A Holy Ghost Ski Story with a St. Patrick Twist

https://youtu.be/6Hq_u0zS6QY

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

I remember our friend Lonnie Frisbee used to share different stories about some of the ways that the Lord would lead him into divine appointments and ministry situations at times… 

Interestingly enough Lonnie Frisbee’s Funeral was on St. Patrick's Day which seems significant in that they were both radical missionary evangelists, but whose histories have often been misunderstood.

Those divine appointment and divine leading stories Lonnie shared were inspiring, as is the story of the Real St. Patrick.

A Holy Ghost Ski Story with a St. Patrick Twist 

Last year we discerned the Lord leading us to just head out east… eventually towards Colorado with some stops on the way, we felt that the Lord was going to do something… wasn’t sure what though.

After some stops we eventually made our way towards Colorado.

As we crossed the border into Colorado we got a phone call from an old pastor friend of ours that invited us to come and speak at his church in Colorado Springs.

We hadn’t been to his church in two years and though we had written him a number of months earlier we had never heard anything back.

It was quite divine timing to receive that call right as we drove into Colorado.

We had some free time since we were already there in the state way before the service to do some stuff in between the coming service.

We took a little time to do some skiing in those awesome Colorado Rockies and then headed over to Colorado Springs.

It worked out that the day we were to preach at their “Missionary Sunday” service which was on St Patrick's Day last year.

We shared some mission stories from the book of Acts and some of our mission adventures and the story of The Real St. Patrick who was a missionary led by God’s Spirit to preach the gospel to the Irish. Which was followed by us praying for a bunch of people and especially some young men in the service who got touched powerfully. The Lord was releasing an empowering, especially for evangelism, upon their lives.

We also ministered at the YWAM base in Denver to some young people preparing for missions later on.

A little later on from that we were doing a little more skiing and it was warm enough to do a bike ride afterwards. 

We returned to the ski village after the bike ride as well as skiing earlier on, coming back quite famished, after all that exercise in the cold weather. 

It had gotten late and the village had the appearance of a ghost town as everything was closed and no one was around.

I sat down on a bench while Mercedes went to use the restroom and I noticed a bag next to me that had a bunch of food that had been boxed up in it. 

The place was deserted and we sat there for a while checking our phones etc…nobody ever came around for the food.

I finally took a look inside and realized it was a bunch of Irish food that had been boxed up from a restaurant as a to go order that had never been touched.

We waited quite a bit longer, hanging out for a while and still there was no one around and no one was obviously ever returning for this.

I felt an impression from the Lord “I have provided….”

It was so much food that we couldn't even eat it all. The next day we decided to finish it off at the little motel we were at. Downstairs they had some tables and a kitchen in the back.

One of the women who worked there actually heated up the Irish Stew for us that was left and actually gave us some really nice bread to go with it.

The Lord opened a door to begin witnessing to her and I ended up using the story of the real St Patrick as a bridge to share the Gospel with her and plant some seeds and pray for her and God touched her heart.

I then noticed that her name was Patricia… It all then hit me: 

Wow ! We're sitting here eating divinely supplied Irish Stew while sharing the story of the real St. Patrick to a woman named Patricia—the feminized version of Patrick—a little later after that divine appointment in Colorado where we had that divine timing to preach and minister about the real St. Patrick.

I felt the Lord emphasizing through all this: 

The story of the real St Patrick can be a bridge to share the Gospel! Especially with those who might have a religious background but haven’t received Christ. It is important to share with others that the Lord calls us into a relationship with Him through His Son Jesus Christ so we can have that promise and security of eternal life.

It helps sometimes to find bridges as a way to share the Gospel.

The Holy Spirit empowers us to be witnesses, and the story of St Patrick can be a bridge and is a good tool to use at the appropriate times, to help share with those who need the Gospel.

• More videos on the Celtic Christian Legacy:

https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9zt0pZyg_bP-KrzXvXNxb1P-VrIdn4Sz&si=DyPa5BjPej4zATeA

Year in Review

A Milestone 

2023 was a unique time in that our son Patrick got married. We were stoked to celebrate with friends and family as Patrick and Emily were joined together. The Lord blessed Patrick with a beautiful godly bride in Emily who also grew up involved in missionary adventures herself. We tend to have our own little ideas, thinking that maybe this person or that would be good to introduce our son to, none of that human effort ever went anywhere though.

It was, however, an unexpected word that the Lord gave me, which at the time seemed to have nothing to do with what happened later—meeting a young lady—that actually connected Patrick and Emily.

 

We had recently connected with Dave and Natalie Hess on the coast for some lunch after years of emailing one another but never being here in the US at the same time. 

 

However, the Lord’s timing is so different than our own and He knows what needs to happen and when.

 

After connecting with them and getting to know each other, we were getting ready to leave to go to a meeting they were hosting, when I saw Patrick getting ready to do something else and I told him: “I just got an impression from the Lord, and I think you are supposed to come to this meeting with us tonight.”  

 

We celebrated 10 years of ministry in Canada on our latest trip there last year. This video shares about the supernatural way the Holy Spirit led us and opened the doors to begin ministry there!

Direct link: https://youtu.be/OD_-ve4G81s?si=KhUqPmUo1JqPuyJo

We were actually going to dinner with Dave and Natalie first, and Patrick wasn't even invited…but I just brought him along because the Lord gave me that word! It was important to listen to the Lord versus following social decorum.

 

I figured Patrick was just supposed to come with us and help pray for people at the meeting after dinner… 

 

Instead, the Lord had a different plan and he met Emily who wasn't even supposed to be there at that meeting that night either. They connected at that meeting and went to an evangelistic outreach down on the coast together shortly after that.

 

Mercedes and I actually ran into them down there at the outreach and we also had a divine appointment with an old friend down there. As we were all talking with them, I got a leading from the Holy Spirit to have us all pray together in our own little circle of about 8 of us, off to the side, over by the beach. As we joined hands to pray, the Holy Spirit just fell on all of us in this little prayer circle with power and grace and we all ended up down on the ground as the Holy Spirit moved on us all with His presence, hallelujah! 

 

The police actually showed up and started giving the guys leading the outreach over on their platform a hard time and they were just staring over at us as not knowing what to think of this strange little group off to the side and down on the ground getting hammered by the Holy Spirit! While the Holy Spirit touched us, I got an impression from the Lord that He was doing something significant in this relationship that was forming. That was quite a wild night being their first outing together.

 

After about a year later of them going surfing and to ministry outreaches etc, Patrick proposed, and they began making wedding plans. They are now married and leading worship together regularly! The worship leading thing was another word I had for Patrick early on. However, the Lord had to bring it to pass himself in his own way! 

 

I had a word while on a trip that Patrick would lead worship later—this was in his early teens. I tried to help that word get going in my own way—which met a lot of resistance—but the Lord had his own plan, which he worked out in His own way, in his own time, that I didn’t foresee. Praise the Lord! His ways and thoughts are higher than ours!

 

Divine Appointments 

 

We have had numerous divine appointments over the last year. Each unique in its own way, here’s a couple highlights:

 

There was a recent divine appointment that took place just a few weeks ago: We started conversing with a young lady up in the mountains. One thing led to another, and we began sharing the Gospel with her and as we did, the Holy Spirit began to visibly move upon her heart, and she began tearing up! She then shared that she was a believer who had drifted away from the Lord in the last year. She knew that the Lord had arranged this moment of us sharing with her. We prayed together with her as she re-surrendered her heart to Christ while tears fell down her face! Praise the Lord she was a prodigal that has come back home! 

 

It was one of those moments that required us to slow down and pay attention to what the Lord had in store, something that requires constant learning in this go go go world!

We also had a divine appointment with a security guard at a beach mall. We ended up in a conversation with him and it turned out he was a believer. We shared and then prayed with him about the filling of the Holy Spirit, and he was greatly touched and encouraged as the presence of the Lord filled and renewed him, hallelujah!

 

We had another divine appointment driving along the coast on our way north on a ministry trip. I was about to get off the coast route and get on the freeway…when I sensed a check and felt I should stay on the coast route at the moment. We finally stayed in a place where we ended up ministering to one of the Hispanic housekeepers the next day who we ended up talking with and then prayed for! She responded to a word I had “about a burden she was dealing with” turned out she was a believer who had an estranged son that was weighing heavily on her heart… the Lord touched her with His presence and buoyed her heart…the maid ministry continues on 😎!

 

Ministering Our Way Up The Pacific Coast Trail

 

We were blessed to minister our way along the coast in 2023 all the way from San Diego up to the northern tip of Vancouver Island in Canada at Port Hardy.

We experienced the power of God being poured out as many were baptized in the Holy Spirit, others received Christ into their lives, along with many others who received healing and breakthroughs along the way.

 

A few moments that stand out: A man in Port Hardy receiving Christ as his Savior and also getting empowered with the Holy Spirit right after he was so overcome, he had tears and snot just flooding down his face as he was getting so touched by the presence of the Lord! 

 

There was also a First Nations lady there who had received Christ as we ministered on a previous trip and shared how she now regularly attends Bible Studies and is serving the Lord! A woman in Salinas who received tongues finally after many years of praying and seeking the Lord for a breakthrough in that area, she along with many others was overcome by the presence of the Lord and impacted powerfully. 

 

There was an old friend who was just radically overcome by the presence of the Lord as we prayed for her while she experienced a fresh filling of the Holy Spirit and healing that was releasing her from some heavy burdens, this along with others who surrendered their hearts to Christ as well rededicated themselves to the Lord, along with numerous others who were touched and filled as the Holy Spirit was poured out in power at the CDO Church in Downtown San Diego just recently as we preached and ministered there. Many were also touched by God’s presence and filled with the Holy Spirit, along with others who received healing, as well as some who received Christ in North County San Diego, Santa Barbara, Costa Mesa, Orange, and San Clemente and down in the Southern Border Region, as we ministered in those areas. 

 

Deeper Healing 

 

Looking back at the last few years 2023 is actually the first full year where things were not hampered by lingering Covid restrictions. It was only the latter half of 2022 when a lot of the restrictions were finally done. It is an unusual time we have all lived through that still requires some reflections and processing. On our end we are thankful of how the Lord can: “Work everything together for good.” (Romans 8:28)

 

That unusual season of Covid was actually something where the Holy Spirit began to take things to a whole deeper level in the area of healing of past things that involved growing up in broken situations in both of our lives. 

 

This felt unusual at first since we have both already experienced healing like that before, however, this was on a much deeper level. Moreover, He’s God and we are not, and the fruit has shown the wisdom from on high that surpasses the weakness of our puny little human minds.

 

One thing needed on this journey was a surrendering of the will and human reasoning—possibly some of the hardest things we can ever lay down—the path did not make sense at first, but the Lord knew the end from the beginning.

 

His infinite divine wisdom surpasses our lowly human intelligence. While there may always be some things still to walk through in life, that season of intense healing has brought forth divine fruit that continues to bless us! Hallelujah, He is able to work everything together for good!

 

After walking through that season where the Lord did so much deep stuff, we have both been blessed to experience new levels of freedom and peace in certain areas of our lives and there has been a definite strengthening in our marriage—things just went from good—to even better. 

 

This involves some of the mystery of the divine grace of God. He has taken us both on a journey that may have been a bit tough at first to embark on and walk through, but in the end, things have gone from good… to even better! Praise the Lord!

 

We pray that the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ refresh and renew you as you walk with him into this New Year and beyond! 

 

We thank the Lord for each and every one of you and always really appreciate all your prayers and support. 

 

Blessings to you in Jesus’ Name!

Bryan and Mercedes Marleaux

Connect to Grace World Mission: https://linktr.ee/graceworldmission

Ministry Update - Summer 2023

Patrick and Emily Get Married!

Celebrating the marriage of Patrick and Emily. Now aka Mr. and Mrs Marleaux

We are excited to have just experienced an amazing life event as our son Patrick got married! It was such an awesome time celebrating with friends and family as Patrick and his beautiful bride Emily came together in the union of marriage at their wedding! 

We also had such a fun-filled week leading up to the big day, getting in some surfing and beach time and other activities with them and some others as the time drew near. 

We are stoked that Emily is a strong believer and that they both are leading worship together! In fact, there is an important story behind this that is about perseverance which I think is important to share, which I also shared at the wedding: 

We were on a trip years back when Patrick had just begun his teens. We had a rental car since ours was in the shop, which had satellite radio in it. We were driving along when a long set of Gospel music and Hymns sung by Elvis came on. 

I began worshiping along which brought me into the presence of the Lord. I unexpectedly got a word of knowledge that Patrick would someday lead worship, which took me by surprise.

It caused me to remember that some years before this, Mercedes and I were leading worship at Pearl Chapel on the Central California Coast, when Patrick who was just 9 years old, spontaneously came up on the platform to the microphone and started singing with us. I knew it was something prophetic…then came this word while driving which confirmed it (you can see it in this video: https://youtu.be/MGH8Vpnp_tI)

Then the trials began! I had been teaching him guitar already. After the word came I began to try teaching him about doing worship and some worship songs. It couldn’t have gone more opposite than I expected.

Those early teens are also when some of that typical teenage rebelliousness starts flaring up. I was tempted to just forget it because he would just go, “ahh worship stuff is so boring… this is dullsville...” and he just wanted to do riffs and leads on the guitar and just ignore what I was teaching him.

I actually tried to work with his interests and incorporate riffs and leads into teaching and still slip in worship stuff but the resistance to the worship parts continued. He was quite stubborn about it and I was tempted to give up many times, but the Lord just kept showing me to persevere and that it would come to fruition…in His time.

Well, I had another word of knowledge about two years ago that Patrick was supposed to come to a meeting we were going to in Orange County with some missionary friends. He decided to come and that is where he unexpectedly met Emily.

They began going to some House Church meetings together, where he encountered some guys his age doing worship and his attitude started changing. Then, an opportunity came for him and Emily to lead worship together themselves at a small House Church … they stepped through that door and are still doing it! Patrick actually apologized later for some of that earlier teenage stubbornness, praise God!

The Lord fulfilled the word in His time…it just took some perseverance…around 7 years worth or so. I was rejoicing when I watched him show a visiting friend recently all the worship songs he has learned.

We as believers may sometimes get a word, or a vision, or something of that nature for ourselves, or something like that for a son or daughter, and maybe it’s not fulfilled right away, maybe it takes a long, long time, and even gets to a point that it seems it will never happen…however, perseverance is emphasized as a needed factor in the Kingdom of God: from Abraham all the way through to the Apostle Paul, perseverance was required to fulfill the call!

Then, sometimes when it’s fulfilled, it happens in a way we didn’t expect at all. But as we walk on in the Kingdom, we see that His grace and mercy never fades nor diminishes….even if His higher ways are sometimes mysterious and not understood right away…Praise the Lord!

Patrick and Emily got to enjoy a beautiful honeymoon and are now beginning their newly joined union and lives together. And we are catching our breath after all that activity of the last few months leading up to the wedding. It was an especially busy time as the wedding rolled up and took place while plenty of other ministry was going on as well.

Ministry Update

Here are some highlights from recent ministry:

Ministering the Baptism of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost Sunday @ CCSC

We had just been preaching up north in Salinas at the Vineyard Church there, right before Patrick and Emily’s big day. We were ministering with our friend Dave E. and were sharing and reflecting on: The Mother’s Day Outpouring at what was then called Calvary Chapel Yorba Linda. It later became The Anaheim Vineyard and we shared how Lonnie Frisbee had ministered there on Mother’s Day and the outpouring that followed when Lonnie began praying for the Holy Spirit to come over the congregation. We experienced a very powerful outpouring of the Holy Spirit ourselves in Salinas as we shared about that and then ministered with many being filled, empowered, and renewed, including some who had awesome breakthroughs with being filled and touched in a fresh way by the Holy Spirit’s power! In fact, a woman who had been wanting to receive the gift of tongues for years got her breakthrough when she got prayed for! Others received healing, and testimonies came of those who were set free from depression and discouragement and others shared of important encounters and personal revelations that buoyed their faith. Hallelujah!

We had a fun time on Pentecost Sunday and their night of worship at Calvary Chapel San Clemente as they played some of that worship from back in the Jesus People Revival and I followed up by sharing about some adventures back in the Jesus People Revival and how I ended up at Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa. Mercedes shared about the times we had learning and being organically discipled by Lonnie Frisbee. It was an awesome time of worship, sharing, and praying for others for the filling of the Holy Spirit whose presence was with us as we ministered! We have also done some Afterglows with them in recent months as well!

We were blessed to reconnect with old friends and meet new ones while ministering recently in the Santa Barbara area at Mission Isla Vista. We had a blessed time sharing and praying for people. The Holy Spirit filled, empowered, and renewed so many who were there, we also heard about some healings that happened too. We were told it was the most people they have had respond for prayer there and it was one of the most powerful times we’ve had ministering there, hallelujah! We also got to enjoy a few things in the area including a little biking and some firing waves at Rincon on the way out of town that suddenly had an unexpected late season swell just show up. An unusual encounter with a famous pro surfer from the area encouraged us to get out there even if it was a little crowded. In fact, Mercedes was stoked that she got to surf and experience the famous point break herself for the first time!

We had a powerful time ministering at Centro Cristiano Esperanza in Orange County and we were blessed to have Patrick and Emily join us to help pray for people there as well. This led to many people getting ministered to in a powerful way, many were filled and empowered with the Holy Spirit as well as a few who received Christ along with some who who rededicated their lives to the Lord! The power and glory of the Lord was amongst us as we ministered!

We’ve continued ministering in various regions including the border areas sharing the Gospel and praying for others and have also had some powerful divine appointments. As the Jesus Revolution movie came out, it has sparked fresh interest about experiences with that revival and with Lonnie Frisbee, which we have been sharing about. You can check out an article we did which was actually picked up by an International Renewal publication as well as a video we’ve done here: https://www.graceworldmission.org/Jesus_ppl_revival.html

With our friends Jeff and Jeannette and other friends at PrayerFest.

We were also blessed to do a PrayerFest out in Hemet with our friends Jeff and Jeanette. It had been a little while, due to Covid and schedule issues, that we were able to get all together. We were reminded that it was the 15-year anniversary since the first one we had done together with them, and in that time over the years, we’ve seen numerous blessings and breakthroughs including healings and people coming to Christ. In fact, we were reminded by a friend who was visiting that night and told us how his son had gotten touched and empowered by the Holy Spirit and then healed of celiac disease at one of the PrayerFest meetings, as well as a woman who had her knee healed, as well as many others who have received healings as well as the filling of the Holy Spirit, praise the Lord!

In fact, the main focus at these meetings has been leading people into “the Baptism of the Holy Spirit.” We have been blessed to see many who are not necessarily Charismatic nor Pentecostal but rather have backgrounds like Baptist, Nazarene, Presbyterian, etc, come into the Fullness and Baptism of the Holy Spirit and be empowered with the gifts in these meetings in awesome ways, Praise the Lord!

We are glad to be continuing on with the legacy of our old friend and another mentor, Harald Bredesen, who was a Lutheran that got filled with the Holy Spirit and subsequently led many others in the Body of Christ who were not Charismatic/Pentecostal in background to come into the baptism of the Holy Spirit in that powerful Charismatic Renewal, which Harald helped birth and lead.

It is an important need in the Body of Christ: I recall a friend who shared how he was worshiping at one of the biggest mega churches in the country and out of nowhere he began speaking in tongues. He was subsequently escorted from his seat and shown the door, and then kicked out of the church! His story gives insight into the desperate need in the Body of Christ for clear teaching and ministry on the empowering and baptism of the Holy Spirit that is sound evangelically and taught in a way that can be received without the pitfalls of extremism. We have been blessed to minister over the years to unexpected groups which are not normally open to the empowering and baptism of the Holy Spirit and see many get filled and blessed by the fullness of the Holy Spirit! Hallelujah!

Acts 1:5: “For John truly baptized with water, but in a few days hence you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit!

Ministering and praying for people in Santa Barbar at IVC

We greatly appreciate your prayers and support! As you may know the whole deal with us as parents that are helping pay for the Honeymoon, the Rehearsal Dinner, and for many other things Patrick needed for the wedding really add up, so we greatly appreciate any extra support you can give to help us out with that at this time, thanks so much!

We praise God and thank you for your prayers and support! We are so appreciative and give thanks in Jesus’ Name!

Bryan and Mercedes Marleaux

https://linktr.ee/graceworldmission

Ministry Update - Fall 2022

 

Ministry and scenes from Victoria with
a little time with friends like the
Brasset's and Pastor Dan & Julie.

                                                                                    

30 Years of Marriage 

 

We have been blessed to celebrate thirty years of marriage this year! Wow, that is actually quite the milestone!

It is especially so since we both grew up in backgrounds with broken homes and divorce. However--in Christ there is that blessed “however”—the Lord has, by His grace, and the power of the Holy Spirit, helped us overcome the odds that psychologists say have been stacked against those married couples who both grow up in homes that had divorced parents.

We are thankful, as the Lord has done so much healing, inner healing, restoration, freeing, and on and on, by the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives over the years, to establish us on the Rock of Christ in our union together.

We know so many people who have gotten separated or divorced, unfortunately many Christians among them. But for the grace of God, we could be among them as well! “However” we just humbly thank the Lord—with no pride about it—as we know it is all a gift of grace from above! 

We rejoice that the Holy Spirit continues to work in our lives to heal, and bring health, to our marriage union. We feel blessed to be celebrating this 30-year marriage milestone this year and give praise to the Lord for all His blessings!

 

Canada Mission Trip

 

We recently returned from a month-long trip ministering in British Columbia, Canada, as well as taking a little time to visit some unique and scenic places up there in celebration of our wedding anniversary.

We ministered in various meetings and churches on Vancouver Island, from the south to the north as well as in the middle of the island, ministering in the city of Victoria and in the towns of Port Alberni, and Port Hardy. 

We first ministered on the south end of the island in the city of Victoria, which is the capital of British Columbia.

We did a number of meetings while in Victoria, ministering at a couple of different church services on different weekends, as well as during the week at Bible study Prayer Meetings and a Men’s Prayer Breakfast.

Ministry and scenes from Port Hardy Christian Fellowship and some time hanging out
with Lance and Sarah and friends, we were blessed to check out  
some awesome wildlife and get in a bit of surf while out in Tofino.

    We were stoked to have the presence of the Lord moving and working, all the way through in every meeting! Many were experiencing the filling, freeing, and healing power of the Holy Spirit, along with those who were baptized in the Holy Spirit.

We received some powerful testimonies of some who were healed including a woman who was set free from chest pain! Others experienced inner healing and deliverance, and there was an empowering happening with a release of spiritual gifts and empowering for evangelism that was taking place as we ministered that many who received testified to! Hallelujah! 

A couple of people testified publicly, and on social media, how they felt the fire and power of the Holy Spirit, baptizing as well as re-baptizing some, in such a way with fire and Holy Ghost power as to overwhelm them, and in the process bringing healing, freedom and deliverance in their lives.

We went out with a van full of people to minister in Port Alberni where the Holy Spirit brought forth some powerful healing and deliverance to a number of people there.

After ministering in Victoria at the southern end, we did a series of meetings in a row up in Port Hardy at the northern end of the island, so we were literally at the ends of the earth on the island.

The Holy Spirit was moving powerfully as we ministered and we received testimonies of people set free, some receiving healings:  A guy testified to being healed of acid reflux and another to being healed of arthritis. We also had a couple people who received the Lord! One woman who opened her heart to Christ had a First Nations’ background as well as coming from a rough set of circumstances, we witnessed a complete visible change come over her after receiving Christ. She spent the next couple of days just reading the Bible, praying, and then came to a service where she publicly shared a song the Lord had just given her! 

At the last meeting in Port Hardy, after ministering every day for a few days, the overwhelming presence of the Lord just swept through, and nobody could even move for quite a while…complete silence … and then waves of weeping and then laughter… repentance … glory! The visitation of the Lord’s presence was so powerful that we were all overwhelmed…just turned into abiding in His presence for quite a while…and then praying and ministering to one another! Something historic revivals have experienced! Glory!!

We just met some people who have ministered in Canada in the past themselves who shared how they were so glad to hear about us going on mission trips and ministering there. They said it is a place that needs the ministry of the Holy Spirit and empowering of the Kingdom of God in a major way, and they feel it is actually overlooked as a mission and ministry destination.

 

    Luther and The Reformation

 

Scenes from when we visited Wittenberg, Germany and the Reformation Celebration a few years ago where a quarter million people flooded the little town of Wittenberg to celebrate the Reformation. We have an important article on the Reformation you can read here.

    We were sharing at a morning breakfast meeting right after a long night, having gone to a BBQ and then a dinner meeting. We were pressed for time in the morning, rushing to the meeting. After we arrived and began eating breakfast, someone had left on a worship program on the TV. Out of nowhere they began playing “A Mighty Fortresses is our God” from Martin Luther, a song not part of the normal worship set at most contemporary churches. 

The Lord had us leading some worship ourselves, and afterwards we shared about Luther and the importance of the Reformation and how it set the foundation for revivals. (We have been blessed to have opportunities to share on Luther at other meetings as well.)  We had a powerful Holy Ghost morning as a result! We also just did a blog on the 505th Anniversary of the Reformation and the 500-year anniversary of Martin Luther’s New Testament Translation. You can check it out at this link:

https://gwmgracenotes.blogspot.com/2022/10/500-anniv-luthers-nt.html

 

Divine Appointments

 

We took a hike out in the Port Hardy area after ministering, where we got to have a unique National Geographic-type moment as we watched the wild bears in the area feed on the salmon coming in from the ocean to go up river! We were originally going to hike somewhere else, but I unexpectedly had a divine appointment with a couple different people who both told me about this particular area and the bears being actively feeding at the moment! It was a unique experience and a small anniversary gift from above, along with all the blessed ministry we experienced up there, as well as getting some of the best surf and weather in Canada we’ve ever gotten when we visited the coast for a couple of days.

We actually also had a divine appointment right as we landed in Canada. We ended up praying for our shuttle driver who drove us from the airport to our hotel. We got to share with him for a while and then prayed for him in the parking lot. He was a believer who needed, and received, a fresh touch of the Holy Spirit as we prayed for him.

Right before going to Canada, we had a rather lengthy divine appointment with a man from Europe as we were taking a walk one afternoon. He had grown up in a religious situation with Catholicism but had no real relationship with Christ. He heard the Gospel though, and was born again and later was empowered by the Holy Spirit. We prayed together with him to renew and revive those gifts of the Spirit in his life, and it was a blessed and powerful time that also confirmed things the Lord has been guiding us in.

The Lord has had us reaching out to fellow believers who need to be empowered and filled with the Holy Spirit, along with those who already have but are in need of a renewing touch of the Holy Spirit’s power in their lives, something that one of our old mentors Harald Bredesen was gifted in doing, glad to be carrying on that legacy.

We’ve also seen many with religious backgrounds who don’t really know the Gospel and don’t have a relationship with Christ, open up and receive Him. In fact, a family member opened their heart to pray with us and receive Christ just recently! Praise the Lord! 

Right after that, as well as witnessing to some other people with religious backgrounds while walking on a pier in Orange County,  I came home and a box fell over in the garage with an article about reaching people with nominal religious backgrounds and leading them to Christ, as well as the need to see believers filled with a fresh touch of the power of the Holy Spirit, something the Lord is highlighting in our day! Billy Graham shared about how he reached out to everyone with the Gospel, including those with religious backgrounds, and also spoke very strongly about the need for us all to be filled, as well as regularly refilled, with the power of the Holy Spirit!

 

Jesus People 

 

Scenes from the Jesus People Revival and a recent meeting.
We have an article that was picked up by an International
Renewal Publication you can read here.

    We were at a Jesus People Gathering fairly recently that had memories from the Jesus People Revival being shared. We also had some powerful divine appointments while there including praying for some people who got ministered to very, very, powerfully!  One man in fact shared how it was a life-changing encounter he had as we prayed for him! Hallelujah!

We also just shared at a meeting that took place in Chuck Smith’s original church before the Jesus People Revival started, and we spoke about Lonnie Frisbee’s role in that revival! It was a powerful time reflecting on that important move of God—that really wasn’t too long ago—and still has latent blessing for us today. There is a fresh interest brewing in how God moved in that time. The Lord indeed uses the weak things that none may boast before Him!  

Lots more has been happening, but we’ll share some more on another update. 

 

We praise God and thank you for your prayers and support! 

We are so appreciative and give thanks in Jesus’ Name!

Bryan and Mercedes Marleaux

 

Grace World Mission—Useful Links 

Email: gracewm@flash.net 

Website: www.graceworldmission.org 

Donate Online: www.graceworldmission.org/contact_us.htm 

Blog Grace Notes: gwmgracenotes.blogspot.com 

Blog Reflections from the Road: reflectionsftroad.blogspot.com 

Podcast: Grace Alone on Apple Podcasts 

Radio: Grace Alone episodes: https://www.elsitiocristiano.com/ministries/solo-por-gracia/

YouTube Channel: www.youtube.com/graceworldmission 

Soundcloud: soundcloud.com/graceworldmission 

Facebook page: Grace World Mission (you can like us to get updates) 

Music on Spotify, Apple Music, and Soundcloud listed under BMarleaux

Ministry Update: Spring-Summer 2022

We have been blessed to see the Holy Spirit moving as we’ve been ministering recently as well as experiencing some powerful divine appointments along the way.

 

Recent Ministry

 

As we ministered at Centro Cristiano Esperanza up in Orange County, we experienced a very powerful move of the Holy Spirit as we prayed for people. I had shared a message about reaching into different cultures with the Gospel of the Kingdom of God, something that flows from the Great Commission Christ gave to His disciples. It was a blessing to see so many there who were filled and empowered, as well as ministered to deeply, even seeing some who received healing as the Holy Spirit swept across the congregation with awesome waves of power! The Kingdom of God was indeed at hand!

 

We were glad to have our son Patrick and his girlfriend Emily there, as well as our friend Dave E., who happened to be down visiting family in the area from Central California. They all helped us pray for people at the service, which added to helping us see so many of those who were at the service get prayed for and ministered to in a very deep and powerful way, praise God!

 

We were also glad to see the pastor’s granddaughter get touched later. She had been working the audio and couldn’t come down to receive during the ministry time but ended up getting powerfully ministered to later when we went out to get a bite to eat with the pastor after the service. I felt led to pray for her after we ate and she was powerfully ministered to in a deep way with tears streaming down her face as the Holy Spirit filled her. She just recently arrived from Argentina, so we were thankful for that added opportunity to pray for her.

 

We ministered up in the mountains in the town of Mammoth as well. We were up north of there actually, when we had a schedule change and a couple of days opened up, and we felt like we should see about the possibility of ministering there. While we were in the process of praying on it, we were surprised to hear someone mention the same name of the church in Mammoth in a TV show later that evening. That seemingly random moment turned out to be confirmation as the Lord opened the door to minister at the Lighthouse Church in Mammoth as well as stay in the area. We were stoked to share some Holy Ghost Ski Stories ( https://youtu.be/lV17tbOC_v4) as we spoke and then prayed for many of the people there. We had a special moment when things were seemingly winding down at the end of the service…and then we ended up praying for a few more people up in the front, including a lady we had just experienced a divine connection with recently, that group at the end up front all got especially powerfully ministered to by the Holy Spirit in a deep way, the Lord saved the best for last!

 

We also ministered up in the Central Coast of California at the Salinas Vineyard. We had an awesome Holy Ghost outpouring while Mercedes and I ministered with our friend Dave, who we mentioned earlier, and is from the Central Coast! The power of the Lord was present in a glorious way and kept pouring out the power of the Holy Spirit over those in the meeting with healing and freedom being released on so many, long into the evening, including ourselves and the pastors. Praise God, we all got deeply ministered to! We also joined them on an open-air outreach the next day doing a bit of worship on the guitar, as well as connecting with a blessed time of food and fellowship together afterwards.

 

We experienced a powerful time of visitation as we ministered after that in Colorado Springs, Colorado, at Iglesia Arbol de Vida! We shared about how the Pentecostal Movement came to Europe, which was something we learned about through a divine detour while on a mission trip in Europe some years back. We had a powerful move of the Holy Spirit that day which turned a moment of divine visitation when the Holy Spirit unexpectedly poured over all of us, and we ended up all being refreshed as we found ourselves overwhelmed by God’s presence and just receiving! It was also great to get to see and catch up with our old pastor friends out there, as well as other friends in the area, and getting to enjoy a few activities in the region along the way.

 

We experienced a blessed time of the presence of the Holy Spirit moving in power as well as filling, empowering, and healing many who were there as we ministered at Iglesia Zoe up in La Puente! We shared about some of our past mission trips and learning to pay attention to the leading of the Holy Spirit, which is something Paul exhorts us to aspire to and is an ongoing growing and learning process for all believers. We were glad to have our son Patrick and his girlfriend Emily help us pray for those in the congregation which helps spread the blessing and gives more people an opportunity to receive. We also enjoyed some fellowship with the pastors who are old friends while grabbing a bite to eat after the service.

 

We were also blessed to do a number of small group home meetings with some friends along the coast, where we got the opportunity to lead worship, as well as have some intimate ministry times praying for one another. One of the blessings of home meetings is that there is way less of a focus on a typical traditional church schedule, and it also opens up the opportunity for “the priesthood of all believers” to come more alive and function, like John Wimber used to say: “We all get to play.” We all did and were blessed and refreshed with a unique time of fellowship and ministry to one another.

 

Speaking of worship, we were blessed to record a new podcast episode with our friend Cheryl on The Art of Worship. We had the opportunity to share some songs I’ve written and recorded, which includes one that is a worship piece that was inspired by reflecting on the Lord’s glory while enjoying God’s creation while out on the sea and taking some time out in the mountains (“Break Over Me” on spotify.com/bryanmarleaux and on Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/artist/bryan-marleaux/907765533).

 

Divine Appointments 

 

Speaking of time on the snow, we had a divine appointment after a little time on the snow together with some friends in the local mountains. We went out for a bite afterwards and Mercedes and myself ended up talking to a Hispanic waitress. We then continued the discussion after dinner and found she had something of a religious background but never really heard the Gospel shared clearly to her before. She responded with an open hungry heart as we explained the Gospel to her and then opened her heart to Christ as we prayed with her there that evening! Hallelujah!

 

We had another divine appointment with another Hispanic woman as well who we were sharing with while out in the Inland Empire area for a family event. Mercedes had a word of knowledge for her which greatly blessed her. She said that we had reignited the flames of her faith after we finished praying for her, praise the Lord!

 

We also had some other divine appointments in Central California while up in Salinas. One was when we ended up praying together with our friend Dave for a lady in a pizza restaurant who got visibly touched by the power of the Holy Spirit when we ministered to her, hallelujah! 

 

We had also been talking with Dave when he mentioned a little town he’d stayed at while out on the road. We actually ended up in the same town while Mercedes and I were traveling out to Colorado a little later on. In the morning we were packing up to leave our motel when we ended up talking with some of the housekeepers which turned into a divine appointment! We led one of the Hispanic housekeepers to the Lord and her friend ended up rededicating her life to Christ, all this while we were on the road traveling to go minister…hallelujah…the Lord can have some surprises in store when we pay attention to the Holy Spirit’s leading even when we were still a bit hazy from just waking up!

 

We had another divine appointment when we met a guy from India who used to be Hindu but has come to Christ and is stepping out to serve the Lord and evangelize. We talked with and prayed for him while we were visiting Biola University, which is Mercedes’ alma mater. Being on campus there also sparked some memories, one being of how I’d pick her up while driving home from Fuller Seminary, since we only had one car she would have to wait in the dreary commuter lounge—seems they fixed it up after she graduated—same thing with Fuller—they fixed up the place after I graduated! We put over 300,000 miles on our little Honda Civic while we were both in school as well as driving around ministering all over the place. We went through those schools mentioned above as well as UHK: “The University of Hard Knocks” which had some important lessons coming out of it, as well as entering “The School of the Holy Spirit”; however, this particular school continues on as an ongoing blessed learning process!

 

Media Ministry 

 

In a recent blog posting and video, we share how the Lord can turn trials around and can even use them for good sometimes. We told the story of St. Patrick and the way the Lord has worked through Celtic Christian believers throughout history. Talking about the real Patrick—who was not Catholic nor Irish but a Christian missionary to Ireland—can often open the door to share the Gospel with others, much like the early apostles, who sometimes found open doors with those who were seekers at the synagogues, as seen in the Book of Acts. There are many people today who may have somewhat of a religious background, but may not know nor have heard the actual Gospel shared with them. They can be open sometimes when they hear the Gospel shared and explained clearly to them. If you want to check out the real St. Patrick’s story, a person who grew up with a religious background but didn’t yet come to Christ until later, here’s the link:https://youtu.be/puQ-sT0K2dU.

 

We greatly appreciate all your prayers and support!

Blessings!

Bryan and Mercedes Marleaux

Divine Appointment On The Road

We have been blessed to experience some powerful divine appointments that the Lord has brought our way over the years, sometimes in unusual and unexpected places. One in recent times especially stands out:

 

We were driving through Utah looking for a place to stay late at night when we pulled up to a motel and the Lord gave me a word: “This is not the place.” I was a bit surprised and a little frustrated because I was tired and wanted to get off the road. 

 

However, it is important to discern that the Lord may have something more than we understand in store, so we continued driving on and came to a place that felt like it was the right place to stop at, which was about an hour later.

 

The next morning as we were about to leave, I was in the hallway and figured that the Lord probably had some reason for us being there…but still didn’t know what it was. 

 

Then, as I walked along the hallway, I saw one of the motel service maids in the corridor and the Holy Spirit quickened my heart. I looked at her and felt led to ask: “Do you need prayer?” 

 

I was quite surprised when she threw her hands in the air and yelled “Hallelujah!” 

 

“Yes, I do!” she exclaimed, and in fact, she went on to explain that she was a born-again believer in Christ, and had been praying that God would send a fellow believer to pray for her. She went on to explain that there were hardly any Christians or Christian churches in this area of Utah at all, but instead just plenty of the deception that thrives out there.

 

She had us come into one of the guest rooms and Mercedes and I laid hands on her and she experienced a powerful move of God, being filled with the Holy Spirit and also experiencing healing and deliverance. She was actually knocked to the ground and came up completely refreshed, renewed, and revived. She stood up and composed herself with a smile that was from ear to ear!

 

We have also been blessed to lead some people to Christ in this same area, and minister to many others who exist as believers, in the middle of what is a spiritual desert. We felt as though the Lord has had us on an unusual mission many times out there, making raids into a dark land with the Gospel of the Kingdom of God and the power of His Holy Spirit.

 

We are blessed and amazed when we find ourselves extending the Kingdom of God,  sometimes in unusual and unexpected places, bringing living water to those who are in desperate need and are thirsty and hungry for Christ’s presence! We appreciate your prayers and thank you for considering us in your giving of support as well.

 

Our old friend Harald Bredesen, who was one of the fathers of the Charismatic Renewal, and one who was also led by the Holy Spirit into many important divine appointments himself, had a rather nice endorsement of our ministry:

 

Of all the ministries I’ve worked with, there is none that I have the greatest confidence in the purity of the motivation and the fact that it was the Holy Spirit who gave birth to it than Grace World Mission, led by its founders, Bryan and Mercedes Marleaux...I’ve seen the sacrifice; I’ve seen the zeal; I’ve seen the Spirit-ledness…and I am so happy to be a part of it—I hope you will be and will support it... I’m sure He’ll bless you for it.

 

We greatly appreciate all your prayers and support!

God bless!

Bryan and Mercedes Marleaux