1. Plymouth Voyager or its equivalent, Dodge Caravan
2. Extended model (Grand)
3. Dual air conditioning
4. Under 65,000 miles
5. 4 years old or less
6. Tinted windows
7. Be in our price range
8. Maroon (hey, we’re Aggies…)

I kept looking at the classifieds for Bryan/College Station and Houston. I finally found something, but it was none of the above–except for being a Caravan. When I showed Donna, she said “That’s not the answer to my prayer.” I said “How do you know?” She said “That’s not what I prayed for.”

At that time, I had no idea you could make a prayer request like that to God. I thought she was being too particular, and I told her we really needed to get something whether it met all the criteria or not. I insisted on going forward with it. She let me know she was certain that was not what we were supposed to do, but I was not to be swayed. In my heart, I think I knew I was getting ahead of God, and very guilty of not waiting on Him. However, in my impatience, I rushed forward.

This van was in Houston, so we drove to go get it and spent the night with my folks on the other side of Houston in La Marque, Texas. We spent $5,400 on this van. It was brown and quite unattractive to both of us. The next day, we saw that it was leaking transmission fluid. I also saw that the agreement I signed was “As Is”. We took it to a shop where they informed us it would cost over $2,000 to repair/replace the transmission. That morning I was very disappointed with what happened, especially with regards to Donna and her knowing it wasn’t the right one in the first place. I imagined she was thinking it, but she never did say “I told you so.” Meanwhile, my bad decision was about to get even worse.

We headed back to Bryan that afternoon in our “new” van. We were driving on Highway 290, a divided highway just west of Houston. Although the speed limit was 65mph, there were still a few intersections with traffic lights. We had the green light going through one of them, but another driver came barreling through that intersection at 45mph–never stopping for their red light. We met corner to corner and both vehicles were totalled. The collision caused us to veer to the left 90 degrees, where we just barely squeezed in between a utility box and the traffic light pole. Our van would have ended up in the east bound traffic on Highway 290 were it not for the sheer width of this huge grassy median between east and west bound traffic (and, of course, God’s grace).

The vehicle struck our front passenger side where Donna was sitting. She was 7 months pregnant. Her seatbelt had come off, and after the wreck, she could not feel any movement from the baby. In the meantime, I had damaged my knees and broke a bone in my left hand. Our 3 boys suffered some bruises. The one-year-old, Cory, had blood coming out of his mouth, which concerned me because all of the glass windows had blown out. Two ambulances transported us all to the nearest hospital for examination. We all were otherwise protected during the crash, and the baby turned out fine.

Our insurance provider would only reimburse us for $4,800, so now I was out of the problem of having a van that needed $2,000 in repairs, but I had lost $600 in the process, but that was nothing compared to all the pain, stress and suffering I had brought upon my family. We cried out to God for help, and He directed us to a lawyer since we were incurring medical expenses.

This lawyer was successful in getting us remedy for the medical expenses. He also negotiated the insurance provider to reimburse us $8,000 for the van! Now we were up $2,600 which meant we could increase the price range for our van search.

A few weeks passed and I found another ad for a van, again in Houston. This time it met maybe 2 or 3 of the criteria, and again Donna reminded me that it was not the answer to her prayer. I countered that with the fact that this time I would pay for a mechanic to do a proper inspection on the vehicle and would not purchase it if it didn’t pass muster. She again submitted, but not gladly since she did not have peace about this van, either. When we got to Houston, the van was lacking the dual air, but I probably would have bought it anyway were it not for the mechanic.

As we took the van for a test drive, the mechanic found out we were Christians who home-schooled, and he told us he was a Pastor! The mechanic job was just a part-time thing for him. He pointed out several problems with the van including a cracked engine block and an odometer that had signs of tampering. When I originally scheduled this inspection, I was told the inspection would cost $125. This pastor told us that since we were not buying this vehicle he did not want to charge us, but just wanted to bless us. He refused to accept any money for his time and effort! He only asked that if we ended up finding another vehicle in Houston, that we would use his services again. We agreed and thanked him.

Well, a short time later, we found another van. Again it was in Houston, so we arranged an inspection with this same gentleman. He ran the vehicle through all the checklist items, and it passed with flying colors. He was actually amazed at what great shape it was in. Now, I was ready to pay the $125 inspection fee, when he told me that since we were “repeat” customers we qualified for a discount and only had to pay $75!

In August of 1994, we bought a 1990 model Plymouth Grand Voyager. This van had dual air conditioning, tinted windows, less than 65,000 miles on it, and was well enough into our price range, that we were even able to afford an extended warranty on it that was available because of the stellar inspection.

And you better believe this, too: It was maroon!

Because of my lack of sensitivity to God at the time, in my stubbornness and pride, I put my family in harm’s way. I was literally “in the driver’s seat” when that collision occurred. God, in His infinite mercy, restored to us all that had been lost physically and financially, and then He even poured out more than enough! In addition to vehicle and medical reimbursements, we even garnered enough cash that we were in a position to bless another family financially. I saw God’s grace demonstrated in my wife who did not despise me for all of those mistakes, and I saw His generosity demonstrated by a pastor on a fixed income who wanted to bless us.

I am grateful to God for His patience with me, and I vow to be patient with Him and trust Him to do what He has promised. These days, I know His promises and expect nothing less!

Did you know you could be so specific when you prayed? Back then, I had no clue. I am getting one, now, however. He means what He says.

And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. [John 14:13]

Glory to God.

Sadhu Chellapa’s discovery of Jesus as foretold in the Vedas: that ancient body of Indian Sanskrit writings. He gets personal, too, as he recounts his own story nearly ending in a tragic suicide before Hope came.

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5

Part 6

Part 7

Part 8

Part 9

Part 10

Thurman Scrivner

• God’s Power Testimony of faith in the face of adversity. If this story does not increase your faith in God and His promises, then chances are nothing will.
• How to Get a Lost Person Saved You’ve tried everything else…or maybe you haven’t.

Bill Johnson

• Looking For One Person
• Demonstrating His Power
• Seeing Through Kingdom Eyes

Bill Wiese

• 23 Minutes In Hell One man’s life-changing exposure to the realms of hell

Other

• Margy Mayfield Her testimony of being abducted by a serial killer/rapist in a K-Mart parking lot in San Antonio, TX. How she overcame the threat, and how her response transformed the man’s eternal destiny.

Click the title to listen immediately online. You can also save the file to your computer by right-clicking the link and choosing Save As…  For iPhone, press the link and hold for a second, then let go and open in a new page.

You can also visit the corresponding ministries by clicking their names.

As recorded in the Bible:

And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned. [Mark 16:15-16]

Christians are supposed to be part of a great and glorious Show and Tell. The above is the “tell”. Many Christians believe the Great Commission, but amazingly few believe or are even aware of the verse that follows. Some go so far as to even dispute whether or not the verse even belong in the bible:

And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; [Mark 16:17]

In November 2006, my family observed this verse to be true. We have learned so much more since this event regarding the authority of the believer in Christ with regard to demons (or evil spirits), that the outcome of this story would probably be drastically different. Nevertheless, what I tell in this hour long audio clip is absolutely true as witnessed by me, my wife, Donna, her mother, her sister and our son, Ryan, who was 16 years old at the time.

Let it be known that Mark 16:17 is absolutely true, because God’s Word is true. Don’t let anyone try to tell you that was for the apostles. I know preachers who have personally told me they don’t believe this was a promise concerning today’s believer. I can’t speak to their motives, but I believe it is purely because they have been deceived. The devil has been using that from day one: “Did God really say that?”

By the way, just a month or 2 prior to this event, I was using language such as “If the devil is real…”, because, honestly, I thought he was just a mythological creature kind of like a Santa Claus figure. I thought the devil was just a literary way to personify evil. I couldn’t have been further from the truth.

These signs will follow THOSE WHO BELIEVE. In My name they will cast out demons; [Mark 16:17]

Deliverance Testimony

Click the title to listen immediately online. You can also save the file to your computer by right-clicking the link and choosing Save As…  For iPhone, press the link and hold for a second, then let go and open in a new page.

And Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of him; and the child was cured from that very hour. Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, “Why could we not cast it out?” So Jesus said to them, “Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you. [Matthew 17:18-20]

Why did they not succeed? Because of their unbelief. In fact, just a few verses prior, Jesus called them faithless and perverse. Faithless means no faith.

The presence of faith, however (no matter how small it might be described) can not be described as unbelief or faithlessness.  In other words, little faith is not unbelief. Jesus even used the example of a mustard seed to say as much. So, Jesus seems to be saying little faith (the mustard seed) can move big things. 

If that is true, then certainly size is not the issue. I think there is a false notion that faith is like a bank account. That is, the more you have, the more you can purchase. Or we speak of this person having more faith than that person, in the same way we say this person can lift more pounds than that one. There seems to be a perception that there are degrees of faith. It is not as if there was a number line representing magnitude of faith. 

Part of the problem comes from misunderstanding the gospel scriptures that speak of “little faith” and “great faith”. Let me explain.

There are four such occurrences of “little faith” in most translations. For example, if you search the King James version you will get 5 such verses. 4 separate accounts as recorded by Matthew:  6:30, 8:26, 14:31, and 16:8. The 5th result is in Luke 12:28 but is just a retelling of Matthew 6:30.

However, Jesus did not use the expression “you of little faith”. What he said in each of these passages was recorded in Greek: oligopistos. This is Strong’s reference number G3640. It yields these 2 definitions: incredulous, and lacking confidence.

Let’s examine each of those separately.

Definitions for incredulous: 

1. not credulous; disinclined or indisposed to believe; skeptical.

2. indicating or showing unbelief: an incredulous smile.

Synonyms: unbelieving. See doubtful. 

Can you see this is a far cry from “little faith”? The phrase “little faith” carries with it the implication that you just need another helping of something you already have, or perhaps a larger dose of it. Let me tell you, you do not want a larger dose of unbelief. You do not want more doubt. You cannot afford another helping of skepticism.

The other definition of oligopistos is: lacking confidence.

Let’s say you have $90 and want to buy something that costs $100. Guess what? You are lacking money. Ten dollars to be exact. So, we can properly say you are lacking money. But even though you lack money, it can still be said that you still have money at the same time. Money is like that.

Confidence, however, is not like that. If you are lacking confidence, guess what you don’t have? That’s right; you don’t have confidence. It’s all or nothing. In math terms, we call that binary. On or off. True or false. Confidence is like that. Faith, which is confidence, is like that.

Definitions for confidence

1. full trust; belief in the powers, trustworthiness, or reliability of a person or thing

2. belief in oneself and one’s powers or abilities; self-confidence; self-reliance; assurance

3. certitude; assurance: 

So, lacking confidence is lacking full trust. Lacking confidence is lacking assurance. It is lacking certainty.

You should think of the phrase “you of little faith” as a euphemism at best. In reality it is a derogatory term. As you can see from the definitions of oligopistos, it surely is not a label you want Jesus to hang around your neck!

So, in actuality, there really is no mention of “little faith” in the scriptures used in any way to connote a small quantity.

How about “great faith”? Surely that means a large quantity? Let’s see.

There are 2 references to “great faith”. They are Matthew 8:10 and 15:28 (and a parallel mention in Luke 7:9). Interestingly enough, the two people Jesus singled out were not even Israelites! The one was a Roman centurion, and the other a Canaanite woman.

Now if “great faith” refers to the capacity for having faith, then these 2 believed in a bigger way than anyone else Jesus ever encountered. But is that really the case?

I don’t think “great faith” refers to the ability to believe, but rather what is believed. Here’s why.

The centurion answered and said, “Lord, I am not worthy that You should come under my roof. But only speak a word, and my servant will be healed. [Matthew 8:8]

The bible said that Jesus marveled. Wow, the Son of God was “filled with wonder, admiration, or astonishment”. What would cause that kind of response in Him?

When evening had come, they brought to Him many who were demon-possessed. And He cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all who were sick, [Matthew 8:16]

Wherever He entered, into villages, cities, or the country, they laid the sick in the marketplaces, and begged Him that they might just touch the hem of His garment. And as many as touched Him were made well. [Mark 6:56]

Understand that the majority of miracles Jesus did were local. They were done within close proximity to the recipients. (While you are here, take adavantage of this opportunity and read those 2 scriptures again. Meditate on these phrases: healed all, and as many as touched. Then check out Hebrews 13:8)

While everyone was racing to touch Jesus or his clothing, or to bring the lame to receive a touch from Him, this centurion demonstrated a different kind of faith.

“My servant is not here, but just say the word…”

This was new for Jesus. This caused Him to marvel.

The other “great faith” comment from Jesus is found here:

 Then Jesus answered and said to her, “O woman, great is your faith! Let it be to you as you desire.” And her daughter was healed from that very hour. [Matthew 15:28]

Hundreds (if not thousands) came to Jesus for miracles. Did this woman believe any more than the countless others who believed Jesus could and would heal them? For example this one:

And suddenly, a woman who had a flow of blood for twelve years came from behind and touched the hem of His garment. For she said to herself, “If only I may touch His garment, I shall be made well.”  [Matthew 9:20-21]

Jesus credited this woman with faith…

But Jesus turned around, and when He saw her He said, “Be of good cheer, daughter; your faith has made you well.” And the woman was made well from that hour. [Matthew 9:22]

…but not great faith. What was the difference?

If the Canaanite woman’s daughter was not present when she was seeking Jesus, we have a similar situation as with the Roman centurion: a request for long distance miracle. That is not exactly clear. But certainly one thing is clear, and this alone could be what Jesus is calling “great faith”. That woman was told “no” how many times and in how many different ways? The disciples were wanting to shoo her away, Jesus was ignoring her, later telling her he did not come for non-Israelites, and how about this: calling her a dog?

Great faith could be that kind of faith that is demonstrated by engaging God in such a way that you do not leave the meeting until you have received what you came for. If you’ll pardon the pun, her “doggedness” could very well be what was described as great faith.

Just yesterday, I purchased a New Living Translation (NLT) version of the bible. I was very disappointed to find out how the scripture I opened this article with was translated. Here it is:

Afterward the disciples asked Jesus privately, “Why couldn’t we cast out that demon?” “You don’t have enough faith,” Jesus told them. “I tell you the truth, if you had faith even as small as a mustard seed, you could say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it would move. Nothing would be impossible. “ [NLT Matthew 17:19-20]

Jesus most definitely did not say “you don’t have enough faith”!! The word in the Greek that is being translated here is apistia, which means without faith, or unbelief. The King James version gets it right (see top of article). Look, 2 verses prior Jesus said they were faithless (even in the NLT). It is wrong and misleading to equate faithless with “not enough faith”. Thank God, the Greek text is there to make sense of this. But even if it wasn’t, it should be blatantly obvious that something is wrong here if Jesus says “you don’t have enough”, and immediately follows with “if you had faith as small as…”. I hope you are getting this.

So what does all this mean for you and me? Don’t get caught up in the lie that you don’t have “enough” faith. I am telling you, you have it.

For I say, through the grace given to me, to everyone who is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think soberly, as God has dealt to each one a measure of faith. [Romans 12:3]

On the flip side, don’t ascribe to yourself “great faith”. But, rather, thank God for your faith.

Now, if you consider yourself as one who is lacking confidence, or skeptical, there is hope.

So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. [Romans 10:17]

Immerse yourself in these things: the reading of the bible, the seeking of His kingdom, listening to men of faith give their testimonies.

Divorce yourself from the world! Renew your mind.

And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God. [Romans 12:2]

Faith can be fed. You must feed on the Word of God. Search out the promises. Know that they are for today, and they are for you.

For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us. [2 Corinthians 1:20]

And the apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.” [Luke 17:5]

Why ask for this? Does it really matter if faith is increased? What does it mean for faith to be increased? Why should it matter that faith be increased?

It could be because of statements Jesus makes like this:

Jesus said to him, “If you can believe, all things are possible to him who believes.” [Mark 9:23]

Which earned this response…

Immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears, “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!” [Mark 9:24]

The apostles’ request is not that different from what the father of the demonized boy said. Both groups claimed a level of faith, but both also acknowledged a deficiency. The first step of resolving a problem is recognizing that one exists.

More importantly, both sets of people recognized Jesus as being the One capable of rectifying the problem.

Before we talk about how Jesus responded, I want to first discuss what He didn’t do.

• He didn’t . . . dismiss the idea as not important,
• He didn’t . . . say their faith was already sufficient,
• He didn’t . . . put them in a 12-step program,
• He didn’t . . . perform more miracles for them,
• He didn’t . . . review His own high-light reel,
• He didn’t . . . lay hands on them,
• He didn’t . . . drop them into a situation that required “exercising” their faith,
• He didn’t . . . even  pray for them.

So what did He do to address the apostles’ request to increase their faith?

Please get this: He gave them another promise! To their request Jesus replies:

So the Lord said, “If you have faith as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be pulled up by the roots and be planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you. [Luke 17:6]

If it hasn’t occurred to you yet, it is essential to understand this: Without a promise, there can be no faith.

Only where there are promises, can faith exist. If God had not promised salvation, there could be no faith for salvation. There might be wishing or wanting salvation, but that is not faith. Faith is hearing a promise, recognizing Who it is that is offering the promise, and then believing that the One who said it will see that it is done. In other words, faith is an expression of confidence in God and His Word.

Consider Abraham.

And not being weak in faith, he did not consider his own body, already dead (since he was about a hundred years old), and the deadness of Sarah’s womb.  He did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God,  and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform.  And therefore “IT WAS ACCOUNTED TO HIM FOR RIGHTEOUSNESS.”  [Romans 4:19-22]

The bible says that Abraham saw himself “as good as dead” when God told him he would be a father. Regardless of the circumstances, he believed God. He had confidence that God would do as He had said.

He had a choice: believe or doubt. There is no middle ground with faith. It is belief or unbelief.

Look back at that passage about Abraham. It said he was fully convinced. You cannot believe a promise of God partially. You can’t say I half-believe or even I believe 99.9%.  God does not round up as mathematicians might. To say you believe God or His Word 99% is to say you doubt it 1%.

But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord;  [James 1:6-7]

Anything. Let that sink in: ANYTHING.

Here’s the deal. Pick a promise of God. Any one of them. You either believe it or you don’t. If you don’t, you need help believing it. “Help my unbelief” the man said to Jesus.

Let’s say my wife wanted me to go to the store for her and pick up some items on my way home and never told me, and I never said anything about going to the store either.  She can cross her fingers and see if I do it, she can hope that I do it, or worry about it, but she cannot have faith for me to do it. However, if she calls me at work and tells me her need, I could then tell her that I will stop at the store and get those things. Now she can begin to have faith. She can believe that I will do what I have told her I will do. Based on my track-record, she may find it easy or difficult to believe I will keep this promise.

For any given promise of God, faith can increase from not having it to having it. If you already believe a promise, does it profit you to believe it more?

See, Jesus made it perfectly clear that quantity is not the issue. It is not an issue of size or magnitude. That is why he chose the mustard seed. It demonstrates His point. You don’t need a truckload or even a bushel of it. You need a grain. The smallest quantity of mustard is still mustard. So it is with faith.

The issue is quality. And it is like this. A woman nine seconds after conceiving a child is no less pregnant than one nine months along. Ask either woman if she is pregnant. The answer is: both are. To the rest of us, it is more obvious that one is, but the fact is both are.  It makes no sense to ask a woman if she is a little bit pregnant. She is or she isn’t pregnant.

Likewise, you either believe or you don’t believe God’s promises.

Now you might find it easier to believe some of God’s promises than others. You may have faith for promises A and B, but not for C or D. When faith increases, you will believe God for some of His other promises or more of His promises than what you currently believe. Where promises abound, faith can abound.

I think this is what Jesus was doing for His disciples. You see, the bible says

So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. [Romans 10:17]

When God says I will do this or I will do that, and you have never heard of it, you cannot have faith for it. Nothing has been proclaimed to you. Once you are made aware of the promise, a seed of faith is planted. For faith to increase, your awareness of His promises must increase. That means you must grow in your knowledge of what He has promised.

But not all of God’s promises are that He will do something. Many of His promises are that WE can do something. This still requires faith, because we are more challenged to believe those kinds of things.  It still requires us to believe the One who promised.

The promise that Jesus gave was one of those kind of promises.

Believe it or not.