Revival in Florida
We are in Florida tonight and so are a whole lot more people. Thousands are here to see Mickey and friends at Disney World. Thousands more came to see a Canadian revivalist named Todd Bentley. He has set up a tent not far from Orlando and in the three months he has been preaching here, the crowd is growing steadily. There’s not even standing room–the attendees are gathered outside and in two adjoining overflow areas.
According to a report by the Associated Press, the whole thing is causing disruption amongst even the faithful. Here is a blip from an article by writer Travis Reed:
His tactics, sometimes violent, have made skeptics even of Pentecostals who believe in concepts that aren’t accepted by all branches of Christianity such as speaking in tongues, miraculous healing and spontaneous twitching from the Holy Spirit.
“Some of the language used during the Lakeland Revival has created an almost sideshow atmosphere,” wrote J. Lee Grady, editor of the Pentecostal magazine Charisma, in an online column. “People are invited to ‘Come and get some.’ Miracles are supposedly ‘popping like popcorn.’ … Such brash statements cheapen what the Holy Spirit is doing.” Grady wrote another column this week expressing concern that the Lakeland event has the potential to cause a “charismatic civil war.”
It’s doubtful that I will be able to get out there and see for myself, and it is just about certain that I wouldn’t be able to get inside anyway, but I sure am tempted to try. Todd is rocking with something–is it the Spirit of God? Look and see what you think…
