Journey into the Miraculous

This is the autobiography of Todd Bentley who is currently leading the revival meetings at Lakeland, Florida. Bentley who was born in 1976 when his father was just 19 had a thoroughly dysfunctional family background and upbringing. After numerous rows his father left his mother when he was only four. His education consisted of spasmodic attendance up to eighth grade. By the time he was 12 Todd was drinking, smoking and regularly stealing from local shops. He had his first sexual encounter when he was just eleven by which time he was heavily into pornography. Although he was never a Satanist Todd spent many teenage hours communicating with spirits from the grave and inviting different ones to visit and empower him. He was into heavy metal and found comfort in the music of Iron Maiden, Motley Crew and Metallica. In his early teens he started to do dope with his father and was often high on speed or acid. Drug addiction and a prison sentence at 17 were followed by several foster homes and three drug overdoses. He was finally wonderfully delivered from this downward spiral when six foot four Wally, a recent ex-offender and new Christian, pushed a Bible against Todd's throat and said, ‘You're going to have to get saved...You'd better repent or you're going to burn'. Todd was too scared to raise any objection. and cried out for Jesus to save him'. His life soon changed dramatically. In his own words, ‘There's no high like the Most High'. He had a powerful baptism in the Holy Spirit and was freed from the grip of the demonic.

Not long after his conversion Todd relates that he ‘distinctly heard God's audible voice, "I want you to go to Abbotsford, British Columbia", a location in his home state though he had never heard of it. In the event it proved to be the small town where he met and married his wife, Shonah in 1995. It was also the place where Todd's Fresh Fire Ministries was born in 1997. Todd soon developed a great burden for the sick as he studied the writings of T.L. Osborn. ‘Healing is for me', he often said, in the days following his conversion. At a Christian convention Patricia King, a Christian leader in British Columbia, prophesied that God was sending Todd to the nations and that he would do no further secular work.. So it proved and Fresh Fire Ministries moved out across the globe with seemingly astounding results as Todd took to the road with in more than twenty countries.

Todd travelled widely and by 2003 he had already visited more than thirty countries in Asia, Europe, Africa and North and South America and professed to have seen over a hundred thousand people commit their lives to Christ. The influence of his Nairobi Crusade was such that the crowd swelled to 30,000 on the last evening with 1,500 making a decision to follow Christ. At Mwanza in Tanzania an estimated 210,000 attended his meetings with over five thousand committing themselves to Christ. 15,700 were converted at Kigali in 2003.

Todd is clearly a signs and wonders evangelist who is convinced that he has been commissioned by God to bring physical as well as spiritual healing to those who attend his meetings. Todd believes himself to be protected and guided by angels although there is no suggestion in the book that he either prays to them or worships them. Many thousands of remarkable healings are reported to have taken place at his meetings. For example, at Goa in India in December 2002, it was recorded that 139 deaf and dumb were healed, eleven blind eyes were opened and 8 cripples began to walk. In the City of Lilongwe in Malawi, Todd and his team were invited to pray in one of the hospitals. Within twenty-four hours all 65 patients in the TB ward were discharged. Todd regards these healings as the works of Jesus which inspire people to believe the words of Christ and come to Him for forgiveness. Todd believes his anointed ministry is transferable through a pastor or even to a prayer cloth. Some church leaders who ‘received his anointing' later stated that they were able to minister its influence to their congregations. Todd is clearly a man with great compassion for the poor and in recent years Fresh Fire Ministries have distributed large amounts of food and practical aid to the poor. Todd stresses that he preaches an orthodox creedal Christian faith with a strong emphasis on the substitutionary atonement and the sacrificial blood of Christ. He emphasises that what a minister is in his home is more important than how he is in the pulpit!

Taken at face value this is remarkable book which is written in clear and readable English. There are a number of press and other reports interspersed throughout the text as well as a concluding chapter by David Paul Bentley, Todd's father. He came to Christ in November, 2001 through serving on one of the Fresh Fire teams and now often travels with his son to ministry campaigns and revival services. Journey into the Miraculous is the account of a transformed life which challenges the level of much contemporary Christian vision and commitment. It will also undoubtedly raise more than a few Christian eyebrows on account Todd's angelic visitations, his pushing people over on stage, reports of gold dust and gold tooth fillings as well as his links with Kansas City prophets, Mike Bickle and Bob Jones. Others will want to know whether the reported healings received at the various meetings were genuine and have remained. Those who hold a cessationist theology will see in these aspects evidence of the spurious and counterfeit. Those who follow a mild and gracious Anglican Jesus and like tidy denominational Christianity will find Todd Bentley's rough and ready methods and outside-of-the-box-Christianity hard to cope with. That said, this book will still be a worthwhile challenging read for Christians of all theological persuasions who are serious about evangelism, mission, ministry to the poor and advancing the kingdom of God.

Review by Rev. Dr. Nigel Scotland, University of Gloucestershire, UK, Lecturer Trinity College, Bristol, UK. Dr Scotland is the authour of a number of books including Living with a Purpose, The Baker Pocket Guide to New Religions, Charismatics and the New Millennium, and Gloucestershire Gallery.