Introduction
This revival occurred about 10 miles north of the capital of Nairobi, Kenya, in the city of Kiambu. The story illustrates how Satan and his kingdom can lock down the churches in a given region, and it also shows how those powers of darkness can be overcome.
Conditions of Kiambu, Kenya, Prior to the Revival
► It was the murder capital of Kenya.
► The crime rate was very high, with rape and murder being rampant.
► Alcohol was a serious problem. Bars would have loudspeakers outside their place of business playing loud music throughout the night.
► Witchcraft was prominent.
► There was a high rate of fatal car accidents.
► Because of the bad reputation of the town, few wanted to live there.
► The town was not growing.
► Civil servants were known to pay their supervisors bribes so they wouldn’t get assignments to Kiambu.
► Despite years of effort in this town of 65,000, no church had been able to grow beyond a few dozen members.
► Pastors were preaching faithfully, but people were not getting saved.
Poverty – a significant problem
Witchcraft Stronghold
A prominent witch in this town, whom people called Mama Jane, was being used by Satan to keep the churches locked down. Mama Jane had an office in the downtown area which she named Emmanuel Clinic. Though she claimed to be a Christian, she was anything but a Christian. The business she conducted out of her office was undeniably witchcraft, with business leaders and politicians being some of her major customers.
The intersection outside her clinic frequently had fatal accidents. This situation created tremendous questions in people’s minds about that intersection, about what, and if, spiritual forces were at play.
Pastor Thomas and Margaret Muthee
Calling to Church Planting in Kiambu
Thomas Muthee, a Kenyan citizen, having conducted post-graduate work in Scotland in 1988, was spoken to by God to start a church in Kiambu. Before even making their first visit to that town, Muthee and his wife, Margaret, spent 6 months praying and fasting for God to show them why Kiambu was so spiritually oppressed.
After praying for several months, the Muthees felt the dark cloud lift off the city, and being filled with fresh joy and faith, started their new church there in February 1989.
The start of the church was set in motion by Muthee conducting an evangelistic event lasting 2 weeks. There were 8 people saved on the first day and one woman was healed of infertility. On the second day of the event there were 14 who were saved, and over the entire 2 weeks, there were over 200 converted to Christ.
After this the church began to explode, with healings and conversions occurring regularly.
The Prayer Cave
The Prayer Cave
The church was using the city’s municipal hall at first, then they moved to the large basement of a grocery store. Because it was a little dark in that basement, and because of the round-the-clock intercessory prayer that was conducted there, the name “The Prayer Cave” was affixed to the church.
Satanic Opposition
With the high intensity of intercessory prayer, Mama Jane had her spiritual powers cut off. She informed the city officials that she could no longer help them with her work if the Muthee’s church was in operation.
Opposition then came against the pastor, coming from Mama Jane, business leaders, city officials, and even other pastors. This opposition left the church services very oppressed.
Even with 24-hours-a-day prayer, the demonic opposition was still very powerful. One day the powers of darkness were so strong that the people could hardly pray, and when they attempted to sing a song, they couldn’t finish it.
“A VISION THAT IS NOT PRAYED THROUGH ABORTS.”
Extraordinary and Desperate Prayers
The congregation discovered that Mama Jane had been conducting rituals outside their place of worship and had left the remains of fresh sacrifices. The congregation then gathered, raised their hands in prayer toward Mama Jane’s Emmanuel Clinic, and asked God to save that woman or throw her out of Kiambu.
During all of this time, Pastor Muthee began to question if he was going to end in failure because of this powerful demonic presence. Yet, during a time of prayer, he heard God say,
My son, I want you to get praying intercessors on the job.
Muthee then assigned 9 intercessors to fast and pray, with one person per day being designated to fast and pray. These 9 would rotate days, so there was always someone fasting and praying.
At first the strategy seemed to work, but in time the intercessors began suffering serious attacks. On the days they were to be fasting, they would often get sick, or other things would hinder and prevent them from praying with the power they would otherwise have had.
To remedy this situation, the Lord showed Muthee that he was to assign two people to pray for the one that was designated to fast. So the person who had just completed their day of fasting, and the person who was to fast the following day, were to pray for the person who was to spend the day fasting. This way the person fasting would always have two people praying for them, providing a protective hedge around them.
Success with Fasting, Prayer, and Supporters
As Muthee initiated the new prayer strategy they began to experience results, and the attacks stopped. One of the immediate results noticed was that some of Mama Jane’s clients began turning to Jesus. Christians were also publicly burning their charms and fetishes which she had previously sold to them.
Prayer Group
Power Encounter
Muthee then uttered a challenge to Mama Jane with the following words:
Mama Jane either gets saved and serves the Lord, or she leaves town! There is no longer room in Kiambu for both of us!
A few days later 3 children were killed outside her clinic. The people recognized that it was due to Mama Jane’s witchcraft.
A mob developed, wanting to stone her. The police came to settle the dispute. They went into her clinic where they found that she had a large python snake, and they subsequently shot it.
In around 1992, Mama Jane was expelled from the city, and remarkably, the atmosphere began to change.
After seeing the dramatic changes, Muthee stated that
Prayer generates a power that is extraordinary. It is a power that transforms. I have seen it transform this city. If God can do it in Kiambu, he can do it anywhere in the world.
Celebration and dancing on the streets
Results of the Revival
► The number of conversions rose dramatically.
► Muthee said that there were between 10-25 who were getting saved every Sunday at his church.
► The church Thomas Muthee pastors reported having 5,000 members in 1999, and most of them were new converts.
► Some of the city’s most notorious criminals converted to Christ and became members of “The Prayer Cave.”
► Other churches were growing as well.
► Christian pastors experienced reconciliation and restoration of relationships.
► Rape and murder became virtually unheard of.
► People were no longer afraid of going out at night.
► Local bars were closed and remodeled into churches.
► The city then boasted of one of the lowest crime rates in Kenya.
► The economy in the city began to grow.
► New buildings began to be built.
► The population went up to 80,000.
There is no doubt, that prayer broke the power of witchcraft over this city. Everyone in the community now has a high respect for us. They know that God’s power chased Mama Jane from town. –Thomas Muthee
Sources
► Revival Follows Showdown with Witchcraft by James Meletiou
► Snapshots of Glory by George Otis Jr.
► The Twilight Labyrinth by George Otis Jr.
Video
► Transformation by The Sentinel Group
Return to List of Revival Stories
Chet & Phyllis Swearingen
(260) 920-8248
romans1015@outlook.com
Beautiful Feet
P.O. Box 915
Auburn, IN 46706
