On New Year's day of 1995, Randy Clark was guest speaker at the Tabernacle Church in Melbourne, Florida for a series of meetings sponsored by five local churches. An unusual revival broke out immediately, accompanied with holy laughter, falling under the power of the Spirit, and many dramatic physical healings. From the first day, thousands of people flocked to meetings held six days a week. The services were hosted on a rotating basis by pastors and musicians from fifteen different congregations in the local area, including Presbyterian (PCA), Southern Baptist, Episcopal, Methodist, and Assemblies of God churches (National and International Religion Report, vol. 9, no. 8 [April 3, 1995], p. 2).
In a January 20 post to the new-wine list, an internet mailing list devoted to the revival, Randy Clark wrote:
In 1994 I spent about 150 [days] in renewal meetings. During that time I never was in a meeting which I felt had the potential to become another Toronto type experience. That was until I went to Melbourne, Florida [on] January 1, 1995. Another revival has broken out. Many sovereign things have occurred which indicate this place too will not be [the site of] usual renewal meetings. I shall share some of these.First, what made me expect something special at these meetings. I never schedule over four days for meetings, but I scheduled fifteen days for this meeting. Why? I believed there were things going on which indicated a major move of the Spirit was imminent. The Black and White ministerial associations merged a few months prior to my going. The charismatic pastors had been meeting together for prayer for six years, and pastors from evangelical and charismatic and pentecostal churches had been meeting and praying together for over two years. There was a unity built which would be able to withstand the pressures of diverse traditions working together in one renewal/revival meeting.
The meetings are held at the Tabernacle, the largest church in the area. It holds 950 comfortably. This was Jamie Buckingham's church, now pastored by Michael Thompson. The church sanctuary is filled by 6:15 with meetings beginning at 7:00. About 1,200 are crowded into the sanctuary, another 150 fills a small overflow room, and another 200-300 sit outside watching on a large screen....
This past Sunday a man who was hurt six years ago was healed. He had severe spinal injury in the neck which had resulted in four surgeries, and fusing the four bottom vertebrae in the neck. This made it physically impossible for him to look up at the ceiling or down at the floor. Neither could he move his neck to the left or right. He also had had seizures for the six years since the accident. He had been treated by the best neurosurgeons at Johns Hopkins. He had been told his damage was irreversible. He was taking pain medication for pain management. This pain had become worse and he was facing a fifth surgery. He had been a pastor in the area before this accident. He is very well known in the area.
Sunday night I was praying for him when he was healed. Sunday morning I woke up having a dream about seeing a spine. In the dream I could see vertebrae and disks. That morning I had a word of knowledge about pain in the left armpit. When I began praying for him I asked him if he had pain in the left armpit. He said that he had a lot of pain in that area. He also had tremors in his hands, as well as feeling pain and sometimes numbness in the fingers. When I began to pray for him I noticed first the trembling stopped in the hands. Then he told me the pain in his left arm stopped. I had been praying for over ten minutes before there was any noticeable effect upon his body. Then I began praying for his neck more specifically. First the pain in his head stopped. Then the grinding sound in his neck ended when he tried to move his head. Then he was able to move his head looking up at the ceiling, down at the floor, and left to right as much as I could. He was healed.
I was so surprised by this healing that along with his adult son and wife, I began to weep kneeling beside him.
It has been three days since his healing. I have kept in touch with him through others in the area. He still has no pain, and he is able to move his head in what should be physically impossible with four fused vertebrae.
"To God be the glory, great things he has done!" Let no one look at me as if by my power or godliness this man was healed. He was healed by faith in the name of Jesus. cf. Peter's explanation to the crowd after the man was healed at the gate beautiful.
By March of 1995, the Melbourne revival was receiving coverage in Charisma (vol. 20, no. 8, p. 56), which stated that "on a recent Tuesday evening service at the Tabernacle Church in Melbourne, Fla., more than 1,000 people tried to find seats. Many of them settled for a spot in an adjacent overflow room, where they viewed the sermon via a video monitor. Meanwhile, another 60 people stood outside the sanctuary and watch the service on a giant screen that flapped in the balmy evening breeze. The crowds came from all over Florida's Space Coast to hear Randy Clark."
On June 12, the National and International Religion Report (vol. 9, No. 13, p. 3), reported that the revival services in Melbourne were "still going strong." Fred Grewe reported at that time that "everybody is exhausted, but God is manifesting His presence every night -- so we are reluctant to stop" (ibid). Pastors from many different denominations were continuing to join in worship, share testimonies, and pray for renewal at one another's churches. Between fifty and eighty pastors in the area were attending a weekly prayer meeting associated with the revival at First Baptist Church in nearby Satellite Beach, Fla.
In August of 1995, Charisma magazine reported, "Falling under the power of the Holy Spirit is not unusual to most charismatic Christians. But doing so alongside Presbyterians, United Methodists and Southern Baptists is. Yet it's a daily experience for many Christians in Melbourne, Fla., where an unexpected revival movement is unifying charismatics and noncharismatics, and their clergy.... More than 65,000 people now have attended the meetings.... Hundreds of people have publicly professed faith in Jesus Christ." (p. 18).
The October 1995 issue of Renewal (issue 223), a British Publication, carried an article on the Melbourne, Florida revival by Thomas Locke, an author of Christian fiction who was touched by the revival in June. He wrote, "I was in Florida doing research for a new story, when the city's main paper ran a front-page story of remarkable goings-on at a local church.... The reporter was clearly not a believer, and yet this article described someone who had been deeply affected.... the meetings were continuing six nights a week, drawing a capacity crowed every evening." He found an "astonishing mixture" of white, black, Asiatic, Hispanic, and American Indian people, which "cut right across the borders of wealth, class, race, and religious background.... The sense of matter-of-fact calmness which had returned by heart upon arrival continued unabated throughout the five-hour service.... There were numerous declarations of miraculous healings. Well over a hundred people had by the end of the night been laid out flat by the moment's power. There was loud laughter, there was speaking in tongues, there was spontaneous singing" (pp. 18-20).
In a testimony posted to the internet (the world wide web pages of Melbourne Renewal Services and Youth Revolution International) dated February 25, Lisa Frodge wrote that, initially, she and her husband Rex were very skeptical, but that after becoming involved in the revival in Melbourne, "many, many prayers that have been prayed for years, have come true over a period of a few weeks. Some are small things, like finally being able to pray at our large family dinners, unity within the family, less tension in the home. However, God is changing our hearts and has drastically changed our lives."
Colleen Orfe wrote, "Randy Clark first ministered at the Tabernacle in Melbourne on Sunday, January 1, 1995. That morning he gave an altar call for hypocrites and I went forward.... I was slain in the spirit and lay on the carpet, unable to get up for maybe an hour. A couple of times, I sat up, only to fall back down under the anointing. As I lay there, I experienced a sensation of perfect peace and felt my body relaxing so much it felt like I was melting into the floor.... Eventually, I was able to get up, but remained very "drunk" in the spirit, almost unable to walk or talk. I felt like I was in a fog. When I drove home and prepared for bed, I discovered God had healed my back. I had had pain in my lower back for over a year, causing me to have difficulty turning over in bed finding a comfortable position, and even getting in and out of a chair. In the past, the spasms had been so intense at times that I had gone to a doctor and received muscle relaxers because I couldn't stand up straight or walk. Most recently, it had just been general discomfort of the nature described. This night, I felt totally relaxed and pain-free and enjoyed the best night's sleep in months. It has remained healed ever since."
Marie Purdy (607A Greenwood Village Blvd., West Melbourne), reported that she had strained her lower back and upper cervical neck area while helping her daughter with a landscape nursery. In October of 1994, she had x-rays which indicated a stenosis. A friend brought her to meetings at "The Tab" in Melbourne. She wrote, "I am used to a conservative Protestant service. I was not about to undergo any 'carpet time,' being a skeptic and being scientifically trained although I do have faith in Jesus Christ. ... As I watched and witnessed the people receiving prayer, I couldn't comprehend the uncontrollable actions and emotions that they were responding to as a result.... As time went by, John Arnott said anyone with back, neck or spinal problems should come forth.... As John started administering prayer to me, I felt a warmth begin from my feet graduating up to my waist. He asked me to bend, twist and turn asking Jesus to give me more power to heal me.... I had no pain! What had happened? My legs started buckling and I hadn't any control of my body as I felt myself falling back.... I lay on the carpet confused, questioning, nervous, overwhelmed.... For the first time in one year, I took the opportunity to stand up without one struggle and pain free."
On January 6, Randy Clark and Fred Grewe of the Tabernacle Church went to Vero Beach, Florida, an hour's drive south of Melbourne, to speak for Christian radio station WSCF, FM 92. During the interview, the disc jockey fell under the power of the Spirit, and was rendered incapable of continuing the interview. Soon afterward, the general manager was also affected in the same way, so music was aired since "there was nobody to operate the station" (National and International Religion Report, vol. 9, No. 8 [April 3, 1995], p. 2). In his January 20 post to the new-wine, Randy Clark wrote, "Two weeks ago Friday I had a radio interview. During [the] interview a DJ fell out [under the power of the Spirit] in front of the station manager who was interviewing me. He shook violently. Other station employees fell out under the power. After we left the station kept on sharing [on the air] what was occurring live for hours. People were healed listening to the broadcast. Others came under conviction, drove to the station and gave their lives to God. Others were rededicated while listening. One man had to go home from work unable to continue driving his truck because the Spirit was so strong upon him."
The General Manager of the radio station, Jon Hamilton, wrote a letter to his constituency as follows:
January, 1995Dear Friend of Christian FM 92:
I had already put the finishing touches on my first letter of 1995. I really liked it. It was full of optimism and inspirational resolutions for the New Year.
It will never make it to the printer.
Instead, I am compelled to offer to you a testimony and witness as to a most remarkable day. I pray that it may serve to encourage those who seek God, and terrify those who oppose Him.
January 6, 1995 began in a rather ordinary way. It was Friday, it had been a busy week, but I was looking forward to a slow day. As I was leaving the house, I actually told my wife "There's not much on my calendar, I may try to take the afternoon hours off and came home early".
I had agreed to interview a pastor from St. Louis, Randy Clark that morning. Randy was the guest speaker at The Tabernacle Church's renewal services nightly, and since "The Tab" is a good friend of FM 92 (and many other area churches were participating in the meetings), we had decided to clear a slot on the morning show for a brief interview.
My guest was one of the leaders of the so-called "Toronto Revival". I had read about the Toronto meetings, but frankly, I've heard a lot of "revival rumors" over the years and have learned not to pay much attention. Normally, I don't do the interviews myself, but I was feeling cautious and let the "morning guys" know I'd be there during the show.
The interview was innocent enough at first. The subject turned to a discussion of the Holy Spirit's manifest presence in a meeting (as opposed to His presence that dwells within our hearts always). Rather suddenly, something began to happen in the control room.
It began with Gregg. He was seated behind me listening, and for no apparent reason, he began to weep. His weeping turned to shuddering sobs that he attempted to muffle in his hands. It was hard to ignore, and Randy paused mid-sentence to comment "You can't see him, but God is really dealing with the fellow behind you right now." I looked over my shoulder just in time to see Gregg losing control. He stood up, only to crash to the floor directly in front of the console, where he lay shaking for several minutes.
I don't know if you have ever tried to conduct a radio interview in such circumstances, but let me assure you I never have. I was mortified. We have always attempted to avoid any extremes at FM 92, so it was difficult to explain to our listeners what was happening. I had always known Gregg to act like a professional, so I knew something was seriously going on. I did my best to recover the interview under the embarrassing circumstances. I thanked the guest and wrapped it up. (And thought of ways to kill Gregg later!)
After when we have a guest minister in the station, we ask him to pray for the staff. Before Randy Clark left, we asked him to say a word of prayer.
We formed a circle and began to pray for the staff one by one. My eyes were shut, but I heard a thud and opened them to see Bart Mazzarella prostrate on the floor. He had fallen forward on his face. What amazed me most was that Bart was known to be openly skeptical. he simply did not accept such things. Within seconds, another and another staff person went down. Even those that remained standing were clearly shaken.
When they prayed for me, I did not "fall down". What did happen was an electric sensation shot down my right arm, and my right hand began to tremble uncontrollably. My heart pounded as I became aware of a powerful sense of what can only be called God's manifest presence.
Remember, our staff is not primarily Charismatic. We are Episcopalian, Nazarene, Evangelical, Pentecostal.... and a couple of "not quite sure". While I personally am associated with an Assembly of God church, I'm quite the skeptic when it comes to "weird stuff". I don't watch many evangelists on TV, because too often I am turned off by what I see. This was completely new to us.
Randy was scheduled elsewhere, so after just a few minutes of prayer, he thanked me graciously and left quickly. Our staff remained in the control room, staring at each other wide eyed, and hovering over Bart, who still appeared unconscious on the floor. (He was completely immobile for over half an hour).
There was a sweet atmosphere of worship in the room, so I told someone to put one of the integrity Worship CD's on air while we continued to pray together.
I thought the atmosphere would abate after a few minutes and return to normal... but instead, our prayers grew more and more intense. The room became charged in a way that I simply cannot describe. After an hour of this, we realized that it was 10:30, the time we normally share our listener's needs in prayer.
I switched on the mike, and found myself praying that God would touch every listener in a personal way. After prayer, with great hesitation I added "This morning God has really been touching our staff, so we've been spending the morning praying together. If you're in a situation right now where you are facing a desperate need, just drop by our studios this morning and we'll take a minute to pray with you." This was the first time we had ever made such an invitation.
This is where everything went haywire.
Within a few minutes, a few listeners began to arrive. The firs person I prayed with was a tall man who shared with me some tremendous needs he was facing. I told him I would agree with him in prayer. As I prayed for his need, a voice in my head was saying "It's a shame that you don't operate in any real spiritual gift or power. Here's a man who really needs to hear from god and you've got nothing worth giving him!!" I continued to pray, but I was struggling. I reached up with my right hand to touch his shoulder, when suddenly he shook, and slumped to the floor. (He lay there without moving for over 2 hours.) I was shocked and shaken.
Two others had arrived at this point, and staff members were praying with them. Suddenly they began weeping uncontrollably, and slumped to the floor. This scene was repeated a dozen times in the next few minutes. It didn't matter who did the praying, whenever we asked the Lord, he immediately responded with a visible power, and the same manifestations occurred.
I didn't know whether to be terrified or thrilled, but clearly, something completely unusual was going on.
A young man cautiously entered the room, and began to tell us that he was "just happening" to be scanning the radio dial when he heard "something about prayer". He reported that he was immediately overcome with conviction. Years before, he had contemplated going into the ministry, and had even attended a couple of years at a Christian College, but he had since strayed from God. As a chill of conviction swept him, he felt God suddenly tell him it was now or never. He drove to the station. We prayed with him to receive Christ as Lord, and afterward, he too slumped to the floor.
One by one they came. We continued to play praise-oriented music, and every hour (sometimes on the half-hour) we'd invite people to come.
Fairly early in all this, we ran out of room. The radio station floor was wall to wall bodies... some weeping, some shaking, some completely still. People reported that it was like heavy lead apron had been placed over them. They were unable to get up. All they could do was worship God.
Fortunately, our offices are inside of the complex at Central Assembly, so when the crowd began to grow, we moved across into the Church, leaving the radio station literally wall to wall with seekers.
Some teachers at Indian Christian School had heard what was happening, and asked us to pray for certain children they were bringing in the room. As we prayed for the kids, many began to shake and fall to the floor. Some would begin to utter praises to God. Others lay completely immobile for periods of over an hour. (If you've ever tried to make a seven year old lay still, you know it's a miracle!) A few simply experienced nothing at all.
By now I was convinced that we were experiencing a bona fide move of God. I had read about such manifestation experiences being common in the revival meetings of great men like Jonathan Edwards and John Wesley. I had also read of the great camp meeting revivals in the early 1800', where thousands upon thousands experienced being "slain", but I never imagined I would really live to see it.
The crowd continued to grow, and lines began to form. The power of God continued to fall on those coming. It was almost like being in a dream. I would look up and see our staff members...eyes red, faces puffy, and hands trembling, but with a fire in their eyes and the power of God upon them. I couldn't believe it was the same people I knew and worked with. In a matter of hours, something we never even dreamed of (much less aspired to) was happening.
The floor in front of the sanctuary was soon covered with men and women, boys and girls. The aisles began to fill and we were pushing aside chairs for more floor space. Usually, one of our staff would "catch" the person as they fell, but on quite a few occasions we were caught by surprise and people fell hard on the floor. Frankly, we had NO idea what we were doing. (I'm not sure I want to learn!)
At some point I looked up and saw a local Baptist Pastor walk in the door. I must confess that my first thought was "Oh Boy...I'm in trouble!" While I knew this brother to be a genuine man of God, nevertheless I was concerned about how a fundamental, no-nonsense Baptist might take all these goings-on. (Besides, I didn't have an explanation to offer!) I walked up to greet him. He just silently surveyed the room, and with a tone of voice just above a whisper said "This... is...God. For years I've prayed for revival... This is God."
Within minutes more local pastors began to arrive. Lutheran, Independent, Assembly of God... The word of what was happening spread like wildfire. As the pastors arrived, they were cautious at first, but within just minutes, they would often begin to flow in the same ministry. The crowd was growing and pastors began to lay hands on the seekers, where once again the power of God would manifest and the seeker would often collapse to the ground.
It did not seem to matter who did the praying. This was a nameless, faceless, spontaneous move of God. There were no stars, no leaders, and frankly, there was no organization. (It's hard to plan for something you have no idea might happen!)
Eventually, word of what was occurring reached Fred Grewe, the Melbourne pastor who had brought Randy Clark to the station earlier that morning. He and Randy, along with several other Melbourne pastors, jumped into the car and headed down to Vero Beach. At this point, we started broadcasting live from the Church. As the group from Melbourne arrived, more and more people also began to show up asking for prayer. It seemed like there were always more than we could get to.
Amazingly, unchurched, unsaved people were showing up. I got a fresh glimpse of the power of radio as person after person told us "I'm not really a part of any church..." A few were skeptical at first, and later found themselves kneeling in profound belief.
Sometimes people would rise up, only to frantically announce to us that they had been healed of some physical problem. One woman's arthritic hands found relief. Neck pains, jaw problems, stomach disorders and more were all reported to us as healed.
We have received at least a dozen verified, credible, reliable comments from people who told us that when they switched on the radio, they were suddenly, unexpectedly overwhelmed by the presence of God (even when they didn't hear us say anything). Several told us that the manifest presence of God was so strong in their cars that they were unable to drive, and were forced to pull off the road.
The "falling" aspect of this visitation was the most visible manifestation, but it was not falling that was important. What was important was the fact that people were rising up with more love for God in their hearts than ever before. They were being changed, and their hearts set ablaze. I have lost count of the numbers of people who told me of the change God worked in their life.
It's hard to imagine the impact this has had on our staff. It seems like God has almost given me a new staff, composed entirely of men and women to tremendous zeal for God.
What is occurring in our local churches is even more amazing. My phone is ringing with the calls of excited pastors. At least a dozen area churches from completely different ends of the theological spectrum are already experiencing this powerful move in their church. The leaders of many, many other local fellowships have been visiting these churches to "check it out", and they too are being touched to "take it back" with them. It's almost like a tidal wave has hit this area of Florida.
If you are skeptical, I understand and forgive you. (I might have thrown a letter like this one away just days ago.) I share this only to try and offer a faithful rendition of what has really happened.
I only ask that you remain open to whatever God wants to accomplish through you. Christian history is full of accounts of those times when God elected to "visit" His people. When He has, entire nations have sometimes been affected. I believe you'll agree, our nation is ripe for such a revival. For such a time as this, let us look to God with expectancy.
With warm regards, I am,
Sincerely Yours,
Jon Hamilton
General Manager
Further details of these events were later recorded in a report by J. Lee Grady in the March 1995 issue of Charisma (vol. 20, no. 8, pp. 56-57).