Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the word of the Lord unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the Lord of hosts" (Zech. 4:6).
In the fall of 1986 the Oklahoma Conference pastors' advisory council met. Our plan was to have the council consider conference programs for 1988. But God took charge of that meeting through one of the pastors. The pastor posed the question If we really want to see God's work finished in the Oklahoma Conference, what must we do as leaders to get ready for the out pouring of the latter rain? His question led us to table the 17 agenda items scheduled for that meeting and to devote the rest of the morning to studying what preparation is required for receiving the latter rain.
As a group we decided that we would meet monthly to study, pray, and discuss the ministry of the Holy Spirit. We did not allow any other conference matters to be mentioned at these monthly meetings—not even baptisms or conference programs such as Ingathering. Instead, we discussed a chapter from LeRoy Froom's Coming of the Comforter at each of these meetings through the next year.
During that year we saw changes and miracles take place in the lives of each council member. One sister who was unaware that her pastor belonged to this group stopped me on one occasion and asked, "What has happened to my pas tor? He had always been highly opinionated and would not listen to anyone. Now he's patient and considerate of other people's feelings. He's a changed man."
We were all changed men.
Spreading the flame
Wanting to share this beautiful experience with our fellow pastors, we organized them into six groups that now meet monthly for study, prayer, and fellow ship. In the past in our ministerial fellow ship meetings we spent 30 minutes on devotions and two hours discussing the conference program. But we have re versed this. Now we spend one and one-half hours in study, discussion, and prayer fellowship and 30 minutes on our conference program.
We had the Review and Herald print 3,000 copies of The Coming of the Comforter, and our ministerial secretary, Jerry Schnell, prepared study guides to go with the book. With this material, each pas tor agreed to conduct a series on the Holy Spirit in his churches. The pastors in our conference and the members of all the congregations began to experience what those on the pastors' advisory council had experienced.
In 1986 David Wolkwitz, the pastor of the Oklahoma City Central SDA Church, was one of our camp meeting speakers. We felt God's Spirit on the campground, and people were powerfully affected. Before the 6:30 a.m. meetings, people assembled voluntarily to pray for the outpouring of God's Spirit. Sins were openly confessed, and many hearts were healed. At the close of the camp meeting more than 600 individuals covenanted to pray for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit every day through the following year. We had never before experienced such a camp meeting.
At our 1987 camp meeting George Rice of the Ellen G. White Estate spoke each day both at a general convocation and to our workers' families. At the latter meetings he spoke of the need for repentance, confession, and humiliation. He pointed out that we all share responsibility for the condition of God's church to day. He gave many examples from the Bible that showed that true repentance on the part of the corporate leadership of God's people resulted in revival and reformation among the rest of the people.
On Tuesday morning of that camp meeting Dr. Rice portrayed a scenario in which a conference president committed himself to leading his conference into revival and reformation. Dr. Rice said that the pastors and congregations in the conference would follow such an example. At the end of his discourse I stood and publicly declared myself open to such a commitment, and I invited all the pastors and their wives to meet in my office after the evening meeting.
That evening practically every pastor and his wife met with Dr. Rice and me. I have never been in a meeting where the presence of God's Spirit was so evident. Prayers and tears mingled. What a fellowship! How intimate was our fellow ship with Christ! God was speaking to us, tenderly seeking to lead us. In the past we had only imagined such an experience —but now it was happening!
Making a covenant
I asked Dr. Rice, "Where do we go from here?" After much discussion and prayer we concluded that, in accordance with Ellen White's instruction (Southern Watchman, June 7, 1904), we should draw up a covenant. In this covenant we committed ourselves to Bible study and prayer in preparation for the latter rain experience.
Our Faith Covenant says: "In response to the graciousness of God in that while I was yet a sinner He died for me, and sensing my inadequacy and the urgency of our day, I freely and gratefully enter into a covenant relationship with Him for the purpose of preparing myself to receive the latter rain experience. To fit myself for this event, I covenant with God to meet with Him every day, praying for the baptism of the Holy Spirit and studying the Bible. Thus strengthened by God's power, I determine to keep God's law, living in harmony with God's high standards, and to support the fundamental beliefs of the remnant church. Believing that this experience of revival is mine, I purpose to lead those entrusted to my care into revival and reformation which prepares the way for the latter rain experience, and to bear witness as God presents the opportunity. I so covenant until He comes."
As a conference president, I tell my workers that this Faith Covenant is the most important commitment of their ministry. A devotional life and prayer for the latter rain experience are more important than Ingathering, baptisms, or any other conference program. If we fail here, the rest is irrelevant. At our workers' meetings, teachers' meetings, and literature evangelists' meetings, we re new our commitment to the Lord Jesus and to a continued life of Bible study and prayer for the latter rain experience.
What has been the result of our commitment? 1. Our camp meetings have become true spiritual feasts, and the attendance is mushrooming. 2. Both our workers and our membership exhibit a spirit of unity such as few conferences have seen. 3. Even though our state economy is badly depressed, the 1 percent suggested giving plan for Oklahoma conference projects has achieved one of the highest per capitas in North America. 4. Our conference has continued to do well at Ingathering, achieving the Silver Vanguard goal for the twenty-sixth consecutive time. 5. We dedicated our hospital's new wing, which cost $3.2 million, four months ahead of schedule. And miracle after miracle has happened to keep this hospital in operation. We give God credit for everything, for we could not have done it ourselves.
The commitment we have made in this conference has angered Satan. We are feeling his wrath as he tries to dis credit our work, devastate our faith, and destroy our credibility. He has worked through various groups in an attempt to destroy what we are trying to do for God, but God has picked us up and given us great victories.
We are happy to see this experience spreading to other conferences. But we need our union, division, and General Conference leaders to set the example. God was anxiously waiting to do some thing for His church in 1888, but we failed Him. God was moving again in 1901, but the leadership was not ready. Ellen White was shown in vision "what might have been" (Testimonies, vol. 8, pp. 104-106), but it never came to pass.
I believe that the recent developments in Eastern Europe indicate that another golden opportunity is being presented to the church. Will we again fail to act? Will we be more interested in policy, politics, or manipulation than the outpouring of God's Spirit? May we as local conference presidents, union conference presidents, division presidents, and General Conference president call our church to repentance, confession, and humiliation, and lead our church by example into revival and reformation at the General Conference session of 1990.
