Thoughts for Life: #18 At Times God's Convicting Power Fell

Dr. Wesley L. Duewel: People began to weep as they walked along. Some were prostrated by the power of God while they were alone in their fields or at their weaving looms. Some walked the roads at night, unable to sleep because of such deep conviction of sin. (Google image, When God Breaks In).

A group of Christians gathered one night to pray for the people still unsaved and apparently unmoved by God. About midnight Duncan turned to the local blacksmith and asked him to pray.

Suddenly the whole house shook as if by an earthquake. Dishes rattled, and "wave after wave of Divine power swept through the building." (Woolsey, Duncan Campbell, 133). Rev. Campbell pronounced the benediction at once.

As they left the building the whole community seemed to have come alive with an awesome awareness of God's presence. Night after night people found God in their homes.

In one service, "with the force of a hurricane the Spirit of God swept into the building." (An almost identical event happened in the ministry of Andrew Murray in south Africa.)

Instantly many were prostrated before God, while others wept or sighed. The effect spread throughout the island, and people hitherto indifferent were conquered by the Holy Spirit.

In his later years, like Finney, Duncan gave himself to leadership in a Bible college. At times students trembled as he opened the Word of God to them.

"There was something sacred about the way he used
God's name, and often the atmosphere of heaven filled
the room when, with reverence and tenderness,
he simply said, 'Jesus.' We felt we were standing on
holy ground."

While Duncan appreciated all manifestations of God and heaven, he was not a charismatically inclined person. He remained a Scottish Presbyterian churchman. He did not encourage people to seek spectacular manifestations.

He did not want people to get their attention focused on emotion and off the awesome majesty of God. He had received a mighty infilling of the Holy Spirit and lived in the fullness of the Spirit. But he believed that the most important thing about anyone was the silent influence of his personality filled with the fullness of God.

To sit by Duncan Campbell and hear him humbly recount some
of his experiences of God's supernatural working—even to the pointing to the spot where we sat as he told what God had done at that very place—or to hear him recount to a group of ministers, by my request, some of these tremendous scenes of God's presence and power, was to have one's heart revived and to glimpse anew that we have learned only the ABC's of all God longs to do for us.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Used by permission of the author and Duewel Literature Trust, Inc., Greenwood, Indiana. Creative reading style by Jean.

Ablaze for God
#18 At Times God's Convicting Power Fell
by Dr. Wesley L. Duewel(pp. 70 - 73) ZondervanPublishingHouse

How to pray when you
don't know what to pray

Our prayer today-

Father, may it become so, that our preachers will have to stop preaching at times in order to allow Your Spirit to move in our hearts and souls!
Duncan Campbell didn't desire various spectacular manifestations in his meetings, but that a deep moving of Your Spirit would convict of sin, and make changes in their way of living as a result.
Although Campbell had received a mighty infilling of Your Spirit, Father, he didn't want the people to get their attention focused on emotion and off Your awesome majesty.
It is our desire that our pastors seek You to where they'll be filled with Your Holy Spirit too. May they have the same desire as Campbell had; to help their people focus on Your awesome majesty!
We pray for Your filling us too, Father God. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.

Today's Bible verses-

"Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and
with all thy getting get understanding" Prov. 4:7 (KJV).

“How excellent is thy loving-kindness, O God! therefore
the children of men put their trust under the shadow of
thy wings" Ps. 36:7 (KJV).

"And let the beauty of the LORD our God be upon us:
and establish thou the work of our hands upon us; yea,
the work of our hands establish thou it" Ps. 90:17 (KJV).

Today's quote-

Larry Lea- "As soldiers in God's army, we too must be trained to move through the panic to the place of action. We must confront worry for what it is—a trick of the enemy that delays us, saps our spiritual energy, stalls our efforts and immobilizes God's people. We must make a conscious, determined decision not to worry at the first word of an emergency or a problem." (p. 113 of The Weapons of Your Warfare.)

Today's popular post-

Making My Heart Sit Down

Mary Southerland shares with us, “Every minute of every day is either wasted or invested. Since the Bible contains over 400 verses about time, we can safely assume that time management is important to God. In fact, it is a spiritual discipline . . . "

Today's question-

What can we do to strengthen our witness for Christ?

1). Love God with all your heart. (See Matt. 22:37). We are to cling to God with all our hearts and faithfully look to Him to guide us through all our trials.
2). Love your neighbors. Your love for them depends on your love for God. Greet people. Weep with those who weep. (See Matt. 5:7).
3). Serve the community. Find ways. (See Matt. 5:16.
4). Pray for your neighbors. (See 1 Peter 2:17; Luke 6:35).
5). Live honorably with children who parrot us. (See 1 Peter 2:1.)
6). Guard your tongue. (See James 3:1). Tongues reveal what is hidden in our hearts. (See Prov. 18:21).
7). Share the Gospel - Jesus can fix us. We can overcome the world! Be ambassadors for Christ. (See 1 John 5:4; 2. Cor. 5:20; Matt. 28:19, 20).

List of recent sermons of CFC ministers. CFC Potsdam church has a live service at 10 am Sunday's for shut-ins. If for some reason you can't make it to the church you usually attend, click on the above link, and still get fed!

Upcoming posts-

Our Challenge: A Sanctified Life

16th- Saturday's post by Jean Oathout

#19 You Need Repeated Empowering

19th- Tuesday's post by Dr. Wesley L. Duewel

#20 Do You Lack Spiritual Power?

21st- Thursday's post by Dr. Wesley L. Duewel

Light Us Up!

23rd- Saturday's post by Lisa Buffaloe