SWAT REPORT   #  29    07-16-05 (see pictures below)

PLEASE READ ALL OF THIS REPORT…IT GETS MORE EXCITING THE FURTHER YOU GO

THE BIG MEETING

They came…they came…they actually came…they listened…really listened…they got saved…they really got saved…

After much intense prayer, fasting, labour, and advertising for this big meeting in the Dramatic Theatre in downtown Brasov…they really did come.  The first night they stood in the rain for an hour before we opened the doors…about 450 of them filed into the hall that seats 800.  The singing and preaching was great and more than 31 people were saved.  At least that many put something definite on the back side of their information card to the affect that they were saved.  More were dealt with personally and did not get a chance to fill out the card concerning salvation.  The second night over 500 came and only about 75 of those were returns from the first night.  There were many more that got saved on the second night but the total is not in yet.  I personally dealt with 11 people and prayed with them on their knees about their salvation. I did not get any good photos of this event…they all just looked like a bunch of folk walking into a building…or standing outside…the hall had spot lights so my camera was not equipped for that kind of photography.   They all received Bibles in return for their information cards which will take a long time to follow up on all of these.  Many indicated a further interest beyond salvation and so tomorrow we will see if that will translate into church attendance.  Thanks to all who prayed and fasted for this meeting…it was a huge success.  Eternity will have to measure this one.

MORE EXCITING THAN BEALE ST !!!!!

(Acts 17:6 KJV)  And when they found them not, they drew Jason and certain brethren unto the rulers of the city, crying, These that have turned the world upside down are come hither also;

What   could be more exciting than Beale St.?  Well…turning Racos upside down could.  You may find this story hard to believe but I am still digesting it as I sit and write it.  We have a team of 20 Americans that came over from Bro. Logan’s church to help with the BIG meeting and to experience the ministry…well…they experienced it today.  We send Dan to Racos village on Friday to spread the word that we were going to have a combined church service in the public school.  The mayor of Racos had given his permission for us to use the school.  The whole group of us (about 30) went to Racos today and began by just strolling through part of the village playing the accordion.  We gathered many folk and had a Bible story service for the kids and let the people know that we would be holding the meeting at 3:30 PM…as we approached the school we saw scores of people walking toward the school…then we saw hundreds of people waiting at the gates of the school but the gates were locked.  Dan went to get the mayor to open the gates but then the Orthodox priests came and confronted us.

 THE FIGHT IS ON

 Seems that the word had spread to them.  They openly confronted and opposed us and demanded to see papers giving us permission to hold this meeting.  The mayor had given us a verbal promise and no papers had been given us by the mayor; not that we would have showed them to the priests anyway. 

 (Eccl 10:4 KJV)  If the spirit of the ruler rise up against thee, leave not thy place; for yielding pacifieth great offences.

 Bro. Logan very masterfully handled the confrontation which now included a local policeman…filling out some sort of information and demanding ID’s and paperwork for the vehicles in an authoritative attempt to scare us away.  Phone calls were being made by all involved all the while word was being spread in the town and people by the hundreds began to gather…well that calls for a street meeting RIGHT!…so while Bro. Logan was handling all the confrontational politics we held a street meeting singing and preaching to well over three hundred in the middle of the street blocking everything in the middle of the town. (see photo 4776 but understand that you cannot easily take a photo of 300 people who are all around you) The people were very happy about us coming and were anxious to have a meeting and hear about the Lord…so when Bro. Logan came and stood in the midst of all of this…he announced that the priests would not allow us to hold this meeting…that we intended to give Bibles away and  a special treat for the kids but these priests would not allow it…that the mayor had backed out of the deal…well…the people got very upset…and started chanting, “Bad Priests Bad Priests”…and to us “Don’t leave…Don’t leave.”

 HELP FROM “Mr. C”

    I must interject here that while I was preaching to this crowd the man came up to me whom I mentioned in my last report…who had come and kneeled down at my feet as I preached… “Mr. C”…he had been saved but was addicted to the bottle and wanted victory so very badly so I prayed with him and his wife and promised that I would visit their home if he remained sober through this whole week.  This man came up to me while I am preaching to this huge crowd and we hug…he is sober as a judge and he takes over the preaching…he tells the people of his village that he was a sinner and that he got saved…didn’t they want to be saved…by now things are really heating up…we had a riot…almost literally…The priests are demanding equal time to explain things to the crowd and the crowd is shouting them down.

 LOYALTY FROM OUR GYPSIES

 The gypsies whom we have led to the Lord and who attend our church in Brasov on Sunday are now involved in this battle/riot…Mehai (you have seen his photo several times…he was baptized last week) confronts the priest and demands to know why they won’t let us have the meeting…somebody pushed somebody and Mehai said, “If I was not on probation for beating someone, I would take care of you quickly.” There is more emotion in the crowd…more shoving… “Mr. C” was leading the people toward the gate of the school with full intent on forcing it open…it was getting too hot…we headed for the cars…Bro. Logan and Scott Suttle the pastor of Brent Logan’s church in VA. got on top of my car (see photo entitled “Racos”) and started throwing packets of goodies to the children and we started moving slowly through the crowd…I don’t know how many people had gathered by now but we needed to go…Believe me, this is not the end of this story…this is the beginning…the dust may never settle on this battle…if your ministry is boring…you need to transfer to the eastern front.

Notice photo #4657 just to show you the contrast of a modern electric power pole against the backdrop of the primitive farming in Racos.  I am fast getting used to these peculiar contrasts.

Enjoying the fight on the eastern front.
Gerald Sutek and the SWAT TEAM for Christ
2 Tim. 1:8,  Amos 5:10