revival UPDATE

2014Newsletter of the Revival Fellowship Council ISSUE NO. 25

News, photos and testimonies from Revival

Fellowship assemblies around the world was a significant event on the Brazilian calendar in 2013. Chances are, you might never get to some of our Introduction overseas fellowships so we like to introduce you to far-flung parts of the work and how each got started. In this edition we bring you our special Welcome to the 25th Council Newsletter of the report on The and explain how the Revival Fellowship. Since our last issue there has now 250-strong fellowship grew from just two been plenty of inspiring action around the globe baptisms in 1989. which we would like to share with you. We summarise the 31st PNG Rally held in Kimbe, On the African continent, revival continues to where more than 700 went through the waters of expand as the saints faithfully preach the gospel. baptism, and bring you an astonishing testimony You can read about the new outpost in Congo of the saints who miraculously survived after they Brazzaville (the ‘other’ Congo!) and an exciting were swept out into the Bismarck Sea. new work in Mozambique, across the border from Finally, we show you some snapshots of a num- Malawi. There are also updates on the fellowships ber of camps that happened around the world this in Uganda, Burundi, Zambia and Rwanda. year—great fun and fellowship! We report on rallies in PNG, and Kupang, Please enjoy our 25th issue, and when you have and successful outreaches in the Solomon Islands finished reading, why not share it with a family and . The March Hall Opening in Fortaleza member, colleague or friend? Continued overleaf . . . Spring camps in (above right), and Georgia, USA (below)

Our beliefs 2 PNG 13 Convention 3 Netherlands 16 4 France 17 West Timor 5 Camps 18 Inside Solomon Is. 6 Outreach 19 New Caledonia 7 Contacts 20 8 2 What we believe return ofJesusChrist. nations andgives signsoftheimminent We believe identifies theBible modern healing by thepower ofGod. We believe inprayer for thesickand Holy intheChurch. Spirit We believe of the inthemiraculous gifts in tongues. Spirit, evidence withtheBible ofspeaking of Christ (theChurch) through theHoly We believe we are baptisedinto theBody baptised andreceive theHoly Spirit. resurrection, anddirective to repent, be We believe thegospelofHisdeath, We believe JesusChrist isthesonofGod. We believe oftheBible. intheinfallibility be granted entrance into thekingdom ofGod. wishes to obtain the promise of eternal life, and who anyone for requiredtoday, availableand Jesus andhisdisciples. of preaching the to obediently responded ago years 2000 nearly people where Bible the in You will find these same experiences recorded tongues. in speaking receivingHolySpirit, the aroundworldthe waterin baptised being and newsletter this In Spirit Holy the in and water in Baptism [email protected] of material shouldbesent to: Enquiries andcontributions publication iscopyright. The material inthis Baptism in water and in the Spirit is still is Spirit the in and water in Baptism you will read of people of read will you as theLord ourGod shallcall. dren, andto all arethat even afaroff, asmany ceive thegiftofHoly Ghost. Christ fortheremission of sins,andye shall re- oneofyoubaptized inthenameofJesus every apostles,the Menand brethren, what shall we do? andsaidunto Petertheir heart, andto therest of Now when theyheard this,theywere pricked in Acts 2:37-39 For thepromise is unto you, andto your chil- PeterThen untosaid beand Repent, them, A baptisminAfrica The Vogue assembly choir International Convention

The biannual Revival Fellowship International Convention was held over the June long weekend last year in Adelaide, and as always was a fantastic time of inspiration from the scriptures, powerful testimonies of the power of God in people’s lives, and fellowship with old and new friends from The Elizabeth assembly choir around the world. The theme for the weekend was “Life”, and was brought out time and time again in testimonies of people’s lives completely changed by God. There Spirit with the evidence of speaking in tongues. Convention were countless astonishing testimonies of heal- The convention was well-represented internation- ings from mental illness, infertility, addictions and ally, with over 1200 saints gathering not only from 3 heart disease to name but a few, as well as folk and , but also from Papua testifying of God giving them a sense of purpose New Guinea, , China, Indonesia, , the and direction in life where they had none before. , , the Netherlands, Eng- There were a number of outreach activities as- land, and the USA. sociated with the convention, and the most excit- Our thanks go to the Adelaide saints for all their ing highlight of the weekend was the fifteen peo- hospitality. The next International Convention ple baptised by full immersion, receiving the Holy will be held in June 2015 on the Gold Coast. Communion meeting at the convention

View all sessions online at www.life.adelaiderevival.com Brazil hall opening

The big news from Brazil is that, after the calami- tous collapse of the Fortaleza Hall in the previous Brazil monsoon season, the Brazil Fellowship has been able to rebuild the hall to almost three times its original capacity. The Bible promise that “all things work together for good to them that love God...” proved true yet again. God is truly gracious, and has all in hand. With the help of the mission fund, the Fellowship managed to buy the building 4 next door, pull it down, and erect a large and stur- dy structure capable of seating about 560 people. (They were planning an even bigger structure, but technical restrictions on the foundations meant A couple of the children help Pastor Esteves cut the ribbon they lost some of the hall’s planned length.) It is a wonderful facility and it will certainly be put to good use by the Brazilian saints. Our senior pastor in Brazil, Jorge Esteves, re- ports that local saints worked energetically for “We arrived in the week before the opening and more than six months to construct a building that were impressed by the frenetic pace of activities is now the pride of the Moura Brasil slum district. as the Fellowship raced to complete the hall in Pastor Kevin Quirk and brother Jeff Riddle from time. Assembly folk were working almost around Perth went to attend the grand opening night on the clock in the last few days. It has really turned Sunday 10 March, 2013 and he reports as follows: out to be an outstanding building in this quite poor area. The auditorium holds seats for about 560 people and there is a second story, divided into rooms, to cater for many of the children. There is also another small house at the back, attached to the property, which serves as a type of Sunday school area for the teenage boys. Altogether, it’s a great complex. On the night of the opening, assembly members excitedly filled the hall and spilled out onto the street outside. Pastor Esteves asked two of the as- sembly children to help with the ribbon cutting ceremony (see photo). This was followed by a Three of the teachers who conduct free reading classes three-hour concert, with choruses, entertainment, clowns and a presentation about the assembly’s history. Pastor Esteves concluded the celebrations with a short talk from the gospel of John, chapter 3, and asked for baptisms. Twenty-nine of the visi- tors filed forward to be baptised—almost all had received the Holy Spirit and spoken in tongues. It was a great night, Praise the Lord!” The hall is quite a landmark in this locale, and used most days of the week. Apart from various church meetings, the Fellowship also uses the hall for reading classes. It is having considerable suc- cess helping local saints improve their skill set. The accompanying photo shows three teachers from the church who conduct these free classes. Baptisms in Brazil The new hall fills quickly on opening night At the Kupang Rally in West Timor

He also tells us that the assembly’s banana farm a hospital with a couple of other saints, and two in the country to the southwest at Gadelha is con- more people received the Spirit—an old and very tinuing to support the Fellowship there, including sick lady, and a young man. two full-time pastors. The old lady was listless and non-communica- Revival continues unabated in Brazil. In the tive when we met her, but after she received the week leading up to the hall opening the assembly Spirit she was thrilled and hardly stopped talking. baptised 89 people throughout the fellowship. In The transformation was astonishing.” another recent outreach out in the country area of The Indonesian saints are very appreciative of

Gadelha, there were more than 30 people baptised. Timor West Pastor Esteves is grateful for the contributions from the Mission Fund and sends his thanks to all 5 whoKupang have helpedoutreach the Brazil Fellowship.

Our fellowship in Kupang in the West Timor re- gion of Indonesia recently hosted a rally. The fel- lowship in Kupang is young and enthusiastic. It is led by Pastor Teddy, who moved to Kupang from with his wife Elsa three and a half years ago. Baptism in Kupang There are around twenty-five saints in the Kupang fellowship, and ten children. There are also some Spirit-filled folk in other towns in West Timor— some in Atambua, and another Spirit-filled sister in a village called Bena. Sixteen saints from other assemblies around the world, as well as ten saints from Bali, attend- ed to support the local saints with the rally. Over the week there were twelve folk who received the Holy Spirit and spoke in tongues, and eight bap- tisms. An additional five people were Spirit-filled in the week following the rally. As always, the Lord was confirming his power with signs, wonders and miracles. Pastor Simon Pearce reports: “Just before leaving Timor I visited Group photo at the Kupang Rally A meeting in the Solomon Islands Solomon Islands the international support they received for this 6 outreach, and are planning a number of events for 2014. The Indonesia International Camp in Bali will be held from 28th March to 1st April, and will be preceded a week earlier by a hall opening cer- emony. After the camp, another rally will be held in Kupang from April 5th to 8th. Why not pay our Solomonbrothers and Islands sisters a visit?

The work in the Solomon Islands is growing stead- ily. The main assembly in the capital, Honiara, is a rapidly-expanding group of around 100 saints. Some of the Solomon Islands folk The other established assemblies are located in Malaita province at Dala, Kwai, and Maoa. Two other assemblies have also recently begun in Malaita, in the towns of Ataa and Gwanatha. An- other assembly is planned to open at the end of the year in Afio, the capital of Small Malaita prov- ince. Pastor Tim Rogers from Wollongong has vis- ited the saints in the Solomon Islands a number of times last year. He reports that the fellowship is gaining momentum as the flow of miracles draws visitors to the meetings, and that many of the new saints baptised in Honiara have returned to their home provinces so that the Word is continuing to reach new people. Here are a few recent miracles that Pastor Tim has reported to us: “The father of a recently-saved brother was suf- fering from deteriorating health after being hit by a bus about five years ago, and had been trans- ferred to hospital in Honiara. His son brought him to a meeting, where he had to be carried in, wrapped in a blanket by two brothers. He was shaking uncontrollably until prayer was made over him. The healing that he experienced was Another meeting in Honiara dramatic and immediate—it was as though he grew a foot in height as his limp body regained strength and his eyes became clear. He was then able to walk unaided to be baptised, after which he stood before the church and testified that God had healed him. Another young man under 20 came to fellow- ship after hearing the gospel in the market. He had been suffering from some sort of undiagnosed mental condition for the past 5 years. He was also prayed for at prayer time and kept shielding one eye. After his baptism it was discov- ered that he had been born blind in one eye and

had been completely healed of this blindness and New Caledonia his mental troubles. The next day he was travel- ling back to his home village to tell them of the Witnessing in New Caledonia wonderful news. 7 On another occasion, one of the brothers prayed for a local MP who was about to lose his leg to diabetes. After being healed he came to the Lord— and brought in seven others with him.” The young fellowship has begun well—please Newkeep them Calendonia in your prayers!

You may not have heard of the exciting outreach- ing taking place in New Caledonia. A brother Mark from Adelaide and his wife visited for a holiday in A baptism in the pool early 2013, and preached the Gospel to a number of locals. The people were generally receptive to the word of God, and a number of people were bap- tised. Since then, the brother has returned to New Caledonia on six further occasions to follow up the new saints and continue preaching the Word. In September 2013 a more formal outreach was held, with a number of French-speaking saints from Australia making the trip to Noumea to help spread the Good News and follow up those who had already been baptised. Several people were baptised during the week, with a number of A baptism in the bath people receiving the Holy Spirit and speaking in tongues. The testimony of the newly Spirit-filled saints is clear to their friends and family, who in turn want to know more about the word of God. Over thirty people have been baptised in New Caledonia since the first visit. Praise the Lord! However there is a lot of work to be done in estab- lishing the new saints and helping them to learn to walk in the ways of the Lord. Another outreach is planned for early 2014, and any French-speaking saints are encouraged to join in and help our new brothers and sisters. Some of the folk in New Calendonia Africa

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The saints gather for a photo at the end of the Pan African Rally

What’s happening in Africa?

not only by different colonial roots (Belgian and Pastor Ron Carslake reports from Cape Town: “In French), but by the Congo River the second long- Africa the Word of God is on the move as the Gos- est river in Africa. pel message continues to spread from village to Cape Town’s Pastor Ron Carslake reports that village. Fear and superstition are being replaced there is a new outpost in Brazzaville: with joy in the Holy Ghost, and testimonies of “At the beginning of August a Congolese brother healing and provision are bringing confidence in named Gildas, living in Zimbabwe with his wife God’s promises. In this report we bring you news Agnes, returned to his home in Brazzaville in or- of a new outpost in Congo Brazzaville (the “other” der to renew his passport so that he could travel Congo) and a burgeoning new work in Mozam- to Kenya for the rally at the end of the month. He’s bique, as well as updates on some of the other fel- still waiting for his passport almost 3 months Thelowships “other” around Congo—Congo the continent.” Brazzaville later! Unfortunately Gildas missed the rally, but in the mean time he’s been making good use of the opportunity to preach the gospel. Thus far 18 You might be wondering at this point, just how people have been baptised and Spirit-filled, and many Congos are there? The answer: two! The now they’re holding meetings every Wednesday larger, more central of the two is the Democratic and Sunday. Republic of Congo, or D.R.C.. The smaller of the Gildas came to the Lord almost six years ago in two Congos, on the western edge of the DRC, is Cape Town, but December last year he moved to the Republic of the Congo, more commonly known Pastors and leaders at the rally in Kenya as “Congo Brazzaville” (Brazzaville is the coun- try’s capital). The two countries are separated

A meeting at the Pan African Rally Zimbabwe with his wife and young son to preach the gospel in Mutare where Agnes was born. In the eight months that they have been there a

small fellowship of a dozen people has been es- Africa tablished. Gildas is keen to get back to them, but nevertheless his extended stay in Brazzaville, courtesy of his government, has been a bonus to the new saints in making sure that they are well Ugandafounded on the word of God.” 9 Revival continues in Uganda. Pastor Joseph Mba- lu from Kenya and Pastor Esron Ruturwa from Rwanda teamed up to visit a town in the west of Fourteen baptisms in Burundi the country called Fort Portal in October this year. During their visit, 17 people were baptized and 13 of those received the Holy Spirit, speaking in other tongues. The new saints come from different ar- eas and many live far away from the other groups, which creates some logistical challenges. However, Panthey Africanare rejoicing Rally in their experience.

The rally this year was in Makindu, a city in south- eastern Kenya. Around 400 saints attended. Three days of fellowship, testimonies, talks and reports of blessing and continued revival from around Preaching in the new hall at Mutaho, Burundi the continent encouraged all in attendance. One theme that speakers came back to through- out the rally was the importance of the African saints pitching in to help each other across na- tional borders. This has become so important re- cently, particularly in newer revivals like Malawi and Mozambique. There was plenty of cross-country fellowship with Pastors Eddie and Milan coming from Zam- bia, Br Terrence from Zimbabwe, Br Desire from Burundi, Pr Esron from Rwanda, Br Teddy from New saints in Songore, Burundi Liberia, Br Emile from D.R.C. and leaders Isaac and Leaders meeting in Rwanda Watson from Malawi. Pr Brian Allen from Mount Gambia and Gordon and Jackie Jackson from Mel- Burundibourne represented Australia at the rally.

“It was an Acts 19 again,” said Pastor Brian Allen in September, referring to the towns of Songore and Mutaho in Burundi’s north. A few months prior to the Australian pastor’s visit, 105 people had been baptised after brothers Desiree and Fabrice had preached the salvation gospel to them. In Songore, the candidates for baptism walked a 24 km round trip to the water, and from Mutaho the water was a 5km downhill walk, and 10km back by the road. God honoured the commitment of those being fully immersed in water by filling them with the Holy Spirit, with the Africa accompanying sign of speaking in other tongues. Pastor Brian reported another 27 baptisms in the area during their visit. A month later, Brother Raimundo visiting from South Australia observed another 14 people bap- tised and over 100 saints attending the meetings in the new Mutaho hall. Another new hall will need 10 Four baptised in Ntcheu, Malawi to be built on land already purchased in the Son- gore area to cater for the new saints there. There is strong potential for ongoing growth in this area Rwandaof Burundi. Praise the Lord!

The church in Kigali has been busy negotiating with the government over land and registration. Earlier last year, Pastor Esron was able to enter into a contract to construct the foundations of a hall on the assembly land at Gasogi, which is to serve as the Fellowship’s official Head Office. Com- mencement of work has been delayed, however, Chimbewa, Malawi, saints after the Sunday meeting until building approval is granted, which cannot be granted until the assembly has Permanent Reg- istration, which cannot be granted until we build something on our land…! Pr Ron Carslake says, “The Rwandan authorities have decided that they must first grant Permanent Registration, to which end we are currently pro- viding supporting documentation from Australia to prove our bona fides as a church organisation. However, in the meantime the work continues to grow there and we have just commenced work on yet another two small halls in new areas where the saints had been prevented from holding meet- ings because they had no permanent meeting After a meeting in Mozambique place. The meetings are back on track.” There are currently around 280 brothers and Malawisisters in fellowship in Rwanda.

Since last reporting to you about the fellowship in Malawi in 2012, the group has enjoyed wonder- ful growth with 18 centres now in operation from Lilongwe in the centre of the country to the south- ern regions beyond Blantyre. There has been an increase in members from a couple of hundred in 2012 to well over 750 folk baptised and Spirit filled now. Through teaching and encouragement from Kenyan and Zambian pastors, the saints are being Prayer for the Holy Spirit well grounded in their new life and good men are emerging to lead the work forward. Africa

Baptism of James A group photo after the baptisms

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Apart from the local revival, one of the wonder- baptized them all. It was not easy to travel with ful things to emerge from the Malawi fellowship the hired bicycles. Some parts of the road were has been the recent spread of the Word across the full of water and muddy. We took off our shoes Mozambiqueborder to Portuguese-speaking Mozambique. on several occasions, folding up our trousers as we crossed over streams, pools of water on the roads and shallow swampy places. This period of During one of Kenyan Pastor Charles’ evangelical the year it’s still raining heavily, and transport to visits to Malawi in November 2012, a man named some remote areas is difficult. There were nine Isaac from neighbouring Mozambique was bap- more centres that wanted us to visit them, and tised and received the Holy Spirit. After spending these preaching points are widely scattered in the another week with Pastor Charles, he returned to province of Zambezia. We believe God will open his home across the border and began preaching doors for us to reach the unreachable.” the gospel to his family and friends. From these Many of the new saints live in remote locations small beginnings, a wonderful revival has broken where there are no roads on the map. out. Subsequent visits to Mozambique have resulted In February, Pastors Charles of Kenya and Eddie in many obeying the gospel and there are now 11 of Zambia made their first visit to Mozambique at groups who are a part of the Revival Fellowship. Isaac’s request to assist in preaching the Word. At the end of October, only eight months later, the Mozambique has laws which prevent a total number of people baptised and filled with church commencing activities until it has been the Holy Spirit was 206. Transport difficulties and registered. To be registered, a church must have unfriendly weather have prevented leaders from at least 500 members. travelling to six areas where many more are await- “When we heard of this, we reasoned ‘how ing baptism! could we register an organization without bap- tizing people first?’” Pastor Eddie said. “Hence, The roads were a little wet in Mozambique on 13th February 2013, we held our first meeting in Milange, the home of brother Isaac. We bap- tized seven people in Milange that week. While conducting baptisms, there was heavy rain that al- most hindered our programme, but we simply and silently prayed to God to protect us from the heavy downpour. Indeed our prayer was answered. It only rained on the other side of the stream along the mountain belt. Five received the Holy Ghost with the evidence of speaking in other tongues. We praised the Lord for that. On Thursday 14th February, we travelled to Manganila, 15km from Milange on hired bicycles. We presented the salvation message, and 28 men and women believed the Word of God and we Zambia

The saints in Zambia continue to preach the gospel

Africa and are seeing revival and miracles throughout the country. There have been several trips to Zambia by Aus- tralian brethren and leaders during 2013 and all re- ported baptisms and people receiving the Holy Spirit. Baptism in Zambia To help with the growing work, three more experi- enced local leaders were recently appointed as pas- 12 tors. They in turn are supported by numerous leaders and helpers to cover the 41 centres including over In October, Pastors Meshack and Charles of Ken- 1100 saints in Zambia. ya held several meetings with these new young On another note, Pastor Eddie’s motorbike has Christian men to teach and encourage them vari- taken a trouncing over the last few years (you could ous aspects of leadership and walking with the fit a truck in some of the potholes!) and has well and Lord including running the communion service, truly come to the end of its practical life. So the Fel- prayer in the Spirit and behaviour in the church. lowship is looking at obtaining a second-hand 4WD Pastor Ron Carslake from South Africa reports to help him move about the country to visit his far- that the Fellowship in Mozambique has just been flung assemblies. accorded provisional registration status from In many of the centres, low literacy rates and lim- the government. “There are one or two “i”s to be ited access to Bibles make it difficult for the saints dotted and “t”s to be crossed, but the fellowship to read the Word of God for themselves. Others are is now officially recognised there. As part of the geographically isolated. However, the gospel mes- process we’ve also obtained a small piece of land sage continues to go out, and God’s power is evident where a hall will be built to serve as their head- where the truth is preached. quarters.” Please pray for the continued growth and sta- Pastor Godfrey preaches about healing to those who come for prayer bility of the church in Mozambique. Rally

The 31st annual PNG Rally was held in Kimbe, the

capital of the province of West New Britain. Over P. N.G . 2000 members of the fellowship were in attend- ance, including an Australian contingent. The tra- ditional march of singing, rejoicing saints preced- ed the opening ceremony which this year included a Sunday School drama performance. 771 people responded to the gospel by be- ing baptised, and many received the Holy Spirit, 13 speaking in tongues, at the time of their baptism or in the prayer line. Pastor Joe Abel from New South Wales reports: “The prayer lines were moving. Starting with one Many people came forward for prayer or two coming forward, a trickle soon became a flood as over 2000 people surged forward for prayer, many with very serious issues. Hope re- placed despair as men and women heard testimo- converts are baptised around the country. Pastor nies of others who had been extremely ill and had Godfrey tells us that he has tallied up baptisms been healed by the power of God.” from locations that have phones and found that Many testified immediately afterwards of being there were 11,453 baptisms in total throughout healed in the prayer line. PNG in calendar 2013! Astonishingly, by one reck- The crowd heard testimonies of brethren who oning, almost 2% of the population of PNG are had been healed of AIDS. One woman, who was members of the fellowship. skin and bone three years ago, can now testify of The media has become a great vehicle for con- God’s healing power in her life (see photo below). veying the gospel across the country. Recently Brother Kevin Aputi was the first member of the a talk back radio personality was baptised and fellowship to have a confirmed healing from AIDS filled with the Holy Spirit, speaking in tongues. in 1999. Since then, there have been over 200 cases He has interviewed Pastor Godfrey Wippon on of healing from AIDS amongst members of the fel- his show. There are also regular live TV and radio lowship in PNG. God is truly confirming his word broadcasts of the Port Moresby Sunday meetings. with signs, wonders and miracles. Congratulations to Sister Elizabeth and Pastor Before the rally began, the Australian visitors Godfrey on the birth of their second daughter, Ke- were treated to a two-day excursion which includ- zia! (See Job, chapter 42, for the name’s origin.) ed a night on an uninhabited island, where they Pastor Godfrey messaged to all the saints, ”New ate fresh fish for breakfast and slept in shelters Year’s greetings to you all and God bless!” erected by some of the locals. One of the Austral- Healed of AIDS: Brother Kevin Aputi (healed in 1999), and a more recent testimony at the rally. ian saints said, “It was a unique experience and a chance to meet the locals and appreciate their way of life. Unexpected events provided great op- portunities to preach the gospel to the locals who would wander out of the forest to sell us coconuts and find out why we were there!” The love and unity between the brethren and the power of the Holy Spirit was evident and the rally was a great time of fellowship, power PNGand blessing Revival for continues all involved.

While the annual rally is a feature on the PNG cal- endar, revival is in no way confined to this time and place. Each week, on average 200 to 300 new P. N.G .

Bismarck Sea

Papua Some of the Bialla boat passemgers sitting in the boat New Guinea

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PNG Bialla Boat Testimony

The 23-foot boat from the outside In July 2011, 16 people were miraculously protected and provided for when their 23-foot boat (see pho- tos on the left) was washed out into the Bismarck Sea. The locals all tell us it is the first time in liv- ing memory anyone has ever returned safely after drifting out into the Bismarck in a small boat. Fourteen church leaders, some of their wives and two crew were on their way from Bialla, West New Britain, PNG to Kavieng (New Prov- ince) for a church leadership training conference, when their boat ran out of fuel. They spent eight Happy surviviors of the eight day ordeal days and nights drifting at sea. District Pastor Kevin Omo tells us, “Halfway to Open Bay, we met heavy rain and it became dark. The rain stopped but we had no idea where we were. We could see an island. We were trying our best to get to this island but it was getting dark. We ran out of fuel around the same time and then we started to drift. We were somewhere in the deep blue sea.” “When we ran out of fuel, our pastor told us to pray in tongues as in 1 Corinthians 14:2,” one of the leaders remembers. Sister Lyneth from the Revival fellowship in Bi- alla was also on the boat. “We drifted on until Tuesday morning. On that Tuesday morning we looked around and we could not see land. We had no idea where we were or where we were head- ing. We just sat in the boat, singing choruses and praising God. We were happy as we drifted. We just went wherever the waves took us. There were Preparing for baptism at the PNG Rally very big waves.” Kavieng

Bismarck Sea

Latanga P. N.G . Open Bay Island

Madang Bialla

New Britain Island 15

16 people spent eight days and nights adrift in the Bismarck Sea

“Whenever I had doubts, leader Michael would a tarpaulin, and tipping it into a 20L container that say to me, ‘In rough seas, rough winds, heavy rain, was on the boat. When the container was full the God is in action.’” rain stopped. “We could see land but how could we get there? It “Now we had food and water we weren’t wor- was now Wednesday. The sea was calm again and ried anymore. We continued singing choruses and we made up our minds to use the planks that are praising God out in the ocean,” says Sister Lyneth. used as seats to make paddles out of them. We On Saturday morning, the saints woke at around paddled and paddled (towards a distant island) 4am and began to pray again. Around 5am they all Wednesday until it got dark. Around 6pm heavy saw two islands, and began to row towards them. wind met us and a northeast wind blew us fur- Six men paddled for two and a half days, and the ther out to sea. On Thursday morning we couldn’t boat reached an uninhabited island at 5:30pm on see land and we decided to stop paddling and go Monday. Here, the group were able to drink from wherever the waves would take us.” fresh coconuts and there was sufficient mobile The group had no food or water for days. phone signal to make a phone call. “Monday through to Thursday we were not Rescuers arrived that night, to take the group thirsty or hungry. Whenever we felt weak, the to a nearby Pisin Island where they were given leaders prayed over us. We got our strength from food and water. prayer alone,” Sister Lyneth recalls. “We rested and told the people on the island On Thursday morning God—Jehovah Jireh— on how God looked after us out in the ocean. We provided. A large turtle swam up to the boat, shared the word of God with the people on that and simply floated there for some time. Some island. They can see this miracle of God; it is a big of the men pulled the turtle into the boat by its testimony. That night we returned to Navo beach,” flippers. They used the upturned turtle shell as a says Leader Timothy. makeshift fire pit, and broke up some planks from Everyone was astonished. There are plenty of the boat to use for wood to cook it. cases of folk being lost at sea. But this was the first When the turtle meat was cooked they tried time anyone had heard of people returning safely to eat it. after drifting out into the large Bismarck Sea in a “For five days we had no water to drink,” Sister small boat. Lyneth says. “Our lips were too dry to swallow the “I gave thanks to God for bringing me safely back meat. We looked to the heavens. We called out to land. I am alive and I say ‘thank you God’.” to God: ‘We need water!’ After 30 minutes, dark After this incident, the skipper and the crew- clouds hovered over us, but it was sunny every- man were baptised and received the Holy Spirit, where else. Heavy rain fell for 30 minutes.” speaking in tongues, and the astonishing testi- The group collected the water by spreading out mony has been repeated throughout the region. SPECIAL FEATURE

Introducing the Dutch Assemblies

Our vibrant Fellowship in the Netherlands started in 1989 with the baptisms of just two people— husband and wife, Otto and Tineke Visser. Today the Fellowship has 250 people spread over three locations. The story of the Dutch Fellowship goes back to 1974, when Pieter and Netty Visser moved to Aus- tralia from Holland. Three years later Pieter and Netherlands Netty were born again in the Revival Fellowship in Adelaide and felt a desire to make the gospel 16 First camp in the Spring of 1990 known in their Dutch homeland. When Pieter and Netty visited family in Hol- land in 1989, Pieter’s brother Otto and Otto’s wife Tineke were baptised and received the Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking in tongues. A few months later, in January 1990, Pieter and Netty returned to Holland and meetings started with seven adults and two young boys in the house of Ineke, Pieter’s sister. It was at the UK summer camp in August 1990 that the nine member Dutch assembly developed a vision of what was possible North Holland house meeting 1991 (with visitors) in the Netherlands. In 1995 the fledgling assembly moved into a new hall in Dordrecht and Pastor John Kuhlmann came from Australia to cut the ribbon. The as- sembly grew and attempted to open a new front half an hour away towards the east in a city called Gorinchem. Some people were baptised there but God had other ideas and his big finger pointed to Rotterdam! After using a squatters’ building, an old Baptist church hall and the house of an assembly member, Early Rotterdam meetings in the Squatters building Rotterdam 2004—freezing in the old Baptist Church building Pastor Pieter and Netty Visser Tineke and Otto Visser France

the Fellowship finally managed in 2005 to buy a property in Rotterdam North with two levels of 17 350-square-metres each. Next, with Rotterdam es- tablished, it became apparent that another fron- tier was beckoning, this time close to Amsterdam Opening of the Dordrecht hall in a satellite city called Almere. The new group started holding its meetings in an Almere school but were told at the beginning of 2012 that the school venue was no longer available. In October 2012, the Fellowship managed to buy another property there with capacity of up to 200 people. The new hall was opened in January 2013. Over 24 years, nearly 2000 people have been baptised in the Revival Fellowship in Holland and there are new possibilities opening up even as this article goes to print, some in the east of the coun- try and also over in Antwerp, Belgium, a brand new centre, where 12 people have been baptised over the last couple of months. The Dutch assemblies’ sense of faithfulness and The Rotterdam hall at the time of opening focus on the Lord’s business has been an inspira- tion to many fledgling assemblies around . We are grateful for their continued encourage- Spreadingment and support the gospelboth in Europe in France and abroad.

It was a blessed and busy outreach once again this year in Angers. A big “Merci!” goes out from the French saints to all the visitors who supported this event and made it a fantastic time of fellowship. Of course, it wasn’t all about eating croissants and Opening of the Almere hall baguettes—24 helpers distributed 8000 invita- tions to the people of Angers, inviting them to a Saturday night presentation called ‘The Real Jesus’. The saints’ hard work was rewarded with new folk attending the Saturday night meeting, includ- ing a fellow who had already been Spirit-filled in Angola, and another man from Bali who was later baptised and received the Holy Spirit in Angers, and is thrilled with his experience. The efforts of the French saints in Angers con- tinue to bear fruit. Consider joining in the action next year! The new hall in Almere Camps

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Georgia Spring Camp, USA

Camps Georgia Spring Camp, USA

Tasmanian Easter Camp The small fellowship in Athens, Georgia hosted an Easter Camp at a beautiful state park. There were Pastor Brian Hakof tells us: “Our Tasmanian Camp 37 visitors from all over the world, coming from was at Camp Clayton, a beautiful coastal location Holland, Aruba, Australia, and of course with many activities and facilities for a group of other saints from the USA as well. The camp ran saints to fellowship and have a good time. We wel- for four days, and the theme was from 1 Chroni- come visitors and hope we can encourage saints cles 16:11, “Seek the Lord and His strength, seek His from all around Australia to come and join us for face continually.” A lot of the talks and testimonies EasterBowen, or Far Christmas North Queenslandcamps in the future.” were about the Lord’s love, and the saints were edified and encouraged through the fellowship UKand Kids’ ministry. Camp Easter Camp at Bowen FNQ was blessed with great fellowship, plenty of sunshine and sur- rounded by beautiful beaches. The morning meet- In October, about forty children and helpers ings were held under the shade of the trees on braved the usual mix of northern English weather the foreshores of Queen’s Beach, and the evening and had a fantastic time at the annual UK Kids’ meetings were in a local hall. Folk from Cairns, Camp. Pastor Warren Sharrock reports: “Lots of Townsville and Mackay attended the camp this mud, lots of laughter, and lots of fellowship. The year. For Easter 2014, why not say, “Gowin Bowen!” theme was ‘The Joy of the Lord is your strength’, and I think the camp well and truly proved that The Irish host saints are grateful for all the one. The kitchen crew made meal times very spe- support from international visitors and encour- cial, and the gala concert night to end the camp age this year’s camp goers to get in early to avoid was just what you would expect: loads of laughs Rollingdisappointment! Outreach and a clear, strong spiritual message. There were two new kids at camp, both praying to receive the

Spirit.”Perth’s Next Generation “Rangers” Camp In 2014, we’re planning a National Rolling Out- Outreach reach for fellowships in Australia and New Zea- land. Lots of revival is occurring around the world, Brother Steve Carr reports: “A great time was but let’s all pray that the Lord sends some to our had by all who attended the WA Next Generation corner of the vineyard! Events kicked off in Janu- 19 Camp held at the Beverley camp site at the end of ary—check out the programme thus far in the September. A packed 4 days of fun activities and table below. lessons was enjoyed by the thirty 10 to 14 year old We’ve also decided we’ll start with a 21 day children centred around the theme of this year’s ‘Daniel Fast’ from January 26th to February 15th, camp, “Our Daily Bread”. A highlight of the camp culminating in a National Day of Prayer and Fast- for all is the prayer time following each morning’s ing on Saturday February 15th for revival in 2014. mini meeting with 3 of the children in attendance We hope you can join in. receiving the Holy Spirit during the prayer time You are invited to help out with outreaching ef- this year. The camp culminated with the grand www.revivalfellowship.com.auforts not only in your home city, but also in other finale ‘Colour Run’ style competition in which cities nationwide. More information is available at the children (and many helpers) ensured all who participated were well and truly covered in multi- • MayJan 17–19God bless Adelaide, our efforts SA and bring revival! Irelandcoloured Camp powder and paint.” • Feb 6–17 Hobart & Launceston, TAS • Feb 13–16 Mt Gambier/Warrnambool • Mar 13–16 Ballarat, VIC The short, but action-packed camp took place • Mar 15 Hunter Valley, NSW in Kippure Estate in County Wicklow, around 45 • Apr 25–27 Wollongong, NSW minutes from Dublin at the end of October. The • May 2–4 Sydney, NSW idyllic 240 acres of woodland, set against wild and • Jun 26–30 Darwin, NT beautiful mountains near to the River Liffey made • Jul 3–6 Cairns, QLD for an ideal backdrop for the saints to gather and • Aug 15–18 Townsville, QLD(NT Rally) rejoice in God’s creation and blessings. • Sep 17–21 Perth, WA This year was the biggest Ireland Camp to date, • Oct 17–19 Melbourne, VIC with eight holiday homes acquired to accommo- • Oct 25–27 Auckland, (WANZ Rally) date the 65 saints from the UK, Ireland, Holland, • Nov 1–2 Wellington, NZ (Melb/Tas) Hungary and Australia. • Nov 8–9 Christchurch, (NZNZ Rally) The camp theme was “Come & See”, inspired by John 1:45-46, Psalms 34:8 and Isaiah 2:3. One of the Irish saints says, “Camp was a reminder that any one of us can extend an invitation to ‘Come and see’ but also that for us, this is the place to be. Taste and see that The Lord is good; come and be taught of The Lord.” There were some really encouraging talks and testimonies based on the theme, some skits and songs for entertainment and a couple of hours outdoors exploring the vast woodlands. Some evangelical activities on the Saturday in the local district of Tallaght generated some contacts who were interested in the gospel message. A meeting at the Ireland Camp AUSTRALIA Bendigo Pr John Redford 5447-4194 Nth London Pr Martin Polhill +44 (0) 20 8954-3483 Canberra Pr Bob Beverley 6282-9935 Geelong Pr Scott Nobel 5241-8618 • Pr Warren Sharrock +44 (0) 20 8287-7213 Melbourne Pr Darryl Williams 9877-9767 Yorkshire Pr Bob Hutton +44 (1) 977-550-629 NEW SOUTH WALES Warrnambool Rob Peterson 5561-3834 Ireland Tom O’Brien 00353-1610-0552 Albury Pr Rob Angus 6040-2094 Armidale Pr Jeff Mason 6775-2515 WESTERN AUSTRALIA FIJI Central Coast Pr Peter Moore 0417 856 129 Bunbury Pr Tim Cope 9796-0889 Pr Ilaitia Rokoua 623-6022 Coffs Harbour Pr Lyle Willis 6658-4774 Perth Pr Kevin Quirk 9437-5533 Goulburn Pr Craig Southwell 4845-1495 Contacts AFRICA Contact Pr Colin Tan (Singapore) 6584-7408 Lismore Pr Peter Miller 6624-4491 Burundi Pr Désiré Niyoyitungira +257-799-40793 Merimbula Pr Grant Medway 4474-0037 INDONESIA Congo (Brazzaville) (Ph: Pr Ron Carslake, Cape Town) Moruya Pr Grant Medway 4474-0037 Bali Pr William Wijaya 62 361 800-7900 20 Congo (DRC) (contact Pr Ron Carslake, Cape Town) Newcastle/Lake M. Pr Mark Hall 4946-1687 Kupang Pr Teddy 62 811 395-879 Kenya Pr Samuel Mwanzia +254-721-590-809 Hunter Valley Jim Fulker 4930-8340 Liberia (contact Pr Ron Carslake, Cape Town) NEW ZEALAND Port Macquarie Pr Greg Frost 6582-5074 Malawi (contact Pr Ron Carslake, Cape Town) Auckland Pr Wayne Edwards 277-2940 Shoalhaven Chris Brown 0402-143-790 Mozambique (contact Pr Ron Carslake, Cape Town) Bay of Plenty Pr Alan Butler 573-5840 Sydney Pr Andrew Riggs 0408-088-355 Rwanda Pr Esron Ruturwa +250-788-416-785 Christchurch Pr Mark Wattchow 35-888-29 Tumut Pr Darrell Griffiths 6948-2514 South Africa Pr Ron Carslake +27-21-788-5709 New Plymouth Pr Bryan Smith 757-5792 Wagga Wagga Pr Graham Webster 6933-1461 Uganda (contact Pr Ron Carslake, Cape Town) Wellington Pr Sascha Bramao 586-4466 Wollongong Pr Tim Rogers 041 883-2391 Zambia PAPUA NEW GUINEA NORTHERN TERRITORY Kitwe Pr Eddie Kamavu +260-977-759-598 Pr Godfrey Wippon 7275-1651 Alice Springs Pr John Mennie 8952-5717 Solwezi Pr Millan Nduwa +260-977-574-521 Darwin Pr Daniel Lee 8945-6909 Zimbabwe Terrence Benhura +263-773-647-945 PHILIPPINES Pr Joseph Cantong 239-3099 QUEENSLAND BRAZIL Brisbane Pr Brad Smith 3889-3879 Pr Jorge Esteves +55 (85) 3262-1101 SINGAPORE Bundaberg Pr Bill Walsh 4153-1740 (Or contact in U.S.A. Pr David Elliott (559) 301-9957) Pr Colin Tan 6584-7408 Cairns Pr Neil Jenner 07 4092-6564 CANADA Gold Coast Pr Terry Coles 07 5502-9106 Pr Mark Lindal 250-479-0877 Contact Pr Colin Tan (Singapore) 6584-7408 Mackay Pr Arthur Marshman 041 779-0548 Maranoa Pr Tom Krahenbring 4622-2876 EUROPE Maryborough Kerry Irlam 4123-1717 Pr Oldrich Treml 499 898 216 Athens Pr David Elliott (559) 222-8843 Rockhampton Pr Bill Allen 0409-623-347 France Alain Artus (5) 4996-3195 Fresno Pr David Elliott (559) 222-8843 Sunshine Coast Pr Bill Allen 0409-623-347 (Contact Pr Pieter Visser – Netherlands) San Pedro Pr David Elliott (559)301-9957 Toowoomba Pr Geoff Boyle 0438 136 244 Hungary Pr Chris Kaye 309-321-847 Townsville Pr Chris Thomasson 4723-6512 Netherlands Pr Pieter Visser 010-414-1856 Contact Pr Bob Beverley, Canberra Almere Pr René Janssen 036 848-6567 SOUTH AUSTRALIA Dordrecht Pr Pieter Visser +31786146173 Adelaide Pr John Kuhlmann 8293-1301 Rotterdam Pr Ben Visser +31107532467 Coober Pedy Pr Deane Clee 8672-5777 Stephan Regli (031) 972-2221 Mt Gambier Pr Colin Wooldridge 08 8732-4137 Port Pirie Pr Greg Drage 8633-1660 Poole Jimmy Masau 07962-61-4865 Whyalla Pr Mark Wickstein 8645-2220 Medway Pr Steve Murphy 01634-314386 TASMANIA North West Pr Lee Finney 07776-273549 Hobart Ian Watt 6278-2624 Liverpool Denis Murphy (0151) 530-1236 Launceston Pr Brian Hakof 6330-2118 Manchester Jamie Byrne (0161) 950-9888 West London Pr Yomi Okunola +44 (0) 20 8572-1107 VICTORIA Ballarat Rob Sinclair 0418 824-841

Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. ACTS 2:38 www.revivalfellowship.org