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Fire in our hearts - Jesus Army

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FIRE IN OUR HEARTS<br />

COMMUNICATE!<br />

Peter Wagner wrote of the pentecostal churches <strong>in</strong> Lat<strong>in</strong><br />

America. 119 Here were red-blooded enthusiasts who took the<br />

good news to the people. Pastors were poor, often illiterate,<br />

and bore more resemblance to the disciples of <strong>Jesus</strong> than the<br />

bible students of the West. Poverty kept them <strong>in</strong> touch with<br />

the common man. Their college was the street, their success<br />

measured by the number of churches they’d planted. In the<br />

third world poverty and hardship had produced good soil for<br />

the gospel. By contrast so many westerners were weighed<br />

down with wealth and stunted by comforts. What hope was<br />

there for us? In 1989 Rob White of British Youth for Christ<br />

told us <strong>in</strong> an <strong>in</strong>terview for <strong>Jesus</strong> Lifestyle how he’d seen <strong>Jesus</strong><br />

with his back on Europe.<br />

‘You’ve waved me goodbye <strong>in</strong> Europe’, the Lord said.<br />

‘Do you really need me?’ And this he asked three times.<br />

‘Yes Lord, we really need you!’ I cried <strong>in</strong> earnest.<br />

‘But do you realise that will mean hol<strong>in</strong>ess?’<br />

And it was like hang<strong>in</strong>g on his coat tails say<strong>in</strong>g, ‘Turn round<br />

Lord. Please turn round!’<br />

And he began to turn round. 120<br />

With<strong>in</strong> a year communism had collapsed <strong>in</strong> Europe and people<br />

were danc<strong>in</strong>g on the ru<strong>in</strong>s of the Berl<strong>in</strong> Wall.<br />

Economic recession, family breakdown and moral decay had<br />

opened people up spiritually <strong>in</strong> Europe, especially Brita<strong>in</strong>.<br />

The massive response to March for <strong>Jesus</strong> revealed a grassroots<br />

movement hungry for spiritual life. When 50,000 Chris-<br />

343

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