from prayer to obedience

Hi allYou will recall the fantastic time we had during March when we joined with the folk at Times Square Church in a three day fast called by Pastor Carter.Well at the end of that time I knew the Lord was leading me to plant a church in my locality, and to bring with me as many of the small house group staretd by may father with us as possible.I have prayed through this vision and shared my burden with them and praise to Jesus last Sunday we launched " CELBRIDGE PENTECOSTAL CHURCH". We have begun with a small group of twelve who have all caught the vision and last Sunday a guy who has been unchurched for 4 years and who is known to us joined in with us and brought his teenage son.Please pray for us in these early days that we can really see the Lord rule and add to us. We will be preaching and teaching down classical Pentecostal lines, seeking for our people to live Holy and ordered lives, as well as having a full pentecostal expression. As Ravenhill puts it in "Why revival tarries" we seek Pentecost not Pentecostalism.Since March I have also been priviledge to begin sharing once a week at Irelands first Teen Challenge residential centre. This is called Teach Shechem. Teach is the Irish word for house. The centre is run by Alan and Barbara Sweetman. What a challenge to the churches this ministry is , the discipline and care over every action and thought. It behoves us to have churches that these students can come back to which stand for truth and seperation from the ways of the world.Anyway please pray for my wife and I as we see to lead this new church. My email is bercarley@eircom.net or paulcarley@chapmans.ie I would love to hear from you if you have any advice or just want to let us know you are praying behind us.regardsPastor Paul Carley

We'll keep you in our prayers. How is the body of Christ in Ireland these days? Is it is as bad as the U.S.?My original descendent was a preacher from Wales in the early 1700s and Wales is in great need of revival, much like most of the west, if not all of it.Keep your eyes focused on Jesus. (I apologize about the questions and realize they're off the thread a bit.)

Hi Paul!Praise God what wonderful news!This just's stirs the heart, you can count on my prayers for you and your brethren, it is a privelage to do so. "Pray for your pastor. Pray for his body, that he may be kept strong and spared many years. Pray for his soul, that he may be kept humble and holy, a burning and shining light. Pray for his ministry, that it may be abundantly blessed, that he may be anointed to preach good tidings. Let there be no secret prayer without naming him before your God, no family prayer without carrying your pastor in your hearts to God."Robert Murray McChenyne

No problem with those questions gideons. The church here in Ireland is in a very exciting time. We have had the TB plague and still have a number of churches which "follow every wind of doctrine". Of course when you challenge any of them they say they dont teach those things and you need to sit under their ministry longer to get the full picture,except we have of course discernment. Ecumenism is of course rife and it is diffcult in a land which was blighted by religious bigotry to stand righteously without being labled. Of more positive note is the emergence of a number of very "classical minded Pentecostal" young pastors. This will at least give the alternative stance with a central focus on the Scriptures and Holy Walk. It is a challenge as the more general "lets all sing and dance" outfits are growing in the short term as Roman Catholic church is rocked with scandal after scandal and many people are leaving it. We need to get them into sound Bible based ministries which go beyond the surface and really bring them deep into the truth of Christ.So do pray for us, we are a small nation but there are many who need the Gospel.I will try and do a more indepth survey of ireland laterPaul

GideonsFollowing on from your previous question. I have just returned from our annual conference of Pentecostal Churches here in Ireland. We meet under a banner called "equippers" and the conference is open to anyone to attend. The teaching and direction has come from sound men of God, in fact the man who had the vision for the conference ten years ago sat under the ministry of Duncan Campbell when he was a young man. We do have all shades of Pentecostal view and both Elim and AOG churches attend.This year our main speakers were Carter and Teresa Conlon from TSC.Both ministered powerfully and many I believe were set free. The keynote day however was when Carter preached a message called "A warning to the Church in Ireland" taking as his text the story of the decption of Joshua by the the Gibeonites (Jos 9).Drawing on the mess that is sweeping the Church in America a challenge was laid down to keep our emerging churches strictly based on a leading of the Holy Spirit through the written word.He also challenged us to be aware that as God begins to move many will want to come and peddle their ministries in our land.It will be a defining period these next months as we address the issues raised so please pray for all of our Pastors and elders.Paul

Thanks Brother Paul,It's encouraging to see what God is doing in Ireland and it must have been a great blessing to have the Conlons. The more I hear him preach (haven't heard Teresa yet), the more I like him.You said "Drawing on the mess that is sweeping the Church in America a challenge was laid down to keep our emerging churches strictly based on a leading of the Holy Spirit through the written word.He also challenged us to be aware that as God begins to move many will want to come and peddle their ministries in our land." That's true everywhere but it's sound advice.We'll keep you in our prayers brother....

I am not technical enough to do it online but I can burn some cds and send them by post if you like.

"I have not heard Teresa yet"I have been blessed to listen to this sister last year, during the fast in March "is God calling you to be a deliverer" and again at conference this year.She is such a lovely person, I had the pleasure of collecting her from airport for conference and she is truly a humble woman. The first year she came I know I had some reservations about women authority etc, but when you hear her and see how she conducts herself, she is both under the anointing and guidance of the Holy Spirit and also righteously under the covering of her husband.She preaches with a real insight and love for God people. Do get to hear her you will be so blessed. She preached on Mary and Martha and how even though they were saying " yes Lord I know You are the resurection" that unbelief was being masked by religious knowledge and words, which were in th ehead but not in the heart. Many flocked to teh altar to repent of unbelief.Paul

Thanks PaulSome of her messages are on the Times Square Church website (perhaps the ones in Ireland too). Not sure about that but I'll check it out.I would love to hear the Mary and Martha sermon. It's something I struggle with at times (i.e. trying to do something versus just be listen to Jesus). I'll see if I can find it.We'll keep you in our prayers in terms of your ministry. My family is from Wales and I would love to go and Lord willing some day I will make it to Europe. Without real revival the Western world as we now know it will soon cease to exist. It's just going to implode, at least that my sense here in the U.S.

GideonsCould not agree more. In Europe despite the horrors of the holocaust and many generations of "religion" more and more people are moving into a hedonistic philosophy. The shame is that os many churches are feeding the "soul needs" by telling them that its all going to be fine. It makes me want to scream when I see so many young people hellbent on wasting their lives on drink drugs and sex. We need to really pray down revival from heaven, so that repentance can come to the people in our churches. Here in Ireland the Pentecostal is beginning to divide down classical holiness lines versus the happy clappy humanistic.Would love to meet you when you get accross just let us know when and we will welcome you.Paul