With God, All Things Are Possible

“Jesus looked at them and said; ’With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.’” Matthew 19:26

At last the day has arrived that I have anticipated for 2 years. I will be leaving Wednesday for 3 weeks of ministry in Ethiopia and am stunned by the ways God has opened doors once again in this amazing nation. 

Over the past 2 years I felt compelled of the Lord to research the history of Ethiopia. It was then that the Holy Spirit began to reveal the foundations of the nation in the history of her “gate cities.” It was in the course of prayer that the Holy Spirit spoke so clearly giving the directive to “shut the door” to an “unauthorized influence.” Identifying the spiritual wells in each city as well as how the enemy has stopped up those wells gave insight for strategic prayer so it is in these places we will sound a trumpet, close the door of evil influence and call forth the destiny of each city. I believe that this directive of the Holy Spirit is key to the restoration of the nation’s foundations.

Addis Ababa, the Capital city is also considered the capital of all of Africa, being home to more foreign embassies than any city on the continent. It also houses the Africa Union, which the Holy Spirit indicated was to be one of 3 specific places I was to visit. It was during my 2 months of ministry in Mozambique that I met a man whose father is a South African dignitary who works at the A.U. and has not only offered me his home during my stay but as well, a personally guided tour of the headquarters of the A.U! Only God could arrange that!

My heart pounds at the thought of my footprints all over this political ground, walking all through the A.U, taking back territory, prophesying peace to the nations of Africa, and calling them into their destinies! The political power represented by the A.U. may be great but it will bow at the feet of Jesus whose strong desire is to establish the Kingdom among them- Here comes the Son! 

A third directive from the Lord is a visit to one of the 2 headwaters of the Nile River. The Blue Nile flows out of Lake Tana and provides 85% of the Nile’s waters that sustain 10 nations and has since time immemorial been the cause of many battles among them. God desires tom release the waters from beneath the throne to flow to these nations and as well restore the sustenance to the 10 nations, and bring peace among them. When I think about standing at the headwaters to pray and prophesy, anointing them with oil, I can hear by the Spirit a loud and powerful sound like the voice of the Lord released from heaven in these waters.

My prayer tour will take 13 days, after which I will return to Addis Ababa and connect with Beza International, the church where we ministered in 2007. It seems that the burden of the Lord for this trip is Proclamations and Declarations that create tipping points. This is a nation with a rich heritage and God desires to restore her. My prayer is that eyes will be opened and hearts challenged but above all that God will be glorified.

I will remain in Addis for one week before heading home. Of course all such journeys are empowered by the faithful prayers and intercessions of friends and family, prayers that protect and move mountains all at once! 

Thank you to all of you who continue to support us and pray for us and encourage us to realize our wildest dreams in God!

Blessings, Alison Humbert

Matthew 19:26

“…Go, strengthen and establish your brothers.”

As the year 2008 draws to a close I am reminded that the Hebrew number “8” comes from a root word meaning “to super-abound.” That certainly describes what we saw God do among the nations this past year!

Philippines

It was late January when the first assignment came and I soon began packing for 2 weeks in the Philippines, a nation we had never visited before. Launching out in faith and embracing the unknown provided opportunities I never imagined as night after night hundreds of people literally ran forward to receive Christ. The prayer lines covered the entire area of the outdoor basketball court and we witnessed the power of God opening ears, removing cataracts, healing arthritis and cancer, strengthening limbs, disappearing goiters as well as incredible deliverances.

The many converts were presented with bibles and connected to local churches whose Pastors were also in attendance.  Out of this same number many new Bible studies began in people’s homes which ultimately will birth new churches.

During the day we visited local government officials inviting them to the meetings and praying for them.  Often the Mayor of a city would invite us to lunch at his home where a great feast had been prepared.  We were even given access to the local schools to share a brief gospel message in classrooms.  A leadership conference drew about 400 people and again the Holy Spirit came with such power none could resist but hearts were radically altered that day as we were ushered before the throne worshiping and crying out to God.

There were also divine appointments at several churches where we were under such strong anointing as the word was delivered it was clear that the church had an appointment with her destiny that day.  At a separate gathering of Pastors we were asked if it would be possible to just come sometime and travel and teach all across the island as the churches are so hungry and ready to receive.

I did return again in May for 3 more weeks of teaching and praying for hundred of people every night until I lost my voice.  It often rained in the afternoon just as we would begin to set up for the evening service which was outside but as we came together and took communion ad prayed the rain would stop until we were on our way back to the hotel.  It was an open heaven experience of huge proportion and we estimated that in the course of 10 days, 3,000 people were ushered into the kingdom and more than 300 received miracle healings.

Mozambique

After a month of rest at home Larry and I left for Mozambique.  His business forbids him from being gone long periods of time but he was able to stay 2 weeks and enjoyed working in the wood shop with teenage boys, teaching them to make beds and benches for the dorms.  It never takes long for a boy to attach himself to this compassionate father figure.

I was consumed with teaching in the Bible school for the Pastors.  Each year is so different and this year it seemed especially difficult to connect.  I began a constant prayer vigil for the men daily seeking God for insight into the problem.  One day the Holy Spirit gave me an idea- I was to prepare a feast and invite them to the Father’s table.  Clearly they had never had such a meal as this before, with table cloths of African fabric, and candle light in the open air prayer hut.  That night we had a visitation from God unlike anything I had ever experienced and that night those 7 Pastor’s lives and mine were forever changed.

I love this about my relationship with God.  I don’t have to plan anything.  I simply step into the moment and watch as God does what He does best!  It’s always an adventure-always beyond my wildest imagination!  I love that while I cannot be a full-time missionary, He is pleased to let me be His secret agent and send me on assignments all over the world.  I never fear just packing my bag and stepping into the unknown because He is always arranging one divine appointment after another.  The mandate is clear, “…Go…and strengthen and establish your brothers.”

I had not yet boarded the plane for home from Africa when the Holy Spirit began to speak concerning 2009.  Many of you know that incredible assignment God sent us on to Ethiopia in 2007.  Without the slightest exaggeration I tell you that not a day has passed since that I have not had that nation burning in my heart.  I knew then that I would return one day and the Lord seems to be saying NOW!

Advancing the Kingdom………….Larry & Alison Humbert

God is in the Philippines!

Dear Fellow Warriors in Intercession,

You did good! I am excited to report the amazing visitation of God in the Philippines! God gave us great favor as we visited and prayed over the Mayors of 3 different towns and the “Captains” who govern over 10 related villages. It is estimated about 3,000 people came into the kingdom in the 10 nights of services; over 300 received amazing healings and approximately 100 home Bible studies were started, encouraging and strengthening the local churches.

Local Pastors who attended nightly said they had never seen this kind of response from the people before. Because the remote villages consist only of houses and a basketball court, that is where we congregated, live band, drama, dance team, local officials and Pastors and anywhere from 200 to 600 local villagers. Many of the young people who initially held back, listening from t other side of the fence, were seen leaping over the fence to come forward when the invitation was given. Creating 10 long lines for healing prayer we prayed for an hour after the service, participating with God and witnessing deaf ears open, nearly blind eyes become clear, goiters disappear, arthritis and numerous joint and muscle problems healed, pain and sickness bow at the feet of Jesus!

Dinner	Baptisms!

It rained the first week, except when it was time for the service to begin! One night only the rain did not let up and neither did we. We stood in the rain worshiping and dancing before the Lord and the people just kept coming, hungry for God and eager to be free from Physical bondages.

On Sundays we preached in local churches and at the end of my time there I interviewed several Pastors as to the effect of the ministry on their churches as well as the nature of the persecution suffered as a result of it. When asked what they would desire we do differently each said the same thing; please stay and minister more than one night in each village- WE WANT MORE!

Two highlights for me personally involved a teenage boy who as I prayed for him went through a complete deliverance. I have never seen such a radical transformation take place right before my eyes. He didn’t look like the same person when it was over.

Another encounter was with the amazing lead guitar player of our band. As the band began to play the first night of services my eyes were transfixed and the Holy Spirit caused me to see how the love of God seemed to clothe this young man. I later had occasion to sit and listen to his testimony- a former wealthy drug lord who played in clubs, recording satanic music and tormented by demons to jump off a bridge after the death of both parents at an early age. He had also suffered the loss of his 5 year old daughter just one week prior to my arrival. Today he is serving the Lord, using his gift of worship to usher many into the kingdom, and receiving no pay for what he does! What an honor to have the opportunity to encourage this young man in his faith.

Lead Guitarist	Worship

It was also a joy to leave a deposit behind with the Filipino team by teaching them about their inheritance as a prophetic generation and the simple steps to experiencing the use of this gift with one another. Some actually wept as they received a very specific and personal word from a brother who had never done such a thing before! All were so encouraged.

Receive!	Teaching

How can I say thank you for your support and intercession for this amazing opportunity to expand the borders of the Kingdom and take back from the enemy what rightfully belongs to God? We experienced divine intervention in the weather, divine sustenance concerning our health, and protection as we visited some not-to-safe remote villages known to have had visits from guerrillas in the hills. We did have some trouble with vehicles but God always intervened and solved problems quickly. Air travel went smooth; it took 4 different planes to get there! And all of this was because you were willing to go to war, covering this mission with God’s favor through your prayers. It wouldn’t happen without you. Thank you!

God is still speaking and I am aware of a call to return to Ethiopia as well as launch out into some new and darker territory as I ask if you would please continue to pray as I seek God’s timing and direction for the year ahead. In response to the plea for MORE I have been asked to return to encourage local Pastors by teaching a 2 day conference in the middle of the 2 week crusade. We want to return to the Philippines while this open heaven remains over this country, to do all that God desires. It only remains for God to work out then details.

I am blessed to know you, to be able to call on you, to be assured of you positioning yourself to participate in all that God is doing as He sends. With all my heart, thank you. I could never do this without you!

Because of His Great Love, Alison Humbert

Ethiopia and Beyond!

"Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the Master has put in charge of the servants to give them their food at the proper time?"

Matthew 24:45

I never face a more difficult task than trying to put into words the amazing works of God for the many who have been so faithful to support and stand with us in prayer as we travel the globe!  Stating the facts would be simple as there is always much to report but the miracle that never ceases to amaze me is how God birthed the plan in our hears, gave instruction and counsel through every phase of planning and then brought it all together to produce a harvest we could never have dreamed of.

The vision for Ethiopia was birthed as early as January 2007 as we set our hearts to pray and seek the face of God inquiring what he desired to do.  It quickly became obvious that this would be an unprecedented trip that would take us into uncharted territory.  We knew nothing about the country, had no contacts, and no clue what we were to do once we arrived!  While our visit to the embassy in Washington D.C. was a story all it's own, it was not the door God would open.  Rather, it was in the coffee shop of a hotel that we encountered divine providence that ultimately provided the contact God had intended.  It was mid June when we left Redding feeling somewhat like Abraham of old, departing for a distant land, unsure if anyone would be meeting us at the airport, having no hotel reservations, and no agenda except to obey God who said "Go."

Having cleared customs in Addis Ababa, the Holy Spirit spoke saying someone was there to meet us just outside the doors and we were very happy to see four curious faces and a sign with our name on it.  I had to marvel at any pastor who would open his heart, his home, his church, and his schedule to nine strangers he knew nothing about from half way around the world.  That is how it all began...

Accommodations had been secured for us as well as a van and driver for the length of our stay and that first night we were invited to minister at a youth service where we witnessed great hunger and a desire for more of God.  The next morning we arose early to join a group of intercessors praying for the nation and received still more revelation about this amazing nation and God's purposes regarding this particular trip.  Addis Ababa is considered the capital of Africa; being home to the African Union and to more embassies than any other country on the continent.  We were told many ambassadors attended church where we ministered.  This underscored God's word to us from Isaiah 61 that nations will come to your light and kings to the brightness of your dawn.  In several services throughout the week we witnessed God's power to bring many to salvation, heal the sick, increase faith, and encourage the church and many visiting pastors.

As the week progressed, the divine appointments began to line up one after another.  At breakfast we encountered a man about to attend several high level government meetings concerning Ethiopia's Centennial Celebration.  Ethiopia numbers her days according to the Julian Calendar which is seven years behind our calendar.  Hence, the year 2007 ushered in a variety of celebrations of which this man was in charge.  He was a believer battling godless influence and welcomed our request to pray for him as a divine appointment.  Here was a gate of influence, and we were honored to have the opportunity to create an inroad for the Kingdom in such governmental decisions through prayer.

Another day God altered our plans with a broken clutch that ultimately landed us in the company of the Patriarch of the Orthodox Church - in status, akin to the Pope of the Catholic Church - with whom we had a 90 minute visit.  Asking if we might pray for him, one could see by his expression, he had never been asked that question before, rather, it was he who usually offered prayers for the people!  After informing us of the exact number of people under his influence in the Orthodox Religion (in the millions) and how our prayers would be fore them as well, he consented to our request.  Another gate to the nation.

I am reminded fo the parable of the talents in which the reward for obedience was cities, and realms of influence!  God had designed many such opportunities that week as we continually worshiped and prayed over each day.

A wonderful man, a board member of the church who had availed himself to be our guide for several days was also a prominent business man in the community who owned a newspaper.  He begged us to go with him to meet his father-in-law who owned land he wanted us to pray over.  This land owner was a man of influence in the Orthodox Church which holds much sway over governmental policies.  It had been his dream to one day build a house for God on his acreage, a story quite similar to that of King David.  When a Marxist regime took control of the government a few years prior, they confiscated some of his property, yet he held onto his dream and prayed.  One day he had a vision that a group of people from a far away land would come and walk his land and pray with him and it would all be restored to him.  Having heard of us and the miracles that God was doing in the services where we ministered, he was convinced we were the people in his vision.  So we walked the land and prayed with him.  It was a month later when I received an email saying he had met with governmental officials that week and all his land had been restored to him!

On another occasion we had been informed that a group of highly influential Muslim leaders were meeting at a local 5 star hotel to discuss strategy for making inroads of influence into the Ethiopian government.  We knew it was an assignment to go and pray.  In the huge lobby of this posh hotel was an amazing grand piano.  Now it just happened that a member of our team was a concert pianist!  God never misses the slightest detail!  After much perseverance we obtained permission to access the piano and positioning ourselves around the room we each began to intercede as the pianist played.  The room began to fill with people drawn by the music.  There were several small groups of Muslims around the room who become the focus of our intercession and we knew there was war in the heavenlies that hour as the atmosphere was permeated with worship.

There are so many stories but most exciting for us all was having taken a step on faith into the unknown and seeing God create an agenda we could never have put together.  Our faith has been enlarged to embrace even greater unknowns that we might know Him more.  We have received word from the pastor in Ethiopia telling of the increased faith level of the church and the many miracles in their midst.  Cancer had been healed and a 4 year old boy raised from the dead by his father in the first week after we left!

After leaving Ethiopia, Larry headed home and I went on to Mozambique to teach in the Pastor's Bible School at the Iris base.  The lives of these men became so precious to me as together we searched the scriptures by day and came together for long nights of prayer where we met God face to face.  We were plunged to depths of God's presence we had never touched before and I knew that this was a divine encounter that would have an impact on an entire continent as these men went out to plant churches and establish the Kingdom of God.

Returning home with most of summer behind us, it was time to focus on family and wait on God for the next season's marching orders!  Over the past couple of months, Ethiopia continues to stir in our hearts and I sense that we are to return.  More doors of opportunity have also opened in Mozambique.  As well, we are in prayer for Tibet - a people God has been speaking to us about for some time.  So this is the table God has set before us and with much prayer and waiting on Him, we look for His glory to be manifest in even greater measure in 2008.

Retirement is on the horizon for Larry and we continue to seek the Lord for guidance, counsel, and provision to live out the passion He has put in our hearts for the nations.  Many have asked about our work in Haiti.  We remain in contact with Pastor Westerne and await God's timing.  At present he an his family are in the U.S. for protection as their lives had been threatened and the family attacked.  Please continue to pray with us for them and for Haiti, that God will pour out upon His people in this very troubled land.

With Thanksgiving just a week away, we think of so many who have labored with us in so many ways.  Without your support, we would not be able to accomplish so much for the Kingdom among the nations he calls us to disciple.  To say that we are grateful is an understatement.  We absolutely love that together we share in the spoil and rejoice in our partnership that God may be glorified in the earth.  We pray that as you gather with family and friends this Thanksgiving, you will remember these nations who so hunger and thirst for more of God and receive from the Lord the bounty He has given as our inheritance that we may reap a harvest in the earth in this hour of His favor.  It's not about what we do, but rather it's about the plans of God.  It's knowing the times in which we live and the season of God's favor.  It's having eyes to see and ears to hear and then stepping out in faith and obedience, parnering with God to accomplish His purposes among the nations for this generation.

Because of His Great Love,

Larry & Alison Humbert