A few weeks ago, I was watching an old video of a gospel crusade with Kathryn Kuhlman when the Holy Spirit spoke to my heart “There was great joy in the city.” I remembered this as a scripture reference.

Acts 8:5-8 (NIV) Philip went down to a city in Samaria and proclaimed the Messiah there. When the crowds heard Philip and saw the signs he performed, they all paid close attention to what he said. For with shrieks, impure spirits came out of many, and many who were paralyzed or lame were healed. So there was great joy in that city.

This phrase has been repeatedly coming through as I’ve been praying in the last several weeks. There is great joy when people are healed and delivered from sin and oppression. There was great joy in the Kathryn Kuhlman crusade.

Do You Want To See Great Joy Come To Your City?

Once you’ve experienced this great joy, you lose the appetite for lesser things! That’s why I usually have very little interest in seeing movies or normal TV programming anymore. I remember feeling great joy at various times when I’ve seen people healed, delivered, and saved. I was jumping because I was so happy.

As I pray, I’ve been watching a lot of other videos of “great joy” coming to people. The videos remind me of what I’ve seen God do and put fire in my prayer. It’s wonderful to see God touching people’s lives and delivering them from sin, sickness, and oppression!

The Argentina revival is a great move of God that started in the 1980’s and has continued for decades. I found this video of Claudio Friedzon holding a gospel crusade in 1993. Great joy came to that city! The video is in Spanish, but even if you don’t speak Spanish you’ll see the people falling over in waves as the Holy Spirit does his work. One guy was in the middle of the soccer field and it looked like somebody suddenly cut his legs out from under him!

It’s not that I care about people falling down in and of itself. But what’s precious is what the Holy Spirit is doing in these people when they fall. We’ve heard the testimonies later of healing, deliverance from oppression, marriages restored, and much more.

I remember someone close to me being very skeptical of being “slain in the Spirit.” Then he received prayer and the Holy Spirit threw him back several yards and up in the air (as he relates). He landed on the floor in a pool of tears. It is so wonderful even to be humbled and corrected by the Holy Spirit that I feel like I would be so happy for him to correct me if I would ever fall into pride.

There was great joy in Argentina!

I’ve been watching a lot of videos of Mark Hemans. I see great joy coming to every place he goes. Here’s just one of his highlight videos. It brings great joy when the deaf hear, the mute speak, schizophrenia is undone, autistic children begin to speak, and the secrets of people’s hearts are revealed!

I’m not always the most disciplined people, but watching these videos helps me to focus and intensify my prayers. It helps me to keep beholding the Father with the eyes of my heart.

“Without Tears There Is No Victory”

I want to see great joy wherever I go! What I’ve seen before, I want to see again, here and now! Nothing is as worthwhile as giving ourselves over to God’s purposes on this earth.

In the last few weeks, I’ve listened to several messages from Carlos Annacondia, the most famous evangelist of the Argentina revival. Nearly every time I hear him I end up in tears.

Carlos preached a message called “Without tears, there is no victory.” (It’s in Spanish) He talked about how Jesus prayed…with “loud cries and tears.” This kind of prayer has always preceded revival.

Hebrews 5:7 (NIV) During the days of Jesus’ life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with fervent cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission.

Carlos said he would rather have an hour of prayer with loud cries and tears than 8 hours of praying with discipline but less fervor. I pay a lot of attention to what Carlos says. At some of his crusades, people on the public buses started manifesting demons as they passed within several blocks of the crusades, and then the others would take them off the bus and bring them to the gospel crusade where they would be saved and delivered. Significant percentages of the population in large cities turned to Christ within a few weeks.

Those Who Sow In Tears Will Reap With Shouts Of Joy!

Here is another scripture Carlos referred to:

Psalm 126:5-6 (NIV) Those who sow with tears will reap with songs of joy. Those who go out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with them.

Do you want to see great joy come to your city? Are you willing to sow in tears? Are you willing to open your heart up to Jesus and let him cry through you for people who are suffering and oppressed? Will you engage in the kind of fervent, effectual prayer that changes cities and nations? It’s worth it! If you are willing to sow in tears, you will reap with songs of joy!

John 4:34-38 (NIV) “My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work. Don’t you have a saying, ‘It’s still four months until harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest. Even now the one who reaps draws a wage and harvests a crop for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may be glad together. Thus the saying ‘One sows and another reaps’ is true. I sent you to reap what you have not worked for. Others have done the hard work, and you have reaped the benefits of their labor.