God has been faithful and good to us. As with ancient Israel in Moses’ days, we too were called out of our own Egypt. And we owe our lives to Jesus for it. Against all odds from the start, we are a living testimony that nothing is impossible with Christ. As a mission to see others encounter the Holy Spirit and rediscover the Father’s heart, we have witnessed the power and presence of Jesus miraculously heal, deliver and save many people by God’s relentless love. The Lord has opened doors in the most unconventional ways to share the power of God to hundreds of people over the last 10 years. On one occasion, we shared the Gospel of repentance and power to over 350 people at the most unusual wedding ceremony we have ever officiated. For over a decade, God has done the impossible. In January 2011, the Holy Spirit thundered the 7 words that rocked our world and later birthed Fireside Church and Fireside Global…”I can make something out of nothing.”
Jeff and Bev Harris are co-founders and team leaders of Fireside. This husband and wife team stepped out into the unknown after hearing the Holy Spirit. It was one of the rare times they heard an audible voice as if someone were in the room with them. Jeff was on the floor of the horrible shaggy red carpet in the basement when he heard the voice of the Holy Spirit on that cold, winter day of January 2011. They heard the Lord say to launch a new ministry in one of the most spiritually oppressed communities where new ministries do not survive. It demanded a surrendering everything. By April of the same year, they embarked on a new journey. They surrendered their home, healthcare and the institutional dead church structure and launched Fireside on April 17, 2011. They started with nothing…no home, no mission base, no healthcare for their two young daughters and no resources. They had no home for the first two years. Over a decade later and against all odds, the story of God’s miraculous power to do the impossible, “to make something out of nothing,” continues in Butler.
In the late spring of 2013, the Holy Spirit led us to host the first cookout in the west end neighborhood. The Lord gave us the day and time. It was a complete failure. Butler accumulated over an inch of rain that day. Yet, we still hosted the cookout out of a small garage with 30 soaked people huddled together from the neighborhood. We learned weeks later that the commitment to host the cookout (either rain or shine) became a testimony to many families within the neighborhood. Since the first day in 2013, we have hosted dozens of block parties, cookouts and neighborhood gatherings. In 2017, the largest flood in over 100 years hit this same neighborhood and affected over 150 families and homes. God placed us in the perfect place to serve a neighborhood in desperate need. With the support of businesses and individuals in the community, we provided meals, groceries, hygiene products, cleaning supplies, clothes and appliances to these families. There were opportunities to pray with many in the neighborhood, witnessed them get healed of various illnesses and lead them to the Lord. Since 2015, we have even witnessed God raise 3 people from the dead. And we want Jesus to mess up more funerals!
In the Fall of 2021, Fireside was offered a land of 9 acres outside of Butler. But the land came with strings attached. Whether this was God encouraging us for what is coming or the enemy stealing, we do not know. But it affirmed once more that this ministry lives life from one conviction – a relentless commitment to Jesus Christ with no compromise or mixture. On May 2, 2022 the Holy Spirit declared once again that the Lord would expand our “boundaries and borders.”
Butler is a beachhead to the region and a mission hub to the nations. It has a rich history of seeds of revival in the ground and atmosphere dated back in the late 1890’s. Butler will be known for the weighty presence of God and His continuous miracles and healing power. Kathryn Kuhlman hosted several healing and miracles nights in Butler in the early 1950’s. Fireside partnered with Pastor Billy Burke and hosted 4 healing and miracle services in Butler. The most recent 3 events had over 1400 people in combined attendance with many testimonies of people encountering the power of God. The fire of God represents God’s weighty and tangible presence and power, and it always falls on sacrifice.
Jeff and Bev Harris have served in ministry in several states since 1997. Jeff has a Masters of Divinity degree (M.Div.) and completed half of his Doctorate of Ministry (D.Min). Jeff also has a B.S. in B.A degree with a dual major in International Business and Spanish. Bev has a Bachelors degree in Early Childhood Education and has been a certified educator in 3 states. They arrived in Butler in October 2007. They sense His apostolic call to see people encounter the Holy Spirit in Butler and western Pennsylvania. They are from Michigan have been married since July of 2002. They have two daughters, Brianna and Kayla. In 2020, they established SimplifyCFO, a virtual Quickbooks Online consulting firm with a few clients in 5 states.
Personal Revival, Kingdom Impact.