David Ford Interview — David Ford

David Ford’s Conversion and Early Hunger for God

My name is David Ford. I'm based in Phoenix, Arizona born in Springfield, Missouri for all those show me people and Accepted Christ as my Lord and Savior in seven years old 1966 in Oxnard, California Jesus saved me.

He saved me. I didn't pray a prayer as it were. Jesus saved me and it was in prayer obviously, but it was a change in my life even at seven years old and There was a new hunger for the Word of God a hunger for prayer.

I'd never go to sleep at night without having prayer in my own bed with the Lord with the Lord and then in May 28th 1978 in that year God called me to preach and used the scripture in Ephesians 6 where Paul said.

The Call to Preach and the Mystery of the Gospel

And for me that utterance may be given unto me. That I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel. That there and I may speak as I ought to speak. My dad was preaching on Jonah that night.

How he ran from God. I was youth pastor at 16 years old or 17 whenever it was. But that night God got a hold of my heart and I knew he was drawing me David. I've called you to preach. I argued no Lord.

You got the wrong person broken weeping back there in that pew. God gave me that scripture you leave pastors to me because I thought that's a lot of hypocrisy. Leave that to me. I've called you to preach and from then on it was just Prayer really has been in the main focus.

Prayer, Revival, and Ministry With Stephen Olford

That night ended up in a prayer meeting at the altar of the church in front of The church down in McNeil, Mississippi little church down there. God met us people again weeping all over the auditorium broke out in the move of God even that very night in the service.

Years later went to Bible school in Canada. And from there God led the travel with Dr. Stephen Oldford the great expositor in 1983 traveled with him around the country and then ministered with him from time to time until his home going in 2004 and he was on my board for many years and We prayed a lot together during those early years especially and that was a real privilege to be with him.

Preaching blessed my life from Stephen Oldford. But what blessed me even more than the preaching was the praying together? I Loved Ian Panton's definition of revival prayer is God the Spirit. Talking to God the Father in the name of God the Son and the believers heart is his prayer closet.

That puts all the onus on God to pray through us in his indwelling presence. Globe for Christ International is the name of the ministry. Basing out of Phoenix and from there traveled all over the world countries all over the world and in the u .s.

Focusing on the God of revival not just where is the Elijah of God? Where's the God of Elijah as well. Globe for christ .com was the website. So pray for me brother. Pray pray pray. I believe revival.

Revival as the Manifest Presence of God

It's not a series of meetings in the church. It's not a glorified Sunday morning service on a Tuesday night in the church. It's not let's do it this way and sing three fast songs and two slow songs and get up and preach your three-point outline and Then a hymn of closing at the end.

Revival is the manifest presence of God and All that God does when you're in the presence of God the brokenness the repentance the prayer and People praying for revival need to realize and we all must see and I had to in my life.

Sometimes praying for revival can be the greatest hindrance of revival praying. They're not the same thing. Many are praying for revival don't have a clue what they're praying about. They're their mindset is a as a series of meanings in a church.

But what drives a man to this deeper thing of real revival is lack in his own life and ministry. It's powerlessness in his own heart and life. Not just the church in his own heart and life. And he cries out to God.

God breaks him and he gets thoroughly thoroughly honest with God. The greatest hindrance to revival is The Church of Jesus Christ not getting honest with God about their true condition so I love Brian Edwards book on revival and definitions given in there and at the Lewis awakening of Duncan Campbell of 1949 a people saturated with God.

A community saturated with God. I was in a meeting one time and that and that's not just let me say this first. Firstly people say well God's omnipresent. God is omnipresent. But I'm the presence. I believe Isaiah knew about omnipresence when he said Oh God that you would tear open the heavens in the heavens.

And come down. He knew God was omnipresent. It's taught in the book of Isaiah. Times are refreshing from the presence of the Lord. Acts chapter 3. Peter knew about the omnipresence of God. Revival is not the omnipresence of God.

Revival is the tremendous overwhelming effusion outpouring of the manifest presence of God and the result is revival in the church and The way for it to be sustained. I use three three three words. Stay hungry be hungry be humble and be holy in your walk with God and then learn about revival.

How has God moving? What does it look like? God took me in my own life to a place of brokenness. I Said God, I'm tired of reading about revival. I traveled with Stephen Offord met Billy Graham and been around and read it for years.

The history is a revival. God began to break my heart. I said God. I'm tired of hearing about revival. I want to see it. And God laid on my heart. How serious are you about this? I said, I'm dead serious.

I don't care what the cost is. I've got to see your glory and your power in true real revival. God led me on 10 days of fasting and prayer and he works differently in people's lives. But all I can say in a short summation is in the middle of the night on the 10th night at about 2 o 5 in the morning God broke me and God met me.

All I could do is weep and cry and say thank you Jesus. Thank you, Jesus. Thank you, Jesus. The next week a pastor called I had met several years earlier. He said David, I don't know if you remember me but we met over here a Little church in the country in Arizona Arlington Baptist Church.

A Local Church’s Experience of Revival

He said we need revival. I was at my prayer hall the other day and God put you on my heart to ask you to come to our church. You see when we pray for revival God doesn't start to work into somebody else.

He starts it you and me he breaks us first. I Went to that church Sunday morning not much usual happens Sunday night. Nothing really unusual happened Monday night, but Tuesday I said Lord, I'm tired of this.

I don't want to say more. I used to always say Lord. What's it like to see you move in such a way we go beyond scheduled dates and meetings? Because you come not because we orchestrated. On Tuesday night.

It was a very firm message. The message was this the reason this church is half empty. It's not God's fault. He said the harvest is plentiful labors are few. Pray therefore the Lord of the harvest to send forth labors into his harvest.

I said the Bible says that God's not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance. It's not God's fault. So the reason why we're half empty in the many of our churches is because we don't know enough of the power of the Holy Spirit In our hearts and lives for something to change and transform our churches.

It's because we're missing it with God somewhere. Brother, it was one of those nights when we didn't leave happy-clappy. We didn't leave. But yet in a solemn solemnity of heart a brokenness quietness.

The next night Wednesday night was going to be the final night God came and God broke us. The only way I could define it at that time and even now in meetings two weeks ago at a church. It's like a hovercraft God just sets down on the audience.

And when God shows up like that, there's very little you have to do and say just stay out of his way. He'll do what he wants to do in the serve. Just pray and obey pray and obey. God came on Wednesday night.

And got that in my heart to pray for the pastor that there was bitterness and anger in my dear dear dear brother's heart. I said Lord, I don't want to pray over. He's the pastor. I don't want to got that in my heart you pray over him.

I'll take my glory off these meetings. I Said all right. I said brother. Can I pray for you? He said yeah, please. And I turned sideways and he was to my right and I put my back to him as if I was standing between him and the throne and Such a travail broke out of my heart out of my spirit.

For that dear brother God. My brother's being attacked with anger and bitterness Lord. It'll destroy his ministry life. I Asked you tonight to protect. I asked you God to break. I Asked you God to use.

I Asked you God to pour out your spirit upon his life. I Didn't pray very long to me. I finished pray. He had tears coming down his face. He said brother David. Can I say something? I said sure brother.

Standing where he was not even facing the people but facing sideways. He said my wife has told me for years. I've been an angry bitter man. She's right and it's sin in my life, but tonight Jesus has broken me.

And clenched me and set me free and it broke out. You can't really Define revival without telling stories of how God moves in it. You just have to be there. We were we went on the next night. God came again.

We went on Friday night. God came again. Brother I could drive to that church. I could see way in the distance in the Arizona desert back then you could see the steeple. And I remember coming under the influence of the manifest presence of God.

About maybe a mile away from that church. And all of a sudden my heart would be warmed and broken and melted because of God's presence. We were going to end and he and I pull off on the side of the road and.

And he came walking up to my car. He said brother David what's wrong. We were going out to eat after the Friday night service. I said Tom we can't close these meetings. God isn't done. He called three people the next day and he called me back and he said David before I even brought it up.

Three people said pastor we can't in these meetings. God's come please we can't in these meetings. And do anyone on for four weeks? Every single night. That's what happened when God comes that is revived.

Preparing the Way Through Repentance

Jesus said there in Luke and prophesied in Isaiah. About John the Baptist prepare you the way of the Lord John preached it. Every mountain should be brought down. Every valley should be filled up. Every crooked way made straight, etc.

And the idols in our lives in America are the things that hinder the manifest glory of God in our churches. Hosea 10 12 says so to yourselves and righteousness reap and mercy. Break up your fallow ground for it's time to seek the Lord until He comes and rains righteousness Upon you.

So we can take that and back it up. Are we seeing the rain of righteousness our AI in let alone the rei G in a righteousness? Many places. No I've been to some mighty dead prayer meetings over the years.

And I have to get on and say Lord if I'm not seeing the rain of your manifest presence. If you unbeliever didn't come into our churches like in first Corinthians 13 and fall on his face and says of a truth.

Say of a truth. God is in this place. Then all we're doing is rearranging the furniture. That's all we're doing. If I'm not seeing that. Then God hasn't come in his manifest presence. If God hasn't come in his manifest presence, I haven't broken up the fallow ground.

I've not made ready. I've not prepared the highway for the king to come and if I've not done that I'm definitely not reaping in mercy and I'm not sowing in righteousness. It gets back to my responsibility.

Idolatry, Wealth, and Self-Centeredness in the Church

I've been preaching the last two years everywhere. God sends me that greed in America is not going to kill America. Greed in America is killing America and other countries. Because when America sneezes other countries catch a cold.

I travel all over the world and they tell me that a dear brother from Africa came to the US to preach. He said we know this in Africa if America falls. Then freedom in the world globally will fall. We're praying for move of God in America to be quite honest with you.

When it dropped Stopped market at seven seven seven point six eight on that Monday. I Wasn't shocked or surprised at all as a matter of fact one of those seasons of prayer. I hardly ever talked about this.

Usually about two weeks before God lays on my heart to pray certain ways about things of international consequence. Maybe in my living room on my couch on my knees. Single 48 never married nothing wrong.

I'm just never married, you know, but God broke my heart over this nation. And God broke my heart in prayer one night in travail. I mean travail. And it just exploded out of my out of my heart and God smashed Wall Street and bring this nation to its knees.

Because we're so arrogant and we're so proud and we have our top siders and we have our nice little name-brand shirts. Our nice little pants and we go to church in our nice little vehicles. Nothing wrong with blessing God.

The word says hey enjoy what I've given you it but don't get your eyes off of me in the process. In many places we tip God. Many people even a great wealth in this country instead of giving to missions and giving to ministry and giving a church.

They got to make sure the little 401k stays in place that their retirement is set in place and God said, you know what? Let me show you what I think about your little stink of 401k. Because your dependence has turned to your money and not me and that offends a righteous and holy God.

So money pleasure ease love of ease tradition bankrupt preaching cold praying. Those have become idols in the American Church. There was a time many years ago in America that before the before the The Group came to town to set up to have a little carnival.

They called the churches and asked are you having revival meetings in your church this week? Because we don't want to come if you're doing that nowadays. I'm driving the churches to preach somewhere on a Sunday morning and the little league baseball fields and soccer fields are all full of people.

And they can't tell me I don't have time for church because I'm so tired because of work. No, we're so stinking self-centered in America. It's no wonder. It's no wonder God is allowing and bringing judgment upon this nation and I believe it's only just the beginning.

Leadership as a Hindrance to Revival

But that breaks my heart. I've been crying out for years at the church. We trivialize God. We trivialize Isis word we trivialize prayer we trivialize coming together as the body of Christ prayer meeting on Wednesday.

Is anything but prayer meeting anymore with just the Father Son and Holy Ghost showing up and you can barely fill the vestries in church. But I don't criticize a lot of people for that because I believe if we as leaders were as near to the heart of God as we should be if The flame burned in our souls at prayer meeting they'd come to watch us burn.

So the responsibility is not just upon the people I have found in traveling. Usually the hindrance to revival is not the people sitting in the pews. It's leadership in churches. They really don't want revival.

They're making a nice little paycheck. They got the retirement going their wife has a nice little job somewhere and everything's going wonderful and fine and Deacon, so-and-so who's been who's been mean for years has finally calmed down and gotten quiet brother.

You know the difference between wheat and tares. It's this you can hardly tell between wheat and tares until the wind blows but when the wind blows the wheat waves and bows. With the pressure and movement of the wind, but the tears stay stiff and straight.

The problem in many a church is this. There's such a lack of blowing of the wind of the Spirit of God. You can't tell who the weed is and who the terrorists. Because of a lack of a moving of the Holy Spirit of God, but you let God come and revival to your church.

And you don't have to look for the Pharisees. They rise to the surface. But God can handle the Pharisees. I agree with Leonard Ravenhill someday. Somebody's gonna pick up the Bible and read a verse of Scripture and believe it and revival is going to break out.

That's the problem in America. We don't want revival the God of revival badly enough and the result is Judgment, I believe in many cases. The pill be at Ritalin or whatever it is has become one of the idols in America.

That's hindered revival. Hardships in life are like the nails that hold us to the cross so then crucifixion. His resurrection life emanates from us and through us. If I don't have hardships and affliction if I don't have those things in life, I'll never know what the exchange life is all about.

The Crucified Life and Union With Christ

Jesus didn't come to cure the self-life. He came to crucify it and The crucified life is that I died with Christ 2 ,000 years ago. I was buried with him. I rose again with him seated with him in the heavenlies when I rose again from the dead with Jesus.

Did my sins come with me? No. He bore all my sin and shame all the guilt. He took it all. The problem we're having in America is we've gotten away from the place of surrender the Lordship of Jesus Christ prayer.

I Was in a church one time when God came in precious revival, it went four months in one church. Five drug houses around that church closed down during the days of revival. When God comes to church He loves the powerless the weak the impotent.

How many people are sitting by the gate beautiful all those years? And there's not enough power in the church to transform their life on our very steps, that's not a condemnation. Because God has given us the pathway and the pathway is ever and always through the blood of Jesus.

If I'll humble myself He'll raise us up in due time. But I've got a humble myself before him first. I said God I'm not gonna confess. Everything's okay. All right, because it's not. That's why I need you but not just to puff me up and promote me on my agenda.

But Lord because your glory and honor is at stake. When Jesus was exalted as Lord acts 233, that's when the Holy Spirit was poured out. We need to get back in the churches to preaching and living the Lordship of Jesus Christ not Theologically not mere theology, but practically.

The Cross as the Only Method of Deliverance

I Was sharing with recently at a staff retreat. We're talking about pornography. Sins of addiction and how do you deal with temptation. And it wasn't part of what I was going to share. But when they began talking about those things one of my dress came.

I said I want to. I want to address what you've been talking about the way to handle temptation. I Said Romans 5 I mean in Galatians 5 and they that are Christ have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

I said sometimes that lust rises up within you in such a way that you you feel like it's a lion. It's a raging thing inside of you, but you can't even control it. It has control of you. I'm like, yeah I said I've had men come up one guy came up one time.

I think I'm in particular beautiful gorgeous wife. Pornography was eating his lunch. Destroying his life. I said, what do you tell someone when you're a little counseling session how to deal with temptation?

What do you tell him? I? Said if it's outside of the cross all it is is a band-aid. But here's the truth years ago. I asked the Lord. I said Lord. I'm not trying to. I'm not trying to be unbelieving but Lord your word says that the gospel is the power of God unto deliverance.

To all that believe what makes it so powerful you down on the cross. You're buried you rose again. But why is that so powerful? God taught me this the school of the Spirit. I guess he takes us all through.

That the cross of Jesus Christ the gospel of Jesus Christ is not only the only message of deliverance it is the only method of deliverance. Romans 8 13 if you live after the flesh you shall die. But if you through the spirit present tense go on putting to death the deeds of the body you shall live.

Every time temptation comes I pray this Oh God. But a power of the Holy Spirit apply the slaying power of the cross against my flesh that wants to rise up right now within me. Whatever it is and brother every single time that desire totally disappears and leaves the gospel is the only Method of deliverance and that's the answer for our homes.

Let's get focused on Jesus.