²⁶and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?”  John 11:25-26

Shortly after Martha proclaimed “Yes Lord”, Jesus raised Martha’s brother Lazarus from the grave.

In John 6:26-29, shortly after feeding five thousand men and their families with only five barley loaves and two fish, a crowd followed after Jesus. ²⁶Jesus answered, “I tell you the truth, you are looking for me, not because you saw miraculous signs but because you ate the loaves and had your fill. ²⁷Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. On him God the Father has placed his seal of approval.”

 ²⁸Then they asked him, “What must we do to do the works God requires?”

 ²⁹Jesus answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.”

Jesus says, “Believe in the one he has sent.”  The Lord is telling each one of us to believe in him and let him perform the miracles and not to worry about our current circumstances.  It is through our faith that we will witness the miracles in our lives.

So today the Lord might be telling you,

“BELIEVE that I can heal you!”

“BELIEVE that you are forgiven!”

“BELIEVE that I will deliver you from your current circumstances!”

“BELIEVE that I love you and you are wonderfully made!”

“BELIEVE that I will provide!”

BELIEVE! BELIEVE.  This is the only thing Christ is asking of you. 

DO YOU BELIEVE?

I wanted to share a miracle that we witnessed recently while sharing the gospel.  While we have not written about every miracle that we witness on the streets, I was reminded recently of the story of Jesus and the Ten Lepers.  In the story Jesus heals ten men with leprosy. Yet only one man returns to Jesus to thank him for the miraculous healing.  

 ¹¹Now on his way to Jerusalem, Jesus traveled along the border between Samaria and Galilee. ¹²As he was going into a village, ten men who had leprosy met him. They stood at a distance ¹³and called out in a loud voice, “Jesus, Master, have pity on us!”  ¹⁴When he saw them, he said, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” And as they went, they were cleansed.  ¹⁵One of them, when he saw he was healed, came back, praising God in a loud voice. ¹⁶He threw himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him—and he was a Samaritan. ¹⁷Jesus asked, “Were not all ten cleansed? Where are the other nine? ¹⁸Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?” ¹⁹Then he said to him, “Rise and go; your faith has made you well.” Luke 17: 11-19

After meditating on this story I felt compelled to share the miracle that our group witnessed.  Just before Easter weekend, on April 9^th, 2009 a young Hutterite boy named, Samuel, fell into a culvert (small ditch) while playing with some friends. Samuel slipped off a snowbank and fell into a stream. He was unable to swim, and got sucked into the culvert.  After being rescued, he spent days in a coma.  I had read about the accident in the paper and felt compassion for the boy and family.  For some reason I continued to reflect on the story.

On Saturday, April 11th, Easter weekend, our group met to go witnessing.  I had been at the hospital praying for people the past several weeks and had made up my mind to go to Portage Place to witness to people for a change. While we were praying I felt the Holy Spirit speak to me to go to back the Hospital again.  My friend Trevor and I decided to go.  As were walked through Children’s Hospital, I noticed a young Hutterite woman with her child on the cell phone.  Immediately I was reminded of the young boy, Samuel that was in a coma.  I began to ask “Lord, Am I here to pray for that boy?”  Trevor and I kept walking through the Hospital to another wing.  We made our way to the 3^rd floor where we had prayed for a young boy a week earlier.  As we opened the door to the waiting room, we saw approximately 20 men, women and children from a Hutterite colony sitting in the waiting room.  I looked at my friend and immediately knew that this was the reason the Lord had called us.  

I walked up to a man and began to ask if they were at the Hospital for the young boy in a coma. As it turned out, I had walked right up to the boy’s father.  I explained to him that we had seen many miracles in the Hospital and asked if he would allow Trevor and me to pray for his boy.  The situation was critical and the young boy was still in a coma.  Thankfully, his father agreed and Trevor and I were allowed to enter the room, lay hands on Samuel and pray for a miracle. As I looked at the young boy, in such serious condition, I remember thinking, how the Lord was raised from the dead on this same Easter weekend, almost 2000 years earlier.  On April 11^th 2009 we asked the Lord for a similar miracle for young Samuel and his family.

A couple weeks later, I felt compelled to return to the Hospital to visit a young girl I had been asked to pray for.  As I entered the wing of the Hospital I was overjoyed to walk right past Samuel’s room.  I was able to see the young boy fully awake and alert, after spending 13 days in a coma.  It was a true miracle.  I am grateful to the Lord for hearing our prayers and those of his family and his community.  I truly have witnessed with my own eyes the saving power of the Lord. I ALSO BELIEVE THAT GREATER THINGS ARE YET TO COME FOR THIS CITY!  THANK YOU LORD!!!

As one broken wreck of humanity told me as I threw him out the back door on a busy Saturday night: ‘I’ve seen honky-tonks and bars from Shanghai ta ‘Frisco, Cape Cod ta Cape Town.  This plashe is da worst.”

Buzz Baizely,

Occidental Bouncer for 30 Years

Many have asked “Why do you meet at the Occidental Hotel?” (now named the Red Road Lodge).  Growing up in Winnipeg, the Occidental Hotel had a reputation as a dangerous hotel, filled with alcoholics, prostitutes and the homeless.  The bar was notorious for being a hangout for the most broken and lost in our society. It was not the type of place any ‘reputable’ person would be seen in. Yet one afternoon, several years ago, as my car was stopped at a red light at the intersection of Main Street & Logan Avenue, the Holy Spirit told me that this is where I was to build his Church and it should be called the Twelve Pillars. For several years I prayed and meditated about the message that was spoken to me.  Since this time the Lord has revealed to me that his Church will be one of ‘Humility’.  In addition, it was his desire to see the gospel shared as he had instructed in Luke 10:1.   “After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go.”

I believe that if Jesus Christ were physically living in Winnipeg today, he would live in the Occidental.  As Christ said, “the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.” Luke 19:10.  I believe that the Lord chose this hotel as for many years it had come to symbolize a home for “the Lost”.  As believers, the Lord has commanded us “Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Be strong and courageous.”  Joshua 10:25. We are to seek the lost and let our light shine from the darkness. For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. 2 Corinthians 4:6.

I believe it is not “Accidental” that the “Occidental” is located at the corner of Main & Logan, a street corner with much heritage and formerly the “heart” of Winnipeg, a city located in the “heart” of North America (Winnipeg is in the very centre of the Continent).  If we were to walk around this neighborhood today, we would see many homeless and impoverished people.  While the government has tried to solve this problem with money and programs, none have proven effective. 

Since the Lord spoke to me, the Occidental has been transformed in many ways.  The present owner has shut down the bar and they no longer serve alcohol.  We now meet in the renovated recreation centre which has been transformed under the new ownership.  We believe that a personal encounter with Jesus Christ will similarly transform the many lost sheep in this city from the darkness that they live in.  We are planting seeds each weekend that we believe will produce a harvest.  Please join us!

GO! GO! GO!  (See Luke 10) That is the message the Lord has been calling on believers.  I am truly thankful for the group of men and women that are hungry to share the Good News.  We are at a critical point in which we have been called as believers to “Pave the Way” for the coming of the Lord.  Are you ready for this?  Some people, even many believers doubt that this will happen in their lifetime or for many generations to come (I used to think the same way).  Although no one but the Father knows the exact time and date, scripture teaches us “in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. They will say, “Where is this ‘coming’ he promised? Ever since our fathers died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation.” 2 Peter 3:4

The days are growing shorter and we need to UNITE and share the gospel.  People on the streets of Winnipeg are hungry to hear the message.  We have witnessed many people accept Christ as their Saviour and this is truly exciting.  Sure some people are offended but many more are truly grateful that someone is willing to spend time with them and show them they are loved. I used to sit on the sidelines but I am unable to do this any longer. Perhaps you are tired of watching “reality TV” or being a spectator at “sporting events.”  The Lord wants you to get off the couch and start participating.  It is for the courageous and those that truly want to live life to the fullest.  Is has been said that “The glory of God is man fully alive,”. Perhaps you have been dying a slow death.  Waiting for the next job, the next house, the next vacation to bring you joy.  In the end these things will only provide short term happiness.  If you are reading this you know that I am speaking the truth.  I have seen how the pursuit of money can lead to pride, jealousy, envy and sin.  Quit striving for these things and focus on what truly matters, your relationship with our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Once you know him, nothing else will compare.   

 Do you know what I believe is one of the main reasons the Gospel is not being shared?   It is the fact that people are consumed with what others will think.  I say “Who cares!!” It only matters what the Lord thinks of you.  For the Lord says Luke 9:26 “If anyone is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels. “ Wow!  Quit worrying about what others think and seek the Lord.

I believe that if you try witnessing on one occasion, your HEART will change and you will have a revelation as to your purpose in life.

Peace to all of you who are in Christ,

DEREK