CG:  Can you tell us a little bit about yourself, since you’re not from Miami.  This is your first time in our church.  Can you give a little background of yourself to the people that haven’t met you before?

Pastor John Gray: First of all, it’s an honor to be here at El Rey Jesus in the City of Miami. And I am a native of Cincinnati Ohio.  I am a youth pastor and a singles pastor.  I work with the single people at my church: New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Atlanta Georgia.  We have about 20,000 members and so I work with the youth.  I am in charge of the youth arts department; so I’m in charge of all of the music, the dance, the drama.  I work with our youth to allow them to be artistic and creative, and I also lead the singles ministry.  Hopefully one day soon I won’t be in the singles ministry but I’ll be married so I’m trying to impart to them as much wisdom as I can.

CG: Awesome.  You mentioned today while preaching, “This was new to me.” Can you expand a little more on that?

Pastor John Gray:  Well, to come to a church that has a large, high percentage of Hispanic population.  Some that may not even speak English.  They had translators because all they know is Spanish.  This was a new experience for me and it’s not just a language barrier.  You have to understand that people come from different backgrounds so there is a cultural barrier.  Some jokes that I might say in a black church or in an African American church may not translate to the Hispanic community.  So I look at this as an honor that God says I trust you so much that I am going to give you relevance to an entirely different culture, than what you’re used to and where you came from. And judging by the results at the altar today I know that the Lord broke through whatever barriers we had.  His word was established.  So it’s just a wonderful experience. 

CG: Yes, I agree.  You also came in with powerful and impacting prophesies over our church.  I know you feel that God is doing something.  What potential do you see specifically with this church and with this City Takers conference?

Pastor John Gray: I believe that this is the beginning of something that is so major.  This is bigger than just El Rey Jesus.  It’s bigger than Miami.  This is city-wide, statewide, this is nationwide.  Pastor Frank, and Pastor Andy…crazy worshipper runs around, spins around jumps up and down, I love him.  God is going to use that passion, that fire, that fervor and it’s going to infect and impact other churches: black, white, Asian, island, Jamaican.  It does not matter.  God is going to take what’s happening here and it’s going to become a movement.  It’s going to become nationwide.  The next great move of God is coming out of El Rey Jesus. I’m telling you what I know by the power of God.  God wants a place where He can stand up in, be glorified in.  The bible says in 2 Chronicles.  It says His eyes range to and fro throughout the earth seeking in whom He may stand up strong in.  He’s looking for a place where He can stand up strong.  And I’m telling you that God can stand up in this place because there are people that don’t mind giving Him glory.  And I’m telling you the whole world is going to know about this church in the next 12 months.

CG: Wow!  We receive that.  That’s powerful!  Well Pastor John Gray, lastly, for the new people, or for people that are hearing what you’re saying now but later may think “Wow, that’s a big task. I don’t know if I can do it.”  They may be a little blinded by the obstacles.  What word of encouragement can you give them?

Pastor John Gray:  The word of encouragement that I can give to those who say it seems like there are many obstacles and there are many road blocks to achieving the call of God:

Every great leader, every great movement, every great call of God has been predicated by the challenges and by the attacks.  The reason why our salvation is secure in Jesus Christ is because our salvation was not automatic.  He had to fight every day to honor the Father.  He had to fight every day.  He disciplined His mind. He disciplined His body.  He disciplined His soul to stay in line with the Spirit of God.  He did not turn to the left or the right.  He obeyed every law, everyday, all day, every time that He could.  That is why our salvation is secure.  And if He can overcome, we are more than conquerors through Him that loved us.  And we have this power inside of us.  We have this treasure in earthen vessels.  The same Holy Spirit that rested on Jesus Christ is the same Holy Sprit that resides in us now.  And by that power, and that power alone we have the ability to live and move and have our being.  To walk in kingdom authority, to walk in kingdom power, to not be afraid of devils but to make them bow down under our feet, that’s where they belong.  And anyone that goes through opposition knows that is the pre-requisite to greatness.  Brokenness is the pre-requisite to greatness.  You cannot achieve greatness in the kingdom unless you go through struggle.  Without stretching, without struggle, without weight you cannot grow.  That’s why even those that lift weights, you lift weight by measure of resistance.  When you resist the devil he will flee from you and you get stronger each time you resist.

CG: Amen.  Thank you so much.  I appreciate everything that you’ve just said to us.

CG:  It has been mentioned that City Takers is not just a conference, but a movement.  What do you mean by a movement?

Pastor Andy Arguez: The reason why City Takers is not just another conference but a movement is because many times we see events in the body of Christ that imitate the world. The bible says that the arc of the covenant was with the people of Israel, and the Philistines came and took it out and carried it on a cart over to their country, their city, and their region. When the people of Israel went to restore the arc of the covenant, which represents the presence of God, they began to imitate what the Philistines did in the world. They brought it back carrying it in a cart but God never called them to carry it in a cart, God called them to lift it up with pries, this was the design of God. But because they imitated the pattern of the world, one man touched the glory of God and dropped dead after it bumped and almost fell down to the ground. So, the reason why City Takers is not just another conference is because we’re not here to imitate the world. We’re not here to have a little emotional experience where you pull a card of entertainment into the service and there are no lives changed. Across America and around the world we see conferences, we see events that take place where the people stay demon possessed, nobody gets healed, and people are not edified. They go, have a few words and they leave the same, nothing transforms them, and nothing draws them closer to God. City Takers is a movement because what has happened in this place is not going to die after June 27 and June 28. It’s going to continue to carry on in our hearts for years to come. What has taken place in our hearts during this conference will be written in the books of the deliverances, the healings, the miracles, and the power of God. That’s what we want. We want to bring God’s glory to the earth, so that His presence will change our generation. This is not just a conference. This is the movement of God, the glory of God.

CG:  So is it true that you want to have 20 kids?

Pastor Andy Arguez: (Laughing) are you serious about the question?

CG:  We’re serious about the answer!  (More laughing)

Pastor Andy Arguez: Is this like behind the scenes?

CG:  Yes it’s like behind the scenes.

Pastor Andy Arguez: Well.., if that’s the case, I want from 3 to 5 kids. ASAP man! JK; No…I’ve asked the Lord as many as He would put in our hearts to be. As many kids as He would have. I’m asking Him that in that moment I would know, this is it. But I’ve always wanted for it to be 3-5 kids. Whichever it is that is God’s will. But I do love kids. I love kids.

CG:  Awesome!

CG:  What are three things that anyone, not just pastors or leaders, can do to start taking their city?

Pastor Andy Arguez: Number One: It’s vitally important that the pastor or senior pastor or whoever it may be receives the divine design to take over the city. For example, Dr. Yonghi Cho was given the design of the cell groups by God and our spiritual father was given the design of the vision to evangelize, affirm, disciple and to send. Therefore, it’s very important to have a design. God spoke to Moses when he went up the mountain and God gave him the specific design for the arc, the details and the measurements. God gave him the specific design that he was to use in order to manifest what God represented in heaven down on the earth.

Number Two: Once you have the design, pattern and blueprints, warfare must be done in the heavens. What do I mean by warfare? The bible talks about it in Ephesians chapter 6.12, “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood but against the principalities and powers of darkness in spiritual places.” We must understand that our battle is not in the natural, our battle is spiritual; it’s demonic. The powers of darkness that takes place in South Korea… they have 24/7 prayer, intercession, and birthing.

There are two types of battles, the militant battle and the legal right battle. We believe, our pastors believe, and I’m convinced that when we win the military battle, in other words, when we take the legal right of the enemy and we go bombard the heavens, God will then clear the heavens, and bring down the manifestation needed to take over our cities.

So first we need the right design. Then there must be prayer and intercession to clean and deliver the airs of all principalities and powers.

Number Three: Go out and evangelize, take over the city, preach the gospel, advance the kingdom, heal the sick, and have the people be trained and equipped to move in the supernatural. Allow the Holy Spirit to move through the people. Have a powerful, powerful design to retain the souls in the church.

When you have these three things, the right design, prayer, intercession, fasting, and a generation of evangelists and of people that move in the supernatural to go bring the harvest you will see a great increase in your ministry.

CG: Why City Takers?

Pastor F. Hechavarria: Because it’s time for a takeover!  Do you realize that God wants to use you to snatch the lives of young people out of the hands of the enemy?  There is a generation that’s waiting for a rescuer.  There is a generation that’s waiting for someone to rise up and make a declaration that they will take over their cities.  My father in the Lord has a hunger and a passion to take over Miami and what we’ve done is joined with the man of God to take a stand here in Miami and declare that Miami is a city for God!  City Takers is a response to the hunger and the passion in the heart of the man of God that there is a need to take this city.  We’ve decided to put our lives behind just to go in the search of somebody else’s life. 

CG: Define a City Taker.  Can anyone be one?

Pastor F. Hechavarria: You who are reading this, you can also be a city taker!  It doesn’t have to do with degrees, race, age, it has to do with passion, with hunger.  How desperate are you to see God turn your city upside down.  If you make a decision to go after God, to go after those in your community and neighborhood that need Jesus Christ you are a city taker.  The bible declares that God chose you before you were in your mother’s womb to do great things.  So you are a city taker!  All it takes is for you to make a decision and you’ll see the changes in your school, community, everywhere you go, you’ll see an entire city turned upside down.

CG: How do you plan to stay connected with the other youth leaders that came to the City Taker’s conference?

Pastor F. Hechavarria: We’re going to keep in contact with them in a very powerful way.  We have enabled our website to be a place where you can come and upload your pictures, video’s, blogs, everything that you are doing in your city to take over it.  City takers are not just a few of us here in Miami but leaders from all around the globe who came to this conference.  Another way we are going to stay in touch is by getting together again at our next conference in 2009 that you can already register for on our website.

CG: What are your expectations now that the conference is over?  What about the rest of 2008?

Pastor F. Hechavarria: The conference was not just a weekend thing.  The main purpose of this conference was to instill in young people’s hearts the hunger to take over their cities.  One thing that I’m expecting to change is to see those that were far away from having passion to take over or perhaps not that interested in someone else’s life or how well someone else was doing to getting full of fire to take over their city.  Did you know that there are teenage girls around your neighborhood that are getting pregnant around the age of 12 or 13?  Did you know that there are young people that are being shot right now even as you read this?  Did you know that there are young people that are taking their own lives by committing suicide?  Do you realize that there is so much need in your city and unless you stand and become a voice those people will be on their way to Hell and there will be no one to rescue them?  That’s what I’m expecting to change.  I’m expecting for you to change your perspective about your community. I’m expecting for you to go after the lost. I’m expecting for you to really have that passion to take over your city engraved in your heart.  That you will go to sleep thinking about City Takers.  That you will get up in the morning thinking about how you can take over your city.  When you do that I give you my word you will begin to see God moving like he’s never moved before in your life, family, church, and city.

CG: During your session you mentioned that you had a message but the Holy Spirit had you minister instead.  Why do you think that God was so persistent in having you minister instead of giving the message that He gave you?

Pastor F. Hechavarria:  Great question.  Why did God tell me to take half an hour of my session just to be able to minister?  One of the main ways that my father in the Lord has taught me to take over a city is through signs, wonders, and miracles.  What good is it if all we talk about God who can heal us when we never demonstrate it?  What good is it that we stand in the city and we proclaim with a loud voice that God can heal the sick, deliver the bound, and raise the dead but there is no manifestation of what we are declaring?  Declaration without manifestation is void. 

God wants you to manifest what you are declaring.  I believe it was so impacting because there were so many young people in there that they had heard about a healing God but they had never seen a foot that was flat to make an arch.  They had never seen a leg that was this short to get aligned to another leg.  They had never seen an arm grow to reach the length of the other arm.  They had never seen the miracles that they saw there.  So that’s why I believe it was essential that God impressed me. Weeks before my session came He told me, “Son, I want you to demonstrate. Go minister and demonstrate my power amongst those that are merely talking.”

CG:  You mentioned you had not planned on not going into the crowd and ministering, why the change of plans?

Apostle G. Maldonado:  I knew from the beginning. The Lord said to me I will change the destiny and purpose of many lives today so I knew the message but in the end the Holy Spirit ministered deliverance and healing.  In fact, the Lord said the word would be delivering people in their seats.  And that’s what happened.  Destinies were changed completely.

CG:  Amen.  You preached about doing God’s purpose versus “our own” plan.  How can we tell the difference, how do we know when we are doing God’s purpose and not our own?

Apostle G. Maldonado:  Well, we notice in the Scriptures there are many things that teach us how to confirm whether we are doing His will or not.  I talked about doing man’s plans and Gods purpose.  Ok, many people have their own plans but they don’t know their purpose.  How do you know I’m doing the will of God?   Which is the same thing as the purpose of God: there are many things.  Number one is:  peace in their heart, number two is there’s joy in what they do, number three is the grace of God is always favoring them and backing up what they do and number four, you will see the provision of God.  If you are doing the purpose of God you will see that God provides for His purpose and lastly, the protection of God.  If you have seen during your problems the protection of God, it’s because you’re in the center of His purpose.

CG: Amen!! Can I ask you one more?

Apostle G. Maldonado:  Yes. (smiling)

CG:  (enthusiastic) There are about 2,000 youth out there screaming and shouting getting delivered saying they’re “going to take the city!”  How do you feel as the spiritual father of that youth?

Apostle G. Maldonado: Well many people often say to me, “Pastor you’re my inspiration” and I will tell them they’re my inspiration because when I see what I invested my life in, I know I’m doing the purpose of God if I’m inspiring somebody else to do their purpose.  This is what God said to me, “They will pay the arena” and I know from looking at those people out there after this message tonight, you will see doctors, lawyers, presidents, senators, and congressman come out because they now understand they have a decision to make.  They either do their own plans or they do the purpose of God and I believe in my heart that 95% of those young people received what I imparted to them. So their lives will be changed.  As a father and mentor I feel fulfilled, again, because I am doing His purpose.  I am fulfilled. It was worth it to cut my vacation one-day short.

CG:  We all really appreciate that pastor. You like preaching to the youth better than the adults?   

Apostle G. Maldonado: Yes, they fire me up! They fill me with passion!

Pastor Melina along with Pastor Frank sang along with the band as they jumped around and danced with the rest of the youth. Once the concert was completed, they announced that they would be ministering to every youth in the conference, to seal and finalize everything that had been preached.

It is time to take over the city!!!!