Hi again Everyone!
Hope you have had a wonderful Easter season. Thanks for reading my wife's blog on how the Lord brought us together. She goes way back into our High School years on this entry! Blessings!
Phil Bonasso
It seems to me that the most amazing things that the Lord does with us
seem to be hidden in the moment. It is hindsight that reveals the
significance. So it was when Phil Bonasso began going to these prayer
meetings as a teenager. It was a small act of kindness by one of the
ladies who dared to reach out to an aloof teen that started Phil
on his way to a relationship with Jesus and an encounter with
the Holy Spirit.
In order to understand this part of "our" history I must explain some
of the "Church " history of the time. In every denomination …
Catholic, Episcopal, Presbyterian, Methodist, Baptist, etc., God was
causing events to take place where the power and Person of the Holy
Spirit was poured out upon members of these denominations. These were
not isolated incidents: It was happening from California to
Pennsylvania in small churches and universities. In some cases the
church leaders had no idea what to do and most everyone had a hard
time explaining what they were experiencing and how to tell others
about it. Most often people just knew if you got around people who
were praying it would probably happen to you. The life changing
dynamic that was produced by this encounter with God was oftentimes
radical. Some people moved into "communities" to live with others who
had experienced this outpouring. Others left college and went to
Seminaries. Some changed their religious affiliation. There emerged a
desire to read the Bible;There was a thirst for God and His Word that
went beyond Sunday morning. Many wanted to go to church more than once
a week, which is why prayer meetings became popular. It did not even
matter where the prayer meetings were located. They could be at any
church, someone's home, or a "coffee house"(Not the same as
Starbucks!). It didn't matter how many people came or who they were.
There could be hundreds or three. God always showed up and lives were
impacted. There wasn't much explanation beyond "come and see for
yourself." It was one of those times when the beginning can only be
described from the middle or the end.
When Phil Bonasso's mother invited him to this little prayer meeting,
no one had the words to describe what he was looking for, but a woman
moved in kindness and gave him some books to read about salvation and
the Holy Spirit. It was a simple gesture. It was a simple book. Yet,
It was the beginning of a thirst and hunger for the Father, Son and
Holy Spirit to fill Phil's heart and soul and spirit in a way
that would cause him to find his calling in life and his wife. He was
about to embark on a bumpy ride…
Thursday, April 3, 2008
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