Lakeland Revival Trip Report

On May 16 and 17, 2008, I went to Lakeland to visit the revival for an impartation.

Lakeland Revival - Ed Sanders, Trinity Vineyard Fellowship

On April 8th I began receiving updates on extended meetings Todd Bentley was holding in Florida at Ignited Church. Almost daily after that I received email updates on the healings and miracles happening in the meetings. I began to forward these updates to my wife.

On April 11th the Elijah List and Breaking Christian News sent out a notice of revival breaking out in Florida. I forwarded the report to my wife and to several folks in our church.

On April 16th Charisma wrote a report on the revival in Florida. I forwarded this to my wife and a few folks in church. My wife wrote back on April 18th why don't you go? We had a Meeting scheduled at our church with Bart and Kim Hadaway from Extreme Prophetic Ministries so I had to wait for a trip to Florida.

On May 1st my friend Pete from Austin sent and email asking if I have heard or seen what is going on in Florida. He asked if I thought it was revival and what to tell folks about Todd's tattoos. I told him I think it falls in the category of abstaining from meat for the Lord or eating meat with thanks giving to the Lord. If it is not clearly defined as sin in the Bible then it is up to the individual conscience and leading of the Holy Spirit. Pete asked if I was going to go and if so he wanted to go.

On May 6th I wrote and told Pete I think I will be able to go just on Friday and Saturday May 16th and 17th and fly home for May 18th service. So we arranged it and took off for the revival in Florida.

On May 16th on the way to the airport Pete called and said he had several things go wrong getting to his flight and felt it was resistance from the enemy. So we both got excited about what God must be going to do. Getting to and on my flight to Florida went very smooth no resistance. The flight was not bad a little bumpy but not bad I read a little from Patricia Kings book Spiritual Revolution, good book.

When I landed Pete called and asked where I was and said he was heading toward the church. Pete booked a flight to Tampa I booked mine to Orlando and we would meet in the middle in Lakeland. Now my resistance came. I got out of the plane and headed toward the car rental counter only to find a huge line. I found my place in line and prayed for it to move quickly so I can get to the am revival meeting and get prayer. Pete called and said he is at the church all the while I am still waiting in line for a car. Finally I get the car and I am on my way. I did get an upgrade for free so I have a nice car verses the cheapest thing I could find. Thank you Lord.

Of course, I have some trouble navigating and getting on the right road. But after one u-turn I am on my way. I call and talk to Martha and as I near I ask her to give me the direction to the church I seem to have left my print out at home. I get there people are leaving. I find a spot and go in and find Pete. I go down to the front and worship a little and soak in the presence of God for a few minutes. The presence of God was very nice.

We went to get in line for evening service at the Civic center around 4:30pm. There was already a couple hundred people waiting at the main doors and we headed to the side doors where we heard Pastors could get in first. We waited until about 5:30pm then the workers came and began giving us directions and of course it took several repeats of the directions for the pastors to get it correctly. I think the heat and hunger for the blessing of God helped make everyone a little confused. But I got my little sticker and moved form the line I was in to another line close the main doors. They let the pastors in early we got seats about mid way back in the auditorium.

Worship practice started around 6:00pm and people began to go down front to worship God. Next some of Todd's ministry came out and lead us in intercession for the night services. Now it was close to 7:00pm and the place was just about full and the front was getting very crowded.

We worshipped the Lord and the presence and excitement was great in the arena. I notice Keith and Janet Miller on the stage. Later toward the end of worship I move back to my seat worship. When worship ends then Keith Miller takes the stage and begins to call out words of knowledge and miracles begin to happen. I begin to feel a little let down now because Todd is not going to be there. Keith goes through the meeting teaching and many come up and testify about being healed and touched. I search my heart and tell the Lord I don't care who is up front I came to get a touch from you. I will press in. I seek the Lord and ask for the fire. Then the Lord asks me a question as I look over the crowd, "son of man what do you see?" I say, "I see hungry people Lord." He asks me a second question, "will you give them bread?" I say, "yes Lord I will give them bread." Pete and I wait around and get in line for the fire tunnel they set up front. I was excited expecting to get drunk like in Toronto when I went through a fire tunnel. We go through the tunnel after hanging out a while. I didn't get blasted like I had hoped but I told the Lord I will receive His blessing. So I decide to go up for another trip through the fire tunnel. Right about the time I make that decision one of the leaders of the ministry team tells everyone not to go through the line multiple times. They tell us if we have been through the line to begin to leave and go home they are tired. I just laugh and say, ok Lord we are on our way, but I will get what I came for, your touch. I will not let go until you touch me.

The next day, May 17th, we decide to fast until after the morning service to prepare our hearts to receive. The worship was good we pressed in and worshipped the Lord. I was looking forward to the impartation time at the end of the message. During worship the Lord shows me a picture. I see the Lord seated at a banquet table and he is offering me a big goblet of wine. So I say yes Lord and reach out to take it. New wine Lord.. Roy Fields preaches, it was a good, funny message. He goes long though and Roy tells everyone they can not lay hands on us today like normal because of time constraints, so they send us out so they can clean and prepare for the evening service. I'm beginning to find it rather funny how we are not receiving the impartation by laying on of hands as we expected. I told the Lord I will receive His touch and impartation before I go. I came for a blessing.

Pete and I go and have lunch in the downtown area we decide not to go to the hotel. We talk a while about what we have been seeing. We compare it to Toronto and Pensacola and talk about the differences, we have noticed in the revivals, after all we were revival experts, just ask us.

We piled back in the car after lunch and a quick single scoop of Butter Pecan Ice Cream from a an Ice Cream shop downtown on the old square. As we drove into the parking lot of the Civic Center, I said to Pete, "do you feel that? There is something different about tonight." He said yeah I feel it to. We parked near a tree so we would have a land mark to help find the car after the revival service. It is amazing how things often look different outside when you come out after being in the presence of God for a while. As we began walking across the parking lot you could actually feel the excitement building. We both commented on it, as we walked to the pastor line at the civic center. When we got in line you could hear others talking about how it feels different tonight. People were eager to get inside and get in the presence of God.

After a little wait the doors opened and we began moving in. As we passed the line of people waiting to get in, the pastors got to go in first ahead of them, the people reached out their hands and were praying for us and we reached out to pray for them. Everyone was excited about what God was about to do. When we got past the turn style Pete took off running to get a seat he said, "come on Ed this is a running night." We rushed toward the front and Pete found seats toward the middle of the seventh row, but I found a couple of seats closer to the aisle (I always like to set on the aisle if possible) so we could get out easier to go to the front. We settled on the seats I found because they had what looked like gold dust on them and besides they were closer to the aisle. More Lord. I went to the back to check out the product and Pete and some folks there wiped the gold dust off and then it would start to come back. Pete came back found me and told me about it.

The worship team started practice around 6pm and many of us went forward to worship while they warmed up. So by the time worship is over many of us have been worshipping for 2 hours. You could feel the presence of the Lord and we stayed up front through practice and intercession for the evening. Then we stayed through the worship time up front. Worship lasted well over an hour and everyone was pressing in for more of God. Some young guys near us got prayer from folks standing near them and they began to fall to the floor. We helped pray and helped guide them to the floor. The people were hungry for God. Not many spectators we had participators all around us and it helped draw you in. I asked the Lord for His touch tonight. I just determined in my heart I was going to soak it all up tonight.

The power of God was very strong. Todd came out and Patricia King was there on stage also. They were worshipping God and they were really going for it. They seemed to stagger around a bit. When worship was over we went to our seats a little drunk from the worship. Todd preached or talked as best he could about the fire of God and the New Wine. He said, the Anointing that was here tonight being three fires, the fire of holiness, the fire of passion for Jesus and the fire of evangelism. The wine of God was being poured out. Todd said he had not felt it like this before. It was the first night the New Wine showed up in the revival and we had a 3 fire anointing. Praise God! I was determined to get immersed and get and impartation. Todd shook his head from side to side and staggered around on stage. Everyone up there got drunk with the New Wine of God. I cried out to God for more. I became drunk in the Lord. I had lots of laughter and I was burning with the fire, the presence of God. A blanket of His fire, His presence enveloped me. We had the Kingdom Glory manifesting tonight. This is what we came for a fresh touch of God. I thanked God for the presence and His touch.

Many wonderful miracles were being testified about on stage. People raised form the dead, people coming out of wheel chairs, people have cancers healed, eyes healed, ears opened, back straightened. One little girl had been dead for 3 days. It was so cool. Several of the people on stage testifying brought medical reports form healings that took place days before. I asked God to us me and our church that way, release your healing anointing Lord. Every miracle I saw, I asked God for more.

Todd said he would stay and pray for everyone, yeah. But toward the end of meeting he got caught up in an interview with the media and so his associates prayed for folks. We went down front for prayer again and thanked the Lord for an impartation. By now it was close to 1:00am Sunday morning, May 18th. My flight left at 5:20am from Orlando a good 45 minutes away. So we decided to only sleep an hour and then take off.

May 18th, I made it to the airport with no trouble. I was a little sleepy but I was excited about what God was going to do in our church for the 10am service. My flight was not direct so I changed plane in North Carolina and then I was on my way to DFW. I kept thinking about everything and began reading Todd's book on healing. I think I nodded off a few minutes on the flight.

I arrived at the airport found my truck loaded my bag and headed for Fort Worth praising God all the way to church, it was about 9:40am. I could still feel the fire of God from the night before. When I pulled up at about 10:10am it looked like a normal Sunday morning group. I parked in the garage and went in the side door to get a cup of coffee before I went into the sanctuary. I arrived just as the announcements were finishing and my wife was surprised to see me walk in the back door. Her first remarks when she saw me walk through the doors were, "I forgot your shirt". We planned for her to bring me a fresh shirt to change into at church. No matter I made it and began to worship with a nice hot cup of coffee close by.

I could feel the fire of God begin to burn on me again and spread over my body as we worshipped and praised the Lord. Todd had told us pastors at the revival to go home and have an impartation service if you want the anointing. So that was my plan. I waited while worship continued. It was so easy to slip into the presence of God during worship and I became a little drunk again. When worshipped finished I went up front to lead in a corporate prayer and invite the Holy Spirit to come and have His way. I could feel the excitement in the air. Our church was looking forward to the message about what I had experienced in Lakeland. I had spoken about the revival multiple times over the last few weeks leading up to my trip.

I shared about the testimonies from the meeting and gave them a run down on my trip much like what is written here. I could feel the presence of God burning on me. I wrapped up the preaching a little early to allow more time for prayer and impartation. I closed with prayer and asked those who want an impartation of what I received from the Lord at Lakeland to come forward now, almost everyone came forward and lined up for prayer.

As I prayed, I determined to pray a simple short prayer of impartation. I prayed something like, "Lord I ask you to impart to my brother the same fire you imparted to me in Lakeland, fill them Lord, more fire, fill them Lord, more fire, let them feel your fire. Lord I pray for impartation and for your healing touch. Fill, touch them Lord". I could feel the presence of God increase and burn in my hands and feet as I prayed for people in line. Some bent over and cried out, some looked as if nothing happened but they grabbed their family to be prayed for, some people wept, some laughed, some fell down. Some people felt the fire on them, others felt electricity, others felt joy, some felt peace but everyone seemed to feel something. God was moving among us. Those who I knew had sickness or infirmities I prayed for healing, but I kept the prayers relatively short so everyone would not have to wait long. That is one benefit of a small church. Not much of a wait in prayer lines.

Later we had many people tell us how they were blessed and how they felt the power of God blast them. Some said it felt like their arms were going to blow off, some felt a blanket of fire on them, some felt like they had to laugh, some they had to cry but everyone said you could feel it in the air. We had one man who had poison ivy/oak for a couple weeks have it disappear that afternoon.

On Wednesday May 21st we prayed again for folks and God blasted us again. More drunkenness, more fire of God, the cloud of His presence was among us. Melody had gone to the revival and was back so we had a great opportunity to pray impartation again. I spoke on the anointing and the fire of God was present again.

On Sunday May 25th we prayed again and people were touched another lady from our church, Melody, had come back from the revival that week, so when she and her husband and I prayed for people and God showed up in a big way, again. Many people were touched y the Lord. Our drummer said he heard his ear pop open when we prayed for it. He had been loosing hearing in his ears for some time.

Wednesday May 28th we had a worship night scheduled. So we meet to worship the Lord for over and hour. Worship was very nice the presence of God was there. I told everyone at one point during the worship that if you need healing raise your hand and I'll come around and anoint you with oil and pray while the worship continues. Later during the service I felt compelled to go and tell everyone to contend for their break through and God would give them their hearts desires. Call out to him and tell him you will not let him go until he blesses you. Many of us raised our hands and voices in prayer and contended for our break through.

Later one of the ladies that had bad ankle pain when she moved her ankle a certain way said it was gone.

My wife said her severe back pain she had when she came in went away when I told people to contend for their break through. My wife went to the chiropractor the next week and the chiropractor asked her what she had done she was in really good shape. She told her about asking for healing in her back the doctors checked her back it was aligned nicely and her left leg had grown out. She still needs a little more but we believe that is on the way.

Revival has come to our church and my home. We soak and pray and the presence of God is alive and powerful among us. I went to Lakeland to see if the reports of revival are true and to bring back revival to our church and city.

It is true. There is revival in Lakeland and now in Trinity Vineyard Fellowship and in Fort Worth, Texas. I went for and impartation and God gave me what He had for me. I say go and get some.

God has touched us and we continue to press in for more. Come Holy Spirit rest on your people fill us with fire. Pour out miracles and healings among us.

Praise the Lord!

Ed Sanders, pastor

Trinity Vineyard Fellowship

Come and experience the Glory of the Lord as His kingdom breaks in upon us.

All who are thirsty come and drink. All who are hungry come and eat. The master prepares a table before us and asks us to come and dine.

Here is a link to the Trinity Vineyard Revival Page.... ...Click here