June 2011

Hello Everyone!!!
What a great month! I couldn’t wait to update you all with recent events. We were blessed to host Jesse Duplantis and his lovely wife, Cathy, in May. Instead of trying to give you the report anew, I thought it best to cc you a copy of the letter I sent to Cathy last week. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.

Dear Sister Cathy and Brother Jesse,

Heather and I wish to thank you for your visit to the Republic of Ireland and to Galway. The meetings were FANTASTIC! It was truly a privilege to be able to host you both, as well as your wonderful team. To have that many people in a Christian meeting in Galway is truly remarkable... only those that labor in this field could understand and fully appreciate that. Also, I have never seen that many ministers and preachers in one meeting in my 15 years of pastoring in this beautiful country. What a blessing!

Also, Brother Jesse prophesied of a 'crack' in the heavens over Ireland while he was here saying that 'everything was about to change'. To follow up and fill you in, the Queen of England was here right after you guys left. It was a truly momentus event... historically and spiritually significant. She has never visited Ireland and the undercurrent was still extremely turbulent the days prior to her arrival with many claiming that it was still premature (when would it ever be appropriate, she is 84 years old). The complex relationship between the two nations was completely renovated with the Irish, who are NOT taken with royalty, truly being taken with everything... and they were the perfect hosts, as well. To see the leaders walking together as peers revolutionised the way the Irish look at the English, and themselves! The Queen went to two very important sites that are sacred to the Irish: Island Bridge (the memorial to 50,000 Irishmen who have died serving in the British army) and Croke Park (the sight of the Bloody Sunday massacre where British military opened fire on the crowd at a sporting event in the 20's). At the state dinner that evening, she stole away with the Irish heart by opening in Gaelic, a language banned by the English for many years, and offering (as close to) an apology as has ever been spoken by any English authority offering empathy and “regret for the things that have happened, as well as those that didn't (like helping during the famine).”

It was as if there was a national sigh. We know that there is no forgiveness where it is never sought... the offending brother must return, repent (even if 70 times) and seek forgiveness before it can be given (Luke 17:3,4). Since it was never sought, confessed, it was never released. Ireland has carried this burden for many generations. It was as if a healing balm was poured over the land. And it was immediately subsequent to Brother Jesse's prophecy that everything was changing from that very day... it has. The two nations' leaders reconciled on behalf of their people. It was an amazing sight. Now I believe that the Irish church and people can begin to experience amazing answers to prayer by fulfilling the Scriptures:
Mar 11:25- 26 “And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses. But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses.”

After receiving a call from Jesse’s UK office manager about how much their ministry enjoyed my letter, he shared his perspective, from the English side, which opened up a whole new thought to me. To my note he said, “Yes, it was as if we were released, as well.” I then thought of another verse Jesus preached from the sermon on the mount. He said,
Mat 5:23-24 “Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath ought against thee; Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.

It was truly as if both nations were blessed, healed, and released from a horrible past.
Thank you all for your love and support. It has been a privilege serving here during these amazing days.

Kevin and Heather

May 2011

Hello Everyone!

Wow, what a spring! So many things going on around the world are proof to me that we are in an important generation… perhaps the one that will witness the return of the Lord. These things are both amazing and frightening. Amazing if you know your Bible, frightening if you do not.

We were reminded of these things the other day as a family, doing our devotionals together over the Easter holidays. Heather was reading from her Bible (NASB) in Luke 21:25-26: "There will be signs in the sun and moon and stars, and on the earth dismay among nations, in perplexity at the roaring of the sea and the waves, men fainting from fear and the expectation of the things which are coming upon the world…” I was taken by the verses and commented to the children about how accurate Scripture is even mentioning the roaring of the sea and waves. Hannah and Abbey have both recently reported on the Tsunami in Japan for school and were well aware of the devastation it brought. We also spoke of the recent earthquake in Haiti where 200,000 people perished in 60 seconds, the tsunami in Indonesia that killed a quarter of a million, the volcano in Iceland which stopped global air traffic last year (particularly in Europe where many travellers were caught away from home taking them weeks to find their way back by trains, ferries, etc,… many were out of money and away from work and children), as well as the terrible effects of the global recession.

Last Winter it was 20 degrees colder than normal here in Ireland, froze everything, broke pipes all over the place and one half of the country’s residents (2 million people) were without water for nearly three weeks! Today many nations are, as the Scripture teaches, “boiling”. There are wars and rumours of wars. More foreboding still, is the promise of Jesus that these things would be the “beginning of sorrows”. The Greek word here for “sorrows” is interesting and important. It literally means “birth pangs”. This means that, once these things begin, they will continue to increase in frequency and in magnitude, becoming more and more severe (just like birth pangs) until Jesus returns. We have certainly witnessed an increase in severity and magnitude of these troubles… and much, much more to come.

Yet, in the midst of these terrible and terrifying things, He says in Luke 21:28, “and when these things begin to come to pass, then look up and lift up your heads, for your redemption draws nigh”. Should these dangerous times frighten us, or encourage us? He has even included a promise of protection in the same passage: “not a hair on your head will perish” (v 18). As incredible as it may seem, there is truly a difference between the people of God and the unbeliever. As the final judgement descended upon Egypt, God said, Exodus 11:7 “But against any of the children of Israel shall not a dog move his tongue, against man or beast: that ye may know how that the LORD doth put a difference between the Egyptians and Israel.” Imagine, as the fear and the torment and the angel of death worked its way through the streets, God’s people were safe in their houses. How? Well, there was only one thing between God’s people and the death and fear that was without: the blood of the lamb! What made the difference for them then was the blood of the lamb. This is what happened at Passover (Easter for the Christian which we just celebrated).

We have an even better covenant based on better promises. We have the Blood of Lamb of God! Can it make a difference today? I would bet my life on it… and have! I am trusting God for His promise to make a difference between us and the world, even in such tumultuous times. How about you?

God Bless!
Kevin, Heather and family

April 2011

Hi everybody!

Hope you all celebrated St. Pat’s and thought about us! We were in a terrific parade here in Galway. As always, we had a very cool float. This year’s kids camp theme is “Pirates of Hawaii” so we had our all star cast dancing their way down the parade route and sword-fighting their way down the road with real swords! The kids all loved it and we passed out every one of the 5,000 flyers we had advertising our summer camp. We ran up into the reviewing stand with all the dignitaries and handed out lollipops to everyone. It was a great day which we finished at my house with a party for the afters. Great stuff!!

Ministry wise, I am privileged to have been able to travel to the States for 8 days this month. Pastor Hallam’s minister’s conference is always in the spring so I timed my trip to coincide with a couple of other opportunities. I was privileged to minister for Jamie and Judy (Jacobs) Tuttle in Cleveland, TN. We had such an amazing time together! These guys have it ‘going on'!! Though they are obviously veterans and have been in field ministry for many years at a high level, they only started their church this January. They already have a terrific work, terrific facility and a terrific head start on any start-up I have ever seen. It was great to be with them again and to see what God is doing in their life and ministry. Also, it is going to be exciting to have them again the first week in June for Heather’s National Women’s Conference in Ireland for a consecutive year. I am so thankful for our relationship with these truly wonderful people and can’t wait to see what God does with (Pastor!) Jamie and their new church. Praise God!!

I was then off to Memphis to meet with one of our board members, Gary Giles, and his beautiful family. Gary, now in business, was a Captain in the Marine Corps. When I drove up to his house I was delighted to see the Marine Corps banner and ‘Old Glory’ waving proudly on his doorsteps. He graciously organised a meet-and-greet with some friends of his around a ministry presentation. Our plan is to design a program to introduce our family and church in Ireland, along with its accomplishments and needs, to new circles of friends. The night was wonderful and really helped in moving us through an idea we think will help us expand our influence and establish the ministry in Ireland on firmer ground. Gary is an avid athlete who runs marathons and took me for a trot through a beautiful section on the city, (I may have been bitten by the bug). We then went to the Civil Rights Museum located in the Lorraine Hotel where Martin Luther King, Jr. was killed. Wow… it was something I will never forget. Moving. I highly recommend it. It was an amazing couple of days and I’m grateful for my time there with the wonderful Giles family and the new friends I have in Memphis.

I was then off to Alice, TX to preach for Pastors Evonne and ‘Cowboy’ Tyree. These are special, special people! Cowboy is a WWII vet who actually saw the flag go up in Iwojima… wow. It was my first time ministering for them and we had an incredible time. They have many Latinos in their church so I did the night service in English and Spanish. We experienced an amazing presence of God in the services… people stayed for an hour-and-a-half after service at the altar worshipping, weeping and dedicating their lives anew that morning. The night was even more special… and powerful.

It was then over to La Marque and the Minister’s conference. It was the very best yet. I don’t remember the anointing so strong on my own life or around my home church. I’m more excited about life and God than I have ever been. Despite the tough year we have had, I can’t wait to see what God does for and through us this year. It is truly our time! What a day we live in!! There truly is a move of the Glory of God that is coming, indeed is already here. Don’t be distracted today by the difficulties around. Go find the River of God and jump in… it’s your time! Jesus said the Holy Spirit is like a River. You don’t control a river. It knows where it is going, though you may not be able to see around the bend. If you will “believe” in the Scripture (Jn 7:37:39) and trust in the Lord, jump into the flow and let God carry you into your destiny!

March 2011

Hello, Everyone!

Spring is arriving in Ireland! It is always heralded by the bright and happy yellow trumpets that fill our gardens: daffodils. After an especially cold winter it is a very welcome sign, indeed. It is also lambing season. Every field you drive past allows a peak over the low stone walls of the baby lambs that literally fill the landscape. These are beautiful and hopeful symbols of God’s promises and inspire heart-felt prayers for the move of God in Ireland to be productive and powerful.

I was privileged to perform a wedding for a friend of mine who’s daughter was getting married this past month. As I prepared for the wedding, one of the things God was speaking to me about was the heart. I’d like to share part of that message with you.

Chip Brim, who is a friend of mine, shared a story about his well-known Mom (Billye Brim) in our church a few years ago. When his wife birthed a beautiful son, he couldn’t wait to give the news to his mother who was in Israel at the time. She was very excited with the announcement and promptly asked, “What did you name him?” Thrilled with God’s latest blessing and the prospects it brought, he informed her that he had named his new son Caleb… like the conquering companion of Joshua who possessed the promised land! “Oh”, his Mom returned flatly. Surprised at her lack of enthusiasm for such a manly, not to mention biblical name, he inquired as to the reason. “Well, son,” she said, “you know that I love the Hebrew language and speak it. When I hear the name Caleb, I hear it with its natural meaning. Do you know what Caleb means?” He didn’t. “It means: DOG!” With that, Chip’s disappointment settled in.

It wasn’t until later that week as Billye was in a small, out-of-the-way book store for Jewish Rabbis that something significant and enlightening happened which changed everything. A Rabbi approached her asking whether she could speak Hebrew. Yes! She received her Doctorate in Hebrew studies, she assured him. “Well,” he said, “I feel impressed to teach you a word. Would that be OK?” She immediately agreed. “What word?” she queried. “The name, Caleb.” As you can imagine, he had her attention. He took her aside to a chalk board where he wrote the name, Caleb. He asked her to pronounce it… then pronounce it more slowly. Finally, to break the word in half, “...kaw-labe. I see it!!”, she exclaimed. See, when you divide the word into two parts, it simply means ‘whole-heart’. And that is why Adam called the dog Caleb! He would have studied each of the animals and given them their names, in Hebrew, with significant meanings. The dog was the only animal which would have been ‘whole-heartedly’ devoted to his master. That also explains why God allowed Caleb to go into the promised land. Remember, God said that Caleb had followed Him with his WHOLE HEART. This lends, also, to the thought from 2 Chron 16:9 which says, “The eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth to show Himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward Him…”

See, God is looking for someone to bless, someone to use!! The only requirement is the condition of our heart. This verse says it must be ‘perfect’... this is the word Shalem (Heb.) from which we get the word Shalom. It means complete, whole and at rest. This heart, then, is the one God will bring into His promises. The one who is whole-heartedly devoted to Him. His heart is at rest, trusting in the Master and completely given to God!

What is it in your life that God is trying to fix but you are still carrying and have not given it over to Him. God wants to show Himself STRONG for you… but you must give Him a whole heart to work through. Your attitude and posture will determine whether you receive your miracle. So to you, dear friend, I say, “What’s up, DOG??”

February 2011

Hello Everyone!!

I trust you are on your way to a supernatural year. With many things to report, I would first like to praise God for His faithfulness!! We are off to a great start in 2011! Hallelujah!

One of the things God instructed us last year was what He told Isaac in Genesis 26 when there was a severe famine in the land. He said, "Don’t go back(ward) to Egypt. Dwell in this land and I will be with you and I will bless you..." (vv 2-3). Verse 12 says, "Isaac sowed in that land and reaped in the same year a hundred fold, and the Lord blessed him. And the man waxed great, and went forward and grew until he became very great." Wow! He didn’t allow the famine to determine his direction. As I posted on my Facebook page: Don’t let the devil set your goals for you! Amen!

January has been remarkable. We have moved into a new facility and the church has been working very hard to settle in. Painting, cleaning, building, and more has been the standard daily operation for the month. The place is really taking shape and it is more than wonderful to have a place of our own again. The church was so very patient while meeting in a hotel for a year after having a terrific location for over a dozen years. It revealed the true character of our folks to stick with it (and us!) through the valley... now we’re headed out. Hallelujah.

We are also on a 40 day prayer vigil. We start every new year with some sort of prayer initiative. We are ‘tithing and offering’ this year by giving the first 36 plus days as dedicated to seeking the Lord being confident He will bless the remainder. In addition to that we are also doing a 21 day fast. Most are juice fasting, some are Daniel fasting. Everyone is rowing in, fasting and praying while at the same time refitting the new building. It has been a terrific effort and there is a new and fresh wind blowing in the ministry. Besides having lost a stone (the Irish way to say 14 pounds), everyone has been getting closer to God and closer to our Destiny. Among the many things God has been speaking to us, one of the loudest is that this is a year where we will see the will of God manifest: ‘His will being done on Earth, as it is in Heaven’. I truly believe that 2011 will see an Open Heaven and God’s purpose for us will become flesh.

As the country has been deeply affected by the recession and the government has unravelled before our eyes, it seems significant to me that God is saying that it is His time to BLESS!!! We are more excited than we have ever been about the work here. Ireland survived one great famine. We know they can survive another. But this one, I believe, will result in a return to the hunger and thirst for God... and He will certainly satisfy.

God Bless,

Kevin, Heather, Hannah, Abbey, Matthew and Elisabeth

January 2011

Happy New Year, Everyone!!

We are all very excited about 2011. It’s always a blessing when a new year comes around. Change is in the air. New commitments abound where we promise ourselves, others and God to become a better person. New Year’s resolutions fill lists and help us in framing goals to assist us in becoming who we want to become by the end of the year. It’s truly a wonderful time and a wonderful opportunity that should not be missed. It is as if God Himself has provided an occasion to help us change... and indeed He has! Each year has its own special grace. Each year is created and given for a reason. It is our responsibility to find out exactly what purpose God has intended for each year and then ‘tap into’ the grace to live it out. And God is always faithful to share glimpses of the future to those who truly want to know. Remembering that God’s Word is ‘a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path’ (Ps 119:105). He will always give those glimpses through His Holy Word. How do you get that kind of information? Simple. Jeremiah 33:3 says, ‘Call unto Me and I will answer thee and show unto thee great and mighty things which you didn’t know.’

That’s why we are so excited about this coming year. We feel God is saying that 2011 will be a year of ‘Heaven on Earth’! We believe that this year will be one in which we will enter into the will of God. When I say ‘the will of God’, I really mean the ‘purpose’ of God. See, Joseph was actually ‘in’ the will of God while he was in prison...in the sense that he was proceeding toward his purpose. But when the king called him he went from the prison to the palace in just one day (Ps 105:20). Then he entered into the will of God for his life. He entered into his life’s calling. We believe that we are going to see that this year and that the will of God will be done ‘on Earth as it is in Heaven’. Praise God!

Many people don’t actually believe that Heaven can be enjoyed on the earth. But the Scripture teaches that God has indeed intended that we live a life where the two realms come together through us and that we be a window through which Heaven’s light can shine into a dark world. When the Israelites were headed into the Promised Land, God said that if they would keep the word of God that their lives would be ‘like the days of Heaven upon the Earth’ (Dt 11:21). When we praise the Lord with a sincere heart, He inhabits our praises and brings Heaven’s atmosphere into the moment: Heaven and Earth converge right then and there! But it does require one very important thing: Faith! We must BELIEVE that it can and should happen to us, for us. Remember what happened to the king’s servant in 2 Kings 7:1,2? The city of Samaria was under siege by a Syrian army with conditions so dreadful they were selling bird droppings for food. The man of God prophesied that there would be an abundance of all things by the same time the next morning. This lord, the King’s servant, said, ‘If the Lord were to make windows in Heaven, might this thing be?’ The prophet returned, ‘You will see it with your eyes, but you will not eat thereof.’ You see, God doesn’t have to make windows in Heaven....they already exist! And God can turn everything around from one day to the next! It doesn’t take God long....but you won’t get to enjoy the benefits of it if you are not believing the things that God has promised. We believe that 2011 will bring Heaven to Earth! We believe that a change is in the air and that God is about to do something remarkable. And we can’t wait! We look forward to seeing what God has in store for us all. Hallelujah!

Much love and many Irish blessings,

Kevin, Heather and Family