Ebook
Each individual Defining Moments ebook is a fascinating
look at the remarkable ways in which God has used an ordinary
person to change history. But it is about more than history
alone—it illuminates the present and unveils the future. Prophetic
in nature, it reveals how God wants to work in each of our lives to
fulfill His purposes—today, tomorrow, and in the years to
come.
The stories in the Defining Moments collection of
God-encounters carry a prophetic anointing for all who have ears to
hear. Author Bill Johnson highlights the significant traits and
contributions of many well-known revival leaders, including John
Wesley, Charles Finney, Dwight L. Moody, Maria Woodworth-Etter,
Carrie Judd Montgomery, Smith Wigglesworth, John G. Lake, Evan
Roberts, Rees Howells, Aimee Semple McPherson, Kathryn Kuhlman,
Randy Clark, and Heidi Baker. He explains the impact these leaders
can have on us today as we respond to the life-changing truths
revealed through their life stories.
There is power in knowing the testimonies of men and women who
experienced God in a defining moment and said yes to His
unique call on their lives. It is a power that inspires us to
hunger for God in such a way that we, too, will have an encounter
with Him that launches us into the world of the “impossible,”
enabling us to fulfill a greater measure of our destiny. Read this
ebook with a sense of readiness, and watch what happens.
Bill Johnson is a fifth-generation pastor who lives a
life rich in the things of the Spirit, using heaven as a model for
his life and ministry. In 1968, at the end of his high school
years, he moved from the Los Angeles area to Redding, California,
where his parents became the pastors of Bethel Church, and two
years later, the Holy Spirit began to move powerfully in that
community of believers. It was about this time that Mario Murillo
visited the church, speaking about being absolutely abandoned to
Christ. One Saturday night, Bill said yes to God—the absolute
yes—and everything changed for him.
In 1978, Bill was invited to pastor Mountain Chapel in Weaverville,
California, and he served there for seventeen years. The presence
of God was very strong, and the church extended its times of
worshipping and glorifying God, even though, in the first years,
they saw few miracles, despite praying for many. Bill’s greatest
breakthrough in ministry came after attending two conferences in
1987 organized by John Wimber. Bill realized he needed to “put a
demand” on what he believed—his risk factor had to line up with the
boldness of his beliefs. As he did this, there was an immediate
change in his ministry, and the church began to see an increase in
healing and miracles.
Bill moved back to Bethel Church in Redding in 1996, where he and
his wife, Beni, are the senior pastors. An outpouring of the Spirit
began almost immediately. It grew rapidly, and there were many
healings, including, in multiple cases, of cancer. Today, healings
and miracles are the norm at Bethel. Bill and Beni have a heart to
see the values of the kingdom of heaven fill the earth. Together,
they serve a growing number of churches that have partnered
together to work toward global revival.
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