Kenneth Copeland Ministries has been publishing the Believer’s Voice of Victory magazine for more than 40 years. Receive your positive, faith-filled magazine FREE each month, subscribe today at www.freevictory.com.
Issue link: http://magazine.kcm.org/i/1525257
That morning in the kitchen, Marlon shared his plan with Quantrel as to how they would respond to God's "calling." "We'll start a Bible study," he explained. "When nobody comes, we can say we tried but it didn't work." It was the summer of 2001. Looking at the calendar, they decided they would start the Bible study on Tuesday, Sept. 11. What could possibly go wrong? A National Tragedy "We decided to hold the Bible study in our neighborhood community center," Marlon explains. "The Saturday before, we posted flyers, listing the date, time and location. The morning of Sept. 11, the whole world watched the replays on TV as planes flew head-on into the Twin Towers in New York City and the Pentagon." Almost 3,000 people died in the terrorist attack. "We almost canceled the Bible study because we felt sure no one would come," Marlon recalls. "We were wrong. More people than we ever imagined showed up. They were solemn. Quiet. Traumatized, but attentive. "They wanted to know why God let this happen. They needed hope for the future. I'd never believed that I had what it took to help people. But that day, the Holy Spirit gave me what to say. I taught them about the love of God. I also taught them how the enemy works." In the weeks that followed, more people began attending the Tuesday evening Bible study. "After a few months, we conceded that God had called us to pastor," Marlon admits. "We had just been too chicken to accept the call. We could no longer deny it." Soon after, the Browns moved the Bible study to their home and formed a church, Works of Faith Ministries. Later, they rented a building to hold services. "We leaned on KCM for teaching, guidance and materials," Marlon said. "They were so easy to reach and quick to respond." They also began attending KCM meetings in Fort Worth, Texas, and in Branson, Mo. "When I first went into the ministry, I told the Lord I would never borrow a dime to do His work. I said, 'If You're asking me to do something, I shouldn't have to go to the world and ask permission to fund it.' To this day, I have never budged from that stand." A Hard Hit In 2013, Marlon and Quantrel entered one of the darkest times of their lives. One of their children got into trouble—and spent time in prison. It seemed as though hell released an assignment of guilt and shame against them. The mental and emotional attacks were unrelenting. "Why did this happen?" "What did we do wrong?" "What could we have done dišerently?" The questions kept coming— especially for Quantrel, who felt she was having a nervous breakdown. Then she heard the Lord speak: Your faith has been damaged. I'm going to repair it. "The Lord repaired my faith through a teaching series Kenneth Copeland did on the daily (BVOV) broadcast about the love of God," Quantrel remembers. "As soon as the series came out, we bought two copies. I kept a copy in my car, and Marlon kept a copy in his. Those cases are ragged from use. "Marlon didn't get born again until he was an adult. I was born and raised in church. I was very religious. With religion comes fear. Kenneth's teaching on love was what delivered me from fear. The Lord told us that our child would come out of prison and hit the ground running, and that's exactly what happened. They were released and never experienced any setbacks. God just opened doors of opportunity for them. My child is not only a stable Christian today, but is also a really wonderful human being." Faith for a Home A couple of years later, the Lord began urging Quantrel to look for a bigger home. They still lived in a small house in a less-than-desirable part of town. She contacted a realtor, who sent pictures of homes. Whenever Quantrel talked to Marlon about it, he dismissed the idea— planning instead to expand their current house. Quantrel's mother had come to visit prior 1 4 : B V O V Old Testament New Testament MARCH READ THROUGH THE BIBLE Fri 1 Lev. 20:8-22:25 Luke 1 Sat 2 Lev. 22:26-24:9 Sun 3 Ps. 28-31; Prov. 6:1-19 Mon 4 Lev. 24:10-25:46 Luke 2 Tue 5 Lev. 25:47-26:46 Luke 3 Wed 6 Lev. 27-Num. 1:29 Luke 4 Thu 7 Num. 1:30-3:4 Luke 5 Fri 8 Num. 3:5-4:16 Luke 6 Sat 9 Num. 4:17-5:31 Sun 10 Ps. 32-34; Prov. 6:20-7:5 Mon 11 Num. 6:1-7:35 Luke 7 Tue 12 Num. 7:36-8:4 Luke 8 Wed 13 Num. 8:5-10:13 Luke 9 Thu 14 Num. 10:14-11:35 Luke 10 Fri 15 Num. 12:1-14:10 Luke 11 Sat 16 Num. 14:11-15:31 Sun 17 Ps. 35-36; Prov. 7:6-23 Mon 18 Num. 15:32-16:50 Luke 12 Tue 19 Num. 17-19 Luke 13 Wed 20 Num. 20-21 Luke 14 Thu 21 Num. 22:1-23:26 Luke 15 Fri 22 Num. 23:27-26:34 Luke 16 Sat 23 Num. 26:35-28:8 Sun 24 Ps. 37; Prov. 7:24-8:11 Mon 25 Num. 28:9-29:40 Luke 17 Tue 26 Num. 30:1-31:47 Luke 18 Wed 27 Num. 31:48-33:9 Luke 19 Thu 28 Num. 33:10-34:15 Luke 20 Fri 29 Num. 34:16-36:13 Luke 21 Sat 30 Deut. 1:1-2:15 Sun 31 Ps. 38-41; Prov. 8:12-36