Tommy Titcombe Valley of Egbe Sudan Interior Mission
Graduated from Nyack Missionary Bible School 1901 or 1902 [Christian Missionary Alliance]
When he reached the Mission field he carried his whole outfit in one box and when he got to the field the staff increased by 100%, [went from 1 to 2] They worked together for a while and finally they had a field meeting and the staff of two decided it wasn’t right that one tribe have 2 missionaries and Tommy was the one to whom the lot fell and he went out to open the field in the Egbe.
The chief of these people had human skulls strung on a vine across the path. When Tommy went under them and bumped them they rattled with an eerie noise as he moved down and he walked into the village. He threw down his pack and said to the chief. “Where am I going to live, I’ve come to live with you.” They were going to have supper and I suppose they were expecting to have him for supper but he asked to stay and spend the night. They said ‘here’s your place’, so he moved in pigs and all and slept over a grave.
He stayed there two years eating the native food never asking any questions. Two things you need to do 1. Where He leads me I will follow and 2. What He feeds me I will swallow. Tommy learned that very well and he was sure the gravy he ate once carried a bow and arrow but that was alright he never asked questions. He stayed there witnessing and when they wouldn’t let him witness he went to the top of the hill and shouted the Gospel down through the thatched huts and developed in that body a tremendous speaking voice.
Then there came a time when they were meeting in his house for prayer. They had prayer every morning. There were 12 believers and himself. 500 people appeared outside. All in war paint-calling for his blood and saying they were going to kill and eat the group inside. The believers stayed in the house for 11 days. All they had was a little water and a little corn tied to the rafters up above on the ceiling of the house. So these men stayed just waiting on the Lord. [Afterward they asked why didn’t you kill us? Why didn’t you burn the house? ‘Oh no, we couldn’t do that. Those figures in white with their drawn swords wouldn’t let us get anywhere near your house.]
One day the horrible chanting finally stopped. They had gone to sacrifice to get the figures in white to go away. Tommy opened the door said to his fellow believers.’ Come out with me’. They went to the center of the village near the sacrifice tree from which hung the bones and skulls of victims.
The 500 came into the Valley charging toward them. Tommy stood and waited until the Lord told him the proper moment and he raised his hand and commanded “STOP!” In the Name of Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God.” Those furious, enraged Cannibals stopped as though they were stretched over a string.
They couldn’t move and then Tommy began to sing with the same tune they had been chanting but this time with Gospel words about Christ. He said “If you liked that open your mouths –open your mouths like a crocodile and they all did. Now Tommy said “sit down and I’ll sing some more and they sat down. For 2 1/2 or 3 hours he told them the Gospel in song. The Spirit of God came telling them of their lives, telling them of their sins, telling them of God’s grace.
From that day on he went back to his hut. In the next 6 weeks the church increased from 13 to over 1600 believers. He would awaken in the morning and 100 people would be sitting about in the yard- groups of 2 or 3 sobbing over their sin. All day long with hardly time to eat Tommy would talk to those who had been pierced through with the arrow of God’s conviction. There came a time when there was a small pox epidemic in the area and he went to the Lord. “Lord what is it?” The Lord told him to tell the people if anyone moved onto the compound they wouldn’t get small pox. God would respect this. So they moved onto the compound. Everyone who put their tent or built a temporary shelter on the compound did not contract the disease.
God gave him a MIRICLE ministry ALL THE WAY THROUGH. In the casting out demons, healing of the sick. Deliverance of those held in bondage to demons. He came on a scene when a woman was lying in the air, suspended. Nothing beneath her- simply held by satanic power and without properly waiting on the Lord to get the mind of the Lord he went in and touched her and it was as if he had been buffeted. He landed about 50 feet away. Thrown by invisible powers. Buffeting, assailing him and assaulting him. After some time as he recovered, he went back and this time he had found out how the Lord would deal with it and the girl was miraculously delivered.
The whole ministry in the first 20 years was the gift of miracles. No other explanation on how 20,000 people were brought out of Cannibalism to the Lord Jesus Christ through the ministry of one man.
The only concept Tommy had was that Jesus Christ is Alive and if He is alive He has ALL power. Gifted with the gift of miracles he went out to the field
Years later he went back to visit the field he had ministered in for so many years. He went to the center of the field where the station had been. He spoke to an immense crowd. When he prepared to leave on the truck the whole village was filled. The streets were filled. The people who had spent 11 days calling for his blood were now elders in the church and here was one of the men who was with him in the house for the 11 days. All around him.
The truck began to move and all these people who were held in Cannibalism sang, “All hail the power of Jesus Name,” for they came to know Christ through the power of the demonstration of Jesus name.
Paris Reidhead sermon : 1 Corinthians 12-15 [taken from a sermon]

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Eileen