With soft music playing in the background, the buzz of excitement filled the Frank Lloyd Wright ballroom at the historic Arizona Biltmore.
A diverse crowd had assembled for “A Night of the Supernatural With Sid Roth” and was waiting for the guest speaker to come out.
Lenae Stenerodden, among those assembled, said she had been watching Roth’s show, It’s Supernatural! for more than a year and was excited to finally see him in person.
“I believe in his ministry,” she said.
The Scottsdale resident said the buzz in the room was probably because many people came for healing.
“Everyone wants to experience that special spiritual realm,” she said.
After a brief introduction by evangelist David Herzog, Roth stepped onto the platform that held nothing but a podium and a microphone.
He immediately launched into ministering.
“I was standing in the back and I heard a voice,” said Roth. “If I hear from God, that means God is here, and if God is here, He can do anything.”
With that, Roth asked people suffering from pain in their back, neck and hip to stand, along with anyone who had metal in their bodies. “There are angels of healing in this auditorium,” he said.
Following a brief exhortation on how God is able to heal, Roth prayed over the group and had them sit down. His approach on this night was a bit different because of the audience, he said. It was a mixed audience of Christians and their Jewish friends who were not believers.
Roth, who is Jewish, said he purposely started with the healings because Scripture records in 1 Corinthians 1:22 that Jews require a sign.
“Most Jews aren’t sure that the Bible is from God,” Roth said. “I have to demonstrate the kingdom and earn the right to share the gospel.”
Once he had the audience’s attention, Roth shared his own journey to faith in Yeshua, which included dabbling in the paranormal and New Age movement, in addition to overcoming family skepticism. Although many Jewish people struggle with believing in Yeshua as Messiah, Roth said they have an interest in spiritual experiences.
“The highest percentage of New Agers are Jews,” he said.
Roth’s goal is to twofold. He hopes to attract the unsaved, both Jews and non-Jews, to faith in the Messiah and to equip Christians to be “normal.” Normal is doing the same works as Jesus and greater, he said.
Operating in the supernatural is a part of that.
“The most supernatural thing I know is signs, wonders and my testimony,” said Roth.
Experiencing the supernatural was something new for Rayna Boren, who attended the meeting at her daughter’s invitation. Doctors had diagnosed her with colon cancer. The cancer spread to her brain and lungs, and doctors gave her little time to live, even with chemotherapy.
Boren was among the group who stood up when Roth asked those who wanted a miracle or a healing to do so. As he prayed, Boren said she felt a warm sensation in her body. “I was not familiar with anything like this,” she said.
She knew something had happened in her body. She concluded that the supernatural was a reality and made it known to the room when they gave her the microphone.
“God healed me of colon cancer,” she said jubilantly.