Sid:  We want everyone everywhere to hear the good news. Although this week we’re talking about the Israeli Palestinian situation that is so confusing to the world.  And should not but is so confusing to even Christians.  But we’re going to make some sense out of it because I have a Messianic Jewish Author Sandy Teplinsky. Speaking to her at her home in Anaheim, California.  She has a legal background but she wrote this book in such simplistic understanding from the subjective historical side which you must understand and from the spiritual side to understand.  Sandy I see the pictures of the suffering of the Palestinian people.  I was in Paris, France a couple of years ago and in the streets they shut down the street and a group of Palestinians had pictures of what they call the atrocities happening to their people from Israel.  And I saw such hatred its such venom towards Israel.  And as a true believer I have a love for the Arab people.  I have a love for and I have to say the so called Palestinian people. I see them as victims being used as victims being used by the greater Islamic world to accomplish their goal of forming a Palestinian State as a launching path to take over all of Israel.  But my heart goes out for those people; as a Believer what should our position be with these Palestinians?

Sandra: We have to know that God loves the Arabic people; and that Jesus died for them.  And if we love the Lord we must love the Arabic people and we must love Muslims.  You know that we can love the sinner but hate the sin.   And I believe that the Arabic people have a very high calling in God yet to be realized.  I think that they will be used of God to help evangelize the Jewish nation.  I think that we see glimpses of their redemptive gift already and redemptive destiny that I can’t go into right now but go in at much greater length in my book.  But even as the Lord prophesied that Ishmael would be a wild donkey that the sons of Ishmael someday would become like that gentle donkey that Yeshua rode into Jerusalem on.  And that they will be used to carry the very presence of God back to the Jewish people; back to Jerusalem.  And that there will be a day when the Jews and Arabs, who are really cousins you know if you go back historically Biblically, will once again embrace each other and  weep on each other’s neck like Jacob and Esau once did.

Sid:  But Sandy you and I know that this will never be done politically; this will never be done through a military.  This will only be done when Jew and Arab recognized the King of the Jews only.

Sandra:  That was exactly my next sentence; (Laughing) absolutely and so it’s incumbent on us as believer’s to pray, pray and pray. Because God is profoundly visiting the Muslim people.  We hear reports about supernatural visitations and…

Sid: Listen last week I took a taxi and the driver was from Jordan and he was Islamic and he was married to a Christian and he was separated ready to get a divorce.  And he takes the guy 2 hours; he’s an elderly man and the man tells him everything about his life.  Everything and he says “You must return to your wife.”  Jesus is real and told him personal things.

Sandra: Hm.

Sid: And then he takes him 2 hours to this taxi ride and the guy says “I don’t want to go here take me back.  And he takes him back another 2 hours and he continues to tell him everything personal about his life.  And there was a big conference going on in Charlotte, North Carolina and there were no hotel rooms but he finally after going to all these different hotels they find one room for this old man and they put him in the room. And he says I’ll pick you up in the morning.  The taxi driver comes in the morning and they say the old man never registered; there is no one here by that name. And the guy realized that it was an angel and he made Jesus his Lord.  These supernatural visitations are happening all over the place with Muslims.

Sandra:  Absolutely, we need to pray that will increase that God will continue to visit them.  And you know even the Israeli government has; Israeli officials have encouraged believers to witness the Muslim Arabs realizing that those that really do come to an understanding of what true Christianity is about with a relationship with the Lord Yeshua and inherence to His word cannot hate Israel.  But can only love Israel out of it’s love for Yeshua. And so we have placed a high priority of praying for the Arabs and on ministering to the Arab believers because they are much in need of our support and out encouragement.

Sid: Sandy how in the world is your premise of what is going on in Israel is going to be used to refine the Body of Messiah?

Sandra:  We have to understand Sid that how we treat Israel reflects how we would treat the Lord Yeshua Himself if He were here.  Now that’s quite a profound statement I realize for many people.  But the Lord spoke to me one day which I later confirmed through scripture study that in the parable of the sheep and the goats back in Matthew 25:40 when Yeshua says to His disciples that when He was in prison, when he was hungry, when he was sick; that those who ministered to His needs ministered to Him.  And as we do likewise to the least of his brothers we do so to Him.  That within the context of the story He is speaking of the last days, which increasingly seem to be our days.  And He is speaking fundamentally of His brothers according to the flesh, His brothers.  The plain and simple meaning of the word brothers. And so as we come into that especially as we come into that time we the Body of Messiah will be judged according to how we have treated the Jewish people.  We will be determined to be either sheep or goats.  And if you go back to the very first study Bible produced for the NIV, the International Version of the scriptures there’s  a very interesting note that states ultimately that whether or not a person is saved will be evidenced by his treatment of the Jewish people.

Sid: I mean how in the world could someone be anti-Semitic if they have the King of the Jews in their heart.  If the blood of the greatest Jew who ever lived is flowing through the heart of a Christian how can a Christian be anti-Jewish the two don’t connect.

Sandra:  Now the challenge is increasingly in our times it will be increasingly incorrect to stand with Israel.

Sid:  Now I must ask you this question; “Why is it a major Christian denomination said “We will not invest our pension money” and they have billions of dollars “in any company that does business with Israel.” A major Christian denomination, why is it that the World Council of Churches totally denounces Israel and is Pro-Palestinian that represents 400 million Christians?  Why these are Christians, why are they doing this Sandy?

Sandra: Israel is destined to be a dividing line in the last days Church.  And I believe that we need to be very sober about the admonishment of the scriptures on pertaining to our treatment of Israel and the warnings that God gives us.  Not just in a parable in Matthew but through prophets like Obadiah that our treatment of Israel will determine our standing with God.  Now we have an enemy Satan and so Satan hates the Jews and he knows that if he can annihilate Israel he can prevent Jesus return because Jesus is going to return to a Jewish nation in a Jewish capital to Jerusalem.  And so Satan is working night and day fighting tooth and nail to cause contention and division in the very people that God has intended to love and support Israel namely the church by causing them to not only fall from God’s commandments concerning His treatment of Israel.  But I believe also fall even from the Lord; fall away from the Lord.  And I would dare say that our relationship with the Lord that we need to seriously consider that in mistreating Israel we could possibly, very possibly fall away from the faith.  It’s that serious!

Sid: You mentioned Obadiah, would you paraphrase what Obadiah says.

Sandra:  Obadiah which is a wonderful 1 chapter book that I encourage everybody to read you can go through it in 5 minutes.  States that those who stand idly by while Israel is plundered by her enemies will be treated by God the same as He is going to treat her enemies.  In other words to just stand aloof is the word that scripture uses.

Sid: Look at all the countries that not just stood aloof but went against Israel throughout all the scripture; throughout all of history.  Take Great Britain and look what happened.  I mean they used to say that Great Britain had so much land throughout the world the sun was always on a portion of their land.  And now, look how small they are; what did they do?  They missed handled Israel.  But what you’re saying is that if you’re just neutral it’s horrible.

Sandra: You know what Sid I don’t say it God says it.   

Sid:  That’s even better!

Sandra:  Obadiah says it and he speaking to the Gentle nations. And of course all this stems back doesn’t it to the very fundamental principal of scriptures from Genesis 12:3 then God says “I will bless those who bless you.”  Speaking of the ethnic biological descendants of Abraham.  “And who ever curses you I will curse.”  And of course Isaac inherits that promised blessing and Jacob inherits that promised blessing.  And Jacob then becomes Israel and so the sons and daughters of Jacob are the Jewish people of today inherit that dynamic that those who bless them; those who curse them are cursed.  And we see nations who like Great Britain or Spain or the former Soviet Union cursing the Jews we inevitably see them cursed.  And it plays out not just on a national level but on a personal level.  Individuals who bless the Jewish nation will be blessed; and those who curse them will be cursed.

Sid: Sandy we’re out of time.

Sid: Guess what just as I said that someone’s was healed; someone with a headache the headache is gone in Jesus Name.  We’re getting ready Mishpochah to blow the grandest shofar; oh the grandest trumpet in Zion; we want everyone everywhere to hear the good news we want everyone everywhere to be red hot for the Messiah.  My guest by way of telephone is Pastor Michael Cameneti.  And He is pastor of Canton Christian Fellowship in Canton, Ohio.  Michael you are talking about a subject; you have written a book about a subject that is probably about. the most important subject that a Bible Believer can hear at this precise moment in history.  And I really believe that it’s part of a prophecy that was given several years ago by Dr. Kenneth Hagin.  I heard this prophecy but there was a part on 2005.  There are people that give prophesies and in there are prophets of God.  And Dr. Kenneth Hagin was a Prophet of God he’s now in Heaven but his words go on.  And I wonder if you have that in front of you if you could read exactly what he prophesied would occur in the year 2005.

Michael: Sure, Sid it is great to be on your program.  The prophecy went like this: 2005 Brother Hagin starts to prophecy and in fact he begins to weep.  And he asked the Lord it says this “Will time last or will time cease.”  And then he says this “It will be a year of judgment” and he actually reemphasizes that judgment.  And then he said “If we judge ourselves we will not be judged.”  And of course that’s a scripture 1^st Corinthians 11:31.  Then he goes into that when we are judged we are turned over to Satan for the destruction of the flesh so that the spirit might be saved in the day of our Lord Jesus.”  In fact that’s another scripture out of 1^st Corinthians 5.  Then he says “There will be judgment on the individual realm; judgment in the family realm and then judgment on the national level.  A day of sternness; a day of discipline; a day of correction but the end of the year will be glorious.  But yes amends will be made; many will judge themselves and nations will turn to God and it will end 2005 in a glorious manner.”  So I believe this prophecy and I believe in our church personally that we’re pasturing in here in ` that we are teaching right now to our church members to get ready for 2005.  I’m doing a series right now that goes really along with a book that we’ve written called “The Missing Ingredient to Success.”  This book is about the fear of the Lord and fearing God; which is a subject that we don’t hear a lot about…

Sid: And you know judging on what is going on in the church and I’m talking about homosexuality; divorce; addictions of all kinds.  There is no fear of God obviously, and Christians I liken it to when someone has been a non-Christian their whole life and then they have a revelation of who Jesus is they are on fire for God. They are red hot for God, but it seems as though the things that go on in this life, the problems, the business that the fire has gone out on many Christians.

Michael: It’s very true.  And in fact Jesus said this in Revelation’s Chapter 3 and John’s writing and Jesus said “I know your works.”  And actually in the Greek it says “I know them first hand; I know them intimately; I know exactly what you’re doing first hand.”  So God knows what we’re doing; Jesus knows what we’re doing on this earth right now for Him.  And it says “That thou are neither cold or hot.” Now this is written to specifically a church; written to the pastor of that church.  John obviously delivered it to them; they read it to that church.  The church was not hot nor cold but Jesus said “I would rather have you hot or cold; but He says that “Because you are lukewarm; neither hot nor cold I’m going to spew.”  Or the Greek says “I’m going to vomit you out of my mouth.”  That’s not a pleasant thought for any of us we don’t want that to happen in our lives or with Jesus.  But I am seeing a trend in the church in the local churches overall not just in our church that people are not on fire.  I came out of the world; I came out of getting saved from doing things that were pretty much not good and not always want to talk about.  I was not living for God and I didn’t know Him but I got born again and asked Jesus into my heart and I got on fire for God.  I’ve had to work to keep that; I think that Christians think that it’s just an automatic thing.  I’ve had to stay in fellowship with Him.  Stay in His word, stay praying, stay in church.  And through those things it’s kept me on fire for God. But a lot of Christians have lost that fire and my desire is to get them back to where they get their first love.  Like Revelations Chapter 2 Jesus is wring to a wonderful Church; the Church at Ephesus.

Sid: But guess what; it’s more serious than that Michael; I mean if Kenneth Hagin was a prophet of God which both of us believe he was.

Michael:  Yes.

Sid: It’s very serious.  Let me ask you a few questions on that prophecy.

Michael:  Sure.

Sid: Number 1 he talked about it was almost he posed this question: “Will time last or will time cease?”  In other words what he was seeing he almost questioned as to whether this was it.

Michael:  Right, he obviously you know saw something that made him wonder is this going to be it because of what happens. And of course judgments not a popular subject, that’s for sure, and especially not in the church because we do live in the age of grace; we live in the church age.  But I think people have forgotten even in the Book of Acts or even in the New Testament that there were times that judgment came.  I think that we forgot about that. And judgment is not to put us into fear; I don’t believe that this prophecy was giving so that Christians will be afraid of 2005; they’ll be afraid to enter it. In fact a brother that I heard ministering he said this “God’s not running out of mercy; God’s running out of time.” So I believe that the prophets of the land are saying and I believe that seeing what we’re seeing right now in the land that the end is coming.  And obviously, Brother Hagin must have seen something that he was thinking is this going to be it because this judgment is coming.

Sid: Well, he was weeping it had to be horrific.

Michael:  Yes.

Sid: But he talked about judging of the individual; the family and the nation.  What do you think he meant by the individual?

Michael: Individual I believe it’s personal.  Where us as believer’s can do something; in fact this is what I’m teaching on Sunday mornings that we can do something to avoid judgment in our own person lives. There are some adjustments you can make in your Christian life.

Sid: I want to cover a little of that this week and that’s all we can do is just a little of that.  What about family?  What do you think he meant by family, judgments in the family?

Michael:  Well, in America at this time they say “Whether it’s in the church or whether it’s outside of the church the divorce rate is at 50%.  Some people have said that it’s actually higher in the church it’s at 51%, but regardless of whether that’s true or not we know marriages are having an attack people are getting divorced.  I believe that God’s saying that as family’s to say “No” to the trend that’s in the world which is divorce. And God doesn’t like divorce; God doesn’t want us to get divorced.  Now he loves people and he loves the people that still get divorce, but what he wants to see is for these families to stay together.  We understand that it’s causing children to have problems; it’s causing the family to have problems; it’s causing the families to have a pressure; it’s causing wives to have problems. And so what we want to see and I believe what God wants to see and I believe what this meant on a family realm is that we get the family’s walking with God.  Let’s get them back to church and back into the things of God so that we don’t see judgment come on families individually.

Sid: And what do you think he meant when he prophesied of national judgment.

Michael:   Well, national judgment I don’t believe it’s just for America but I do believe America is up for judgment like any other country because we see in the word of God that there’s going to be a judgment of nations.  I believe America has to step up and say we are a Christian nation; we were definitely founded on those facts and on those ways and principals.  So we have to come back to God as a nation; so we have things like gay marriage rights that are we going to allow that or not. America’s going to have to vote on these things and what about abortion. These are things that God would definitely not be happy with in our country.  The level of sin and how things have come out of the closet and there are all kinds of things that are accepted. I believe America has to judge itself and if it doesn’t this prophecy says that there will be judgment on a national level. We don’t know exactly how that will work or exactly what it’s going to be.  But He does say that America, or not America specifically, but nations are going to be judged.

Sid: You know I hate to be pessimistic but I just don’t have the faith for a national turning to God.  I just believe that throughout history; throughout scripture when the sins reach a certain point judgment is inevitable; it can’t even be stopped.

Michael: We’re all familiar with the Old Covenant in the Old Testament. And in the Old Testament the children of Israel when we read the Book of Kings, 1^st Kings, 2^nd Kings we even read other books that are in there like Judges, we find out that the children of Israel kept on leaving God.  Their leadership their Kings kept on turning from God.  And when things go to a certain level when they would turn their hearts away from God judgment would come and then their hearts would turn back to God.  And we are different them them; we have God now living in us we’re born again; we have a new spirit on the inside.  They didn’t have necessarily that they were believing on the one that was going to come.  But as America as a nation there are times for a nation that judgment has to come so that that nation will turn back to God because they’re not going to necessarily do it by our preaching or by what they’re hearing us say.  Now there are many believers in this nation; we have more mega-churches in the country than we’ve ever had. More people attending those kind of churches. But there are a lot of people that are un-churched or are not going to church or backslidden that need to come back to God.

Sid: Now on that prophecy it sounded like 2005 would end wonderfully because of what…

Michael: The end it says “Amends shall be made many will judge themselves,” so obviously people do the right thing, “nations will turn to God,” and he actually laughs at that point, and then he says “it will end in a glorious manner.”      

Sid: Michael we’re out of time right now we’ll pick up right here on tomorrow’s broadcast.

Sid:   We want everywhere to be red hot for the Messiah; the truth of the matter is that most of us don’t even know what red hot for the Messiah means. Where are our role models?  Here in this unreal moment in history called 21^st Century America; where the average person lives like a king of former generations.  Where we don’t know what persecution is for the gospel.  Where we have more Bibles per square Christian than any country that has ever existed.  We have more tapes, more Christian teachings, more Christian television, radio, more church buildings; but something is missing.  And I have a gentleman on the telephone that knows what’s missing.  His name is Kevin Turner; President of Strategic World Impact.  He works in 3 areas: war zones; disaster areas, and where Christians are being persecuted.  I’ve caught up with him at his base in Sudan, Africa.  And he’s there with his family; his wife and his 3 children.  His daughter we found out yesterday almost lost her life and she pleaded when they wanted to get on the first plane out of there “Dad I want to stay here!”  Kevin you were talking about a 3^rd World Country that some American’s said “What can we pray for you; what did they say?”

Kevin: Oh they were actually being asked… this was actually in Vietnam with of course massive persecution from the Communist Party there of any type of what they would call unsanctioned church activity, in other words, where the Holy Spirit is moving. It was so amazing because they’re being asked if they you know wanted the envoys to bring back a message of “Should we have the American church pray for open borders and that everything would open up for you?” And almost in horror they said “Oh, no pray instead that we have open heavens!”  And in that response you see the difference of why the church is growing in Vietnam like wild fire and why it’s stagnating in America. Because what they realize is that it’s about a spiritual blessing.  In America we have this mentality of “I will have it and I will have it now; I will have heaven on earth I will not have delayed gratification; I will not endure hardship; I will not suffer loss.”  The average Christian in America if I tell them that my daughter was attacked and we stayed they look at me as if I’m a horrible father because I would subject my family to that.  And instead what we have is we have the blessing of the presence of Jesus comforting us.  And you know what me and my wife did, and some people might find this unbelievable; but we gathered hands in our bedroom and we prayed. We said “Jesus you loaned these children to us and we give them back to You; and God You know our hearts would be utterly broken but if You see fit that their lives be taken then we give all glory to You.”  Now to some people that’s incomprehensible; but when you meet the King of Glory in the way that He’s touched my heart no price in my hand I bring simply to the cross I cling.”  I love Him!

Sid: Mishpochah you’re not listening to a man talking theory; you’re listening to a man that because of his work for the gospel in these areas that are terrorist based there have been contracts for his life.  Tell me about one circumstance.

Kevin:  Well, we actually were up in area north eastern Sudan where Osama Bin Laden  had his hide out terrorist training camp for 2 ½ years.  We actually showed in fact CBN Christian broadcasting showed the video.  We showed the Jesus film on the wall of Bin Laden’s former compound.  We were sharing it there in a Muslim Islamic training school sharing the Jesus film on the wall there.  It was utterly divine!  And because of our continued work in this heavily just fundamentalist Islamic area of course it’s aroused attention.  The Saudis out wonderful friends have; the backed the money they put up half a million dollars for a Jihad faction group.

Sid: Does it bother you when, and I know you said that tongue and cheek, but does it bother you that the US has friends so much to speak in bed with Saudi Arabia?

Kevin:  Oh you have no idea and working so much in the Middle East I know see and learn so much of the if you want to call it the conspiracy against America.  And what I mean against America I mean because they can’t differentiate between a born again believer and then Madonna who wears a cross and then dances nude.  They don’t understand the difference.  And so it’s a target against America in their mind is a target against Christianity.  And that was the same reason that 3 and many terrorists came to take up this half a million dollar fatwa that was put on my head this contract and kill me. Well for 5 years working in this area we’d been reaching out to this other Muslim tribe that’s unreached and we built great friendships with them.  And in the midst of that they spared my life because while I was out there with my family these 3 terrorists came through the desert coming to kill us.  They had our ID badges; they knew what they were and they knew my name the whole shot.  And they captured by this Muslim tribe; well two of them were interrogated and beaten so badly I couldn’t meet with them.  But I did meet with one of the 3; this man was blindfolded in a hut with his arms tied behind his back and let me meet with him way out in the desert.

Sid: Now why did 1 Muslim tribe beat up these terrorists?

Kevin:  Because they wanted to know what they were about and as they were trying to find out they found out that they come to kill me and I’m their friend.

Sid: Hm.

Kevin:   And they’re thinking they wait a second this guy has spent 5 years on the front-lines with us risking his life; bringing food, medicine and help to us.  He’s actually prayed for rain and in the midst of a 4 year famine it rained in 20 minutes.  I mean we have seen incredible things where we’ve joined hands; we walked outside of a Bedouin hut and they said their greatest need was rain. And I said “Look I know the rain maker” I said please I have a small team my wife was at my side.  We walked out from this Bedouin hut after drinking a big slug of camel’s milk.  And we joined hands and there’s not a cloud in the sky and it’s about 120 degrees 4 year drought.  We joined hands and said “Jesus glorify Yourself and if it be Your will send rain on these people” And within 10 minutes the sky was clouding and overgrowing black; in within 20 minutes there was such a hellacious downpour that my truck got stuck several times just trying to get back out to our base.

Sid: Hmm, so let’s take you back to that hut these terrorists; Muslim extremist terrorists.  Their terrorists they’re always extremists.  They were sent there to kill you; your Muslim friends caught him beat them up and you now are in front of one that was sent to kill you; what happened?

Kevin:  Well, he’s there blindfolded and I’m asking him questions and he said “He had come to kill an enemy of Islam.”  He didn’t know that it was me asking him the questions and finally I said “Do you know whose questioning you?’  And I said I’m the man that you were sent to kill.  He immediately began to tremble and I put my head on his hand and I said, “I want to explain to you the difference between Islam and Christianity. In Islam you’re taught to hate and kill; in Christianity we’re taught to love and lay down our lives.  I said “I can’t let you go and I can’t keep you that’s not in my power but the power I have I give.”  I said “In the name of Jesus Christ I forgive you of this sin and I beg God to forgive you now in Jesus Name.”  This man began to utterly weep; he was begging in Arabic crying out for mercy.  One of the men smashed him in the forehead with his AK47 because and they began to stomp on him because he was crying, and they pushed me out of the hut.  I began to scream and holler and I said “Stop beating this man,” He hears me pleading on his behalf when he’d been sent to kill me.  When I went back into the hut he was on his knees and he staggered was crawling on his knees and his arms are tied behind his back.  When he did he fell forward no arms to stop him his forehead landed on the tops of the soul of my shoe.  Then immediately the Lord spoke to me (crying) He said “Surely the Lord will make your enemy a footstool.”  And instantly I realized that Jesus loved this man so much that he allowed him to come to try and kill me that there in the mud hut in Sudan I could lay my head on his hand and pray the Holy Spirit touch him and share the gospel with him.  And I thought this is how you set Paul the Apostle free; this is how you desire to seek and save that which was lost.  And I thought Jesus You’d send a terrorist to kill me just so he’d be blessed to hear the message of good news.  Over and over again for the last 15 years of my life I’ve seen one miracle after another by just simply walking with Jesus.  It’s amazing.

Sid: You’re listening to Kevin Turner President of Strategic World Impact.  I’m speaking to him at his base just outside of the Sudan area in Africa.  Kevin why did you do this special teaching we call it “Kevin’s Teaching” that we’re making available this week?

Kevin:  Well, it was a burden that was on my heart and I believe of course put there by the Lord.  I call it compliance of principal; and it’s this infection that has seeped into the church.  And what scares me is the fact that we’ve been inoculated and we can’t even get the disease anymore.  Now were blinded; it’s not simply that we turn a deaf ear we can’t even hear it any more.  And basically I just challenge the believer to say “What is the discipleship truly mean?” Could it be so radical as laying down your life and it’s about living your life in simple compliance to the letter of the law or living your life in principal through love?” There is a puritan proverb that says “Love binds without a cord and it rules without a sword.”

Sid: We’re out of time.

Sid: If you have been following Messianic Vision for anytime that I favorite book of the Bible is the book of Esther. And as that famous line as Mordecai told Esther “Who knows that you’ve not been called to the Kingdom for such a time as this.”  If there has ever been a time in the history of planet Earth where it is life critical for each individual to get in touch with the King, it’s now.  And I am so excited because the gentleman that I have interviewed previously has an aspect of Esther which right now is the most important aspect for you to understand because it’s something that he has been living for so many years.  His name is Tommy Tenney he’s the author of the multimillion dollar series “The God Chasers.”  And Tommy, I remember I interviewed you a number of years ago.  You were minding your own business preaching at a church and the pulpit was struck with lightning and broke in half.  But I have to ask you this question, I know that you’ve been a believer many years; come from a Godly family; you love the Lord many years but was there a moment when there was a release of the presence of God that other people perceived at a much… it was almost like going from outside where it’s hot to inside in air conditioning; was there such a moment?

Tommy: In the aftermath of the visitation that precipitated the manifestation that you spoke about the pulpit that was not what was primary in that service.  It did happen; there were 800 plus people in the service that day.  I very rarely speak about it in the past 10 years or so since it happened; I may have publicly mentioned it 5 times. But that service was so strongly visited by the presence of God that the pulpit and the splitting did not leave an imprint on my life but the presence of God that was there was is what left the imprint.  And I would have to say that would have been my… you know David was anointed to be King many years before he was crowned by the people.  I had been called; I had been in ministry for I don’t know nearly 20 years or close to 20 years at that point.  And had been successful by normal standards but that’s like suddenly I went from a prop engine plane to a jet engine plane.  And I was saying the same things that I had said before but having greater impact; and that’s just the favor of the Lord.

Sid: I know that when it comes to spiritual things many times it’s difficult to answer but have you got any idea as to why it happened so dramatically on that particular day and then ever since.

Tommy: You know I probably do but I’m different then probably some people in that I have a mental file that says I don’t know and I don’t need to know.  People ask me “What did that mean?”  I don’t know, I don’t need to know all I know is I had an encounter with God and I personally have not been the same.  I don’t try to read too much into it; I don’t try to interpret it I just say “You know what God became real that day.”

Sid: Well Tommy, I believe that this week that’s what many of our listeners are going to say “God became real.” Now you have written a number of books having to do with Esther but the thing that excites me the most is that you are coming out with a motion picture.  By faith you believe that it will be out in October called “One night with the King.”  What’s the purpose of the picture?

Tommy:  Well, the purpose of the picture is pretty simple.  God just spoke to me to reach people in different ways.  Typically I write non-fiction books; God Chasers was a non-fiction book.  And every other book even including the book that birthed this Esther series “Finding favor with the King.”  But God spoke to me and said “You’re basically reaching Christians and challenged me to write a fiction book which I did Hadassah one night with the King.  And from that it turned into the movie “One Night with the King.”  It’s very simple Sid because there are people who will never come here me speak; who will not go into the Christian corner of the bookstore and pick up a Christian.  But they’ll to the fiction section and pick up a fiction book.  And it’s a fictionalized account of Esther and there’s even more that will walk into a movie theater.  They will not go to church but they’ll basically let me preach the same message about Esther through a different way.  And here’s a real amazing fact; when Satan wants to change or impact our society he does not preach behind a pulpit he most often preaches from the TV screen or the movie screen and he impacts most of the culture.  He doesn’t do it with an altar call; I’ve never yet seen anyone at the end of a movie say when the movie ends say “Okay now bow your head and lift your hands; whose going to commit adultery this week; whose going to do this or that?”  He tells the story and it impacts the culture.  And the Lord spoke to me to say “You do the same thing.” The Message Bible in Matthew 13 Jesus said when the disciples said “Why do you tell stories?”  He said “I tell stories to nudge people receptive insight.”

Sid: Hmm, I like that.

Tommy:  And the Lord just spoke to me that was his method and if I wanted to reach another group of people I didn’t necessarily preach at them but I would just tell the story and the same.  And so in the fiction book and in the movie and the teaching book that you and I are going to talk about the same message is there but it’s just presented in a different way.

Sid: Tommy out of curiosity the Lord impressed upon you to write the book Hadassah.  How did it get from a book to a movie?  What’s the shorthand version?

Tommy:  Well, first of all when the Lord spoke to me to write the fiction book I said “I really don’t know how to do that.”  And He said “Well, you didn’t know how to do a lot of things just start.”  And the same way when I was obedient and was very diligent and did the best job I knew how it was like God breathed on it and said “Because of your obedience.”  And within 1 year when the book came out; no I’m sorry, when the book was still in manuscript form they had already picked up the option for it to become a movie.  And I need to clarify something Sid.  This is not a Velveeta movie this is no cheesy Christian movie.  This has Omar Sharif; Peter O’Toole; two of the major actors from “Lord of the Rings” on and on.”  This is the same people who cast “The Passion” movie.  Academy Award Winning Editors.  It is incredibly shot; filmed on location in India and what would look like an ancient Persian palace.  This is a movie you will not be embarrassed to bring your friends to.  This is a movie that will be embraced by Jewish culture as well as Christian culture.

Sid: Well, I’d like to be with you at the premier in Jerusalem; is there such a thing.

Tommy:  Well in fact, last week we negotiated some of those pieces and ironically “The Passion” movie has never been shown in Israel and may never be shown because of the controversy.  But we are already being besieged and we’re not sure who will distribute it 20^th Century Fox is negotiating and Warner and various people.  But I am positive that it will be shown in Israel.

Sid: Tommy I feel a tremendous presence of God on this interview right now.  I felt that same presence of God in your book “Finding Favor with the King.”  Why should a Christian read the book; “Finding Favor with the King.”  What is your objective for everyone that reads this book?

Tommy:  Let me tell you how the whole concept was birthed.  I was preaching and as is my primary purpose in preaching I preach about the presence of God how to get into it; how to stay in it; the road map. So that people become familiar; God wants you to be in His presence.  One night while in Pasadena, California I made this statement while searching for a way to explain to people that just as Esther had spent 12 months preparing for her encounter with the King; that our preparation would lead us to an encounter with the King.  And to not be concerned that sometime it would take some time, or sometime it seems like circumstances prepared us for that encounter.  And I made this statement “It’s okay because one night with the King can change everything.”  And you talked about the anointing level changed; at that moment Sid; at that very moment it’s like God just turned the volume up on my message.  I’m not talking about the PA system got louder; but the word of God impacted the audience that night and it has continued to reverberate.  That one night with the King can change everything.  Esther started off a peasant; there wasn’t a day that she walked into the palace a peasant; actually her name was Hadassah at that point.  And when she entered the Kings palace it was changed to Esther.  Sid do you know that that it’s possible for people have such an encounter with the King that they may as well change their name because their destiny will be so different.

Sid: Well, Tommy that’s you; you’re telling me that the average person listening to us right now can read this book and have their night with the King?

Tommy:  That’s why I use Esther.  Esther 2 in the Bible tells us that Esther was an orphan; that she was not only an orphan she was foster child adopted by what we call her uncle.  And that she was also what many people overlook.  She was a minority.  She was a Jew living in Persia.  The deck was stacked against her Sid.  If Esther can find favor she is the role model that no matter who you are don’t let your past hold your future hostage.

Sid: And don’t you forget what he just said; don’t let that past hold your future hostage.