Are You Ready for a Fresh Outpouring?

Lilian de Fin, great-granddaughter of Smith Wigglesworth (1859-1947), speaks with PneumaReview.com about Smith Wigglesworth’s ministry and legacy, the re-opening of Bowland Street Mission, her own ministry, and the coming revival. Are you ready for a fresh outpouring of the Holy Spirit?

 

PneumaReview.com: Your great-grandfather, Smith Wigglesworth, was a well-known Pentecostal minister. From a family perspective, what can you tell us about him?

Lilian de Fin: Smith and Polly Wigglesworth were blessed with five beautiful children. The eldest son, Seth, was my grandfather. My mother was Seth’s eldest daughter; she was named Alice after my auntie Alice, who was the only daughter of Smith and Polly Wigglesworth. In our home, Smith Wigglesworth was always referred to as “Grandpa” because he was my mother’s grandfather. So we all call him Grandpa.

My mother, Alice, went to Africa as a missionary. She married my dad, Joseph Harold Berry, who was also a missionary in the Congo, Central Africa. That makes me a fourth-generation preacher’s kid. I was born and brought up in Africa. Grandpa was promoted to heaven just three months after I was born, so I never met him. I like to believe that he prayed for me when he heard that another great granddaughter was born on the mission field in Congo. All the stories that I can tell you are stories that I heard from my parents.

Smith Wigglesworth was a faithful father, fruitful, fascinating, and full of the Spirit of God. He was bold and courageous, yet full of compassion, a man who shared his faith wherever he went. He loved nature and would go for walks on the Yorkshire moors for recreation. I am told that when the pond iced over in Bradford, he and grandma Polly would skate on the ice together and the crowds would gather around to watch them.

My mother told me how Grandpa would love to take young ministers shopping. She related seeing him standing in a store with tears of joy streaming down his face as he watched some young men choosing a new suit and shoes. He himself had made a deal with God when he entered the ministry fulltime. He told the Lord that he expected to always have a good suit and good shoes otherwise he would return to his plumbing business.

When mom was growing up, she would attend a Bible study on a Wednesday night at Grandpa’s house. It was a time when Grandpa would meet with his family and teach them the word of God and recount some of his experiences concerning his healing ministry abroad. Mom tells how she would take the quiet road home through the park in order to have time alone and enjoy the presence of God that was upon her after spending time with Grandpa.

My dad would tell us how he would go to visit Grandpa Wigglesworth.

This is how the conversation would go. “Sit down young man.” Grandpa would then take his New Testament out of his pocket and begin to read. After a few minutes he would say, “Do you feel a little closer to Jesus?” My dad would nod his head and they continued reading. “Do you feel a little closer to Jesus?” Dad would nod his head. This continued for about twenty minutes then Grandpa would say, “You can go now young man.” Dad would leave the house saturated with the presence of God.

I always felt that I belonged to a very generous family.

My Grandpa Seth bought a house just around the corner from the plumber’s shop where he and Grandma lived. It was made available for us and other missionaries to live in while they were on furlough. It was such a blessing to have a provision like that. My auntie Alice together with her husband Jim Salter would come out to Africa to visit the missionaries. They would go out of their way to visit us at the boarding school that we attended. When they said goodbye, auntie Alice would always slip a little bit of money into our hands. It meant the world to us just to have some family around.

One day, Grandpa called my mother on the phone and invited her to meet him at the jewelry store in town. It was her thirteenth birthday. Grandpa told mom that she could choose any watch that she wanted as a birthday present from him. Mom said she remembered that Grandpa didn’t like waste or extravagance. He would scold the housekeeper if she were too extravagant with the meals. Remember Grandma Polly went home to be with the Lord when she was only 53 years old, so they had a housekeeper to help with the children. Mom walked around that jewelry store and she didn’t even look at the watches she was just looking at the price tags. She chose the cheapest watch in the store. Grandpa asked her if she was very sure that she had chosen the right watch. My mother replied that she was sure that she had found the watch that she wanted. When they got outside the store, Grandpa looked at my mother and said, “Alice I am very disappointed in you today.” Mom was surprised. “Why, Grandpa?” He replied, “When God offers you a gift, choose the best.” He went on to explain to her that God has many gifts for us and we must always choose the best. Mom lived by this principal all of her life. Always lifting her faith to choose the best. When she was preparing to go to the Congo, Smith Wigglesworth bought her a beautiful watch as a farewell gift. He also bought her a lovely Bible that she really treasured. In the front he wrote the following words:

Trusting that this book will be the choicest of all books.

Perhaps it would appear that Smith Wigglesworth’s life was a bed of roses. However, he did have his share of sorrow. Grandma Polly died at age 53. She always said, “One day, I will preach myself right through heaven’s door.” She did exactly that. Grandpa raised her from the dead but he had to release her when she said, “Smith, the Lord has need of me.” That was the biggest “Yes, Lord” that he ever had to say. It was not long after this that Grandpa’s youngest son died. He was in America at the time.

I love these words that he wrote:

Praise is God’s sunlight in the heart. It destroys sin germs. It ripens the fruits of the Spirit. It is the oil of gladness that lubricates life’s activities. There can be no holy life without it. It keeps the heart pure and the eye clear.

Praise is essential to the knowledge of God and His will. The strength of a life is the strength of its song. When the pressure is heavy that is the time to sing. Pressure is permitted to strengthen the attitude and spirit of praise. It takes a man to sing in the dark when the storm and battle are raging, and it is such singing that makes the man.

 

PneumaReview.com: What do you think Smith Wigglesworth will be most remembered for?

Lilian de Fin: Smith Wigglesworth is known as the Apostle of Faith. He will be remembered for the thousands of healings and miracles that were seen in his meetings. He will be remembered for the many people who were raised from the dead under his ministry. He will also be remembered for the bold way that he approached sickness. Often criticized for the rough manner in which he appeared to handle some diseases, Grandpa would simply say, “I know my business.” My dad explained to us that at times like that he was operating in the gift of discerning of spirits. He would see the demon causing the illness, and would command it to leave as he punched the stomach of the sick person. They were always healed. Sometimes he would see a pair of hands move in front of his as he laid hands on the sick. And he would see the face of Jesus appear, especially when death was in the room. He was often heard to say, “Oh, He is a lovely Jesus.”

Healing was the norm in my world. Where we lived in Congo, there were no doctors or hospitals. When we were sick my mom would call my dad and together they would pray for us. We would fall asleep and wake up well.

My dad was seriously ill with malaria many times and at one point he suffered from a complication of malaria called black water fever. He returned to England and went to see Grandpa. He explained to Grandpa that he was going for a medical examination and he needed a clean bill of health in order to be allowed back on the mission field. Grandpa took dad for a walk in the park. He took a bottle of anointing oil and began to anoint my dad with oil from the top of his head to the soles of his feet. Dad said he felt so humbled as he stood in the park with this mighty man of God kneeling and praying over his feet. Of course, dad was completely healed and was allowed to return to Africa.

I remember being told how one-day Grandpa fell ill in the park. He was carried home, but of course he would not allow anybody to call a doctor. He began to meditate on the healing scriptures. Suddenly Romans 8:11 was made alive to him:

But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.

He was immediately totally healed and sent letters all over the world encouraging others with his testimony.

Many people ask me, “What was the secret of your great grandfather’s great faith, power, and anointing?” I never met my great grandfather as I said; he died just three months after I was born. However, my mom lived just around the corner from her Grandpa and Grandma, she knew him well, and she would speak about him often.

First, he was a man of one book. The only book he ever read was the Bible. He would say, “This book does not contain the word of God, it is the word of God.” He was a man of the Word.

Second, he liked to take communion daily, saying that Holy Communion is the “great exchange” of Jesus’ life for yours. He was a man who loved Jesus dearly.

Third, he loved the person of the Holy Spirit. No matter what subject he preached on, he always ended with the power of the Holy Spirit. He was a man of the Spirit.

He will be remembered mostly for his tremendous faith in God. I have one of his famous sayings hanging on my dining room wall. It simply says, “Only believe.”

 

PneumaReview.com: A number of people in his family line have also gone into Christian ministry. Please tell our readers a bit about that.

Lilian de Fin: Grandpa used to say, “If you want to take a photograph of me, take it when I’m writing a cheque to missions because that’s when my face looks the happiest.” I have a sister who is six years older than I am. She clearly remembers spending time in Grandpa Wigglesworth’s house. She tells how he loved to hear her speak the Kiluba language, which was the language spoken in the village that we were brought up in while we were in Africa.

All three of Seth Wigglesworth’s children went to the mission field or into full time ministry. Others became pastors in England or served in their local churches.

Serve the Lord your God with joyfulness and gladness of heart for the abundance of all things.

PneumaReview.com: What ministries have you and your husband been involved in over the years?

Lilian de Fin: Abe and I had an amazing turnaround year in 1980 when we felt the call of God into the ministry. We attended Bible school in Johannesburg and then joined my parents in the ministry they led in Johannesburg. My dad was an outstanding missionary/pastor and we could not have had better mentors than our parents. We were plunged into pastoral work in a local church that dad had planted in our hometown. At the same time, Abe got involved in the mission outreach programs holding several tent (marque) outreaches into rural areas of Southern Africa including Swaziland, Lesotho, Botswana and Zimbabwe. Many churches were planted.

At the height of the political upheaval (1981) in South Africa, my dad, Rev Harold Berry, opened a Bible school in the now well-known Soweto Township on the outskirts of Johannesburg. Abe was involved in weekly visits to the Bible school to lecture to the very eager students. Many of the graduates are now well-established pastors running their own ministries today.

When my parents retired, Abe and I took over the ministry in the mid 1980’s and expanded our work, doing development and aid projects into various countries. Our water-drilling program has provided water to hundreds of communities in Zambia. Abe has such a heart for the poor. It began when he was a small boy. He ran into his house one day and said to his mother, “a penny for the poor, please, mom.” She followed him outside and there on her doorstep she found a long line of expectant little faces waiting for the promised penny. Abe is gifted and very creative in recognizing how to develop projects that can make a region self-sustaining. Small farm development has been a feature of this program in Southern Africa and lately into South Sudan.

Skills training have featured high on our agenda as we train young people to do various skills such as electrical, welding and carpentry work.

Our son Peter and his wife Tammy have taken on the pastoral side of the ministry that has grown into a very successful church of over 5000 people with two campuses in the Johannesburg area (Midrand).

Recently, Abe has opened a new science and technology center. This will service some of the older children in our Christian school as well as provide training and upskilling for those who have not been able to complete their education. Once again his heart is to enable young people to enter the work force fully trained and equipped.

We were blessed with three handsome sons who have been a great help in the ministry. Today we have nine grandchildren who are also very involved in the children’s church program, “Kids ministering to Kids.”

The Lord visited me one evening. I was aware of someone standing by my bed when I heard these words spoken, “I will do a work in your day which you would hardly believe, even if it were told you.” Almost every day since that encounter I say, “I believe Lord, please tell me.” Since that time, I have travelled a lot more. The Lord has opened doors for me to speak at conferences and meetings in many different countries. I believe that God is preparing us for a worldwide revival. As Grandpa Wigglesworth prophesied, it will be the greatest revival this world has ever seen.

 

PneumaReview.com: The Bowland Street Mission, where Smith Wigglesworth ministered, was recently re-opened. Please tell our readers how that came about.

Lilian de Fin: In April 2017, I had the privilege of re-opening Grandpa Wigglesworth’s church that had been closed for 97 years. Here is the story.

In April 2013, I went to England with my two sisters to visit family and also to go to Bradford and do “The Wigglesworth Tour.”

We visited the old Bowland Street Mission where Smith Wigglesworth used to preach and where so many marvelous miracles happened. Our Tour guide, Brian Holland, told us the church was owned by a Muslim man and had been closed for many years. We anointed the door with oil and asked the Holy Spirit, our helper, to open up the church once again.

We were on our way to have lunch on Ilkly Moore. It was one of Grandpa’s favorite places to walk. As we drove along the road we came across a roadblock. We noticed a sign that read, “This road will be closed until 12pm on April 15^th 2013.” We looked at our watches. The date was April 15^th, 2013. The time was 11:50am. We decided to wait and see if they would open the road as the sign said. Sure enough, at exactly 12pm, a small truck appeared and stopped next to the barrier. They opened up the road and waved us forward. We drove through excitedly. I was shouting, “This is prophetic. Bowland Street will be opened. God is removing barriers, opening up the way, and moving us forward.” We enjoyed a wonderful lunch of Roast beef and Yorkshire pudding and gravy.

In early 2017, I received an email informing me that they had received permission to rent the old Bowling Street Mission building. I quickly wrote back telling them that I would be in England in April 2017 and would like to pop over to Bradford and say hello. They replied that if I were to be there, even though the renovations on the church would not be complete, they would like to invite me to open the church. So the date was set for April 25^th, 2017.

I was amazed that as I told certain of my friends about the opening of the old Bowling Street Mission that so many of them said, “God has instructed us to join you.” The Holy Spirit spoke to my heart, “I am reopening the wells of revival, I am reopening the wells of signs and wonders—not to build a monument to a man or to the name Smith Wigglesworth. No! God is reopening this well because the people are thirsty.”

David Rosen is a Rabbi from Pennsylvania in the USA who came under the guidance of the Holy Spirit to attend the opening of Bowland Street. He gave a Hebrew blessing over the people. There was a Jewish man sitting at the back of the church. As the blessing was given he looked up and saw Jesus kneeling at the altar. He recognized his Messiah. When the altar call was given he came forward and received Jesus as his savior. So wonderful!

The church was full and the presence of God fell upon us as soon as the praise and worship started.

As I was in deep worship, I heard these words in my spirit, “O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless, not as I will, but as thou wilt.” I knew that was the message. It was so easy to preach. The glory of God was in the building. We prayed and prophesied for the sick and the hurting, and the fire of the Holy Spirit fell upon the people. God is opening up the wells of revival all over the world. It is the greatest revival this world has ever seen.

 

PneumaReview.com: Who participated in the re-opening service of the Bowland Street Mission?

Lilian de Fin: It was April 25th 2017. The people of England were there. They came with such joy and excitement. The church was packed out. Pastors Vincent and Beverley Mann, who are the pastors of the mission, led the service. Brian and Kathryn Holland were there. Brian has had many visions about revival coming to England. My dear friends Elsa Carkett, Penny McLaughlin and Bill Forbes, who we knew in South Africa, were also there. God also instructed certain friends from America to join me. It was such a joy to have Rabbi David Rosen, who gave a blessing in Hebrew over the church. Prophet J.C. Alzamora gave a prophetic word to the church. My dear friends, Dr. Judy Laird and Tracee Loosle prayed and prophesied over the sick. Above all, God was in the house. The presence of Jesus filled the place and the power of the Holy Spirit was clearly seen. Kenneth Copland Ministries were there to video the whole service. This opened a door for me to be a guest on their Revival Radio TV out of Eagle Mountain International Church.

We had a follow up meeting in October 15^th, 2017. Once again the church was packed out. Rod and Elsa Carkett drove us all the way from Heathrow airport to Bradford. There was a wonderful presence of God as we worshiped together. I was thrilled to hear that the Holy Spirit had instructed my friends from USA to join me. This time it was Dr. Jack Sheffield and two friends of his, Richard and Melissa Rodriguez. Michael Obrien who was in England at the time also joined us. The BBC News network sent a representative to do a documentary on Smith Wigglesworth. Dr. Jack Sheffield released freedom and joy in the house. Everybody shared a little and once again, God’s presence filled the church.

 

PneumaReview.com: Are there future plans for the mission?

Lilian de Fin: Pastors Vincent and Beverley Mann are restoring the church room by room as finances allow. They are a couple with great faith and are seeing healings and miracles in their services every week. Brian and Kathryn Holland are the historians and visionaries in the ministry. They still conduct the “Wigglesworth Tours” by appointment. The leadership of the church are trusting that they will be able to buy the building in the near future. We will be there again in March 2018. I believe God has started a fire in Bowland Street chapel that will ignite the fires of revival all over England and beyond. Hallelujah! All glory to God.

PneumaReview.com: Smith Wigglesworth prophesied that there would be a great revival in which Word and Spirit would come together. Do you see signs of this coming to pass?

Lilian de Fin: It has been said that if it’s only Word, we will dry up. If it’s only Spirit, we will blow up. If it’s Word and Spirit, we will grow up.

There is a renewed interest in the Smith Wigglesworth books. Together with other writings of Kathryn Kuhlman, John G. Lake and other revivalists, young people are eagerly searching for truth.

Recently my sixteen-year-old grandson asked me, “Grandma, how can I get the faith of Smith Wigglesworth.”

I replied, “It’s not the faith of Grandpa Wigglesworth that you want, it’s the faith of Almighty God.” Mark 11:22 says, “Have faith in God,” or, as it says in the Dake Annotated Reference Bible, “Have the faith of God.”

He said, “Wow, Grandma, when you spoke those words they hit me right in the chest. I felt it.” That is Word and Spirit!

I see a deep hunger for the Supernatural in many churches across the world, not just in charismatic churches but also in the more traditional churches. Young people are looking for the reality of signs and wonders. The miracles that we read about in the Bible are still happening today. It is the river of the Holy Spirit flowing in a life that enables us to do the greater works that Jesus spoke about.

Smith Wigglesworth stood watching the water flowing over the Niagara Falls. He cried out, “Like that Lord, like that. Pour out your Spirit Like that.”

Smith Wigglesworth gave this prophecy in 1947, the year he entered his eternal rest, about two distinct moves of the Spirit:

During the next few decades, there will be two distinct moves of the Holy Spirit across the church in Great Britain. The first move will affect every church that is open to receive it and will be characterized by a restoration of the baptism and gifts of the Holy Spirit. The second move of the Holy Spirit will result in people leaving historic churches and planting new churches. In the duration of each of these moves, the people who are involved will say, ‘This is the great revival’. But the Lord says, ‘No, neither is this the great revival but both are steps towards it.

When the new church phase is on the wane, there will be evidenced in the churches something that has not been seen before: a coming together of those with an emphasis on the Word and those with an emphasis on the Spirit.

When the Word and the Spirit come together, there will be the biggest movement of the Holy Spirit that the nation, and indeed the world, has ever seen. It will mark the beginning of a revival that will eclipse anything that has been witnessed within these shores, even the Wesleyan and the Welsh revivals of former years. The outpouring of God’s Spirit will flow over from the UK to the mainland of Europe, and from there will begin a missionary move to the ends of the earth.

“But when they did not find them, they dragged Jason and some brethren to the rulers of the city, crying out, ‘These who have turned the world upside down have come here too’” (Acts 17:6 NKJV).

When the Holy Spirit fell as recorded in Acts chapter 2, they turned the world upside down. We need to be ready for a fresh infilling of the Holy Spirit and fire. We need to be ready to turn the world upside down.

 

PR

 

Read what  Jack and Anna Marie Sheffield had to say about the reopening of the Bowland Street Mission: The Legacy of Smith Wigglesworth and Revival for Today

For more about the reopening of the Bowland Street Mission, visit Mission to All, who graciously allowed PneumaReview.com to use many of the images appearing with this interview.