The Eric Metaxas Show - #138 - Dr. Chauncey Crandall

Episode Date: June 15, 2026

Today On The Eric Metaxas Show, Eric talks with Dr. Chauncey Crandall about his new book Touching God: Understanding And Experiencing The Holy Spirit. Dr. Crandall, a board certified physician in internal medicine and cardiology, shares how he first encountered the power of the Holy Spirit, how the death of his son deepened his surrender to God, and why he believes Christians need the baptism of the Holy Spirit. He also retells the remarkable story of praying for a man who had been declared dead and was being prepared for the morgue, only for the man to come back with a powerful testimony that changed his life.⭐ ORDER NOW:Revolution: The Birth of the Greatest Nation in the History of the World📕: https://a.co/d/0ir3NlapTODAY'S SPONSORS:⭐ FREE SLAVES with CSI: https://csi-usa.org/metaxas/⚖️ Legal Help Center - Get Free Legal Help Today: https://www.legalhelpcenter.com/🛏️ MyPillow — Save BIG with code ERIC: https://www.mypillow.com/☀️ Honest, fast, and free Medicare plan guidance: https://askchapter.com/metaxas/💧 Sentry H2O: https://sentryh2o.com/

Visit BetMGM Casino and check out the newest exclusive. The Price is Right Fortune Pick. BetMGM and GameSense remind you to play responsibly. 19 plus to wager. Ontario only. Please play responsibly. If you have questions or concerns about your gambling or someone close to you, please contact connects Ontario at 1-866-531-2,600 to speak to an advisor,

free of charge. BetMGEMGEMP operates pursuant to an operating agreement with Eye Gaming, Ontario. The 2026 Chevrolet Tracks is the stylish SUV for those on the move. And with the standard Chevy safety assist package, you have the backup to handle every turn with confidence. The 26 tracks, start your build at Chevrolet.ca. Hey there, folks. Welcome to the program.

This is the program. Today, we're going to be talking to a renowned medical doctor about God, The Holy Spirit. Remember the Holy Spirit? Yeah, that's God. That's the third person of the Trinity. The doctor with whom I'm going to speak is Dr. Chauncey Crandall the fourth. He's one of the most respected voices in modern medicine, board-certified expert in both internal medicine and cardiology.

He's trained in the most prestigious institutions in the world. Yale University School of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Beth Israel Hospital. And it goes on and on. It's a joy to have him back. Dr. Chauncey Crandall, welcome back. Thank you, Eric. Thank you very much. I tried to get it all in and I failed. I want to talk to you about your new book called Touching God, Understanding and Experiencing the Holy Spirit.

Now, this is something you and I have talked about. I talk about it in my own life. What led you to write a book about this? What's the thesis, basically, of the book? Well, the bottom line, Eric, is that my... Most of us are not even taught about the Holy Spirit or know about the Holy Spirit. I was raised in a Presbyterian church, and they never talked about the Holy Spirit. So it wasn't something that people knew about.

The Holy Spirit is here. He's part of the Trinity, Father's Son, and Holy Spirit. But no one ever talks about the Holy Spirit. I thought he just needed to have a relationship with Jesus. That was it. we were out there by ourselves. We were going up if we were born again believer. But then the Holy Spirit came to me through many different directions, the power of the Holy Spirit and the kingdom of God. So as believers, we carry the kingdom. And that was something I really didn't know about

even as an early believer. So the Holy Spirit encapsulates all of that. And you've experienced the miraculous that's almost putting it mildly because you've experienced you wrote a book about the raising of the dead I don't remember what was the title of that book Raising the Dead

Really? Really? Okay so I got that right there are a lot of folks that I think with good reason they wrinkle their noses they're skeptical because you and I both have seen abuses of this or sloppiness because it's real, but I think a lot of people are puzzled about how do I approach it without going off?

And I think there are many people that they're so timid they would rather avoid it entirely. Well, I think the main thing is that we know that the Holy Spirit is not pushy, he's very gentle, and he's with us, you know. and Christ is at the right hand of God, but he sent his Holy Spirit to be with us, Eric, and that is the main point. So we're not in this world alone. The Holy Spirit is alongside us, and I never knew that. I was always battling in the flesh when I was praying for people and using the name of Jesus,

which is very powerful. You know that, the name of Jesus. And when Christ went to be with the Lord, he left. us a couple things he left us his name the name of jesus it has power he left us his word uh the word of god is very powerful you know i've been on on the plains of africa with half a million people there and we just get up and read from the word of god read the bible and just the word going out has power it's really empowered by the holy spirit and then the lord has left us the holy spirit he left us the Comforter that it talks about in the really the beginning of the book of Acts when we transition

from Christ's life. Luke writes about that in the book of Luke to the activity of believers in the book of Acts. And this is called the Holy Spirit. And he left us. He told us in the upper room or before that not to leave and go out discipling until you've received. receive what we call the baptism of the Holy Spirit. It's a baptism of fire. It's a baptism of service. It gives you new boldness. It gives you new authority. And when we receive Christ, there's an impartation of life into us that the Holy Spirit is involved with. But then there's another baptism called the baptism of the Holy Spirit where there's an impartation of power. Now that my... I mean, I just want to tell you that I just,

A couple days ago, Easter Sunday, I was preaching in our church here in New York City. And I spoke about this. I mean, this idea that Jesus ascends into heaven. He tells his followers to Terry, to wait in Jerusalem. And I will send power from on high. He sends the Holy Spirit down. And they're baptized in the Holy Spirit. They're speaking in tongues, in other tongues.

It's this miraculous thing. But there are a lot of Christians who think that was for them. And that there's nothing like that. And they got uncomfortable with, you know, talking about the baptism and the Holy Spirit. They say, is that biblical and so on and so forth? So I want to ask you, first of all, when did you begin to experience this? What was your first experience of the miraculous or the Holy Spirit? You mentioned that you were in Africa.

I know you were with Reinhard Bunky, one of the great evangelists in the history of the church, preaching sometimes to millions. it's hard to take in. Was it with this ministry that you first experienced the miraculous in Africa, or was it before that? No, it was it. Eric, it was before that. I had a young son who was very sick with leukemia. He was 11. Everyone said he would die.

And all the medical knowledge I had said that would happen also. Very sick, very sweet young boy. And I needed everything that the Lord could give me. and I read in my Bible about this experience with the Holy Spirit in the book of Acts. I attended Presbyterian churches and even some congregational churches that did not have this experience. And I cried out to God, Lord, if this gift is real, I need everything you can give me. And one day a missionary came up out of Mexico and he started explaining the Holy spirit and talking about miracles, signs, and wonders that he had witnessed in Mexico on the

mission field. And I was drawn to that. And I saw actual physical evidence of God moving among the people there in the congregation. And it confirmed the word. And I was touched. I was touched that day, Eric. I was actually what they call slain in the spirit. I fell to the ground. It was a dramatic moment in my life, new boldness came on me, new authority, new hunger, Eric. That was the other key. New hunger for the word of God. What year was this, uh, Chodsey? That was a year 2000. So you, um, I've never been slain in the Holy Spirit. Uh, I believe I experienced the baptism, the Holy Spirit in 1988 and speak in tongues and I've seen the miraculous. I've experienced the miraculous. But a lot of people talk about that experience of being slain in the Holy Spirit.

It's never happened for me. I've had so many people pray for me and I get nothing and I'm resentful. But I'm always curious to hear, you know, what was that like for you? Because listen, you're a man of science, if ever there was one. What did it describe that? Let me, let me describe it. There was a line of this missionary asked for people to come forward for prayer. And as they did, there was a long line and I saw moves of God where people were going down, they were touched, they were moving in different directions. So I said to myself, well, I'll get in line. And I don't know anyone here, so I'm not threatened by anybody. And let me see what this is about. And when I got in line, Eric, my whole body started vibrating under the power of God. I mean, I was shaking, uncontrolled

shaking and as a scientist as a clinician, I kept looking and trying to analyze myself clinically, what is happening to me? What is taking place? And as I, you know, proceeded to move forward in the line and this missionary prayed for me, I was immediately blown back about 15 feet and landed on my back and I wasn't out by any means. I was just shocked. How did this happen? And I can remember crawling to a seat where an old woman was sitting and I said, did you see what happened? I don't understand this. And she said, doctor, because I was dressed in my scrub outfit from the hospital. She said, never forget this moment.

You've been touched by the Holy Spirit. And I said, I have. I said, I don't know this experience. How did this happen? And I was very puzzled. I sat in that chair for maybe another 40 minutes trying to figure out what took place. But I changed, Eric. something dramatic happened inside me, and I went home that night, and I tried to review everything

with my wife. But right then and there, Eric, a dramatic change happened where I had a new hunger for God and a new boldness for the word of God and the kingdom of God, and I continue to march and seek, and it's been that way ever since. Well, I've seen this happen many times. My friend Ken Fish, praise for people and just a couple of months ago he was in Connecticut and he prays for people

and you can see them shaking and going wobbly and womb they go down it is absolutely never happened to me but I don't have any doubt that this is real because there's some people who kind of

they turn it into a theatrical thing and you can't figure out exactly are people going along with it or you know just to be polite but I have seen it clearly where you used to say, look, there's no way that this is fake or that people are, this is real. And so the question is what is that?

We're talking to Ben, Dr. I almost said, Ben, we're talking to Dr. Chauncey Crandall, we'll be right back. Texas crypto.com. They're bringing access to cryptocurrency wealth to real Americans. Crypto is supercharging President Trump's America First Economic Miracle, and now you can be a part of it. I've partnered with Block Trust IRA because their mission perfectly aligned with President Trump's Make America Great Again agenda, smashing down the barriers between loyal patriots and the financial freedom they deserve.

Their animus AI trading platform works 24-7 analyzing market data and executing advanced crypto strategies that are beyond simply buy and hold, helping true American patriots build impressive wealth in Trump's historic economic boom. There's a reason their system was named the number one crypto technology platform by Bitcoin magazine from over 1,500 global competitors.

Whether you're a teacher, truck driver, small business owner, or retiree, watching inflation, eat away your 401k, Block Trust IRA's advanced animus AI gives red-blooded Americans the same advantages as those coastal elites. Right now, their clients are seeing over 250% returns on their investments, and with military-grade security investments are protected by up to $200 million in insurance. Don't wait, visit metaxis crypto.com and find out how they can help you to do. join the Trump Crusade Financial Revolution that's finally giving forgotten Americans access to the greatest crypto wealth opportunity in history.

For a limited time, they're offering my viewers up to $2,500 in bonus crypto when you open an account. Crypto created 80,000 new millionaires last year under Trump's phenomenal economic leadership. Why not you next? Welcome back. I'm talking to Dr. Chauncey Crandall, a medical doctor who's written a book called touching God, understanding, and experiencing the Holy Spirit. So I was asking you, Chauncey, about your initial experience along these lines.

So something happened to you. And again, I'm sort of jealous because nothing like that has ever happened to me to be powerfully touched by God. And this led you, you say, on a journey. And since then, my goodness, you've prayed for a lot of people. You wrote a book about the raising of the dead. I think a lot of people have a jaundiced view. They think, I don't, I'm not, I'm not buying it.

But you, uh, you really are a medical doctor. So it would be, be hard to reconcile your stature in the medical world with what you're talking about as being somehow not real. Riesas knows a thing or two about great combinations. Chocolate and peanut butter, obviously. But there's more than one way to Rises. From indulgent Ries's big cups with caramel to crunchy. to crunchy Reese's pieces and Reese's miniatures.

There's a delicious Reese's for every mood. It's the same combo you love, just with more ways to enjoy it. So whether you're snacking, sharing, or just treating yourself, nothing else is Reese's. Well, you know, Eric, something happened to me

where I'm all in right now, you know, on this walk with the Lord. I'm all in. You know, this child I told you about, we prayed for five years, and he passed on, and that was really a big turning point in my life. I really didn't want any more of God. I didn't like him at that point.

I said, you could have fixed everything, and it was a big struggle for me, and as I held his body in my arms, I really cried out to God that I needed to make a decision what I was going to do with my life, and if I was going to turn from the Lord at that moment, because the results weren't what I was looking for. And in that hour and a half of holding the,

that dead child. I cried and I sought God. And then the Lord revealed to me during those moments of everything that he had done for me in the past. And I reflected on that. And I said, okay, I don't understand what happened. A lot of people out there, Eric, have been hurt and they've turned from God. And that's what the devil wants, you know. He wants you to turn from the things of God. But that day, I told the Lord, no, I'm not going to turn from you, but now I'm sold out. I'm all in 100%. And really, I'm a dead man walking in this world. The world has no influence on me anymore. That I will do your work. And for my child, the loss of my child, I want a million souls for the kingdom of God. And that has been the pursuit. I think I'm close to those numbers. and it's a constant drive, it's a constant mission, it's a constant refocus back on the things of God.

Because, you know, Eric, there are temptations in the world. The world draws us in all sorts of directions, fame, prestige, whatever you want to call it, money. And so you constantly have to readjust and get back on track with the things of God. And when you see the move of God, Eric, when you see the power of the Holy Spirit, when you lay hands on people, people, and you cast devils out of them, and you see these devils coming out. And when you put hands on them and they are slain in the spirit, for a Yale-trained guy, a guy that went to Harvard and Virginia and all these universities, and you see evidence of the power of God with all this training background, you cannot deny it anymore. And that's what drives me, that God is real. He wants a relationship.

with his people, and he wants to give them power for the kingdom of God to advance in this world. You know, it's moving to hear you talk about the death of your child. And it reminds me that anybody out there who says, well, it didn't work for me. I prayed and it didn't work. You're saying that it didn't work for you. And we all have questions and frustrations. Lord, I've seen you do this. this or I believe you could do this.

And the Bible says, pray and I prayed and it didn't work. And that's real. And there's a mystery there. My friend Ken Fish, I mentioned he has a severely autistic daughter. He has prayed for so many people and seen miraculous healings. So there is a mystery here. And this is where you say, God is God because we can't figure this out. Well, you're right.

And I don't know the answer. We'll get to know when I get up to heaven. But, you know, now I've got a, my son as part of the great cloud of witnesses in heaven, you know, you know, really encouraging me to keep pushing, to keep going. And that's powerful in my life and in the life of my wife as well. So, but people need to know that there's more than just sitting in a church pew, that you have been given the name of Jesus and his mighty Holy Spirit. and you can change your neighborhood,

you can change your office, you can change the nations, but we must dig in. God needs to be in all parts of our life here. Well, I've been saying that for some time, and I've taken some heat for that because I say God also needs to be involved in politics. God needs to be,

God wants us to take him everywhere, folks, everywhere, not to force him. We'll be right back. The new book is Touching God by Dr. Chauncey Crandall. Welcome back, folks. I'm talking to Dr. Chauncey Crandall, who's a medical doctor of great renown, who's written a book called Touching God, Understanding, Experiencing the Holy Spirit. So Chauncey, if people get this book, what will they find in it? What is in the book, Touching God?

Well, I think you're going to find out that there's another experience that you can have with the Lord. It's just not about salvation. It's about receiving the baptism of the Holy Spirit, which is a second experience that the Lord wants you to have where you'll be endued with power from on high to do his work. You know, it's a lot of work, Eric, to go out and proclaim Christ. You have to have great boldness. You have to have authority. You need good recall regarding the word of God. So the Lord has all this ammunition that he can give you, but it requires the Holy Spirit.

Spirit to really move within your life. And this book will explain it and it'll go through it. And what I really like about it and has, you know, each chapter is preceded with the story regarding the power of the Holy Spirit in my life or in my practice or in Third World Nations where the Holy Spirit has come on the same. Give us a story because I love stories. Well, you're getting me off guard here a little bit. you know, even with Jeff Markin, who was raised from the dead,

the Holy Spirit spoke to me that morning in the hospital when he was sitting dead in the emergency room on his way to the morgue. And I'm walking down the hallway, and the Holy Spirit speaks to me, turn around and pray for that dead man. Now, hold on a second, hold on, because you've been on the program, but I'm assuming people tuning in right now aren't familiar with this. You were on this program a few years ago talking about this,

and you put it in a book, and that was the book Raising the Dead. Correct. Okay, so this is an amazing story. I've heard you tell this a couple of times, but you, you describe, you know, as only a doctor could the deadness of this man. This man was dead. It wasn't nearing death, was dead, and you knew that he was dead. It wasn't like you were kind of on the fence and others were saying that he was dead. You knew that he was dead. You knew that he was dead. He was dead. And I want to tell the audience that this is the most remarkable story. I keep telling my wife, this is old news, Deb. Let's move on. Let's tell new stories. She said, no, everyone, and that's a believer, has been given a story to tell. And she said, the dead raising of Jeff is your story. This day, this man died of a massive myocardial infarction, a heart attack in the hospital. We tried to revive him for over all. almost an hour. We could not revive him. And then he was declared dead. He was dead. The forms were being signed. He was being prepared for the morgue. And I left that emergency room and walked down the hallway. And I heard the voice of God turn around and pray for that dead man. And I kept walking. And the voice again happened and turn around for that dead man. And as I walk back to that

stretcher where that body is being prepared for the morgue, stripped naked and with a nurse on the other side who was just full of the devil. I mean, this woman was just growling at me when I walked back in that room. Now, hang on because I'm not, you know, those of us who have never prepared anyone for the morgue, and that's a lot of us, you'd be surprised. What is involved when you say being prepared for the morgue? This man has been dead for an hour. You've tried to. and tried. There's nothing going on. You walk away. God speaks to you. You shrug it off. Keep walking. He speaks to you again. You go back. This has to be difficult. This has to be embarrassing. You're a medical doctor and you're going in to a room where there's a corpse being prepared for the morgue.

And who was this nurse? What was she doing? Well, the bottom line is when anyone dies in the hospital, everyone runs because they don't want to be around death because it's that ugly, really, you the truth. And that was the case for this man that morning. When we walked back in the room, they had pulled all the tubes out of them, IDs and intubation tubes and things like that. And they were preparing them to go downstairs to the morgue. So they were cleaning everything up regarding that body to prepare it. And as I walked in the room, the woman behind him was not a believer by any means. And she did not want me back in that. room. I think that was a spiritual battle going on at that moment. I'm not clear. First of all,

he said, when we walked back in the room, did you mean you or were there others? Now, when I walked back in the room. Okay. So you walked back into the room and what do you mean she didn't want you in there? You're the doctor. What did you say? We just got 10 seconds, but go ahead. I felt that she just didn't really want me there. It was a spiritual battle going on for the life of this man. Even though you hadn't said anything yet. I hadn't said anything yet, but I clearly knew this woman did not want me back in that. Okay, we'll be right back talking to Dr. Chauncey Crandall. Folks, this is important.

If Medicare has you confused, if you've got questions, we understand, and this is why we recommend our friends at Chapter. They're there to help you, to kind of talk you through what might work best for you. This is very important that you get it right. You can call them at 571, 421, 421. one two, five, three. These are our friends at chapter 571, 421, 12, five, three.

So you described this seminal moment in your life that you go into this, into the room where the dead body is, and you said you could feel that the nurse preparing him for the morgue viscerally does not want you in the room. No, And it was almost like a force of the evil, Eric, that was present there.

And it was almost like you hit a force field. And I had to really push through that. I'm pretty sure. I know the nurse you're talking about, but go ahead. And I laid my hands on that body. I really didn't know what to pray. And the Holy Spirit gave me these words, Father God, I cry out for this man's soul. If he does not know you as Lord and Savior, raise him from the dead now.

in the name of Jesus. And when I said that, I backed out of the room, and the emergency room doctor walked in and said, what's going on in here? What's happening? And I told him, I said, I just prayed for this guy. And I said, you need to shock him another time. And we had a little argument going back and forth in there. He said, listen, the guy is dead.

He's going to the morgue. I can't do that. And I said, you do it. And immediately, he shocked him and instantly. perfect heart beat came back. And shortly after that, he started breathing. The nurse screamed, said, what have you done to this man? What are we going to do with him now?

Where are we going to take him? You know, he's going to be great. Wow. I mean, this is class. See, this is why I got to prod people to tell stories because you are, I mean, okay, first of all, I always want to get this. When you go back in there, does she know you're a Christian, this nurse? No.

She doesn't know who you are. that you're a Christian, that you might pray for this guy. She just annoyed somehow when you walk in. Do you then tell her? I did not tell her. But she's there when you pray this prayer? She is on the other side of the body when I prayed the prayer. And you prayed out loud.

So she must have been shocked at the prayer. She was from another force. And it wasn't from God. I am telling you that this lady was just pure evil. and she didn't want this man coming back from the death. Well, I mean, that seems clear from what you've said after. So then you pray the prayer, nothing happens, but you then tell the emergency room doctor,

I want you to hit him with the paddles again, and he's looking at you like, you're nuts. We've been doing this for an hour. Nothing's happened. He's been prepared for the morgue. What is wrong with you? And so you insist, he does it, and boom, the guy comes back to life.

but I'm just astonished at the reaction of the nurse. Instead of saying, a miracle, how wonderful, she's sort of horrified. Well, I mean, if you understand spiritual battles, I think you'll understand it that we were in the middle of one that morning. I don't think I knew about it, but looking back on it, reflecting back, it definitely was a spiritual battle for the life of this man named Jeff. He did come back and he had a dramatic story of being in the depths of hell. I see, I forgot about this.

So the book you wrote on this subject is called Raising the Dead. Correct. And you tell the story in there. So he had an experience of being in hell. Can you please go on about that? Well, he woke up three days later. I happened to be there. Well, hold on.

I thought he woke up that moment, you said. No, no, no, no, no. He started breathing, but three days later, he woke up. He was out of it for three days. Okay, so he's alive. He's alive. Perfect heartbeat, but still comatose. Comatose, correct.

Three days later, he wakes up. Go ahead, sorry. He wakes up. I happened to walk in the room that day, and he had a dramatic, I said, where were you that day? You know, I had been reading reports on people dying and, having these experiences. So I said, well, let me ask this guy about it. And I said, where were you that day? I was praying for you. And he said, I was in total darkness forever, you know,

complete darkness, no friends, no colleagues. He kept saying the words, I am so disappointed. I am so disappointed. And I said, well, what are you disappointed about? He said, there was no one there. It was total darkness. And I was there for eternity. And he said, after being there, I was worth nothing. and they came me in and wrapped me up and threw me in the trash pit to be there forever in total darkness. Who came? Who came? I'm lost.

Some men came in. You're talking about his experience. He says that he was in total darkness. It seemed like eternal darkness. And that at some point men came in. I don't know if they were men or demons, Eric, but he described. that as men they came in, they wrapped them up and they threw them in the trash pit. If you look in the Bible, the trash pit outside Jerusalem was called the Valley of Cahena.

Yes. And, you know, it had symbolic meaning. I didn't understand it then, but after that, I picked it up. And it was worth nothing. And that's where they put the bodies from Jerusalem that were unworthy to burn in the trash pit. And that's where he was. And he explained that, uh, uh, uh, also after leaving there that he was ministered by angels.

And it sounds bizarre and weird, but unless you've seen these things and you understand how God moves in different ways, you know, you don't think these things are crazy when people tell you. But this man had a radical life change. He was a bad guy before. He was far from God. He accepted Christ in that hospital that day. He got involved in Bible study.

church and married a good Christian woman and he's been out ministering his story throughout the East Coast. So it was a dramatic change of a man from darkness to like, from unsaved to saved. And, you know, this is the power of God, listening to the Holy Spirit, being prompted by the Holy Spirit, going into a situation without fear, and the glory of God showed up. Has he written a book about this or is he just talking about it? No, no, no, he hasn't written a book. Okay, but you've written a book about it called Raising the Dead by Chauncey Crandall. So in the book that we're talking about now, your new book,

Touching God, Understanding, Experiencing the Holy Spirit, what's the first thing you would say to somebody who wants this, who wants to move in the power of God, wants more of God? I would tell them that, you know, there's more to being a believer or, you know, someone going to church, okay? I was a church-going man or a young man. I had no relationship with God, and I had a born-again experience. I came into the kingdom of God by accepting Christ as my Lord and Savior. It was a moment that happened to me at the age of 19 in West Africa. And I thought after that experience of salvation, that was it. That was all that was needed for me to go forward

to have eternal salvation and to use the expression I was going up. But there is so much more, Eric. The second experience of the baptism of the Holy Spirit is an experience that opens up the whole kingdom of God to all people that believe in Christ. It is something that is not being taught in the church correctly. And there's renewed interests. But the Lord wants this. He sent you the comforter, the Holy Spirit, as your partner,

through life to achieve the kingdom of God in your family and your village in this country. And he needs to partner with you. And that is the Holy Spirit. And you will see miracle signs and wonders when you start praying for people. You will see the power of God that just is so difficult to achieve without this wonderful gift from the Lord called the mighty Holy Spirit, the baptism of the Holy Spirit. So you were an undergraduate and what were you doing in Africa when you had this born-again experience? Well, I was an anthropologist, really. I was over there when I was

19 and I was in West Africa in a wicked country called Togo that practices all sorts of witchcraft. And I was very sick. I was left. alone, really, for a period of two weeks. I was 19. It never traveled out of the country. I was with a crazy anthropologist, and most anthropologists are really way out there, ungodly people, and I was with one of them, and he took off, left me alone. I had no money. I didn't know where I was. I was seeing things that I had never seen before, and I just crashed. I burned pretty bad to a very low point. And with that sickness and everything, I thought I'm going to die in Africa. And when I just got on my knees in the middle of a dirt floor and a mud hut, I called out to God. And then the

peace of God came on me instantly, Eric. It was amazing that this piece really overshadowed all the darkness that I was experiencing. And that day, I became born again. I had my spirit man inside me, the spirit of the world was cast out, the spirit of God entered into me, and I became a born again believer, born again in the name of Jesus. And it was a wonderful, wonderful experience. So when you went all through medical school, you were a Christian, a believing Christian. I was a Christian, but Eric, the problem was that I was going to Bible studies at Yale. That's your problem right there. If you have to go to Bible study. Don't do it at Yale, ladies and gentlemen. Let me tell you.

Well, I mean, they're a hot tip. No, we're going to, they were we have to go to a break. Forgive me. I will let you, I'll let you finish that sentence as soon as we come back. Welcome back talking to Dr. Chauncey Crandall. The new book is touching God. So, Chauncey, forgive me. I was interrupting you again here at the end. But so you, you were going to Bible studies, but they were not teaching about the power of the Holy Spirit, all the stuff that you experienced in the year 2000. So more than 20 years after you were born again. Well, no, it wasn't 20 years.

I was born again when I was 19 and I started medical school, you know, in my 20s. But Eric, what happened was that... No, when you experienced the baptism of the Holy Spirit in 2000, that was 20 years after my salvation, yes. Exactly. Right. But at the Bible study at Yale, my wife kept saying, now, now, listen. listen, you've got to go to those Bible studies, and you need to learn more about God.

And I said, Deb, I go to these studies. I see no power. I see no authority. I'm with other guys. They're all failing in life. They're depressed. They're divorced. I said, there's nothing there that I want to be.

They read the Word of God, but they don't believe the Word of God. And this went on for years and years, even at the Medical College of Virginia and George Washington University. I said there must be something more. Eric, it was a hunger that I had for 20 years. Lord Jesus, I got born again. But in this word of God, you talk about power and authority and miracles and signs and I am not seeing it around me. I want this experience. And 20 years later, it happened. It took me 20 years of going to studies. I mean, Eric, I went. everywhere trying to find the move of God. And I kept telling my wife, I said, I do not see it. I do not feel it. I believe we're missing out. But we had never been taught about the Holy Spirit.

She was Methodist. I was Presbyterian. But I felt deep inside that there was so much more that the Lord was giving us, but there wasn't evidence of it in the churches or in the Bible studies that I was attending. Well, we just got a couple of minutes left, but I just want to exhort everyone, folks. This is so important and so beautiful. And we're all a long way from where we could be. I'm not going to pretend that I'm walking in miracles

and signs and wonders every day. But I have experienced them. I wrote my own book called miracles because I think this is very, very important. And I get offended when people pray these timid, sort of sad prayers that like they don't really believe that God has the power to do anything and I get excited you know when I hear stories like the ones that that you've been telling in our last a couple of minutes what what will people find in the book in the new book

touching God well and touching God they'll find out that the Holy Spirit is a gift it's available to all believers in Christ and that it's a wonderful gift in that your whole life will change. You'll have new power, new authority. You'll have the kingdom of God inside you like never before. And I want to tell people that we need this gift. If this nation is to survive going forward, we need everything that God can give us in. And you just need to read this book. It will help you out with all the stories that we have in there. And touching God will change you. Amen. Amen. Well, this is the thing, right?

You know, I know that we need revival in America to save the nation. There's no other way. But my idea of revival means we need the Holy Spirit. We need signs and wonders. We need people to get excited about. Look what God can do. And that is, when you do see that, it builds your faith. It just gets you excited to talk to others about what you've experienced.

And I think that there's a lot of sad, theological fussy Christians out there who are, they're scared of this or they're hostile to it. And folks, if this is not biblical, we can throw it in the garbage. What we're talking about is either biblical or it's of the devil. So we're not just saying, hey, whatever. On the contrary, but we do believe that God wants this for us.

He wants a church that ministers in power that really does pray for the sick and sees results. Maybe not all the time, but the point is that when you see it once, it changes everything. You can't look back after you receive the Holy Spirit, Eric. I mean, it is a great adventure, and we cannot go back to boring church anymore.

We need to move ahead. And listen, when I can walk down the wards of the hospital, Eric, and carry the fullness of the kingdom of the... God. When you walk into the room of the sick, the whole atmosphere changes because you're carrying the king of kings inside you. And you're being led by the Holy Spirit. You give hope. You give victory. You give encouragement. You lay your hands on people. And they're forever changed. And many of them are healed. So it's a wonderful thing to pursue. We need it now. The book is Touching God by Dr. Chauncey Crandall. Chonzie, thank you so much.

Thank you, Eric.