Uncovering the Secrets of Street Healing with Kevin Riordan
Boy oh boy, do I have an exciting one for you today! You know my passion – it’s all about igniting that fire for Jesus, stoking the flames of revival in our hearts and communities. And in this latest installment of Coffee with Conrad, I had the absolute pleasure of chatting with a truly inspiring individual, Kevin Riordan.
I stumbled upon Kevin’s ministry through a series of divine connections on social media, starting with a tweet that led me to Jay from Strategic Fathering Ministries. Jay, recognizing our shared passion, insisted I connect with Kevin. Let me tell you, after scrolling through Kevin’s Facebook timeline, I was completely hooked. This man is doing the very thing we are called to do – equipping believers for the work of the ministry! As a healing evangelist, Kevin is on the front lines, demonstrating the power of Jesus in a tangible way.
I’m not exaggerating when I say this conversation is going to blow your socks off! So grab your coffee, settle in, and get ready to be incredibly encouraged and challenged. You’re going to want to bookmark this, share it with your friends and family, because the message Kevin shares is something the world desperately needs to hear.
Diving Deep with Kevin Riordan: A Healing Evangelist's Journey
I was absolutely thrilled to finally connect with Kevin via Skype. From the moment we started talking, his genuine heart for Jesus and his passion for people were evident. I jumped right in, asking him to share what he does and, more importantly, why he does it.
Kevin’s story is powerful. He openly shared his past struggles, a time when he was broken, suicidal, and filled with self-hatred. He even spent time in a psychiatric ward. But then, Jesus stepped into his life and, in his words, “changed me… like really in the blink of an eye.” The night he was saved, he experienced deliverance from so much and was instantly filled with love and a burning desire to tell others about Jesus.
Sixteen years ago, with no formal training or deep biblical knowledge beyond the love of Christ he had encountered, Kevin started sharing his faith on the streets of Poughkeepsie, New York. This raw, authentic encounter with the supernatural power of God fueled a lifelong mission. Over time, the Lord added a healing gift to his ministry. Now, Kevin ministers everywhere he goes – grocery stores, lines, you name it. He strikes up conversations, asks people if they’re experiencing any pain, offers to pray, and God heals them. This opens the door to share the Gospel, and Kevin has seen countless people come to faith through these encounters. It's a testament to the fact that God knew exactly what He was doing when He sent **Jesus** to heal the sick.
The Genesis of a Healing Ministry: Prophecy and a Broken Knee
I was particularly interested in how Kevin’s healing ministry began. He shared a fascinating story about a prophecy spoken over him as a child by a Honduran pastor visiting his church. The pastor declared that Kevin would have a power ministry. Even during his years away from Christ, those words lingered, a “rope tied around my waist,” a reminder that God had a plan for him.
When Kevin returned to Christ, he heard the same prophetic word repeated by different people. He began to earnestly seek God for this, longing to see the promise fulfilled. The turning point came at a conference focused on equipping believers for evangelism. After being prayed for, Kevin experienced a shift.
He recounted the first significant healing he witnessed after this impartation. He was at a work meeting with a man named Vince who had a shattered kneecap for eight years. Vince was in immense pain, had recently lost his wife, and was struggling to care for his son. Kevin, his heart filled with compassion, felt compelled to offer prayer.
What happened next was nothing short of miraculous. As Kevin laid hands on Vince’s knee and commanded it to be healed in the name of Jesus, he could physically feel the knee moving and popping. Vince, who hadn't been able to put weight on his leg, stood up and started jumping! This tangible demonstration of God’s power opened the door for Kevin to share the Gospel with Vince, who, despite initial skepticism, accepted Christ as his Savior. This experience ignited a fire in Kevin, leading to countless other **healings**.
The Gift of Healing: For the Few or For All?
This naturally led us to the question of the gift of healing. Is it reserved for a select few, or is it something all believers can access? Kevin’s perspective, grounded in Scripture, is incredibly encouraging. He referenced Mark 16:17-18, which states that signs, including laying hands on the sick and seeing them recover, will follow those who believe in Jesus’ name.
While Kevin acknowledges that some individuals may function at a higher level in certain gifts, like his own healing gift, he firmly believes that every believer can operate in it at some level. He shared his conviction that God gives every believer the gift needed for the specific need of the moment.
Interestingly, while Kevin operates powerfully in healing, he doesn’t consider himself to have a particularly strong prophetic gift. However, he acknowledges that there are times when he does prophesy, highlighting the fluid nature of the spiritual gifts.
Kevin emphasized a powerful movement he sees happening today, echoing Randy Clark’s term, “the little old ladies.” He’s witnessing every day, unexpected people – grandmothers, construction workers, teenagers, housewives – functioning in healing gifts. He believes that we are in a unique time in history where God is pouring out His Spirit on the church, empowering and equipping believers for the final great harvest. So, while not everyone has the gift of healing as a primary calling, we can all participate in healing the sick through the Spirit of God within us.
This resonates deeply with me. It’s not about being a superstar evangelist; it’s about ordinary people stepping out in faith and allowing God to work through them. Just as Jesus accessed whatever gift was needed at any given time, we too can be vessels for His supernatural power.
The Mystery of Healing: Inside vs. Outside the Church
One of the most intriguing points Kevin raised was the observation that it often seems easier for people to get healed outside the church building than inside. This is a “big mystery” that Kevin doesn’t fully understand. However, he pointed to the scriptural principle that miracles, signs, and wonders are often for the unbeliever, to reveal God’s presence and power to those who don’t yet know Him.
While God certainly heals believers, Kevin admitted that if he had to choose, he’d rather pray for a room full of unbelievers, simply because he often sees a greater response. This isn't to say God doesn't heal within the church, but it highlights the dynamic of faith and expectation. Perhaps, as I thought aloud during our conversation, it could be related to the unbelief Jesus encountered in his own synagogue, where He “could do not many mighty works there because of their unbelief” (Mark 6:5-6). Sometimes, religious familiarity can hinder the supernatural.
Overcoming the Fear Factor: Practical Steps to Sharing Jesus
Knowing that many people feel intimidated about sharing their faith, I asked Kevin for his advice on overcoming that initial fear of approaching someone about Jesus. His answer was incredibly practical and encouraging.
He emphasized that the way you approach someone is crucial. As for the fear itself, Kevin, despite 16 years of regular street ministry, still feels his heart thump with nervousness sometimes. But he makes a conscious decision to push past that fear. He described it as a “wall of fear” that he chooses to step through. It’s a decision of the will.
His approach to starting conversations is brilliant. He rarely begins by talking about God, Jesus, church, heaven, or hell. Instead, he looks for something relatable on the person – a rock band t-shirt, a shared interest – anything to strike up a natural conversation. By asking questions and genuinely engaging with the person, he builds a sense of comfort and connection. Once that rapport is established, he might casually mention he’s from a local church and ask if they have any pain he could pray about.
This approach disarms people, showing them that you’re not a “crazy person” or a “freak.” When God’s power shows up through healing, it naturally leads to conversations about Jesus and the love He has for them. As Kevin aptly put it, “That’s Fishers of Men right there.”
He summarized his method in a few simple steps:
1. Push fear aside.
2. Find something to start a conversation.
3. Talk to them naturally.
4. Ask if they have any pain.
5. Pray for them.
It’s about building a bridge of connection before diving into the deeper spiritual matters.
The Interplay of Sin, Sickness, and Forgiveness: A Powerful Testimony
Our conversation then turned to the relationship between sin, sickness, and healing. Kevin shared a profound experience that illustrated this connection beautifully.
He recounted praying multiple times for a woman with severe arthritis who was using a walker. Despite his prayers, she experienced no change. Sensing there was more to the situation, Kevin felt the Lord prompt him with the word “unforgiveness.”
He gently asked the woman if there was anyone she needed to forgive. She confessed deep hatred for her ex-husband, blaming him for her physical condition due to years of abuse. Initially, she was unwilling to forgive him. Kevin patiently explained the true nature of forgiveness – not a feeling, but a decision of the will. He shared scriptures about how unforgiveness can block our relationship with God, hinder healing, and even make us sick. He emphasized that unforgiveness hurts the person holding onto it more than the offender.
Finally, the woman agreed to choose to forgive her ex-husband if it meant physical and emotional healing. As Kevin led her in a prayer of forgiveness, she struggled to get the words out, as if a demonic presence was resisting. But through clenched teeth, she spoke the words of forgiveness. Immediately, a release occurred. She began to shake, experiencing deliverance. After Kevin commanded the negative forces to leave and prayed for her healing, the pain vanished. She was able to bend over, touch her toes, and do things she couldn’t do before. This led to her accepting Christ, and she walked away without her walker, completely healed!
This powerful testimony underscores the spiritual roots that can sometimes underlie physical ailments. Kevin also mentioned how certain sins, like smoking, can directly cause illnesses like COPD or cancer. In such cases, he explains the connection and leads people in prayers of repentance, often seeing healing follow. Unforgiveness, he emphasized, is a major obstacle to healing.
A New Wave of Healing Ministries: Equipping the Saints
I then asked Kevin about the resurgence of healing ministries. We reminisced about the wave of powerful evangelists in the 1950s, like Oral Roberts and Jack Coe, and how that seemed to have waned. I wanted to know if he felt God was bringing another wave.
Kevin’s response was an emphatic yes! He sees a significant shift happening. For a long time, the focus was on “Rockstar evangelists” who held large meetings and prayed for everyone. While acknowledging their important role in paving the way, Kevin pointed out that a key downfall was a lack of equipping others to do the work.
He highlighted that the primary role of the five-fold ministry is to equip the saints for the work of the ministry (Ephesians 4:11-12). Now, he sees a rise in equipping ministries, focused on empowering ordinary believers to step into their God-given authority and minister effectively.
Kevin shared that his own life’s calling is to give away what God has given him, to empower others to go out and do the work of healing and evangelism. He finds immense joy in seeing people he has ministered to go on to pray for others and witness supernatural encounters. He recounted recent meetings where he prayed for people to receive healing gifts and the subsequent messages he received about them seeing healings happen firsthand.
He reiterated that this new wave is different. It’s not just about a few prominent figures; it’s about average, ordinary people – who are anything but average and ordinary in Christ – doing the work.
Final Thoughts
Wow! What an incredible conversation with Kevin Riordan. I am so encouraged by his story, his passion, and his unwavering faith in the power of Jesus to heal and transform lives. It’s a powerful reminder that God is still in the business of miracles and that He wants to use ordinary people like us to demonstrate His love and power to the world.
I want to encourage you today to take Kevin’s words to heart. Don’t let fear hold you back from sharing the love of Jesus with those around you. Look for opportunities to connect, to show compassion, and to offer prayer. You never know what God might do through you.
Be sure to check follow Kevin on Facebook!
