After 12 months of intense planning and years of prayer, the time had finally come. Thousands of people lined the streets as we made our way to Jinnah Park next to Mazar-e-Quaid, the national mausoleum and final resting place of Quaid-e-Azam (“Great Leader”) Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the founder of Pakistan. No Christian organization had ever received permission to utilize those grounds before.
I was very aware that less than two years before that day, 32 suicide bombers had stopped one of my healing meetings when they had taken an oath to blow up the stadium and kill me in the process. When we drove onto the grounds, the security team formed a human chain to keep the people back.
As I took the stairs up to the platform, I saw the dignitaries already seated on rows of white leather couches. Politicians, police chiefs and religious leaders of various faiths were present and welcomed, but the main spectacle was the mass of people in front of the stage. You couldn’t really see all the people because there were so many. It almost defied belief, feeling at times like a dream. It seemed unreal.
My friend, Pastor Anwar Fazal, turned to me and said, “Now we have a million people!”
I was almost overcome by the impact of that multitude. I had been believing for an event attended by a million people for many years, having prayed for that crazy number when I started traveling overseas for my first healing meetings!
You see, that night in Pakistan with over 1 million people didn’t happen overnight. I started my ministry several decades before that with small, in-home Bible studies. The support from those who attended the Bible studies ended up funding my radio and TV programs. Over many years, those ministries grew, and I eventually started holding international healing meetings.
It is a blessing when God allows you to see the results of your hard work and sacrifice, and to reap from fields you have wept over and sown into for years. I thought I was stretching my faith when we held meetings in a Muslim country where we saw 400,000 people attend. However, when I started working with Pastor Anwar Fazal, it changed everything for me regarding my ministry in Pakistan.
Those 1 million precious people were the guests of honor, sitting cross-legged upon a dusty carpet in Pakistan, all personally invited by the Holy Spirit. They sat and listened to me tell of the miracles of Jesus and how the biggest miracle is inviting Him into their hearts. Signs and wonders followed the message as I prayed for those who were sick and afflicted. Testimonies were numerous and remarkable. Hundreds of thousands of people gave their hearts to Jesus that day, and multitudes of people were healed.
You see, with God, it’s not over until you win. God wants you to have a life of victory, and you don’t have to settle for less than God’s best in your life. So how do you have a life of victory?
First, you must fully surrender and say yes to God. One of the biggest reasons we don’t say yes to God is because of fear or discouragement. However, you must fully surrender to Him (Josh. 1:9).
Second, you must pray as if your life depends on it, because it does. When you pray, it gets your heart set on things above, so if you want to be supernatural you must pray (Col. 3:1).
Third, you must have vision. Provision follows vision. If there is vision, there is always provision. We must stand in faith, walk in the vision and take God at His Word (Hab. 2:3).
Fourth, you must speak the Word to change your circumstances. Don’t speak about your circumstances; speak to your circumstances. Find the promise of God and speak the promise rather than the problem (2 Cor. 4:13).
Finally, you must embrace the process. God works through process, and you must trust God and be willing to walk through the process (John 14:1).
It can take a long time for faith goals to manifest, but if you hold fast to your confession, you will see results. Remember, “He who promised is faithful” (Heb. 10:23b). My prayer is that reading this article has inspired, encouraged and convinced you that with God, it’s not over until you win! {eoa}
Marilyn Hickey is the founder and president of Marilyn Hickey Ministries. Her television program, “Today With Marilyn and Sarah,” airs internationally to more than 2 billion homes.
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