I was hanging out with Holy Spirit yesterday afternoon reflecting on the past 20 years of being in Jacksonville arriving here on January 1, 2002. He began reminding me of all that has happened since then and how it was designed by the Father for my preparation for the NOW:
In 2002 after arriving at my sister Roxanne’s house, for what I had thought would be a short visit to obtain my class A driver’s license before heading back home to Maine. Within a month I found myself, rededicating my life to the Lord. A few months later I started ministry school. Shortly afterward, I met and started dating a beautiful godly woman from the Philippines. At that time she was attending Brownsville School of Revival, which led me to the opportunity to attend the Revival on a number of occasions before it ended.
In June of 2003 I married that same beautiful godly Filipino girl, and that fall I started my 2nd year of ministry school.
In June of 2004, we were blessed with the gift of a beautiful son, which the Lord showed me in a vision would be a godly man walking in His ways. In 2004 I also got ordained and my wife and I started Mighty Arm Ministries.
In 2005 I came under the mentorship of Dr, Don Lynch being groomed as part of the leadership of a powerful Apostolic international ministry with a vision of bringing revival to the nations.
In 2006 our ministry Mighty Arm Ministries launched an online ministry school, “Rushing Mighty Wind School of Ministry”.
In 2007 my wife and I were ordained by Dr. Don & Ruthanne Lynch as part of the first ordained leaders in that same ministry, Ministry Matrix. During our time under Dr. Don’s leadership, we witnessed powerful meetings filled with the presence of the Lord and we learned how to go after the things of God to see His will happen.
In 2008 Rushing Mighty Wind School of Ministry established two brick & mortar schools, one in India and one in the Philippines.
In the summer of 2009, I was invited to visit World Revival Church in Kansas City. A couple of months later in early fall, I flew out and while I was there, I was blessed to be able to visit IHOP. As well I had the opportunity to attend two nights of revival, giving my testimony at the Friday night service. I also was afforded the opportunity to attend a couple of the revival school classes.
In 2010, I was invited to be a volunteer advocate for the Florida Department of Elder Affairs
In 2011, my wife and I felt the Lord moving us in ministry in regard to ministry and after much prayer we stepped out of the leadership with Ministry Matrix, entering a time of waiting on the Lord for our next assignment. It came later that year as we found ourselves being part of a leadership team that launched Presence Church here in Jacksonville. We experienced God moving in special ways over the next couple of years.
In 2013, I accepted the position of associate pastor at Highway to Heaven Church.
Then in 2014, I received an honorary Doctor of Divinity degree for my ministry work in India, the Philippines, jails, and nursing homes.
In 2015, after a number of years of studying in several different ministry schools, I received a doctorate in Theology. At the end of that year, in December I was part of the leadership that launched an Apostolic ministry in Jacksonville called “The River House” along with Doug and Jennifer Snead.
A lot happened over these first 13 years however inside I felt drained, discouraged, and had little true peace. Something was missing, I had felt the Lord’s presence on many occasions, but it had to be more than occasional. I wanted what the Disciples had, an ever-present witness to the presence of the Lord. I would soon find that the spirit of religion had somehow been able to chain me deep down in a dark spiritual prison.
In 2016, while at a ministry retreat in Saluda North Carolina, I had a powerful in-person encounter with the Lord that radically impacted and changed my life. That encounter with the Flames of His love totally undid the religious theology I had been a prisoner too, unknowingly for so many years. And on the very next day on my drive home, Holy Spirit led me to listen to a video on youtube “Damon Thompson at the Carolina Revival May 2, 2015“. It was that video that the Father used to seat me under the Apostolic teachings of Damon Thompson.
In 2018, as part of the Riverhouse leadership, we launched the North Florida healing rooms.
In our 4 years with the RiverHouse, we saw many miracles as the Father poured out His love on His children, deaf ears opened, eyesight restored, and many other healings and miracles. Almost every meeting was filled with a tangible presence of the Lord
On Valentine’s weekend of 2020, having taken a two-month sabbatical from all ministry, and after my wife’s continued encouragement to go, we went to Panama Beach to listen to Damon Thompson at the “Rock of Bay County Church”. From the moment Ana hit the first string on her violin, waves of the Father’s glory flooded the room.
At the end of the meeting, Damon called for an alter call to all who wanted to be refreshed. I was one of the first to charge upfront. After standing there for a few moments with my head bowed, I felt this huge hand slam into my chest followed by the words “The Father wants to refresh His fire in you” and wham, the fire of God began to flow throw every cell of my body. A few days later I watched the video, and even though I thought I recognized his voice, saw that it was pastor Bryn Waddell who had prayed for me.
Two weeks later I started volunteering full-time at a local mission in Jacksonville beach after a week or so in prayer following an invitation of a sister in the Lord, Dawn Hare to check the place out.
On August 6th of 2020, my son and I visited Cane Ridge on the 219th anniversary of the outpouring of the Lord there which is believed to have been one of the sparks that made way for the 2nd Great Awakening. Upon leaving Cane Ridge after several hours of praying there, Holy Spirit said the Father had commissioned me to disciple disciples in the same way His Son did. Then about 3 weeks after returning home I was invited to become the director at Beaches Rescue and Recovery Mission.
And finally in 2022 after resigning as the director at the mission, I accepted the position of Senior Pastor at Highway To Heaven Church.
Feeling completely blessed right now. Especially seeing the streams of revival that the Father has seated me in since 2002. I am filled to overflowing with a deep & increasing hunger to see His Kingdom being established in this city and America in the now. I feel almost on edge of something great with Spiritual anticipation for the Revival Fires of Reformation which have been purposed with an eternal destiny for such a time as this are about to break out.
Over the past 20 years, Holy Spirit has been whispering to me about the Remnant, ever since the first time, I heard Dr. Don Lynch teachings about the subject. Over the past several months He has been getting louder and He has been showing me that the Remnant shall be those who carry the flaming torches of Revival Flames of Reformation, through the night while the complacent compromised Church sleep. And blessed will those be those hear the flames and are able to wake up, repent and become prepared.
For those who slumber shall see their candles removed, for the profane vanity of their religion will cause them to miss out on the greatest revival this world has ever seen….”Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent”. (Rev 2:5)
He has also been speaking to me about the establishing of the discipleship community to where I can through the leadership of Holy Spirit, disciple men using the same methods that Jesus used to disciple His disciples. This community will be set on a piece of land with the ability to grow gardens. Holy Spirit has shown me how this will provide powerful visuals when teaching the parables. Not only that, these gardens are purposed as well to the feeding many.
The property will also have buildings that can house 12 – 20 men. With the whole property be established in prayer to having a sound atmosphere supercharged with His presence equipping each discipler in the methods of Jesus in order to train each man into becoming a Mountain Moving Disciple. This mandate from the Lord is so real to me that there are times I can feel the ground of this property under my feet, hear the animals singing their daily praise to Heaven, and literally smell the air of the land bursting with the fragrance of fresh fruit & vegetables
And all I can say is:
“Here I am Father, sitting still in Your presence with a heart-filled commitment in total surrender with a willingness to do all that you ask of me, I haven’t come this far to stop, for my heart belongs to you alone and no matter what the devil throws at me I shall not change paths nor turn back. To You be the Glory, Honor & Praise, Amen”
~Russ G. Welch, A.K.A. Windtalker
Radical Disciples - A Remnant Revolution 