On Sunday, February 19, I was driving the last leg of my trip coming home from Madison, AL. I had gone to represent the Francis Asbury Society at a two-day event. Dr. Bill Ury, the event speaker, was at his best. My ministry was to sow the good soil with as much literature as possible. I felt a lot of good seeds had been planted.
As I was driving, I received several [hands-free] calls from pastors who wanted my take on the Asbury Outpouring. One pastor even invited me to come to St Louis three days later to share with his congregation—and I did. But at this point, I was anxious just to get home. Then the phone rang, and it was a pastor in Missouri. He told me that he was preaching on revival that night—in half an hour! He said he would call me back and put his phone up to the microphone at the podium in front of the church so I could address his congregation.
My biggest concern was cell reception in rural Kentucky, but I agreed. I do not recall that he asked me if I was willing to speak, but because he is my uncle, that was not necessary. We pray for each other and stay in touch.
Still driving the route home, my mind drifted back to that little rural congregation in Missouri. As a student preacher I had spoken there around 1975, but it had been years since I was even in that area. I have preached in public parks, on the sidewalk, in basements, in gymnasiums, and on the radio, but never before have I preached while driving! For over twenty minutes I drove on the Bluegrass Turnpike while speaking to a congregation in El Dorado Springs, MO, almost 600 miles away.
I never lost cell reception, but a few times I lost my ability to speak. I choked up as I tried to describe what I had witnessed. I was concerned that they would think we had lost cell connection, but I could hear the congregation saying “amen” through the pastor’s phone. It seems they were feeling the same Spirit I was feeling.
I tried to describe how I learned about something unusual happening in Hughes Auditorium. As an adjunct professor I got an administration email asking me to show some leniency to students who were late to class from chapel services. Since I teach online, that message did not apply to me. However, when I got two similar messages the next day, I began to ask questions. On the second night I went to Hughes. It was still just a “family” gathering. On my way in I overheard a little girl ask her father, “Is Jesus in there?” Word soon spread that indeed Jesus was in there! By Saturday I could only hope to find a place to stand. On occasion I could hear the revival singing from my porch. Although it eventually outgrew Wilmore, the same spirit of humility, peace, and worship continued to prevail. One small girl began weeping as soon as she entered. Her mother asked her, “What’s the matter?” She replied, “Jesus is here, and he is telling me that he loves me.”
Driving home a couple of weeks after this, I had no time for sermon preparation, and of course, I spoke without any notes. It was dark and I had to keep my eyes on the road and my hands on the wheel. As I drew closer to home, I was alerted that I could not get into Wilmore because the crowds were too great. So, I drove in a back way and pulled into my driveway just as I finished preaching!
As I got out of the car that night, I was excited that God had seen fit to use me in some small way to spread the message of revival.