I have just finished rereading a book that I haven’t touched in probably 15 years, Lester Sumrall’s Pioneers of Faith. In his book, Sumrall tells of the stories of many of the Pentecostal Hall of Famers, people that he personally knew and often ministered alongside, individuals like Smith Wigglesworth, P.C. Nelson, F.F. Bosworth, Donald Gee, Lillian Yeoman, just to name a few.
In the first chapter, Sumrall tells of the life of a Methodist minister from Norway, Thomas Ball Barratt. In 1906, Barratt came to America to raise funds for the Methodist church, learned about the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Azusa Street in Los Angeles, contacted Azusa Street to learn about the baptism in the Holy Spirit, was soon filled with the Holy Spirit with the evidence of speaking in other tongues, and then returned back to Norway. (You can tell that this is a man’s retelling of Barratt’s life. It’s only a few sentences.) Upon returning to the leadership of the Methodist Church to give a report of his fundraising, Barratt told the clergy, “Brethren, I got it.” They thought that he had gotten a lot of money and so they asked, “How much did you get?” Barratt replied, “All that I could hold.” When they asked him how much it was, Barratt opened up his Bible to the second chapter of Acts and said, “I got it. I speak in tongues.” Here’s the part of the story that I love. The Bishop stood up and told Barratt, “Well, you didn’t get it here,” and Barratt was removed from the list of clergy.
Here’s the reason that I shared this story. As I read this report, I heard the Holy Spirit tell me that I need to make it known when we minister in our services that “you can get it here.” We need to make it known that this is the place to receive from God. Whatever is needed is available upon request. Need to be born again? Get it here. Need the baptism in the Holy Spirit? Get it here. Need to receive healing? Get it here.
I’m sharing what the Holy Spirit told me because I sincerely believe that this is a message to you as well. We don’t need to hold back. Because of the infilling and empowering of the Holy Spirit, we need to boldly declare that we have come to minister and deposit the resources of heaven, needs can and will be supplied, and that people won’t leave the way that they came. Why? Because “you can get it here”.
