Digging Wells Down Under
July 3, 2002
Digging Wells Down Under
By David Barker
Report of meeting at Wallan Encounter AOG
Melbourne, Australia
Saturday 25 May 2002
I am a worship leader at Camberwell Salvation Army in Melbourne Australia. I happened to come accross your web site and saw that Hamilton was visiting Melbourne, so I went along out of curiosity to see what a 'healing evangelist' did. I have been a Christian for 24 years, and I have been 'in the river'/God chasing for the last two years after being in a drought for 16 years.
Thank you for your faithfulness to your calling.
Here is what I witnessed:
This is a report from day three of a four day crusade in the North of Melbourne as Hamilton Filmalter's tours around Australia. It took me an hour to make the trip from my eastern suburbs home in Melbourne, Australia through the cold mist of a late-fall evening to the northern satellite town of Wallan, and I drove past the little AOG church twice before I found the right spot. There were 70 people gathered in a house. The walls of 3 rooms had been knocked out to form a meeting room. I arrived at 7:50pm, 20 minutes late, and I squeezed my way to a seat up the back while the worship continued for 20 minutes past my arrival. The local pastor gave one announcement that took about 10 minutes to do so interspersed with laughing. "Why can't he just get on with it, what's so funny?" I thought, but then he knew something I was about to find out. Some more worship songs from this hungry crowd, with 'Let your glory fall in this room' a highlight, then Hamilton asked for testimonies; seven people got up and told of how they had been healed at previous meetings, including one guy whose short leg had grown.
Then he asked everyone to put their hands on their heads, and prayed for healing over everyone. He asked for anyone who felt any unusual sensations or manifestations to come up to the front. Around one quarter of the congregation went to the front! I was amazed. He interviewed them and prayed for healing over them. The prayers included an old bloke with shocking sounding lungs, a mid fifties lady with breast cancer, people with bad backs, arthritis, etc.
A visible healing occurred when a guy with a broken arm went up. He complained of back pain also. He also had one leg 2.5 inches shorter than the other. Hamilton had him sit down on a chair, stretch both legs out straight ahead, then started praying over his leg. Within a minute, the short leg had 'grown' to the same length as the other. Probably 75% of the congregation actually witnessed that occurring, including me. There were gasps of amazement and applause to God. Hamilton continued on and prayed over all who came, and they rested on the floor, one or two with laughter. I have been following the ministries and teaching of TACF, Bob Brasset, Reinhard Bonnke, Randy Clark and Todd Bentley, so I had some level of comprehension with what I was seeing.
Then prior to his sermon, he called out 'fire' on any pastors present. Two or three pastors went down on the ground, in fits of uncontrolled laughter, for around 20 minutes. One guy kept laughing for another 15 minutes or so through the sermon. Hamilton relayed some of his stories of how Jesus healed and saved people through Hamilton's ministering, most notably those occurring in small café's and bars and not at church. The sermon outline was 'Point 1. Ha ha ha. Point 2. ho, ho, ho. Point 3. he, he, he.' and then on to Genesis 26 - Issac (which means laughter) redigging the old well. We dig as we sow; so sow generously. Issac sowed his seed in the middle of a famine - so we should sow for healing likewise. The majority of the sermon was wonderfully interrupted by the guys lying on the floor down the front laughing their heads off. It made for a casual, fun atmosphere in which Hamilton undertook such serious kingdom building action. Then he called everyone who wanted prayer to come forward, and 90% of the congregation did. This was at about 10:30 pm I was in the second row, the fifth person prayed for. I was hungry, yet apprehensive as 'hard to receive' kinda guy, and this was only my second experience in a prayer line, and I come from a conservative, non-pentecostal denomination. (Also, my first prayer line experience left me a little cold).
Hamilton came up to me and fumbled around finding my shoulder. Close up, I could see in his piercing eyes peace and authority. I 'assumed the position' ready to receive.
Anxiously, nothing seemed to be occurring, I instinctively went to pray in tongues but Hamilton stopped me. (You can't receive while you are giving!) He delivered his ministry praying in volleys of shouted "Ha's" and "Ho's", waiting on the Spirit as he did. Within probably 15 seconds, I succumbed to the urge to laugh, and I gently drifted down onto the floor, only to be ravaged by raucous, constant, full-on laughter. I was conscious of noises around me, but had my eyes screwed up closed. I was capable of the occasional rational thought, including some of the following:
This is fantastically fun -
God was in and through the experience -
I wonder what God is doing to me - what is being undone? -
I couldn't stop laughing if I tried, but I was not scared about that. -
This is hilarious -
I was in a room full of strangers, so the anonmity helped placate my usual reservedness; I didn't care who saw me -
In all my previous experience, it is impossible to sustain that level of laughing by natural means for more than 1 or 2 minutes; I wasn't faking anything or 'putting it on' -
God really loves me; I want to stay in this for as long as I can. -
This is the joy of the Lord -
Waves would hit me, and I doubled up at times, thumped the floor at other times, and was in tears of laughter by the end of it. This full on laughing continued unabated for a full fifteen minutes!!! I remember glancing at the clock at 10:50 pm soon after I staggered up. I was roasted! I think I was one of the most significantly affected by the laughter (I had my eyes closed, so I am only 80% certain of this.) As I was clearly manifesting so significantly, I think I was attracting a bit of attention.
At one stage, Hamilton actually came over an put his foot solidly and squarely in my chest for 5 seconds - I just kept on laughing. (I asked him about this later and if there was any spiritual significance about it or was he just having fun; he said he was just having fun, stop trying to analyse this; just receive. Then he stuck his hand hard in my gut, shouted "fire!" and down I went again in fits of hysterical laughter, and he followed up with a few good natured kicks around my torso as he yelled "just receive!" This time, my laughing subsided within a few minutes).
During the course of the evening, Hamilton led four people through the sinners prayer and were saved! Good news.
The good thing about a reasonably small crowd is that there was the opportunity to back for '2nd's or 3rds as some people did: e.g. a lady gave a testimony early on, was prayed for then, then went for the general prayer line, and then again at the end for other healing. Two or three people went through 'deliverance' ministry.
I know that manefestations are not important, but as I was a stranger there, I don't know any of the inside stories of what spiritual breakthroughs were occuring; I can only report what I saw. For instance, I recall one guy, a big, serious looking guy with an expsensive looking suit, probably in his mid-30's. He was next in line to me in the prayer line, and I think he 'went down' after me, but I'm not 100% sure ('cos I was laughing so much!). Anyway, later in the evening, he was standing over by the door in the corner observing Hamilton ministering around the room. Somehow, Hamilton caught his eye. Hamilton just pointed in his direction, smiled, and flicked his wrist in this guys direction seven or eight times. The guy started shaking, jerking around on the spot while standing, his face went red, he started bouncing off the walls in the corner as he tried to contain what was going on. This subsided after 3 or 4 minutes. About 10 minutes later I asked this complete stranger "what was going on with you?" and he said in bewilderment "I don't know", but he smiled as he said it; and there was peace all over him.
The local pastor (Robin) helped Hamilton find and put on his jacket to finish up as I left at 11:45 pm. Towards the end of the evening as I was observing what was going on, I reflected on why Hamilton would want to do this. Why wouldn't you? He describes himself as a healing evangelist. He ministered the love and fullness of joy, and the healing of Jesus. He lead four people to Christ during the course of the evening. Captives were set
free.
Hamilton is majoring in the majors.
David Barker
David.Barker@Cummins.com
Location: Melbourne, Australia
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