It's Supernatural

Sid: I’m speaking to Gary Carpenter at his office in Tulsa, Oklahoma and Gary an Engineer by training truck driver he got saved in 1980. Then about a decade later he wandered into Dave Roberson’s church in Tulsa, Oklahoma and God just arrested him and told him to…well he didn’t tell him to do this but he understood that he must pray in unknown tongues to release the mysteries within him so that he could perform what God had called him from the foundation of this earth to do. And He had been almost floundering for that decade and so what he decided to do was to pray 10 hours a day in tongues while he was driving his truck.  And sure enough after that first session he had a clear visitation from the Lord. And then on February 1994 an audible voice from God called him into full time ministry he was disobedient and for the next 10 months and as a result the door was open for the devil because he was out of God’s will so the devil had a free shot at him and he almost died on December 4^th 1994 but he came to his senses he went into full time ministry God performed a miracle and healed him. And however he was still disobedient and God said “I’m giving you 3 scriptures say them over and over again for what was it 4 hours Gary.

Gary: For 4 hours a day.

Sid: You didn’t do it you almost starved because you weren’t working and you didn’t have money you had over $25,000 in debt. So finally you started doing this and what happened.

Gary: It’s funny I don’t know what it is with me and 10 months but about 10 months later I was doing everything but obeying Him about speaking those verses out loud my mind just could not figure out how that would help anything. Just speaking those words into the air how could that change anything? But the instructions were very clear after 10 months I had nothing to lose the way I describe the way we were at that moment it was like my toes were hanging off the edge of a chasm looking into a bottomless pit of bankruptcy there was just nothing else to lose.  So finally I decided I better obey Him.  Now I don’t know if anybody has every tried this saying just 3 verses saying them out loud over and over again for 4 hours.

Sid: It’s a very difficult thing it sounds simple but the body does rebel the mind does rebel.

Gary: It was the hardest thing, it was took me…those first hours seemed like 3 days I just couldn’t get over how difficult this was. Plus my mind was assaulting me with “This ignorance, this is foolishness, nothing will come of this.” But again I had nothing to lose (Laughing) so I did it. And you would think in those 4 hours I can’t describe to you how difficult it was to make it and I was hoping that the heavens would open and an angel or something would appear and Jesus would ride up on a white horse and would be financially delivered.  But I got to tell you at the end of that 4 hours there was absolutely nothing. Well that was Day l I did it again the next day Day 2.

Sid: For those that are tuning in for the first time what were the four scriptures…the 3 scriptures?

Gary: It was Psalms 34:10 and 2^nd Corinthians 8:9 and Philippians 4:19. And I just said those over and over. Well Week 1 goes by with very little change, Month 1 goes by and I’m still doing it every day with very little change. It was several months I wish I had kept better records I’m thinking maybe 4 months. Looking back at it now I can teach very well what was happening during that 4 months.  It says “Be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind.” I had been raised in a denomination that engrained in me from a child that if you’re going to have God you also had to be poor. And even though my head didn’t believe that any more my heart still did. And what God was doing looking back on this whole process in hindsight He was taking His word and by me speaking it over and over again He was renewing my mind into believing what the Bible says and not what I had been taught in the denomination. After several months of doing that one day I don’t know how to describe this this is the best way I know how to try something somehow on the inside of me I stepped over some kind of line. And suddenly I knew that God was not a God who loves poverty, He was not a God who likes lack, suddenly I knew that as long as I sought the Lord I myself would not lack any good thing. Suddenly something changed deeper than the mind, something in my spirit crossed over the line and I came home that day with the fire in my eyes and I told my wife I said “We don’t live there anymore.”   And what I meant by there was in the kind of situation we had been in for so long.  And I got to tell you Sid you can mark it on a calendar that was the bottom of our roller coaster ride when it comes to finances. Suddenly my mind and my spirit was open to understanding more about our God and His true nature and the Holy Spirit began teaching me. But then came even more difficult instruction.

Sid: It sounded pretty difficult I mean I know people are saying “What’s so difficult saying 3 scriptures for 4 hours.” I know it’s difficult what’s so difficult is praying in tongues for 10 hours a day I know it’s difficult.

Gary: That’s right.

Sid: But you’re telling me even more difficult what was that?

Gary: Well I tell people all the time you know that when they first hear Dave’s message on praying a lot in other tongues most of them come to the prayer center with the same they say the same thing they say “Well my problem is I can’t hear God.”  But after they’re there for a while and if they do the message they’re going to have a bigger problem than that and there problem is going to be “Oh my God I’m hearing God and You’re not going to believe what He’s telling me.”

Sid:  And I don’t want to do what He’s telling me although it’s the best thing in the world for you and your peanut brain doesn’t realize it.

Gary: (Laughing)

Sid: So what did He tell you to do next?

Gary:  Well and again I have to for the sake of time as He began giving us instructions to teach the word of God and of course we made tapes now. Now by the way when we began our entire equipment for Gary Carpenter Ministries was a 20 year old Panasonic tape recorder and a $10 bill that was our entire assets.  Well as I began to teach I would tape those recordings onto cassette tape and people began asking for the copies of those tapes. Now here’s where His instructions come in now again this is what He told me and I’m not telling everybody this this is what He told me. He says now “Number l: don’t take up any offerings from these people.  Number 2:”

Sid: Can you picture a carnal believer hearing something like that?

Gary: I didn’t believe I was hearing something like that.

Sid: Ah.

Gary: (Laughing) I didn’t know any ministry that operated like this. He also said “When you give them copies of the tapes do not charge them for the tapes give them away free. He says “When you start mailing out tapes” And again I was thinking just these few tapes that we were ministering to at the time he said “Don’t put a return envelope in the package.” And I’m going my Lord can it get any worse?

Sid: What you’re telling me is God’s putting you in a position where if He doesn’t come through you starve.

Gary: Absolutely and He was intending that you know things are very clear with 20/20 hindsight.

Sid: Of course.

Gary: I see what He was doing now He got me in a position where I had to learn how He functions in the earth when it comes to Kingdom finances.  And it was not like I was taught in the prosperity message and it was not like anybody around me had taught me I had no pattern.

Sid: Tell me how long it took you once you had this revelation to get out of $25,000 in debt?

Gary: Oh from the day when I walked in where I was different I believe it was not more than 60 days we were out of debt.

Sid: You’re not asking for money you’re not even sending an envelope. Do you realize that you’re doing everything wrong the fundraisers would pull their hair out over you.

Gary: I know and the last instruction was the worst one. He says “Oh never let a human being every know any of your needs.”

Sid: Oi vey!

Gary: Because I am your source and if you will precisely obey these instructions of mine I will speak to the hearts of the people I choose to support you and the needs of the ministry.

Sid: How long ago was this?

Gary: That was in 1995.

Sid: Has He?

Gary: Has abundantly, He has abundantly.

Sid: Just out of curiosity how did you get out of debt so fast?

Gary: (Laughing)

Sid: I know that it was supernatural but how?

Gary: And again I kind of hesitate and again people says “Well that’s the way He’ll get me out of debt and He has infinite ways of dealing with every person.” In our particular case we owned a rent house for 13 years and the people had remained there the same family had been there the girls had grown-up in that rent house we had wanted to sell it many times but this faithful little family was there and we just couldn’t bring it to tell them well move we want to sell the house. Well now I see it as God’s grace because right about that time they called me and they said “Our daughters have gotten to the place we have to have more bathrooms than this house has we hate to tell you this but we’re going to move.” And I was very nice to them but on the inside I was going “Praise the Name of Jesus (Laughing). And to make a long story short again we sold the house. The proceeds from that house by the way when we walked away from the closing I brought that check home and laid it down beside our debt and the debts were $70.00 more than the check that I had brought home from the closing. And I just thought “That can’t be God because…

Sid: It sounds like a mistake (Laughing).

Gary: “He’s a God of more than enough.” This cannot be right so I hesitated on what to do for a few hours the mailman ran that day in the mail we got a check for $80. I put the $70 with the closing, the check from the closing we paid off every debt that day put it in the mail. We had $10 left I took my wife out to get hamburgers and we celebrated.