This is the first post of a series I hope to do called The Apostolic Effect. If you leave a comment, you will earn a chance to win Vickie Oliver’s life changing book “Birthing Your Burden in Children’s Ministry.” I believe in her message so much that I will be giving three books away. Soooo keep reading, be sure to leave a comment, and share this post with your friends!

The Apostolic Effect: Vickie Oliver

Recently, I was privileged to have a conversation with Children’s Evangelist, Vickie Oliver. Her book, Birthing Your Burden in Children’s Ministry had a huge impact on my church’s Kid’s Pastor and his staff. So much so, that she was invited to come and speak to the Kid’s Ministry Team and to the church at large.

What struck me about Vickie Oliver was the depth of God’s presence I felt just by standing next to her. The Spirit of God seemed to be in her shadow. I had read about people like this, and clearly there is the Biblical example of people being healed just by being in the Apostle Paul’s shadow, but I had never experienced this phenomenon for myself.

How did this woman come to have this type of power with God? What must she have walked through to have such a free flow of the anointing? What type of prayer life does she adhere to in order to operate in the gifts of the spirit like she does?

These questions burned in me. And even more so after I read her book. (By the way, every woman who ever dreamed of being used by God needs to read her book. There are jewels of truth and inspiration in there that will grow your ministry – whatever that ministry may be, and build your faith. Stories of hearing from God. Stories very Nona-Freeman-like of being directed solely by the Holy Spirit to go to a certain place, and do a certain thing, and the miraculous unfolded.)

Clearly, Vickie Oliver has produced much ministry fruit with thousands of kids receiving the Holy Ghost as evidence with speaking in tongues. And she has been at the helm of jaw-dropping Apostolic demonstration. But what I wanted to know was what makes Vickie Oliver, Vickie Oliver?

And so I humbly requested an interview with her, and to my delight she agreed.

Following is the transcript of our conversation. So find a comfy spot, curl up with your coffee, and glean from this woman of God’s wisdom. And remember, if you leave a comment, you will have earned a chance to win a copy of her book, “Birthing Your Burden For Children’s Ministry” And, if you’ve read her book and leave a comment and win, you can give me the address of friend who you’d like to share her book with.

Debbie Simler-Goff: What has surprised you the most about Children’s Ministry?

Vickie Oliver:How rapidly the ministry has changed. With the culture changes in our world… Children’s Ministry has really unfolded in the last 20 years.We have to use new messages that speak to [where children are.] Children are not as pliable. They are not as easily to break, and weep and cry. As a whole they are desensitized. They are very desensitized by the world and the media. What is so surprising it that it has happened so rapidly. I’ve been in Children’s Ministry for 24 years, and I’ve watched a lot of changes. And we have to rise to the occasion.

DSG: You are an Apostolic Woman, what would you like other Apostolic Women in ministry to know?

VO: [That] a woman needs to understand that she is just as valuable in a man’s world to operate within the gifts of the Spirit, to be used by God as long as she will stay under her covering of submission. I think it’s very important that a woman understand that God will use her if she stays submitted to her husband, her pastor, and those that speak into her life. And [that she] never come out from under that covering. And that means if I have something planned, something on my schedule, I give it to my pastor and if he says, ‘I don’t feel good about that, I want you home’, there are no questions asked.

My husband backs me up, and we work together, we never pull apart.I feel it’s really important that [women understand] that your ministries may not be the same, but you agree, and you work together. It can’t be God if it’s pulling your family apart, if it’s causing arguments, because then you have to come out from under submission, and God will never bless that.The gifts flow freely, if you stay under that covering of submission.

And also, in talking about an Apostolic Woman in ministry, we do not have to act like a man, speak like a man, or pray like a man. I see women that try too hard. We can stay feminine and can stay within our personality. You know nothing has to be altered, God uses us just like we are. If we pray, and do our homework.

DSG: The last Apostolic Woman, that I remember, that really let others inside her world on a large scale, was Sister Nona Freeman. Your book is so rich with the miracles of God, and the truly Apostolic way He uses you. Tell us, What are Vickie Oliver’s spiritual disciplines like?

VO:

They obviously go way back, and the time period that you were reading about, I will say this: I was going through the darkest time of my life, and I would call it my PIT EXPERIENCE.

Joseph in the pit experience. I think anyone that God uses goes through those things. Sometimes major, sometimes small ones, but I call them the pit experiences where when you come out, as Joseph’s dream became one with the king, yours does also.

And it is a price to pay for Apostolic Ministry. Because we are human, the flesh needs a reason to pray. I think we have a very difficult time – all of us – in disciplining ourselves to pray. Some people are more disciplined in their nature, so it may be a little easier for them, but I would think that most people have a hard time. And so God will bring circumstances, He’ll bring situations that allow things to happen in our lives because we need a reason to pray. And during that time in my life, I was going through the darkest time of my life, and I did stay on my face.

I had asked God, “I want this whatever it cost me”… and it cost me a lot.

And so I had a lot of things going on my life. I was interceding, I believe not even knowing that I was interceding for things way on up the road… crusades… things that would happen in the ministry. You know, sometimes, we are praying in tongues, and we think it’s all about what we are going through, and it’s not at all because the prayer goes before us.

God was disciplining me then, and so during that discipline of a lot of prayer… hours of prayer…I developed relationship. And once relationship with the Lord is developed, then you desire to talk to Him, and that’s what prayer is.

And so after the initial relationship period, learning to pray… learning to talk to the Lord, since then I have a daily routine of morning prayer, spending time with a cup of coffee and my prayer quilt around me in my chair in the early, wee hours of the morning, talking to the Lord, always starting my day with submitting my mind, my spirit, my soul, my body and everything God has given me… my children, my home, my grandchildren, my husband… submitting everything He’s given me back to Him.

I want the enemy to hear me say it. And that it belongs to God. And then starting with the whole armor of God, putting on every piece of armor so the enemy can hear. And then I will go through my time of repentance and checking my heart, and presenting my heart to the Lord.

And then of course going into praise and worship and what needs are present, and spending whatever time I feel I can and that the Lord draws me to spend. And throughout the day, I will talk to the Lord about everything. I just keep the relationship going at all times. [Saying things like] now Lord is this what you want me to do? And… I have to do this, so could you help me? Could you protect me? And, Is there someone today that I can talk to about you?

It’s a constant flow of relationship.

And I think that’s vital. I don’t think God is looking for an hour of grueling, I can’t hardly get through this [type of prayer]. You know I stated that in my book. He’s not looking for that. He is looking for people who say, I want this to be relationship. And I am going to talk to the Lord. And will share everything with Him.

So also in the sense of fasting. I fast when the Lord draws me to fast. I fast a meal a day, or 3 days. I’ve gone on a few extended fasts in my life. But I have learned that a lot of people feel like they can make God do things by fasting. [But] fasting is not for that reason of course. It’s to get us where we need to be. So we can hear from God. So we can do what God wants us to do. So we can be used by God. It’s to get our flesh in line. So God will draw us to those times when He says, “Your flesh is out of line, I need 3 days from you. I need to whip you back in shape, etc.” And so that is my fasting disciplines. And sometimes I’ll fast media, or just fast something I really like, and that does the same thing, it’s just [getting] the flesh under control.

DSG: Thank-you so much. This helps a great deal. I think the average woman looks at someone like you and thinks, Wow, I could never be like that. I didn’t get the Holy Ghost under a Billy Cole. And Jason Sisco wasn’t there when I got my breakthrough, so how could I possibly be like a Vickie Oliver? And yet, God has a unique and powerful plan for each one of us. So I think that there are principals from your book, and your life that can be gleaned and applied to the lives of all women, whether they are in ministry or not.

VO:

That’s right. That’s absolutely right.

DSG: So my next question is, who do you admire?

VO:

Wow… [long pause]… I have so many people I admire that it would be hard for me to list them all. And I admire them for different things.

I admire Bishop Sisco… William Sisco for his walk in faith. I’ve learned more about faith from his preaching than anyone.

I admire Jason Sisco for his Apostolic Ministry, and how God uses him in that and have learned from him about that.

I admire Nona Freeman for the price that she paid, and the trials [she went through] and how she was so real and so willing to say, “I didn’t always have the right attitude, here’s the story, this is what happened, this is what God did, and this is what I learned from it.” Her transparency is what I guess would be the word.

I admire Sister Mangun for her prayer life. I don’t think you can learn anything more about intercession from anyone that her.

I admire Billy Cole for being a real human being with his own struggles. I know a lot about him, he was real, and being mightily used by God in speaking the word of faith. No one could learn more about saying  “In the name of Jesus and receive ye the Holy Ghost”than from Billy Cole. But you know that’s the gift of faith in operation.

And then I have a lot of people that I am surrounded by that I admire. My husband is my hero, I don’t know how he does what he does. I admire my daughter who is raising twins. I have admiration for a lot of folks. I admire you for what you are doing. I mean this is your calling, and you are going to help, and are helping so many.

DSG: Thank-you. There are so many things about your book that I admire. One of the things that you said that spoke to me was that sometimes you don’t get to know the end of the story, of the good that we do, and the seeds that we plant. That really…that really ministered to me.It really did.

VO: I’m glad.

DSG: Are there any other thoughts or comments that you’d like to make? Any thing that I didn’t ask you, that you feel to share?

VO:

I want to encourage women that God wants to use them. And everyone has a purpose. And finding firstly what your purpose is. Not trying to be somebody else. Not trying to be something that you just see that you want to do. Understanding that we are all different, and God has a purpose. And to pray about who you are. Get in a place of prayer, and ask God: “What do you want me to do? Before I was born, what was in your mind Lord about me?”

I don’t want to go through my life and think that I never achieved what I was born to do. And God will answer you, and He will start bringing people into your life, and they might ask you randomly to do something and you’re thinking well that’s not my calling. So what you do is understand that is how God works, and you walk through that door. And no matter what it is, if it’s leading a children’s musical, or if its leading a prayer meeting, or if it’s cleaning the church, you know whatever it is, stretch yourself and say, “Okay, God’s answering me. I asked Him, and He’s answering me, and this is preparation, or this is part of my calling.”

And do it gladly, do it willingly, include your children in it, and be willing to do whatever you are asked to do. And I think that’s key. People sit around waiting on a pulpit ministry, or something like this that they feel they are called to do. I never one time dreamed that I would be traveling, speaking, doing what I’m doing now when I started out. I just wanted to work for God. And if you’ll just do whatever you can find your hand to do, He opens the doors, and He says if you are faithful over a few things, He will make you ruler over many. He will bring you before great men.

But I know the girl in her 20’s starting out was not ready to do what I’m doing now. It took a lot of things coming my way to get me ready, and it took a lot of people in my life. God will place the right people in your life to help you find favor, and He’ll promote you. You will never have to promote yourself. I just want to encourage women that God does have a purpose for every one of them and they don’t have to be like anybody else.

Remember, to leave a comment to be entered into a drawing for Vickie Oliver’s book, “Birthing Your Burden for Children’s Ministry.” Three books will be given away!