And then in 1954 Brother Herman felt that he wouldn't be coming back much any more, but that God wanted him in Asia, and in the tent several prayed that the work, the evangelistic work would be carried on after he left. But where were they to find a place to meet? Back then every little bit of available real estate was used up for living space. There was no such thing as a meeting hall. And then came June 17, 1953. The tent was standing there at Potsdamer Platz when suddenly Russian tanks came rolling in. The tent was moved. The meetings weren't allowed to be held any more. (You know that back then was the uprising of the workers and farmers in the "Workers' Paradise.") And the tent stood in no-man's land, and Brother Herman was told that the tent had to go. And all of the people were frustrated and said, "God, why are you allowing this? Why are you allowing this? So many people have been blessed. Is the work supposed to be over now?"

And that's how the devil works in our private lives as well. You've experienced a blooming conversion, you're going forward with Jesus, and all of a sudden it's "Tear down the tent! You can't go on!" And you say, "Oh, no, is the devil messing everything up? My faith is gone, my feelings are gone, everything is gone." If God permits something like that, then it's only so that he can do something bigger for you. God never sends trials for the sake of trials or out of sadism. When God lets difficulties into your life, then it's only to make something better out of it.

Who would have imagined it? The tent had to be torn down, and Brother Herman got permission to do what was never allowed before. He was allowed to set up the tent directly across from the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church in the center of the city, where the Europa Center stands today. There stood the tent, and it was filled evening after evening. God performed signs and wonders.

Brother Kretzschmar, whom you all know, the organ player – he was sent to the tent by some unbelievers. Brother Kretzschmar was in a steel brace from head to toe. He couldn't eat by himself, he couldn't dress himself. His hip was broken, and not only broken, but set together crooked. He couldn't move himself at all. When he rode to school his sons had to lift him up and then his wife would shove his motorcycle under him, and the he would ride to school. There he had to be lifted off again, the motorcycle pulled away, and then he was slowly carried up into the classroom, and then he did his classes standing because he couldn't sit down. And this man suffered like this for years, over ten years, and was sent to the tent by some unbelievers. "Why don't you go over there? People say that there are miracles taking place over there, and maybe God will help you too." They were just joking and making fun of it all, and he went. And he heard the gospel, and it went straight into his heart. He said, "I have to be saved." He took his wife by the hand and they stood up when the invitation was given, "Who would like to receive Jesus?" But the best part came when Brother Herman said, "Now we'd like to pray for the sick." And in front of him, directly in front of him – (I had the opportunity of getting to know her personally; she has since passed away) – Sister Martha Razinski, Professor Doctor Sauerbruch's operation nurse. And she was blind in one eye and nobody could help her, not even the doctor himself. And she stood there in the line and Brother Herman laid his hands on her and prayed with her, and Brother Ruff. In that very moment she could see. She was completely healed. The healthy eye was covered and she could see everything with the eye that had been blind. She pointed out Brother Herman's nose. Another lady was there, by the name of Rhese. I never got to know her – she was totally blind in both eyes. And suddenly she cried out, "I can see, I can see!" And she pointed to the light and started identifying people, and it was so stunning that the BZ of that time (then it wasn't called the BZ, but IBZ, Illustrated Berlin Newspaper – I still have it buried somewhere and I'll have to dig it up for the 20^th anniversary and hang it up here) – that the IBZ dedicated the front page to the tent, and the headlines were in red letters – "BLINDE SEHEN, LAHME GEHEN" ("THE BLIND SEE AND THE LAME WALK"). And there were pictures inside of the people who had been healed, and among them Granny Rhese. And Brother Kretzschmar experienced all of this, and the moment that he saw what was going on around him his faith grew strong and he said, "Oh, Jesus, if you can do that for these people, then you can do it for me, too." The very moment that Brother Herman and Brother Ruff prayed with him, he knew in that moment, "I'm healed!" He rode home and instructed his wife to take off the steel brace. She took it off, and he started bending over and moving around, and it worked! He was completely healed! He went back to his doctor and had himself x-rayed. The doctor asked the nurse, "Bring me Kretzschmar's x-rays, please." She brought in the x-rays. He took them, held them up to the light and said, "Kreztschmar's x-rays, please!" And she went back, looked around, came back and said, "These are Kretzschmar's x-rays." "No, they aren't. Please bring Kretzschmar's x-rays!" He couldn't find anything. When he compared the x-ray plates, he couldn't believe it. There wasn't even a single mark in the place where the bones had formed together into the correct position and grown together. The whole thing, all the x-rays are there as evidence. He had been on pension. Naturally he lost his pension because he had to go back to work again! It's all there to see. And the amazing thing is, Brother Kretzschmar also earned the Golden Sport Badge five years ago. He wears it on his coat, a man who had once been in a steel brace from head to toe. God did it.

And then everybody said, "We don't want everything to end now. But where are we supposed to find a new location?" And God worked here also, and these are the miracles that have accompanied Nollendorfplatz to the present day. They didn't know where they could find a meeting hall. And that very evening a construction councilman in the Senate was converted. And he heard this prayer and said, "Hey, I know what!" There was this comedians' cabaret, a building that used to be the Kaiser's private theater down at Nollendorfplatz. And they had to fix up the place because the doors weren't fireproof. And at that time they were broke, too, and of course couldn't afford to install anything. And then he said, "I'll get the place for you." And sure enough, soon afterwards the whole tent meeting moved over here to Nollendorfplatz. The place looked really bleak, of course, but God led everything in a wonderful way. And so in 1956 they had their first services here. And then in the winter they were here, and in the summer they were out in the tent until 1956, and then Brother Herman left. And the people used to be seated all the way down the stairs. The room was filled, the choir room was filled, outside the prayer room was filled, and the stairway was filled.

And then in 1961 came the Wall, and that made a clean split right down the middle of the congregation, because many back then used to come from the East. People still come by and say, "Hey, I was saved in the tent back then." Just not too long ago somebody was waiting down at the front entrance. "I had to wait until retirement. I've been so anxious to see if Nollendorfplatz is still here!" And then he came over, because they weren't allowed to before, you know, and they're glad that they can have fellowship with us.

And then Brother Herman had a Sunday School teacher from the US take over things here. His name was Brother Kummerfeld, and he continued the whole work here, and then came a time when he couldn't run around so much any more and had two young people take over. But then that didn't work out very well, and then the congregation sort of went downhill until there were just a few left. I think it was only about forty people who came to the meetings, where at one time there was such a stupendous work. So the devil was always trying, just like he'll try in your private life, always trying to ruin everything. But Jesus said, "The enemy will not be able to overcome my church." That's in the Bible. "The gates of hell shall not overcome my church." And there were always a few people, a few faithful ones. They were there inside the prayer room and fasted and prayed. Some of the little old ladies I've had a chance to get to know. They've since passed away. It would be snowing and stormy outside, and rainy and really slushy. There weren't any young people in the Friday night prayer services, just an old bent-over granny with her cane. She would come, and would be here already at 6:30, and she prayed and fasted and prayed that God would continue the work. And then Brother Herman came and took over again for a year, but he didn't know German. He didn't have the kind of contact that was necessary, and he wasn't a pastor, either. He is more of an evangelist, and at first he had an interpreter, and then he didn't have any, and then he had a little girl as an interpreter with a squeaky little voice, and that was such a burden for him that he prayed with the whole congregation that God would do something, that God would send someone who could continue the work here.

And right at that time I was in England. I was in college and wanted to study for three years. And one evening it happened with me just like with Samuel. I was in prayer at my bedside there (it was more like a cot that we had – it was a primitive Bible school), and I was at my cot, kneeled down and prayed, and suddenly I heard a voice that said, "Go back to Germany. You're needed there." It happened with me just like with Samuel. I couldn't believe it. I thought that I'd imagined it. The next evening again as I was in prayer, this voice came again, "Go back to Germany. You're needed there." And it happened several times until I did the same thing that Samuel did. I went to see my Eli (who was Donald Shea) and said to him, "I'm about going out of my mind. Every time I pray I hear a kind of voice, and I don't want it any more. If it's from God, then I'll have to do what God says. Or either it's not from God, and if that's the case I don't want to hear it any more. What do you think?" And he was sitting there behind his desk, a heavy oak desk, like a regular patriarch. We used to call him "Mr. Pentecost", because whatever he said went in the Pentecostal movement in England. He was like the boss. And he sat there, fat cheeks and all, and said, "Humph! This is never the will of God! This is Satan's voice! God wants you to study here for three years!" And so I settled with that. I submitted myself. I went back to my room. But that's the wonderful thing. When you submit yourself in the right spirit, God will speak to you. God will make things clear. And so I heard the voice again. I was confused. Eventually it got to the point where I thought that I was schizophrenic. I cried out to God and said, "God, I need an answer now, or else I'm going to crack up!" And Sunday morning I went to Croyde to a church service where nobody knew me. I had just walked in when a lady stood up who had gifts of the Spirit, and she started to speak. "God has shown me that there is a young man here whom God had spoken to. And he must not listen to the voice of man, but do that which God has told him to do." There was no two ways about it. It couldn't have been better. I will never again be able to doubt spiritual gifts. I've experienced them myself. I've experienced the value of spiritual gifts. I went back to the college, and everybody thought that I was crazy. I packed my bags and went back to Germany.