As a teenager growing up I was not particularly interested in spiritual things and church. I loved sports going to shows and hanging out with my friends in town. I never did get involved with smoking and drinking, (did try it) We grew up having to go to church, and I was aware that I was a sinner and needed to get right with God. Even though I was not involved with any real visible sin but I knew that secretly there were many things that I was thinking and doing that were not pleasing to God or Jesus, but when it came to the alter call, I was chicken to respond. I remember many times as the message came to a close, in my spirit I would ask Jesus to come into my heart, but would not go through with acknowledging it by responding and going forward.

We had moved from Colonsay to Watrous Sask. and were attending the Philadelphia M.B. church    The church had an evangelist come for a week end of services, it was an evening service and Henry Toews and I, as we were both working at the same farmer caught a ride with a neighbour farmer to the church service. I was again under conviction when the alter call was given. And again I committed my life to Jesus confessing that I was a sinner and that I was receiving Him into my heart quietly while the alter call was given, but I could not get myself to get up and respond.  At the close of service the Evangelist shook hands with everyone as they were leaving. At the same time asking all of us teen age'rs if we were saved. When it came to my turn, I confessed to him that I had received Jesus into my heart that evening. On our way home we ran into a heavy down pour of rain, and ended up getting stuck on a very muddy back country road, and I had to run to my home a mile away to get the tractor and pull us out. It was thundering and lightening all around me as I ran, but I was not fearful, knowing that I had Jesus as my protector. When I was running through the pastures in the dark and the lightening was flashing I could see the horses galloping along the fence, scared of the thunder and lightening. Next morning I heard that one of the horses was struck by lightening. When we got home the clouds had moved on and the northern sky was completely clear. As the clouds moved south the full moon came out, and the most spectacular rainbow appeared all across the northern sky from western horizon to the eastern horizon, in as bright colours as if it was from the sun. I have never seen any thing like it before or after to this date, nor have ever heard of this happening before, although it probably has. That evening Henry asked me, whether I had ever considered turning my life over to Jesus and I could say to him that I had done it that evening during the service. He then asked if he could pray with me, and we knelt beside the bed and gave God the glory for what He had done for me. (saved me and protected me running for the tractor in the storm) The next week the pastor of the church visited me in the field, and again prayed with me. The following summer I was baptised and joined the church at Watrous. (Philadelphia)  Upon moving to Watrous, I had met Irene Toews, and after courting her for a year I proposed to her.

The next fall we got married, and after trying farming one year and having a crop failure, we decided that farming was not for us and moved into Saskatoon, looking for work.

Over the next few years we were back and forth from Saskatoon to Watrous working at various jobs. We did finally settle down in Saskatoon in 1952 and started our own construction Co. We joined the M.B. Church on 25* St. and Ave C and attended on a regular bases. The church building was getting too small and the church counsel recommended that a new church be built. A building committee was elected and I was asked to supervise the construction of this project, which was done with mostly volunteer labour.

We were enjoying Saskatoon and the church very much, but we knew our spiritual life was not what it should be, and we rededicated our lives to God a new. After this our prayer life changed, and I would never miss midweek prayer if at all possible. As the years went by I did change jobs several times. I have always enjoyed any work, but I tried selling Insurance for a year and a half, and I did not find out soon enough that it was not for me. Instead of prospecting for new clients every morning as we were supposed to, I would find a secluded spot and cry out to the Lord that I was not doing what satisfied me.  I decided to call on farmers north of the city, some people that I knew, but I could not get myself to call on them. Finally after much soul searching, I pulled off the road, into a stubble field behind some poplar bluffs, and cried out to the Lord again. After some time of praying,, I had my first remarkable experience, hearing from God. I was leaning back in the seat with my head resting on the head rest and just relaxing almost asleep put thinking about my situation. I heard an inner voice, which I had never heard speak to me, saying, "Psalm! one-thirty, Psalm one- thirty, Psalm one- thirty." and nothing else, but now I was wide awake. I new beyond a shadow of a doubt, that the inner voice was the voice of God.

I knew I had a New Testament, but realised before I opened the clove compartment that this Testament did not have the Psalms in it. I decided that I had to get to a place where I could find a bible, and started driving to the town of Dalmeny, where my brother in-law lived. Now as I was driving, I was thinking, Psalm one vr. 30, but I was almost certain that there were less than thirty verses in Psalm one. I took my foot off the gas and slowed down, and said to God, what is this, a hoax? And for a second I was so disappointed. For the first time I had heard the voice of God in my spirit and the scripture He gave me did not exist, or so I thought. Almost immediately the realisation that the words God spoke did not say Psalm 1 Ver. 30, but He said "Psalm one thirty" or else one hundred and thirty. And here is what the Psalmist cried out to the Lord.

“Out of the depthsI have cried to You, O Lord; Lord hear my voice! Let Your ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications.   If You Lord should mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand? But there is forgiveness with You, that You may be feared.   I wait for the Lord, My soul does wait and in His word do I hope.    My soul waits for the Lord more than they that watch for the morning: I say, more then they that watch for the morning.   Let Israel (David) hope in the Lord: for with the Lord there is mercy, and with Him is plenteous redemption.   And He shall redeem Israel (David) from all his iniquities. (Psalm 130) I was brought up to believe that God did not speak to us like He did in Old Testament times, that the scriptures were now the means through which He spoke to us. I remember discussing this in Sunday school with the class mates that we should not expect to hear Him like they did in Old Testament times. I remember sharing this with friends, but no one was all that excited about my experience. It was some time before I figured out the purpose of God giving me this scripture. I got a hold of some Christian books on this Psalm, trying to understand it, wondering what the hidden message was for me. It was actually years before I realised that there was no profound message for me other then that I had cried out to the Lord. And He heard me just as He had heard David. All I had to do was substitute my name for Israel, and that my hope was in the Lord, and that the Lord would forgive me all my iniquities just as He had done for Israel. It was many years before I met some one with a similar experience of hearing from God.

We had by this time moved to Saskatoon and working in a furniture store where John ----had a delivery trucking business and delivered for the furniture store where I was employed. We lost contact with each other when we left the city for a few years. When we came back to the city and the same church, here was my friend coming to church, He and his wife had been saved, and had joined the church. We were thrilled to hear this and fellowshipped with them. It was some time later that I had coffee with him and he was telling me about another experience that he had where he was seeking the Lord and he was so filled with joy he literally was jumping for joy around a bush that was next to him. I found out later after we moved to Calgary that he had received the baptism with the Holy Spirit. I don't think he knew exactly what had happened except that it was from the Lord. However because no one in the church could relate to his experience, he was thought of as somewhat queer. However he was very bold for the Lord, and when he made deliveries to some of his customers which sometimes were a very godless bunch, cussing and swearing, he would not hesitate to reprimand them and would witness to them. However he did become over zealous and thought that unless you had this experience that he had, that you were not saved. This of course caused a lot of hardships for him and the church.

                                                                   

I started to study and concentrate on scriptures such as Acts l: 8, the promise Acts 2: 3 &4, believers at Pentecost, Acts 8:17, Samaritan Christians, Acts 10 : 14, Cornelius and his company, Acts 19:6 The Ephesian believers, Ehp. 1:13b. As I read and studied these scriptures I could see that there seemed to be some validity to my friends experience, but not being a student of the scripture (no Bible College) I went to my Pastor to get some answers. The answer I received was as follows: Acts 1:8 was a promise that was fulfilled in Acts 2:3, and that was a one time experience that would in general not happen again in the church or to individuals, but because the Samaritans were looked down on, God let it happen to them. Also Cornelius was a Gentile and God did this to prove to the Jews that the Gospel was for every one through Christ, and that these outpourings would not be repeated. Not being that well grounded in the word I thought that this could be a fairly accurate explanation for these several accounts, but when I read Acts 19: 6, I was not convinced that this was a similar situation. These were probably both Jews and Gentile and yet they had not received the Holy Spirit because they had not so much as heard that there be a Holy Ghost, yet verse Eph. 1:1 says that Paul came upon these disciples, who had only been baptised unto John's baptism. (After questioning the Pastor on this, he said that they were unbelievers) I was now interested in who these Ephesians were and I went back to Chp. 18 : 24 - 26. “A certain Jew mighty in the scriptures, came to Ephesus, this man was instructed in the way of the Lord, he spoke and taught diligently the things of the Lord, knowing only John's baptism. Now when he spoke boldly in the synagogue and when Aquila and Pricilla heard him they took him aside and expounded unto him the way of God more perfectly” . It wasn't that they were ignorant of who Jesus was because Apollos had instructed and taught them the way of the Lord. What was missing in Apollos teaching was that they needed to believe and be baptised in the name of the Lord Jesus. He Apollos apparently did not have the opportunity to correct his teaching to every one that he had contacted and believed and were saved because he was leaving for Achaia. (Acts 18:27). Now these were the same disciples that Paul came across at Ephesus on his journey through Asia and when he inquired about them having received the Holy Ghost after they believed, and received a negative response, he then laid his hands on them and the Holy Ghost came on them. I was beginning to see that there seemed to be a second step after salvation. I was searching for God to reveal himself to me but I was in a church setting that was not really able to help me along this line of thinking, and for a number of years I more or less put all on the shelf, and then we moved to Calgary.

We joined the Highland MB. Church and enjoyed our fellowship and ministry for a number of years. Then in the early 70's our daughter got involved with the Jesus people in Calgary, and she would bring them over to our house for meals and after the meal they would sit on the floor in a circle, hold hands and pray. This was new to us especially when they asked us to join them. Some of these young people were so dedicated to the Lord and they would openly share their faith in Jesus and the Holy Spirit. Our daughter and some of these Jesus people were meeting at the home of John and Rita Hutchinson for fellowship and prayer on a weekly bases, where there was a lot of ministry one to another, and Irene and I started attending their meetings

We also heard about the Full Gospel Business Men's Fellowship meetings and started attending them regularly. We heard many testimonies of God's grace in saving individuals and filling them with the Holy Spirit, and also of some that had received Christ some time ago and later after hearing about this baptism with the Holy Spirit they received the Holy Spirit. This confirmed that the book of Acts was still very much a book of happenings for today. I also after a meeting in our own church with a group of men, gathered in the front of the church I prayed to receive the Holy Spirit. Right after praying this, the minister who was part of the group re-emphasised my request by saying, yes Lord, do it right now. I did not feel anything at the time, but a few hours later I realised that something very significantly had happened to me. I felt such a peace and joy in my heart. It wasn't till several years later that I received the evidence of speaking in tongues, (which I will share later on)

It was at FGBMF that I met Gordon Donaldson, an engineer and business man who owned a Christian book store.  Gordon and Marie became our very good friends.It was here I spent much time, in searching out the scriptures on various toppings and visiting with Christian friends, I had always been interested in Revelation, but it was here I became fascinated with the end times. Not only Revelation but how Jesus was the fulfilment of all the feasts that the Jews had to keep. Three is a very significant number with God, I believe that our salvation is a three step process, just as there are three main feasts. Passover (our salvation) Pentecost (baptism w/ Holy Spirit) Feast of Tabernacles (baptism w/ fire yet to come). The Tabernacle of Moses also built in three compartments, the Outer Court (Salvation) Holy Place (baptism w/Holy Spirit) Holy of Holies (cleansing by fire, yet to come). Also God is a Trinity, Father, Son, Holy Spirit.

There was a little booklet that I picked up at Gordon’s book store. (Good News Book Store)  called The Baptism with the Holy Spirit by R. A. Tory. A former president of Moody Bible   College. These booklets at that time were only 25 cents and I bought them by the dozens to hand out to any one that I got a chance to talk to. One of the men I gave one to was a Pastor from Linden M.B. church that was speaking in our church (Highland) on a Sunday morning. Several months (maybe year) later I met him and he said to me, "Dave remember that booklet you gave me? well I had that experience, just like the early Christians in Acts with speaking in tongues, and you are the first person that I have shared this with, besides my wife. Many of you would know this dear brother, but I believe that because of the churches teaching and belief on this issue he remained quiet.

In the early seventies we had many ministers (considered prophets) visiting Calgary and area like Don Morrison, Dick Mills and others, and at the end of their messages they would give words of prophecy to different people. I received several prophecies from three or four different men, and all of them indicated that I would have a ministry for the End Times. Since this seemed to be where the Lord was leading me I naturally took these prophecies as from the Lord. One of the first words I received ended with the fact that there would be three men come into my life and that they would have strange messages for me, but that I was to accept them as sent from God. I believe I know by now who these three men are, at least two, there could be some more coming.

We were still attending Highland MB church in 1976-77 and had many friends there, enjoying the fellowship. There were a few other members that had also experienced the Holy Spirit, and it seemed there were a few interests, that we could sense. It was at this time (not only in Calgary) that the MB Conference sent out a special speaker, namely Peters president of a College in U.S. preaching on the speaking of tongues, claiming that tongues was also used by the devil and as Christians to be very aware of what we were getting into. As I listened to him, I realised that this was a scare tactic of the enemy to blind the ones that were searching. This was in the fall and the following spring our pastor and assistant started a series of messages on Acts and the Holy Spirit and speaking in tongues. It was meant to further discourage any one to seek the Holy Spirit. Comments like "if you are a Christian you have the Holy Spirit in you and if you are asking to receive more of the Holy Spirit, it shows a lack of faith, and that is sin." were made, right from the pulpit. At the time I was one of the Deacons in the church and I shared with my wife Irene that after what we have experienced we cannot sit under these messages and grow in our Christian walk.

I made a luncheon appointment with the Pastor and told him that I was handing in my  resignation as Deacon, and that we would be leaving the church. He said, Dave I understand your views, but that doesn't mean you can't fellowship with us, we have many in our B.C. churches that have your view but are still members in their respective churches and still fellowship there. My comment to him was, the only way that would work was if there was no preaching against what we had experienced, and that I for one could not sit under a ministry that contradicted me for my decision to ask for the Holy Spirit which was scriptural according to Luke 11 ; 13b "how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask." I made a lunch appointment with the pastor, to tell him that I was resigning as Deacon in our church. We left the lunch as brothers in the Lord, and I agreed to come to a church council meeting and share my decision with the other council members, which did happen later in fall. One of the deacon members approached me by asking if I thought that the church was not teaching the truth. My response was that the MB churches in general were not teaching all the truth. We all embraced and parted as friends, in fact I did some renovation work for the Pastor over the next few years.

We started attending Christian Centre for the next seven or eight years, also very active in FGBMF locally as well in National Convention. This same year I had left my employment as superintendent with NuWest Homes (Cairns) and started our own company, Triune Const. Co-ordinators Ltd. We (son Jim & I) built houses for a management fee, plus contracted some of the carpentry work like framing, finishing, etc. It was while we were working on one of these houses that I would stop at a certain place every morning to have a quite time with the Lord before I started working. I would pray and ask the Lord to speak to me through scripture. I had a habit of opening the bible at random and the chapter that opened before me I would read and see what it was saying to me. I did the same thing at home too, using a different bible. Taking the bible at home one week end it opened at Proverbs 22,1 read it, not really paying to much attention, the following week I went to my regular spot, took my bible (the one I kept in the car) and opened it, and there before me was Proverbs 22. Not thinking any thing about the incident, I turned to another portion of scripture. For several days after this the same thing would happen, and each time I turned to another scripture. After this happened three or four times, I ask the Lord "are you trying to tell me something through Prov. 22"?  I said to the Lord, I am going to read this Chp. and you will have to reveal to me what you are trying to tell me. As I started reading through this chapter and came to verses 17-21 I knew in my heart that this was what the Lord was trying to reveal to me, and here is what it says:“ Bow down your ear, and hear the words of the wise, and apply your heart unto my knowledge. For it is a pleasant thing if you keep them within you; they shall withal be fitted in your lips.  That your trust may be in the Lord, I have made known to you even to you.  Have I not written to you excellent things in counsels and knowledge, That I might make you know the certainty of the words of truth; that you might answer the words of truth to them that send unto you.”

Although at the time I was very convinced that this was a message from God for me, but just exactly what this entailed I did not quite understand. At the moment, however I was thrilled that God had revealed Himself to guide me in this way through His word. I did not do to much of researching this portion of scripture for some time and it wasn't very long before I wasn't all that sure God was in it. However I kept up the habit of opening my bible at random to read the Bible and see what God had for me. (I realise that this is not the scholarly way to study God's word, but at the time I did not know otherwise) Several weeks after the incident with Proverbs 22, I was again opening my bibles (different versions) to the same place, every time I wanted to read it, only this time it was Mark Chapter. 4. Again I asked the Lord to reveal to me what He was trying to tell me. As I read through this chapter slowly and came to 21 - 25 I again knew in my heart that God was trying to tell me something, and this is what this scripture says:

“And He said unto them, Is a candle brought to be put under a bushel, or under a bed, and not to be set on a candle stick? For there is nothing hid, which shall not be manifested, neither was anything kept secret, but that it should come abroad. If any man have ears to hear, let him hear. And He said to them, Take head what you hear; with what measure you mete, it shall be measured to you; and to you that hear shall more be given. For he that has, to him shall be given: and he that has not, from him shall be taken even that which he has."

When I read this I realised that this scripture was given to me as a warning or admonition that I had to be faithful to what the Lord had revealed to me about the three steps in a Christians life to reach full maturity which I had received through some of these men, that God had said would come into my life.

When I did a word for word study on Proverbs 22: 17 - 21, I found some very interesting things:  Ver. 17  Telling me to listen to what the Lord has told me through His servants (Prophets) and apply this knowledge to my heart.

18. They shall be stored within me, shall be fitted within my lips( I have stored them on paper for years and am in the process of putting every thing on the computer)

19: Every thing that I have received is from the Lord, sometimes channelled through His servants.     20: The Excellent things that I have been counselled in is the three fold experiences to reach the fullness of God that He wants for all of us. ( Strong's Concordance - Excellent - 7991 Chaldee - shaliysh The word excellent here is a completely wrong definition. This is the only place in the whole bible that 7991 meaning is translated as excellent. 7991from 7969 meaning a prim, number three, third, or (multiple.) thrice. 7991 - meaning- a triple, a three fold measure, a general of the third rank. (Salvation has three ranks as shown in the tabernacle)

21: God is confirming the truth of this revelation and that I am to be bold in proclaiming this truth to all that will be asking or sending to me.

Although I had received the baptism with the Holy Spirit, I did not speak in tongues. I had heard many testimonies about how different individuals spoke in tongues when they received the baptism. Some of our friends encouraged us to speak out in faith, believing God and He would come through. I read an article in the New Wine about a testimony of someone that wanted the Baptism with the Holy Spirit so very much that he would respond to every invitation made. At one of these meetings when the call was given to come forward to receive, he began to speak in tongues, and everyone clapped and shouted that he had finally received.  He went back on the stage and said, I have a confession to make, what I spoke was gibberish, I made it all up, I wanted it so badly, I ask your forgiveness.  There were three men sitting in the front row, visiting from another Nation, who got up and sad, Oh!, no you did not make it up, we understood everything that you said, you were praising God and His Majesty in our tongue, we understood it all.

So one night I was having a quiet time with the Lord, and I said to Him, I will speak out some jumbled syllables and you will have to do the rest. When I had finished with what was, as far as I was concerned, a bunch of nonsense that made no sense to me, and I told Him so. I said to Him you will have to prove to me through some miracle. As I sat there contemplating what had transpired, I started praying, or what I thought was a prayer and said:

  Christ Jesus is the one who loves   -    All power to Him for all He does 

  All power to Him who died for me    -    The one and only Lord of all

  Come Holy Spirit touch my life       -     In all my thoughts and all my deeds

  In all my ways I acknowledge you - Your power has filled me through and through,

  Oh Father Son and Holy Spirit,       -     I magnify You three in one 

  And may my life be always such,    -    That I would always feel Your touch.            

After I had prayed this prayer, I realised that God had performed a miracle for me, because poetry was not my thing. The amazing thing was that I remembered everything word for word.  So I decided to get some paper and record it while I still remembered it. In spite of all this revelation, I was still not convinced, and said to the Lord, this looks like it could be a song, if what I experienced was tongues, then give me the song for this poem. I started humming a tune, and before I knew it, I was putting the words to this tune. And the tune has stuck with me all these years.(1974, and I believe that what I received was the interpretation of my tongues) I can sing this song any day or night and I do, especially when I have trouble going to sleep at night. The Lord Is faithful and good, His name is to be praised.

2010 - 2011

Many years have transpired since these experiences, and we are now back in an M.B. Church again, Dalhousie Community Church. We have come the full circle. We have to this point not become official members, but are adherents I guess. We are enjoying the fellowship here with Pastors Brad, Mark and Tom and all our friends.

So the question probably is, why not join the church? (That’s what my wife says too) My response is that I do not want to be a stumbling block to go against some of the teachings that I do not agree with, as you can understand from my writings thus far. I believe the Lord has led us back to share some of the truths that God has revealed to us through the scriptures, to those that show interest in what I feel God has revealed to me.

It is for this reason that the Lord has led me to share my views on the Internet, www.triunelastdays.org My message about the End Times is going around the world, and I am getting some very positive reports, and inquiries.

Farther to this calling, the Lord has led me to raising Funds for Third World Countries, to feed hungry and orphaned children. Also local Food Banks, and other local ministries. It all started with me walking the ditches to collect cans & bottles, cash them in and send to the funds to different ministries. I did this for about a year, when one day a lady (Laura) stopped me and asked, what I was doing. I told her that I was doing this for a two fold purpose, (1) for exercise, (2) raise funds for needy children all over the world.  Laura said, “Here is my address and Ph. # I have 2 or3 bags in my garage, which you can have. This is what started this ministry. A local News paper reporter heard about it through our daughter Karen, and they ended up contacting me to do a report on what I was doing. 

It was two years ago when the first article ran in Airdrie City View weekly paper. For the next week I kept on getting calls from residents, wanting to donate their refundable cans & bottles to me.  A year ago a friend of our son Jim (Arnold Tomassen) donated a Van to me, to help with my collections. Also the City View did another article with this Ford Van, and again I was getting many more new donors. At this point I have 75-80 families that are involved with this ministry. There have been several friends that have helped with expenses on the Van.

We (the donors & I) have donated well over $10,000 on these past two years to various ministries, mainly children in third world countries. At this point, I’m not too sure which, is the true End time ministry, God has for me. Until I receive other instruction from the Lord and the Lord enables me, I will do both. 

I want to give God all the glory, for the way He has provided our every need, and pray that He will continue to protect and keep us till He calls us home through death or at His return, at the close of this age.

P.S.   Irene and I were called up, by Dick Mills and given a word, ending with scripture from Psalm 32:13&14 and adding on that he believed that we would live to see the day of the Lord’s return.

Dave Loewen