The Elijah Challenge in Phoenix, Albuquerque and Santa Fe with Jaimie Alonso
November 2016
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Canadian Jaimie Alonso trained with The Elijah Challenge in 2008
This was my second invitation to Phoenix and my first time to Santa Fe and Albuquerque, New Mexico. My wife Terry was able to be with me as she is now retired from 37 years of teaching. It was great to have her be a part of my “team” of 3, Terry, my interpreter Pst. Chuy and myself. Of course church folks at each church helped to minister healing to be able to demonstrate the mini TEC course. Our entire ministry was to the Hispanic communities in these cities as a result of ministry some years ago in Juarez, Mexico.
The ministry time included 12 meetings in 10 days with 1 day off and 1 travel day, as well as 3 nights of street crusades and 1 home meeting. Almost all were with new churches that had been started within the last year. The street crusade was with a church that was just a few weeks old. I estimate that about 75 folks had become followers of Jesus and close to 100 healed to prove the Gospel during my time in America!
Of course there are lots of details of each meeting so I will try and just give some the highlights.
Street Crusade in Glendale, Phoenix
The first 3 nights of the street crusade were the most challenging nights to date. The church in the community of Glendale in Phoenix was just a few weeks old and the site was on the edge of a busy street. Maybe 12 or so folks attended each night. They were almost always the same folks each night. Sharing the Gospel to many people is much different than just a few, especially the same few. The pastor had no idea if this would be successful? God was faithful as every night as 2 or 3 were healed and about the same came forward to follow Jesus. It was the same folks on all nights that attended but different ones being healed and saved. The 3rd night I taught the mini course to equip those that were new Christians and the faithful that had come every night. Again God was faithful to heal during the demonstration time.
Pastor Carlos was very delighted and encouraged as he understood the teaching and saw the results. He now has a church equipped to share the Gospel and able to prove the Gospel by healing the sick! His strategy is to go door to door!
This man in the photo below had not been able to bend his knees without pain for many years. He is demonstrating the “Manny Paquio” knee bends with a smile on his face!
As a result of his testimony, 2 folks came forward to follow Jesus! I was told by his brother of how much pain he had been suffering over the years. What “we” did not know is that he had never made any kind of commitment to the Lord and on the second night he came forward! This was a result of him experiencing a personal healing by a demonstration of the healing power of God!
Crusade Site in Glendale:
Evening testimonies of miraculous healings below!
Sunday Morning in Phoenix
The first Sunday morning of my time in Phoenix turned out to be a very emotional time. I was invited to teach the mini-Elijah Challenge course at the 1st of 3 churches planted by Pastor Francisco. He oversees 12 Hispanic churches in total in the Phoenix area. The emotional flow of tears came when folks came forward for healing and were ministered to by their church family. Many of the folks had been in pain for up to 8 years. Pain killers and their doctors could not help them. Through their tears they testified of the healing and about 20 folks came forward to be followers of Jesus. Also a few of those that were healed came to the different churches we ministered at and shared their testimonies.
These are folks that were healed from many years of pain [photo]. The man with the kaki shirt came to our last meeting in Phoenix. His ankle was healed on the Sunday morning. He had pain for over 3 years, could not walk with out pain and no flexibility. On our last night in Phoenix he came to the 3rd of Pst. Francisco’s churches. Over 20 folks healed and about 30 came to be followers of Jesus. The man in the kaki shirt came to me at the end of the service. I had remembered him from the Sunday morning service. Seems he was deaf in one ear and asked me to minister to him. He was healed instantly!
Teaching The Elijah Challenge mini-course on the third night in Phoenix
The man above was the first volunteer in the demonstration time. He told me that he had seen his doctor about a possible operation because of poor blood flow and an irregular heart beat. The pain was non stop and had been living with this for years. As I ministered to him to him began to cry as his legs became pain free and his heart was pumping strong! Many folks were healed this night and the photo below shows the response of the alter call to become followers of Jesus!
Salvation response!
Santa Fe
The next morning we were off for an 8-hour drive to Santa Fe! Our first ministry night in Santa Fe was a Mexican cultural delight!. The pastor was dressed in a traditional gaucho outfit and the ladies had long flowing dresses. And the music was wonderful authentic Mexican. You just have to dance! When it was time to minister the pastor greeted ME with hugs and kisses!
I have never felt so welcomed! Well over 20 folks were healed as I trained the folks to heal the sick to prove the Gospel.
Sunday morning was another great experience! Another new church plant! I shared The Elijah Challenge mini-course and many came forward for healing and to minister to each other.
The lady below is testifying how she had not been able to bend her knees for many years. Her desire was to come to the alter every Sunday and start the morning on her knees praying for the service.
Here she is below, tearfully praising the Lord on her knees!!
The lady below had stomach trouble and was expecting to have an operation. Terry and I ministered to her. She came back to us after she had been to the bathroom. A black fluid had been expelled and she was no longer in pain!
There were about 15 folks healed and 10 came forward to be followers of Jesus!
Sunday evening at a Guatemalan church
Again I taught The Elijah Challenge mini-course and as usual I had a volunteer. Tonight it was a lady with back pain. She was healed and testified. Then I asked for others to come. Maybe 30 plus folks came for ministry. I divided them in half to minister to each other and then testify. Some folks sat down to wait there turn. After many testimonies I could see that the folks that were sitting seemed to be anxious for ministry. But what I did not understand due to “broken” English was that they were being healed even though no had ministered them! I believe the Gift of Healing was in operation. For me this was the first time I had experienced this! A man testified about his arthritic pain throughout his body was totally gone and a lady told us how her heart was irregular and very weak seemed to be pumping as strong as ever! No one had ministered to them!
Man (above) with arthritis, no one ministered to him!
All the above folks were healed!
Pastor leading the men to the Lord!
Elijah’s challenge at Mt. Carmel revisited at a missionary’s home in Santa Fe
I am amazed at how much God cares about the non-believer. During the week we were invited to a home for lunch. There were about a dozen relatives of the host missionary’s home in Santa Fe. After lunch a brave young man in his early 20’s challenged the pastors that were there. He declared that he understood the Gospel and knows if he were to die he would go to Hell. He was kind of mocking us. I believe this was true of all the young folks there. His question was “Could any of us ‘pastors’ give a real definition of what is a “Real Christian”? I am thinking, this is just what Elijah was challenged with. This guy needs to see the power of God!!
I shared the Gospel, talked about repentance and the need to be Born Again and then simply said that we in the Elijah Challenge ministry believe to prove this message is to heal the sick. “Is there anyone here that needs healing” was my statement. I must admit I was a little nervous but quietly asked God to fill me with Mountain Moving faith! I did declare that without any real visible demonstration of Gods power, Christianity would seem just like any other philosophy AND I said that it is the same God that heals the sick, that forgives our sin!
I asked for volunteers to come for healing and immediately two ladies jumped from the couch. Both had pain for many years throughout their back and shoulders. The family was familiar with their challenges. Ministry was quick and the pain was gone immediately! We all clapped!
Next a young lady (below) came. I noticed that her leg and ankle had many stitches and she could not walk without a limp or pain. She told me that the pain was so bad that the pain killers were of no help. There was no flexibility in her ankle and a metal piece screwed to her leg bone. I ministered 2 times to her leg and foot. The pain was totally gone, flexibility returned and she could put her full weight on her foot! I asked her she was a believer. Her answer was “I AM NOW!!”
Next her husband came forward. He was prompted by the “mocker”. I don’t really think he thought he would experience anything. His leg had even more stitches, he had a very bad limp and was in a lot of pain. He also had a metal piece screwed to his leg bone. The healing was immediate! Flexibility returned and the pain was gone! I asked him if he was a believer and his answer was the same as his wife’s: “I AM NOW”!
The background for the stitches of this young couple
On September 14, 2016 this couple wasin a horrible cars accident. The young husband had to do “CPR” on his wife to keep her alive! The car was totaled. It was almost 2 months to the day that our “paths” crossed in this home in Santa Fe. I believed that God had spared their lives so that they would not just hear the Gospel but experience his love and power from our God that sent His Son Jesus to prove to them HOW MUCH HE LOVES THEM!
Without this actual visible experience I don’t believe that this young couple would have been convinced that our God is the same that heals the sick and forgives our sins through his son Jesus! Same outcome as Elijah! Not sure about the young mocker. I did not see him again.