- Home
- Speakers
- Zac Poonen
- Wedding Of Zac & Annie Poonen In June 1968
Wedding of Zac & Annie Poonen in June 1968
Zac Poonen

Zac Poonen (1939 - ). Christian preacher, Bible teacher, and author based in Bangalore, India. A former Indian Naval officer, he resigned in 1966 after converting to Christianity, later founding the Christian Fellowship Centre (CFC) in 1975, which grew into a network of churches. He has written over 30 books, including "The Pursuit of Godliness," and shares thousands of free sermons, emphasizing holiness and New Testament teachings. Married to Annie since 1968, they have four sons in ministry. Poonen supports himself through "tent-making," accepting no salary or royalties. After stepping down as CFC elder in 1999, he focused on global preaching and mentoring. His teachings prioritize spiritual maturity, humility, and living free from materialism. He remains active, with his work widely accessible online in multiple languages. Poonen’s ministry avoids institutional structures, advocating for simple, Spirit-led fellowships. His influence spans decades, inspiring Christians to pursue a deeper relationship with God.
Download
Topic
Sermon Summary
The video is a sermon transcript that begins with a prayer of gratitude to God for His grace, mercy, and peace. The speaker expresses gratitude for being saved from darkness and being filled with the Holy Spirit. They thank God for making them partakers of His divine nature and heavenly calling. The speaker also acknowledges the honor and privilege of being chosen by God. The transcript repeats the phrase "We sing one more song on the page 2 of the Sanctis in Tamil and page 5 in English" multiple times throughout.
Scriptures
Sermon Transcription
Our loving Heavenly Father God of grace, mercy and peace Our mighty and wonderful God Our loving and living God Our never failing and never changing God God of eternity God of perfection God of holiness In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ who loved us and gave himself for us, we come at thy feet. We thank thee for the happy day when our night was turned into day. We thank thee for the mighty hand by which we have been pulled out of the muddy clay. And we thank thee for thy unchanging love shed abroad by the Holy Spirit in our hearts. And we thank thee for making us partakers of the Holy Spirit, partakers of the divine nature, partakers of the heavenly calling, heavenly glory by giving us the gifts of everlasting life. And we thank thee for thy grand and lofty purpose in saving us, to show forth thy manifold wisdom, to work on worthy vessels, unto power And we thank thee how many places. We thank thee for the honor given to us to hear thee speak from thy throne day by day according to our need. And we thank thee for the glimpses of the glory and the beauty of the Lord Jesus Christ being given to upon the earth as we hear thy word. We thank thee for the work of grace and salvation wrought of thee in the heart of the Lord Jesus Christ. And we thank thee for the glory of thy servants Brother Zachariah, Brunon, and Sister Annie who are to be joined together as thy partners in thy servants and before thy people for thy glory. We thank thee for thy mighty hand which hath led them so far. We thank thee for thy mighty hand which hath led them so far. We thank thee for the union both as I thank thee for it as well in so many ways. And we thank thee for making thy will perfectly clear to them both and are concerned about their union. And we thank thee for the desire given them both to glorify thy name to thy satisfaction to their union. And we thank thee all who are here now as their loved ones, as their friends, relations, strangers, fellow believers to ask them. And we pray that all may get their portion before they leave. Then we pray the kingship and lordship of Lord Jesus Christ in all this evening. Thy order be revealed and maintained. Thy love be fully tasted. Thy grace be abundant to us. And thy name be highly honored. We praise thee over the enemy We praise thee over all the wicked and all who work so hard We pray in the name of the lord Jesus Christ. We are going to stand and sing a song from the song sheet. We sing one more song on the page 2 of the song sheet in Tamil and page 5 in English. Same song. The book of Isaiah and chapter 30 and verse 21. Book of Isaiah the prophet chapter 30 and verse 21. I am Daniel. Shall hear a word behind this saying. This is the way. Walk ye in it. When ye turn right hand and when ye turn left. When ye turn right hand and when ye turn left. The way is here. Walk ye in it. Shall hear a word behind this saying. You find in this verse a great secret. Not only for those who are being joined together but for all who are here and many more. Not only for those who are being joined together but for all who are here and many more. Shall hear a word behind this saying. This is the way. In every age and time it helps us to speak the word of God. Wherever we go God wants to speak to us Whosoever you may be you will find much help from this one verse alone for a lifetime. What if you know how to hear and discern understand the voice of God. Your joy, your happiness your success your fruitfulness depend upon that secret. The ability to hear the voice of God and the strength to wear the voice of God Oh what a joy what a privilege what an honor we have as believers in Lord to hear the voice of God. But the very sad thing is very few believers understand how to discern the voice of God. And that's why they make many sad mistakes also. With so many good intentions and many many advantages they make many mistakes. But the mistake you made in the marriage time is very serious. It will bring you a lifelong loss if you make a mistake in your marriage problems. And that's why you find so many professors so many doctors so many teachers so many nurses having unhappy homes all over the world. Unhappy homes with many many high hopes they began their married life. And after a few months or a short period they are disappointed. But that's today. And that's why the voice of God is a very very important matter. God does speak. He is a living God. We thank God that these two who are going to be joined together have a testimony they are forgiven. They will themselves tell you afterwards they are not being joined by uncle by auntie by neighbors by friends by money by looks. They are joined by God. I say truthfully they are being joined by God. They heard the voice of God. And that's why they are being joined by Him not by prayers or incantations and by money. God does speak. So God works it again. God's power comes by God's voice. I see in Psalm 29 and verse 4 Psalm 29 and verse 4 Can you see for yourself God's power in God's voice? Verse 4 The voice of the Lord is powerful. By the voice of God burdens are lifted. By the voice of God questions are answered. By the voice of God fears go away. By the voice of God we receive new love and new strength and new energy and new power. By the voice of God we know the ways of God. And that's why we go on to get the story. Let there be any difficulty now. We don't become super human by being born again. We remain un-human beings. And that's why we are getting married. That's why you thought I don't think it's natural I will ever get married. That's what many people thought. I know you will never get married. But this one day they heard it was same Zakir Raha he said yes, he's same not the same man same bald head same man not changed as where you are not a super human we remain ordinary human beings when we are born again we have common problem common difficulty common burden common trials common temptation My difference is the voice of God. Some know how he got the voice of God in a way others don't know and that's why they come under the trials others hear the voice of God and they come over it they go on conquering and trapping all the time let there be any difficulty on their path we can be more than conquerors by hearing the voice of God because you can solve every problem by going upon your knees by hearing the voice of God in every matter every question every problem everything is 30 you can pray together and find God's plan for the whole day three Gods work together hear God's voice every day and receive God's message for your friends or enemies say it before going anywhere find God will hear God's voice and that's why I again there was them Isaiah 30 verse 21 and on you shall hear the word behind you shall be saying this is the way walk ye in it and that is the only advice we can give this evening that please wait patiently upon your knees both of you every day sometimes four times a day then obey God's very simple God of love he will speak with you he is a loving God he must speak with you you can go to him any number of time ask him any question however hard it may be I am asking you for the message for your friends and neighbors enemies as a surprise you are putting God's message go to Manipur Manipur to that kind of companion God spoke to me to go so far away and see myself so far just ask about it ask him don't argue and make sure also no argument and God said go to Manipur no job for me no happiness God has spoken and we must obey him and the voice of God be oneness and unity and fellowship and cooperation no jealousy no contention no pride and no partiality we are being joined by God we are being joined for God's glory and Zechariah is still God's servant he has not changed yet he is God's servant he will remain God's servant no argument go away he is God's servant we must obey him our prayer is but I will be God's obey him and both of you hear the voice of God and I'm sure they both are going to be much blessed by him and through the union many are going to be blessed we are being joined for the blessing of many people of many countries and like a God we are being joined by the union in many parts of the world as we see in the Bible when God said they ran when God said they ran by God demanding they gave by God said they obeyed so keep your ears fast again that is what the Bible says When I was in sin, even though I called myself a Christian, I did not know Thee. But I thank Thee for Thy love which came seeking for me, and which sought me, and found me, washed me, and cleansed me in the blood, and made me a new creature, and brought me into fellowship with Thyself. Loving Father, I thank Thee for that day when I could really look up to Thee and call Thee my own Father. Thank You, Lord, for that day, and I thank Thee ever since that day, all these years, in spite of many failures, in spite of many ups and downs, how Thou hast kept me and held my hand by Thy mighty hand. Lord, I just praise Thee and worship Thee. O Lord, many pitfalls Thou hast saved me from, many a snare of the devil Thou hast delivered me from, and I just praise Thee for every bondage from which Thou hast set me free. Thank Thee, dear Lord Jesus, that Thou art a living Savior to me in my experience, and that Thou art not just someone in history, but one living, resurrected King of kings and Lord of lords. I thank Thee, Lord, for that day when Thou didst deign to call me for Thy service. O Lord, to preach Thy word, Lord, I thank Thee, even after that, in spite of many times in which I have not been what I should be, and I have not been as faithful in my services as I should have been. Yet, Thou hast not left me, Lord. I know from experience that Thy promise is true. I will never leave You nor forsake You. We thank Thee, Lord, for that unconditional promise Thou hast made to me in Thy word. And thank You, dear Lord, for bringing me even to this day in my life, when Thou hast provided for me one whom Thou hast ordained from eternity to be my partner in the coming years of life. I thank Thee, Lord, and we pray, as we offer ourselves together up to Thee this day, as one living sacrifice, that Thou wouldst consume it upon Thine altar. Lord, set Thy seal upon this day by sending Thy heavenly fire into our midst. Consume us, Lord, for Thy service, which is our only desire. We pray that our lives might bring glory to Thy name, even if we don't have much of the things of this world, even if we don't have the honor and reputation and fame. Lord, even if it means reproach and sorrow and toil and blood and sweat and tears, we pray, Lord, keep our hands on the plough until the very end, that we might not look back. Our lives might bring satisfaction to Thy heart daily, Lord. We beseech Thee that our lives might bring such satisfaction to Thy heart that Thou wouldst forget the thorns that pierce Thy brow and the nails that pierce Thy hands. Thou wouldst see in our lives the travel of Thy soul and be satisfied. Lord, this is our desire. This is our only desire. We are not able, Lord, to live up to this, but we thank Thee for the power available to us by Thy Holy Spirit. And so, Lord, we rest on Thee and in Thy name we go forth to face life together as those whom Thou hast ordained to be ones to glorify Thee. So, Lord, I ask that Thou wouldst prepare me to be the husband that Thou wouldst expect me to be. I pray, dear Lord, that Thou wouldst prepare me in every way for service in a greater measure than in the past days. And I thank Thee for Thy promise to me that the glory of this latter house shall be greater than the glory of the former. And I believe that this is true, Lord, for this is Thy word. Heaven and earth may pass away, but Thy word will not pass away. And so, Lord, trusting in the promises of Thy word, trusting in the strength that is available to me in Thy Spirit, Lord, I face this new responsibility and I ask that You cleanse me afresh at this time from every defilement in my unknown path. Every part of me, just make me pure and holy afresh in Thy sight. Lord, I ask that Thou wouldst fill me with Thy Holy Spirit. And pray that through our lives united together, rivers of living water may flow, dear Lord, whatever our past failures may have been. They may be cleansed away, blotted out of Thy sight. According to Thy promise, their sins and iniquities I will remember no more. And pray, dear Lord, in the coming years, Thou wouldst make us a blessing to everyone we meet, whether rich or poor. Take us anywhere, Lord, make us stand before the rich or the poor. That choice is not ours, it is Thine, and we would not try to influence it. Send us anywhere, we are Thy servants. We long to bring satisfaction to Thy heart. Our meat is to do Thy will. Our meat is this, that when we come to the end of our lives, we might be able to say that we have satisfied Thy heart, we have finished Thy work and done Thy will. Lord, this is our only desire, that when we get up into glory, that day when we see Thee face to face, we might hear those joyful words from Thy lips saying, well done, Thou good and faithful servant. Each one of us, this is our desire, Lord, help us, and if it be Thy will, Lord, even if it means that we shed our blood for Thee, prepare us for that, and Lord, we are ready even for that. Just take us and possess us completely, Lord, at this time. Every bit of us, every single pie of money that we have, every bit of energy that there is in these bodies, and every bit of time that is ours, Lord, it is Thine. It is Thine, Lord, to the best of our knowledge, we give ourselves to Thee. Accept us, Lord, we believe that Thou hast accepted us, and we praise Thee, Lord, to just worship Thee and adore Thee from our heart, for this wonderful assurance Thou hast given us, Thou hast accepted us, Lord, we just praise Thee. We crown Thee a fresh King of Kings, Lord of Lords, King of our lives, and confess again that Thou alone art worthy to receive all the glory and honor we offer to Thee, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. Loving Heavenly Father, Lord God, my King and my Redeemer, I also worship Thee for bringing me to this day. I thank Thee for saving me and for making me Thy possession. Lord, I thank Thee for all the joy Thou hast given me each day in my life. Thank Thee for the joy of having my sins fully cleansed and forgiven. I thank Thee that Thou hast made me Thine. I also surrender my body and my whole being to Thee, unconditionally. We surrender ourselves to Thee. We thank Thee that Thou hast accepted this sacrifice, and we pray that we might mean it every day of our lives, as long as Thou dost give us breath, and that our lives might be used for Thee, to bring glory to Thee. We surrender all, all to Thee. We want our lives to bring satisfaction to Thee, Lord. We thank Thee for all the promises Thou hast given us. Thank Thee, Lord, that Thou art going before us. Thou art with us. Thou hast promised that Thou wilt never leave us nor forsake us. Lord, we just thank Thee and bless Thee and magnify Thee and adore Thee in His precious Name. Amen. Loving Heavenly Father, my name is Matthew M. On behalf of Thy servants, Thy handmaidens, we are to be joined together. Before we give promises and vows, they might be brought in Thy full possession. Whatever they say and promises be done with all their heart, in Thy presence and fully prepared to bear the whole heartedly. Lord, make them to feel Thy presence. And that their union may please Thee and bring honor unto Thee. And Thy seal be upon their union. Lord, Thy pure, unchanging love in their heart for each other, as they are about to give promises. May I be very closely and intimately with you, Father. Very solemnly declare in the presence of God Almighty and the Lord Jesus Christ, my Savior, that I have no impediment whatsoever in my life to hinder me from a healthy, normal married life. Hereby I call upon all here present. In the presence of God Almighty and the Lord Jesus Christ, my Savior, who loved me and gave Himself for me. In the presence of God Almighty and the Lord Jesus Christ, my Savior, who loved me and gave Himself for me, that I take Annie as my life partner, fully believing with all my heart that she has been chosen for me by my loving Savior according to His perfect will, as revealed to both of us after much prayer and waiting upon the Lord. I promise to love her, to cherish her, to respect her, to honor her, and to be faithful, loyal, and true to her in sickness or health, in adversity or prosperity. I promise to share with her everything in the Lord regarding her as my friend, as my companion, as my life partner, as my co-worker, and as joint heir to the grace of life. I promise to keep my married life very, very sacred regarding her body and my body as the temple of the Holy Spirit. I promise to give the Lord Jesus Christ the first place in my heart and my home. And I promise to do His perfect will in every small matter throughout my married life. I promise to obey my Lord Jesus Christ in whatsoever He may command me. May the Lord help me. I, Annie, very solemnly declare in the presence of God Almighty and the Lord is my Savior that I have no impediment whatsoever in my life healthy, normal, married life. Hereby, I call upon all here present in the presence of God Almighty and the Lord Jesus Christ, my Savior, who loved me and gave Himself for me that I, Zachariah, as my life partner fully believing in all my heart that He has been chosen for me by my loving Savior according to His perfect will as revealed to both of us after much prayer and waiting upon the Lord. I promise to keep myself in subjection to Him regarding Him as the Head of the House in the Lord. I promise to love Him, to respect Him, to honor Him, to obey Him and to be faithful, loyal and true to Him in sickness or health, in adversity or prosperity. I promise to share with Him everything in the Lord regarding Him as my friend, companion, life partner, co-worker and joint heir with the grace of life. I promise to keep my married life very, very sacred regarding His body and my body as a temple of the Holy Spirit. I promise to give the Lord Jesus Christ and His Word a first place in my heart and my home. I promise to encourage Him in God's service with all my heart. And I promise to honor and magnify the name of the Lord Jesus Christ throughout my married life. May God help me. Our Almighty God and our loving Heavenly Father, we again come to Thee with our hearts full of joy and full of praise to Thee for what Thou hast wrought in the past for these two lives. Amen. We thank Thee, dear Lord, for their testimony. We thank Thee, Lord, for what the Lord has done in their lives. And we thank Thee, O Lord, for the field that is in all our hearts, that they are joined together in the will of God. We believe much prayer has gone up from many people, and we do praise Thee. And now, O Lord, we do look to Thee that the purpose for which Thou hast joined them together may be fully fulfilled in these days to come. They do not know fully, nor do we, O Lord, just what lies ahead of them. But we do thank Thee that together in the Lord they can face every problem and every trial and every difficulty in the Lord. And we pray, O Lord, to keep them close to Thyself. We know, Lord, that the devil will seek in many ways to try and separate them from Thyself in many little subtle ways in home life to somehow lower the standard. But we do pray in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ that our brother and sister may be kept very, very close to the Lord and that the very vows and promise they have made may be truly fulfilled in their life. We do ask Thee, dear Lord, to bless them both and to use them abundantly for Thy glory in these days to come. O Lord, we thank Thee for their yieldedness to the Lord's service. And Lord, Thou art meeting men and women devoted entirely to Thee. And we do pray, Lord, to take up our brother and sister and to use them for Thy glory and praise. We do ask Thee, Lord, that wherever their home is it may be a fragrant home, may be a home full of Christ, that all who enter into it and come into it may be aware of the presence of the Lord. And we do pray, dear Lord, to use their homes for Thy glory. And grant it may mean that many may find the Lord Jesus Christ through coming into contact with them and in their homes. And Lord, if Thou shouldst give them a family, we pray Thee to give them wisdom and understanding how to bring up children in the knowledge and the fear of the Lord. And we ask Thee, Lord, that the whole family may be for the glory of the Lord. So, our loving Father, we give Thee our praise for answering prayer for today. Thank Thee for many prayers that are going up for them today. We enter into all that prayer and ask Thee, Lord, to fully fulfill it and abundantly glorify Thy name through both their lives in togetherness as heirs together of the grace of life. We ask it in the dear name of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ. Amen. We will sing this song and we pray also. Lord Jesus Christ why I thank the Lord for giving me this day. I would like to share with you what Lord Jesus Christ has been in my life. I was born in a Christian family. Before I thought that I was a Christian automatically. I used to go to church, Sunday school, read the Bible, say my prayers. But I never knew he was Christ as a personal friend or in Australia. I knew about him but I did not know him as a personal friend. When I was 15, I joined the military academy. And I was there for 3 years. And then another year and a half before I was commissioned in the Indian Navy. And it was only then when I was 19 and a half that I came to know the Lord Jesus Christ as a personal friend. Then I knew the Lord Jesus Christ not only as a person of history but as a living person who was with me wherever I went. Then I knew what real Christianity was. Then the words in the Bible became living to me. And my whole life was changed. Jesus Christ turned my life upside down from that time. Up till that time my ambition in life was to become the admiral of the Indian Navy. But when Jesus Christ took possession of my life, he showed me the valuelessness of earthly things. He opened my eyes to see the value of things which were eternal. And he showed me that there were things far more important than the things I was striving for. From then on I longed to please him. My earthly ambitions went away. They were replaced by something higher and purer. Jesus set me free from the bondage of sin. And in 1964 on the 6th of May the Lord Jesus called me for his service. I remember it so clearly that I cannot forget it. He called me so clearly from his word. It wasn't the man's call. It wasn't my own feeling. And the Lord proved to me that that was his call by releasing me from the Navy in an impossible situation. That was the confirmation to me that the Lord had called me. That was the confirmation to me that Jesus Christ still even today had all authority in heaven and in earth. And then as Brother Bakht Singh just said I thought I'd never get married. I sincerely thought that at that time. And I was willing to be single if the Lord called me for it. But there comes a time in life when the burdens of the Lord's word need to be shared. We read that when some of the children of Israel sent spies into the land of Canaan they brought back the grapes of Eshkol and one man could not carry the bough himself. He needed somebody else to carry the other end of the bough with him. So when I came to that realization too I needed somebody else to the other end of the bough to carry the truth of Christ to this world. And it's very wonderful how the Lord led me to find the one whom He had chosen for me. I can honestly say before the Lord I never sought or hunted for a while. Even as Adam said to the Lord saying, Lord give me a wife I did not go. It was the Lord who saw Adam's need and provided the one whom He knew would fit Adam's need. And in just the same way the Lord showed me. This may seem very strange to you but I know in experience that the same God who led Adam led me. It's not a different God who provided Adam his wife. The same God. He is as living today as in Adam's time. And He is as interested in you and me as He was in Adam. And the Lord showed me His will so clearly through circumstances. Through the inner witness of the Holy Spirit as I prayed for many weeks to the witness of fellow believers mature in the Lord with whom I prayed. And one day in my quiet time the Lord gave me such a clear word. I wasn't looking for it but I found it. When I was reading my quiet time portion in one night it was the day I had decided that night my quiet time portion was Ezekiel 44. And I read in verse 15 and 16 about those who were to serve the Lord full time. They were to stand before the Lord all the time. And then as I came to verse 22 it says there about these full time workers taking wives. I was struck when I saw that word. I never realized that God could speak so clearly. I wasn't looking for this word. In fact if I had hunted for such a word I probably wouldn't have found it. But the Lord speaks. If we have a regular quiet time He speaks. He has spoken to me many times as clearly as this. And that's how the Lord led me to this day. And our desire together is to bring glory to the Lord Jesus. The Lord knows our heart. That we no longer seek the riches and honor of this world anymore for they are rubbish in the sight of God. There are so many desires the Lord has given us in our hearts to bring satisfaction to Him. And this hymn which we just sung is something which the Lord helped us to compose to express the desire of our hearts to serve Him. And these words express that which we long to do though as we said here we find in our strength unable but only able in His strength. Amen. So we would ask you to pray for us. Many of you have been praying regularly. We are really grateful to each one of you who has prayed so much for this day. I know this. This day would never have come if it were not for many, especially servants of the Lord who have been praying for me. I am so grateful to so many of you who have come from such distances to express your love and affection for us. Above all, let me say this. There is something which will bring far greater joy to our hearts and that is if you too experience the Lord Jesus living in your life. Let me invite you to open your heart to the Lord Jesus Christ. There is as much difference between Christianity by name and Christianity in experiences there is between heaven and earth. May the Lord lead you into that which He has led us into. Thank you, each one for coming. I also want to say it is a teaching for the glory of God. Very early in my childhood my father had taught me that it was not necessary just to be a teaching Christian. And I praise God for giving me a day eleven years ago when He helped me to turn to Him. And when He opened my eyes to see what I read within an hour and even now that is what I am. And He told me what a lot Christ had suffered for me. I praise Him for that because that made a lot of difference in my life. Many of my difficulties the Lord made me to be grateful in that. And I praise God and give glory to the Lord for that. A few months after that the Lord helped me to obey Him in the office of baptism. And then the Lord began leading me, teaching me so many things. When I came to medical college the Lord friended me and told me that He wanted me to work in a certain specialty hospital. And the Lord taught me much by preparing me for that hospital. And He kept my consecration to Him because of that specialty. For that also I give all the glory to God. Often I would have left that consecration. But the Lord kept on reminding me of that consecration. And when I was praying regarding my marriage, the Lord spoke to me very definitely. And He gave me much peace in my heart that this is His will. I was reading that day from Luke chapter 12. And the Lord spoke to me through that same chapter. And this day verses 29 to 31 the Lord spoke to me in a new way. Verses 29 to 31 the Lord spoke to me in a new way through these three verses. Luke chapter 12 verses 29 to 31 the Lord spoke to me in a new way through these three verses. The Lord gave me much peace because marriage can often mean what verse 29 implies. Earthly things can always come in between. So I am grateful to the Lord for giving me this verse. And the Lord a few minutes ago gave me a definite experience that I am still in His way. And He gave me the assurance that He has anointed me by His Holy Spirit. And that time He gave me a verse which again is very precious to me. And that is 2 Corinthians chapter 4 and verse 18. We look not at the things which are seen but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are central but the things which are not seen are eternal. The Lord told me how in my past life many of the things I was looking for, looking at were central things. And He had opened my eyes more to show that I should look for eternal things. And work for Him from the point of view of eternity. And I praise God for being equal to you here to share with us in our joys. God bless you. Because in the Christmas week of 1939 when Lord my son Zachariah was a little babe, 2 months old, when a bhakti came to our house in Coimbatore, took up this little boy and dedicated him to God and prayed that God might use him as His servant. We thank God that his prayer has been answered. I thought when he was a naval officer that brother bhakti's prayer has not been fully answered. But God's ways are mysterious and He turned it around so that brother bhakti's prayer was fully answered.
Wedding of Zac & Annie Poonen in June 1968
- Bio
- Summary
- Transcript
- Download

Zac Poonen (1939 - ). Christian preacher, Bible teacher, and author based in Bangalore, India. A former Indian Naval officer, he resigned in 1966 after converting to Christianity, later founding the Christian Fellowship Centre (CFC) in 1975, which grew into a network of churches. He has written over 30 books, including "The Pursuit of Godliness," and shares thousands of free sermons, emphasizing holiness and New Testament teachings. Married to Annie since 1968, they have four sons in ministry. Poonen supports himself through "tent-making," accepting no salary or royalties. After stepping down as CFC elder in 1999, he focused on global preaching and mentoring. His teachings prioritize spiritual maturity, humility, and living free from materialism. He remains active, with his work widely accessible online in multiple languages. Poonen’s ministry avoids institutional structures, advocating for simple, Spirit-led fellowships. His influence spans decades, inspiring Christians to pursue a deeper relationship with God.