Update from Pastor Virgil 09/03/24

Moving Christians from the pew to the harvest.”  Matthew 9:36-38

September 3, 2024

It’s a house of prayer!

Recently, I attended the weekly prayer meeting at our local church. Attendance was sparse as the school year kick-off had many folks occupied. Fortunately, the Holy Spirit showed up as usual. After an hour or so, the intensity of the intercession began to mellow into peace. One of the ladies said, “Pastor, my hands have started to tingle with the anointing, can we ask if anyone needs prayer for healing?” I immediately responded, “Absolutely! Pray for me.”

For over a week, I had been experiencing severe back pain that made it extremely difficult for me to stand up straight or get up out of a chair. I had trouble driving because I couldn’t swivel to the right side to look for oncoming traffic. Being a faith person, I had done all the things I know to do: speak to the pain, pray the prayer of faith, declare that I had received my healing. My back still hurt.

As soon as she laid her hand on me, I felt a warmth like an old-fashioned heating pad. The warmth didn’t stop when she stopped praying. A few minutes later, I got in my car and drove home. I was about to back out of my parking spot when I realized I had swiveled my torso to the right with no pain. That night, I slept like a baby and woke up completely pain free. I am so grateful for His healing power!

I’m sharing this because it’s important to remember that sometimes things get lost in our churches. First, there are so many wonderful ways that God uses to bring healing to His children. In this case, I had prayed and believed, but the delivery came via the anointing and the obedience of one dear sister. Notice we were in a prayer meeting and had been praying in the Spirit for about an hour. It’s also worth noting that this woman was respectful of the flow of authority, even in this small group. She submitted what she felt God had given her to the leader present before she stepped out. We can learn much from this episode.

First, don’t try to limit God to your particular favorite method of healing. You believe, and He heals. Second, there’s something special about passionate corporate prayer. We need to bring united prayer back to our churches. A lot of people have let it slide or even given it up completely. Next, it’s important that people be encouraged to step out when they believe they have something from the Lord. People must be taught and allowed to practice. It’s also important that every “manifestation” be judged. Paul was adamant about this, but we tend to ignore it in favor of the Lone Ranger ministry or the parking lot prophet. That is dangerous. Let all things be done decently and in order.

Do not quench the Spirit. Do not despise prophecies. Test all things; hold fast what is good.

1 Thessalonians 5:19-21 NKJV

Here’s the point. God wants to heal. He also wants us to pray without ceasing. The more we get in His Presence and follow His Spirit, the more of His glory we will see. Get in His presence and expect.

Ministry to the Tormented: Gospel Rescue Mission of Tucson

We got some exciting news recently. Beginning in September, we will be teaching our course on “Ministry to the Tormented” to the staff at the Gospel Rescue Mission here in Tucson. The Mission is a powerful presence in our community through ministry to the homeless. Needless to say, they deal with a broad range of issues. This course is designed to help the helpers with discernment and skills. Here’s the course description:

  • “Much of ministry has to do with helping people who are in great distress. Many of them are tormented by mental and emotional problems that are debilitating. The Church has a long history of ministry to these individuals. The advent of modern medicine has helped us understand some of the physical reasons for such torments. Unfortunately it has also allowed us to avoid the responsibility for those whose problems are spiritual in origin. This course will explore the basis for mental and emotional torment, be it spiritual, mental, or physical. The student will learn how to discern if a person is being tormented because of a physical problem, a mental problem or a demonic entity. He will acquire skills that will assist him in helping the individual regardless of the source of the problem.”

Joining me as instructors for these classes are Pastor John Smith of Faith Christian Fellowship of Tucson, and Rev. Joyce Hughes, Pastoral Care Manager for the Gospel Rescue Mission. Both are graduates of Faith Ministry Training Institute. Several other volunteers and employees at the Mission have been FMTI students. It’s good to see our efforts bearing fruit.

Back to Work in Hermosillo: As the summer winds down, it’s time to head back to Mexico for another IEMFe level 2 session. September 12 & 13 I will be teaching our course on “Preparing to Preach.” It will be a refresher for some of the more seasoned ministers, and hopefully a great help to the younger ones. I think Paul was serious when he said, “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth” (2 Timothy 2:15 ESV). We want to be the best we can possibly be in such an important task.

On Saturday morning, September 14, we will have a breakfast meeting with pastors and leaders. This group has grown up into a group of men and women who love the Word and the Spirit. We have continued monthly via Zoom meetings for leaders since 2021. When we are in Hermosillo, we stream the teaching session so the attendees from other places can benefit. Thank you for making these efforts possible.

Pray as Jesus Prayed:  Last Fall, I began a study of the prayer life of Jesus. As have most of us, I have taught many times on what Jesus taught about prayer, but I never really looked at how He prayed. He lived on earth as a man anointed by the Holy Spirit, and as such He gave us examples of an effective life of prayer. If the uniquely begotten Son found it necessary to pray, then surely you and I need to pray even more. What can we learn from the example of how Jesus prayed? What did he pray for? When did he pray and what happened? How do these examples apply to my own life? There’s lots to learn!

Through August and September, I am teaching this subject at FCF Tucson on Wednesday evenings at 6:30 PM. We started with what it means for His house to becalled “A House of Prayer.” We missed recording a week due to technical issues, then continued with “A Life of Prayer” and “Praying Into Your Purpose.” This week we will be looking into prayer in times of stress, “Praying Under Pressure.” You can watch at the FCF Tucson Facebook page.

Thank You! Together, we are changing lives. Thank you for doing your part to build people of substance for works of power. Please keep us in your prayers.

Financial support can be sent to Faith Christian Fellowship of Tucson  at the address below or given online at www.fcftucson.org. Make checks payable to FCFT and designate missions or pastorvirgil and it will get where it needs to go.

Here are some things you can do to help:

Pray! Pray without ceasing. Pray at every remembrance. Until the day, PRAY!

Virgil and Judy Stokes

3141 W. Ironwood Hill Dr.

Tucson AZ, 85745

520-792-3238

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