By ANDREA D. OATES

"God takes the foolish things of the world to confound the wise," exclaims Marnie Cagle.

By her own estimation, Marnie Cagle is awed that God called her into an apostolic ministry. Why? Because she is a wife, a mother of young children, and a young woman! But, she states, I have learned that I may not always agree with what God says or understand it all, but I have settled in my heart that I will only believe. Hence, Only Believe International Ministries was established in February of this year of new beginnings. The mission of the ministry is to help train and equip the body of believers-to get them established in their faith, rooted and grounded in the truth, so they are not tossed to and fro with every wind of doctrine but wax strong in the spirit with signs and wonders following them. The aim is to help perfect the body of Christ into a unified, perfect, and pure bride that is bound together by the love of God with the local church at its heart. The purpose is simply to turn the attention of people back to Jesus and preparing for Him a bride without spot or wrinkle.

And for that, there is a need. She says that Jesus revealed to her that He is getting ready to rapture the church but that the church is not yet ready. Therefore, she has a sense of urgency. She served her last day of employment on March 29th to give herself over to full-time ministry. In obedience to His instruction, she hosted her first three-day crusade at the Sumter County Fairgrounds last month. Another will follow later this year after she returns from ministering in South Africa. In the works also are ministry workshops designed to help ministers operate effectively with excellence.

Cagle’s own training for ministry began in 1992 at the age of 18. Having grown up as a devout, practicing Jehovah’s Witness all of her life, she was introduced to the truth of Jesus being God in the flesh at the age of 16 when she visited other churches with friends. However, because of a lack of understanding, she felt that she could never live a life acceptable to God and resisted His pull. She went on to lead a lifestyle that included partying and dressing provocatively. But Jesus Himself visited her around 3am in her dorm room at the University of Georgia. Jesus asked her to give Him a chance to teach her about Himself. When she asked what she would have to change (because she knew she was not living holy), He responded that she didn’t have to stop doing anything she was doing. He simply wanted the opportunity for her to learn of Him. He offered an invitation to discipleship that she accepted, began learning of Him, and has not looked back since. However, her experience was not without challenge. From 1992-1999, she experienced tremendous mental torment.

She suffered from depression and was hospitalized in a mental institution for two weeks due to suicidal thoughts. Cagle states that she did not know anything about spiritual warfare. But she soon realized that there was more going on in the world than one could see-both good and evil. Even though she had been saved for seven years, she had been perishing because of a lack of knowledge. Her life changed drastically when she was filled with the Holy Spirit in September of 1999.

She began to win the batter for her mind. Her eyes were also opened and she began to understand the Word. No longer trying to figure the Word out, she was simply fed insight by the Spirit of the Living God. God also led her to study the epistles of the Apostle Paul. By 2002, she was totally free in mind. At that time God began to move her into areas of ministry. God worked through her inthe ministries of evangelism and prophesy. God trained her in the prophetic by having her study the Word concerning prophesy and the office of a prophet. She also received on the-job training. He showed her what to do and what not to do. She says that she adored evangelism. The same zeal that she had as an active Jehovah’s Witness from her youth is the same fervor with which she freely shared the gospel without fear or intimidation. For her, evangelizing yielded the satisfaction of immediate results.

She describes it as an assembly line mass production. In stark contrast, the ministry of apostleship was not welcomed. For one, Cagle says that she was not totally convincer in her mind that women should be in leadership roles. But she chose not to exalt her traditions and cultural beliefs above the leading of God. And to be sure, her motives are pure. She is not seeking to "steal" members from other churches. Cagle’s true desire is to do what Jesus did. She wants to walk in the dominion, authority, and power the exact way that Jesus did. Her favorite quote is from Smith Wigglesworth:

"God has privileged us in Christ Jesus to live above the ordinary human plane of life. Those who want to be ordinary and live on a lower plane can do so, but as for me, I will not." That’s how she sums up who she is in Christ Jesus. She states that she didn’t get saved to live anything like she was before. Her encouragement to everyone is to get saved! No one can transform themselves. Salvation has already been paid for and, therefore, does not need to be earned. Salvation is simply received. God, by His Holy Spirit, does all of the transforming by His limitless power. Your part is to ONLY BELIEVE.

Marnie Cagle, Apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ is wed to Cary "Martin" Cagle. He loving husband willingly supports his wife in fulfilling the call of God on her life. They have three children: Stallian-11 years old, Sojourner-10 years old, and Sharday-7 years old. The family attends Restoration Church under the leadership of Pastor George F. Edge.