What on earth kept me waiting weeks to give you this epic account of Fresno? Read on and you will see.
It was the crusade that had everything going against it. It was the crusade that answered the burning question: “If God is for us, who can be against us?” The emphatic answer is, absolutely no one.
What mountains lay before us? What obstacles did we have to overcome? I am torn. I have so much to say and so little space to say it. To do justice to the glorious story of Fresno, I could easily write a book.
Let’s start with the utter impossibility. We endured countless hours of uncertainty. Think about it! We had no permit for this event until 36 hours before opening night. Months of prayer, sweat, and perseverance unlike any we had ever known went into this historic miracle.
Yet, without that permit, we forged ahead with the most comprehensive ground game. Frank Saldana, A. J. Nunes and I formed the core that executed a complete outreach that had zero promise of being allowed. We poured tens of thousands of dollars into something that looked impossible.
Local Pastors made all the difference. They unified. They canceled services to make a bold statement at the tent.
Families were overcome with joy and gratitude when our team from Inner City Action Stockton fanned out and touched thousands on the streets and in devastated neighborhoods. They knocked on doors with huge boxes of food. They gave a clear and direct witness of Jesus to each one. When they prayed for the sick, they were healed! Miracles on some of the meanest streets in America. Even if the tent crusade had been banned, no one could deny the multitude of miracles on the streets. That would have been reason enough to come to Fresno.
Why couldn’t we get a permit? Because we were determined to do a regular crusade and not a skeletal meeting. We needed to touch the people. We needed to destroy the fear and the lie that churches were shut down solely because of the virus.
We could have gotten a permit if we had agreed to keep people 6 feet apart. All we had to do was limit attendance to 250 people. All we had to do was surrender to everything God told us to stand against. But we needed every chair filled. Luke 18:23, “Then the master said to the servant, ‘Go out into the highways and hedges, and compel them to come in, that my house may be filled.”
When we saw rioters and demonstrators without masks and social distancing operating freely. When we saw big box stores wide open. When we saw planes flying with every seat filled—we knew the truth. This pandemic was an excuse for the Left to punish the church. Some Federal Judges have ruled, again and again, that these lockdowns unfairly targeted Christians.
We stood our ground and God brought the victory. The city granted a permit. The fire department granted the other permit. We opened to the public.
Fresno matters more than we know. Yesterday, during an interview with Lance Wallnau about Fresno, Lance said this: “I don’t know why, but I couldn’t get Fresno off my mind; that it is a city that could take us to national revival.”
Sunday, October 11, 5:30 PM: It’s an hour before starting time and the tent is full. We open all the flaps and now chairs are all around the outside of the tent. Our team is aware of an intense presence of God. We begin the worship 30 minutes early—and that became the norm all 6 nights.
The fire of God was on my wife Mechelle as she prayed over the crowd. It was not just a prayer it was a two-edged sword that ordered Satan to pack up and get out, and asked the Holy Spirit to come in great power. That also became the norm for all 6 nights.
Mario Murillo Ministries has made an iron-clad covenant with God not to have our tent filled with just Christians, but we must have the lost, addicted, and demonized in the seats. That doesn’t just happen. It takes a deliberate act of war and a well-executed plan from God.
Surveying the crowd, I know it is time to preach the Gospel. It is time to declare the Cross, the Blood, Resurrection, the return of Christ, and hell. How do I tell you what happened next? They tell me 300 souls are being saved and forsaking all to follow Christ. Only God knows the true number. What I do know is that a lie about California just bit the dust.
For the next five nights, the tent is ground zero for healing miracles and public conversions. On Tuesday night, something happened that was right out of a Charles Finney meeting. I preached about Jacob wrestling with God. I used it to describe the desperation for hope and meaning during the pandemic. Suddenly, a young man in the crowd is screaming about his despair. His voice is loud and agonizing. Our workers descend on him and bring him to the front, where Christ meets him in power.
It is never easy to tell you about the miracles. I fear God. These manifestations are too sacred for anyone to take credit. Yes, people who could not walk, take off, and some almost run around the tent. Yes, many admit their cancer, diabetes, bone diseases, as well as many other illnesses, are healed.
After all of these years, I am still startled by words of knowledge that ignite faith for healing. How can I ever forget the pastor’s wife who came all the way from Los Angeles with multiple sclerosis? They told me her hands were gnarled. They told me she suffered greatly. As I point to her section and say M.S. is being healed, she screams! The next day several people tell me about seeing her jubilant in her miracle, and her hands were clearly transformed. All glory must go to Jesus Christ!
So why did I wait to tell you this? I waited nearly two weeks to write this, so I could tell you the most astonishing part. The greatest fear that people had about this crusade was that it would be a “super spreader event.” Meaning that many would be infected. Not one person was infected with the coronavirus in our tent crusade. Not one! The only thing we spread was the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
I am staring at over 800 decision cards. That doesn’t count the many who were saved, but we didn’t get cards. They say over a thousand souls came forward. Again, only God knows the real number. It is a massive harvest. Only Christ gets the glory! All the glory.
But it is only the beginning. Are we relaxing? No! We are reloading. Armed with the breakthrough in Fresno we are laying the foundation for the greatest invasion along Highway 99 in California history.
To all of you who prayed fervently. To all of you who gave sacrificially. To all of you who volunteered greatly. I say thank you with all my heart. You share in every soul saved and Fresno.
This is an updated edition of a post originally published on Mario Murillo Ministries
Featured Image by John Price on Unsplash
