Sid: Now I have a guest I don’t believe I’ve personally met you Robby his name is Robby Dawkins but he has something to offer. The best word I know in Hebrew to describe Robby Dawkins is this guy has got chutzpah. Now the big question Robby is “Do you know what chutzpah is that you have (Laughing)?”
Robby: (Laughing) I have heard the word but I am not quite sure what it means.
Sid: It means nerve, it means boldness, I’m describing you. Am I nailing you right now?
Robby: (Laughing) I think that my wife would completely agree with that.
Sid: (Laughing)
Robby: (Laughing) with that word.
Sid: Now in my notes you were born a missionary family, you were saved as a child but there was a major thing that happened in your life your parents brought a heroin addict home to live in your home.
Robby: Yes.
Sid: Now I don’t know if I would bring a heroin addict to live in my home! How did you have such chutzpa?
Robby: (Laughing) Well at the time I was 9 years old so I really didn’t have much choice in the matter but it was my dad’s idea…
Sid: No no how did he have so much chutzpa that’s the better question?
Robby: I think it’s a holy chutzpa that comes through. Yeah he had just seen so many young people that were just roaming the streets that had run away that were getting into drugs and it just broke his heart you know. And he wanted to do something about it and you know this is something this was back in the ‘70s you know it would have been in the early mid 70’s and he didn’t know of very many programs you know teen challenge wasn’t in our area or things like that. So there wasn’t a lot of ministries in the area that he could draw to so he just said “You know we need to help him.” And so he went out one night found this young man and brought him home my wife…I mean my mother said “Well where are we going to put him?” And he says you know we’ve got a bed beside Robby’s bed.
Sid: Oh no.
Robby: And so yeah this is not…this is not something I recommend but you know the Lord really did something spectacular with it. This story really demonstrates the redemptive power of God I feel. Because…
Sid: I could have never put a heroin addict next to my daughter.
Robby: Exactly, exactly.
Sid: How old were you?
Robby: I was 9 years old, 9 years old.
Sid: I mean you have some gutsy parents okay (Laughing).
Robby: But they were you know this young man was just in you know terrible you know DT’s, withdrawals, terrible and of course with heroine there’s sickness involved and he was just throwing up you know constantly and just shaking terrible and just screaming out profanity just in pain, and so I saw some pretty bazaar behavior. After many days I’d woken up in the early morning hours and he was just standing beside my bed and I kind of you know jumped back in bed because the behavior I had seen from him was just so bazaar. And he had his arm on the window sill we had kind of a high window sill and he was looking out in the back ground and his back was turned to me. And I looked at him and I said “Are you okay, I said “Do I need to get my dad and he turned and when he turned around and looked at me you know the whole front of his t-shirt was just you know wet and it was tears tears were just streaming down his face. And he turned and he looked at me and he said “Robby Jesus came in the room this morning” and he said “I woke up early this morning and I was feeling so sick and I said “God who would want somebody like me and why would these people help me?” He had been prostituting himself on the street for drugs, he had a dad who had beaten him nearly every day and you know why he had run away from home. And he was just trying to get enough money to eat and do drugs. And he said “God who would want somebody like me?” And Jesus just appeared at the end of the bed and opened His arms and He called out his name and he said “I’ll take you.” And he got up and he walked over and he just Jesus embraced him and he said “He’s took it all away it’s all gone. He hugged me and He rocked me.” And he said “It went away” and he just began to speak all of the things in my ear that I never heard my dad say things of hope, things of love, things of affirmation and he said “It’s all gone.” And he said “The addictions gone the shame of the things that I did the hatred for my dad all of it just left all in that moment.”
Sid: But wait the heroin addiction was an instant withdrawal.
Robby: Instant.
Sid: Did he have DTs you know did he have any suffering at all after it was gone?
Robby: After no, it was instantly gone.
Sid: Isn’t that physiologically impossible (Laughing).
Robby: Absolutely but no spiritually you know God can breakthrough He’s made these bodies and He broke through just the natural barriers and transformed his physical being.
Sid: What effect did this have on a 9 year old kid that’s hearing profanity, I’ll tell you something.
Robby: Yeah.
Sid: Yes Jesus appearing was instrumental but what your mom and dad did I think that broke it more than Jesus appearing from what I’m hearing you say.
Robby: Yeah yeah I mean he could not I would hear him tell the story afterwards he just could not believe that people could be that caring he had not experienced that at home. You know he had experienced the rejection and a lot of hurt and he was just shocked you know that there was just that much love. And I got up and after he told it to me and I ran to my parents bedroom because I was just overwhelmed with emotion and I just literally burst in and you’ve got to remember I was still kind of you know it was daybreak so it wasn’t fully light yet and I burst in my parent’s bedroom and it woke my dad up and he turned the light on and he said “What did he do?” And you know because he thought something inappropriate had happened and so he scared me and as soon as I burst in the room I just burst into tears. And through tears I told my parents you know trying to get the words out and choking through them I told them what he had just related to me and I looked at my parents and I said “That’s what I want to see the rest of my life.” I want to see… because you know Sid his face completely looked different. His…there was a sense in the room I was a child and I’m 9 years old but I could feel, I could feel something in that room. I could feel what I would now know as God’s presence the reality of God’s tangible presence. As a matter of fact Sid there’s 2 people right now that are feeling that right now they’re feeling that tingling and they’re feeling…
Sid: No there’s 3 I’m feeling that too.
Robby: They’re feeling God’s presence.
Sid: There’s 3 I’m feeling that too (Laughing).
Robby: It’s right there Sid I’m feeling it and I know and there’s 2 people…
Sid: You’re 5 (Laughing).
Robby: And yeah and one of them is somebody who’s battling they’re struggling with drugs right now and right now Jesus is doing what he did to my friend He’s doing to you right now He’s breaking the power of that addiction off of you right now. And it’s going now by the authority of Christ we thank You for that Jesus.
Sid: Well and let me it jump a little bit you’re now a Youth Pastor, your discouraged, you young you get a phone call and there’s someone on the other line talking about her dad what happened?
Robby: Yeah you know that was so incredible because I had prayed for so many people for healing and nobody got better they got worse and I was just…
Sid: I did the same thing so I can relate go ahead (Laughing).
Robby: It was a running joke…
Sid: But wait did you have someone die on you I did.
Robby: Multiple people it was just a running joke at the church where I worked at the church where I was a Youth Pastor it was a running joke “Don’t have Dawkins pray for you he could turn paper cuts into cancer (Laughing). And some people I would pray for people and they got worse you know and I mean it was just like that “I’m not saving people’s lives and not pray for healing.
Sid: (Laughing).
Robby: And something happened and it is so true and something did happen there and as I was…I got a phone call and I was in a particularly not good mood I just had some tension things that happened earlier and I just was I just was upset. And I was not in a good mood so there wasn’t any you know it’s not that I earned this or deserved it it wasn’t as if I was coming off a 21 day fast you know. It was just I wasn’t in the best even attitude and the phone rang and this woman as she opened the phonebook and just stuck a finger on a church name and called. And she said “I’m in a family we’re not church people” she said “but you know something is happening right now that we need help on and my dad is going in for his 3rd heart bypass surgery.” And she said that “The doctors don’t have much hope for him my mom and I had to talk him into doing the surgery they didn’t want to do it and I need help.” And I’m sitting there thinking “This poor woman she doesn’t realize that she drew the short straw when she got me answering the phone.”
Sid: That’s right with your track record but go ahead (Laughing).
Robby: That’s exactly what I thought “This poor lady.” And as I started to pray I mean there was not one prayer for healing whatsoever I was just praying “Lord comfort them I literally prayed Lord that he had all his affairs in order that he has the proper insurance in place.” And because everything I’m hearing from her he’s dying and she wasn’t even asking for prayer for healing she didn’t even know to do that.” And right in the middle of it I heard the Lord say clearly to me He said “Get out on a limb.” And I was like “Get out on a limb?” I don’t like climbing trees I don’t like heights I’m kind of nervous with heights and I was like “What does it even mean?” And then He said “Take a risk.” And a lot of people say “Take a risk” and I do too now but nobody I’d never heard that before or teachers say that I’d never heard anybody. And I’m like “There’s no risk here to take.”
Sid: You know most people approach faith without that aspect, without risk. In other words say “Well if God tells me to do something I’ll do it” there’s no faith there!
Robby: Exactly I say that very thing I’m glad to hear that you say it too because I say it that very thing. And so I was like there’s no risk here they’re not even Christians in my perspective and in my time I’m like “God barely likes to heal His own kids His own followers why is He going to heal one of them.” And then the Lord spoke to me and said and this is from the old King James you know from the book of Psalms it says “Open your mouth and I’ll feel it.” And I had heard that over and over again you know my parents had used it as…but it always was as a passage of provision so I always applied it to food you know “Open your mouth and I’ll fill it…”
Sid: I had plenty of food I always applied it to what I said I mean take a look at me I’m just teasing (Laughing).
Robby: (Laughing) I got you beat on that one Sid I’m tons bigger I’m a bigger guy here.
Sid: Okay.
Robby: I assure you, but I was like I had just eaten lunch I didn’t need any more food it’s like exactly you know I don’t need that. And so I was like man what does it even mean and it occurred to me “Man I want to give you something, I want to give you open your mouth and I want to give you what you normally wouldn’t say.” And so there was not…again like you were saying “Well hears what you say just say this” and it wasn’t there. And so I just said “You know I just really sense God is about to (And I wasn’t sure what I was going to say next). And it’s almost like it flew out of my mouth and it’s like I had to go there with expectancy and it just came out “Completely heal your Father.” And I said “As a matter of fact your father is going to have a brand new heart God’s giving your father a brand new heart.”
Sid: Stop, stop, stop, stop for a second.
Robby: Sure.
Sid: After you said that when you said it what was going on inside of Robby?
Robby: Well, it kind of everything was kind of coming out so fast that it was almost like as I’m hearing it is I’m hearing it for the first time as I’m saying it you know so it’s not like I’m hearing it in my Spirit before. I felt an encouragement to step out and say something. I didn’t know…I didn’t really understand about authority I didn’t understand about that.
Sid: It sounds to me like you had what is called a mind bypass it wasn’t in your mind it came right out it came right out in your spirit.
Robby: I would liken it to that yeah yes exactly (Laughing). It was just like it was just like me saying the words “God is about to…” was just the vehicle to release something that the Lord wanted to say.” Almost like Sid that it wasn’t going to happen until I said it that way and when I did it just came out like that. And I added to it which it really wasn’t an addition because I didn’t have any foreknowledge about it but He’s also going to give him brand new lungs to go with it. She had not said anything about lungs and as soon as I said it I said “Now wait a minute” I just totally interrupted my prayer and I said “Now wait a minute you need to understand something I’m no healer, I said as a matter of fact I’ve never prayed for anybody and seen anybody healed.”
Sid: (Laughing).
Robby: And I said “As a matter of fact it’s probably a bad thing that I prayed for your dad because most of the people I pray for end up dying or getting worse or get more sick or things get worse for them.” And I said “I wouldn’t listen to anything I just said….
Sid: Hey hey don’t say that Robby do not say that when I take a gulp of water there could be a disaster on this set but go ahead.
Robby: (Laughing) And so I had no I had no idea you know I had no idea of what had just happened it just kind of was there and came. And so then she…I said “So I said I’ve heard of people getting healed and I know of people and I know people sort of theologically I believe it but I just never see it I don’t know of anything about this.” And she stopped and she goes “You say God is going to give my dad a brand new heart.” And I just kind of chuckled and I said “Yes but you need to understand something and she goes “Thank you.” And she hung up the phone and man when I heard that click of that phone it was like my heart dropped to my toes. And I thought I bet this is some TV exposé show.
Sid: (Laughing)
Robby: Exposing pastors who make declarations of healing but actually kill people with their prayers and I just fell right into the trap. And I mean my heart started racing and I literally was like “I got to get my résumé together.”
Sid: (Laughing).
Robby: Because I’m going to get fired, we’re going to get sued, I’m going to lose my position I mean everything my mind started racing in panic. Now I know that to be the enemy that feeling that caution and all of that. And you know Sid there are some people that won’t pray because they feel that and they think it’s their feelings or they’ll even think that’s God stopping them from doing something foolish.
Sid: We really do have an enemy but bottom line because we’re running out of time tell me what happened with her dad.
Robby: Sure. She comes back the next week well she calls me later that day and she called and through her tears I mean I could barely understand her. Matter of fact the first time I hung up on her and she called back because I couldn’t understand her and she said that “My dad has a brand new heart she goes they opened him up and her did not have any, he had had a valve from a pig to replace a damaged valve and it was completely gone it had disappeared everything was human there was not even scar tissue from previous surgery.
Sid: Wait a minute I heard of metal being replaced by bone but this really trumps that a pigs valve being replaced with a real valves (Laughing).
Robby: The human and the doctor looked and said “Your dad still told the wife your husband has a wife of a 30 year old man.” And she said “You didn’t know this but he had had half of a lung removed.” She goes “I didn’t bring up lungs because the lungs weren’t the issue.” But she said “When they…you know because they have to separate the ribs and you know do all of that but when they did they checked and they saw a whole rib and they matter of fact they sent him for an x-ray to verify that he had a whole lung in place of the ½ lung.
Sid: You know this is a creative miracle.
Robby: Yeah, yeah it was.
Sid: You had just become normal and normal is defined by the Bible….The thing I want to get into when we come back has to do with the chutzpa that you operate under but your not the only one in your family that operates under holy chutzpa your wife did something that astounds me more than the story you just told me.
Robby: Yeah.
Sid: But we’ll talk about that when we come back….what kind of feedback are you getting from ordinary Christians that start harnessing this power?
Bobby: Well its incredible, reports of people coming back of people that are going out and praying the same way and seeing the same results. And you know I mean they’re tapping into the reality of Christ in them that people have been praying for change in the community and transformation in their family I mean the answer if Christ in you. And if we have relationship with Jesus Christ then it’s there and the ingredients to do all of the things Jesus did lives in us if we have a relationship and you are filled with the Holy Spirit.
Sid: And you teach the prophetic, you teach how to heal.
Robby: Absolutely.
Sid: But you teach something that so few believers understand and ministering the presence of God. I want to talk about that also when we come…I got too much to talk to Robby about…