REVIVAL IN LEICESTER (22) - UNITY

One of the hallmarks of revival is an increased unity.

It was such a privilege to see this for real at Tuesday’s Revival Prayer.

We asked for prayer as a church. Immediately two ladies came up to pray – one from Colombia, one from Argentina. And then two church leaders from other churches came to pray – one from Anthem Church Leicester, one from OneChurch Leicester.

Churches and nations in unity.

When the Holy Spirit moves, unity is the result. As we work together, unity is the result. As we worship together, unity is the result.

Grateful for all God is doing.

REVIVAL IN LEICESTER (19) - THE ROLLING HOLY SPIRIT

As a writer, I’d hope to come up with a better description than ‘rolling’, but I think it’s the best I can do…. We have a ‘rolling’ Holy Spirit!

Let me explain what I mean….

 

I’ve noticed it a few times now, but it was most obvious at our Revival Prayer meeting on Tuesday night. The presence of the Holy Spirit was such that the majority of us were on the floor, weighed down by the Spirit’s presence. But I got up and sat down for a while – which meant I was able to observe what then happened.

Starting at the far side of the auditorium, the Holy Spirit started to roll over the people. On the far side, many began to groan in the Spirit, others cried out, some shook, or rolled on the floor. And as I watched, I saw the Holy Spirit move over the congregation. From the far side to the middle. From the middle to the near side. Each time, the effect of the Spirit was for those feeling God’s presence to cry out, groan, laugh or shake.

And then I observed the same thing happen in reverse. The Holy Spirit began to move over the room from the near side to the far side with a repeat of the effects.

Something similar is recorded in the Charles Finney meetings of the mid-1800s. And earlier still in the Methodist Circuit Revivals in ‘Wild West’ America. Here’s a quote from an onlooker at the 1801 Cane Ridge Revival:

At one time I saw at least 500 swept down in a moment, as if a battery of a thousand guns had been opened upon them, and there immediately followed shrieks and shouts that rent the very heavens.

I love that we are experiencing revival. Many healings. Many salvations – 80 or so in the last two months in our meetings alone.

A dear friend who was part of the Pensacola revival in the mid-1990s commented that what she is witnessing at Leicester is the first time she has seen a Holy Spirit move in a similar way to Pensacola in the 25+ years she has been in the UK.

REVIVAL IN LEICESTER (17) - DAYS OF HEAVEN

I’m not usually lost for words, but it’s hard to describe these last few days. Friday saw the start of the two-day Leaders Gathering, with around 350 people from churches up and down the country as well as from many nations including India, South Africa, Sweden, Finland, Switzerland, Austria, Germany and more. (This was the same event as last year that started us on the revival road). This was followed by a wild Sunday in all three services. And then the Revival Prayer night on Tuesday.

The worship has been exceptional. Such a presence of the Holy Spirit. An awareness of the Father’s love. What can you do in such a time but worship?

The practical sessions brought a Holy Spirit anointing as people moved out in the gifts of the Spirit with many experiencing a new found freedom in prophecy and words of knowledge.

Sunday night’s service was particularly precious for its heartfelt worship and six people coming forward to give their lives to Christ.

Again, there have been angels in the building. Often  they are dancing. On Tuesday night’s Revival Prayer meeting, they seemed to be standing to attention. It was as if we had broken into a holy place, with increased awe and reverence.

What days to be living in. Days of heaven. And lost for words.

REVIVAL IN LEICESTER

On Saturday, revival came to Leicester.

I’m a bit of a Christian History geek and have studied revival most of my Christian life. And I’ve been fortunate enough to experience revival out in Argentina. So what I saw and experienced on Saturday at Chroma Church Leicester was, I think, the real deal.

The event was a leaders gathering of around 300 leaders from around the UK, starting the year off with a time to worship, prayer and of encouraging each other. Led by Steve & Juliet Barber and Paul & Sue Manwaring, the two days together were precious. More than that. On Saturday afternoon God came.

I know the theological arguments that God never leaves, but there was a time on Saturday afternoon, 8^th January 2022, when His presence was so thick in the atmosphere, it was hard to stand. It was impossible to stop worshipping. We were in His presence. There were angels in the room. Time became unimportant.

The weekend was not particularly a time for healing, but God healed anyway. 25 confirmed bodily healings and probably many more, some just happening as we worshipped.

Saturday afternoon saw a number of young women spontaneously take the stage and pray and prophesy over the leaders. Generations together meeting Him, receiving His mandate for the year ahead.

Revival is always accompanied by prayer, so it is no surprise that as preparation for this event, the church at Chroma had spent three days in prayer and fasting, with over 100 people turning up to pray each evening right at the start of the year.

Historically, revival comes at moments of crisis. None more so that now, at the end of a worldwide pandemic – something no one living has seen before.

Why Leicester? There are many revival prophecies over this city (there’s a need for a separate blog on that). It’s a city that has embraced a multicultural society in a way few other cities have, so it seems an appropriate place for a new Pentecost. In Jerusalem on that first Pentecost outpouring, there were people from ‘every nation under heaven’ (Acts 2:5). And so for Leicester. The BBC calls it the ‘most ethnically diverse’ city in the region, with well over 50% non-white residents.  Pretty much in the centre of the country geographically, Leicester has become a hot spot for the work of the Holy Spirit.

Revival has come to Leicester.

The Decline and Fall of the BBC

I love the BBC. It’s all I was allowed to watch as a child- ITV had adverts and that was frowned upon in our house!

But the BBC today is a shadow of its former glory. Partly this is to do with competition but partly it’s to do with an extreme liberal agenda.

I need to qualify my blog at this point…. Those that know me will know that I am generally left wing, regularly vote Labour and have never voted Tory.

There. That’s got that out of the way. Important to say though as I may be judged to be a right wing Trump supporter in what I’m about to say.

The Eternal Wall of Answered Prayer commissioned a survey carried out by pollsters Savanta ComRes. This identified that 49% of the younger generation are praying regularly.

The BBC reported on this and then interviewed Muslims and Hindus. Despite the fact that in covering a representative slice of the population, the report mainly interviewed those leaning towards a Christian faith or no-faith.

But no mention of Christianity from the BBC. None at all. [The link to the article is here- the on camera report was worse still!] No interviews with church goers. Just Muslims and Hindus. The Muslim population in the UK is around 6%. The Hindu population is around 2%. So, BBC, where are the other 92%? Why did you ignore them?

The answer is not hard to find. The BBC is no longer the unbiased bastion of broadcasting it once was. Did they invent ‘Woke’? Probably.

I love some of their left wing slant. I love their inclusiveness. But to deliberately exclude Christianity on a poll that was commissioned by Christians and shows that church going and prayer (in person and online) is growing is appalling.

I laughed at their super inclusive Doctor Who stories at first. Until it became so invasive, the plots no longer mattered.

But this is far more serious. This does matter. A good news story about Christians has been buried. And the BBC appears to have done it deliberately.

Maybe that licence fee I have defended for so long should no longer be defended. Shame on you BBC.

Once Upon A Time In The West - Fifty Years A Christian

The city of St Davids is as far west as you can go in Pembrokeshire, Wales. In August 1970 a group of boys stepped down from a coach for a camping holiday in the fields just outside Britain’s smallest city.

The camp had been arranged by the Crusaders - a Christian organisation specialising in activities for boys and girls.

For one of the boys stepping off the coach, this was to be the defining point in his life. That boy was me.

I was aware that the Crusaders (now renamed as Urban Saints) was a Christian organisation and I had even been to a few of their local meetings where I lived in Streetly, near Birmingham. The fact the organisation was Christian was not a problem to me - after all I was a Christian anyway, right? That’s what my parents told me - we were born in a Christian country and were therefore Christians already.

But that week I heard something new. In amongst the games, the hiking and the camping was a message. Jesus, God’s son, died on a cross for me. For me. A geeky 15 year old kid with glasses and acne.

It was hard for me to take it in. And hard to respond as well. We had meetings most nights and at one of those there was an invitation to ask Jesus to come into our lives, but I was far too shy to put up my hand.

Back in the tent as my fellow campers slept, I kept returning to what had been said. God loved me? So much He sent His own Son? Why had I never heard this before? Why had no one told me? Before I slept that night, I decided to pray, to invite Jesus into my life. In my thinking at the time, I decided to give this Christian thing a go.

Fifty years later, I’m still giving it a go! Fifty years. Where did the time go?

A family - a wife, four kids, two grandkids. Churches planted, mission trips completed. Books written and other lives changed.

All because of that night 50 years ago.

That ‘once upon a time in the West’ moment radically changed my life. I am not the same because of that prayer. It was the best thing I ever did.

If you are reading this and have never prayed to ask Jesus into your life, is there any reason not do so now? What better than to know why we are here, to have purpose and direction in life? Most of all, to know the God who made us. What’s not to like?! Here’s a prayer to pray- you can say it out loud or under your breath -God will hear you either way.

Dear Lord

Please forgive me for living my life without you, for living my own way. I’m sorry for all the things I’ve done wrong. I ask you today to come in to my life. Please live in me, help me and be in charge of my life. Thank you for answering this prayer. I choose to live Your way. Amen.

And there it is. The most important prayer you will ever pray. The most important step you will ever make. (And if you did pray this prayer for the first time, let me know - I’d like to help).

Thank you Crusaders/Urban Saints for that camp all those years ago. Thank you for your faithfulness in sharing the good news about Jesus. And most of all - thank you Jesus for your faithfulness through these 50 years together.

Here’s to the next 50.

The Best Prime Ministers We (N)ever Had

There they are. In an alternative universe, the best Prime Ministers we (n)ever had.

We could be waking up today to a second Labour term for David Miliband, off the back of successful middle ground governments under Owen and Jenkins, as we enjoy a close and financially successful relationship with France and Germany. Instead, we’re waking up to Boris.

We could have had a very early contender for first woman Prime Minister with Barbara Castle. Instead we got Thatcher.

We could have enjoyed stability, peace and prosperity with sensible Tory governments under Heseltine and Patten. Instead we got Thatcher (again) and Cameron; so worried about his internal politics that he sold the nation.

I posted the photo on Facebook yesterday to see what response I got. It was a pretty good response. A couple of friends suggested I missed John Smith and Shirley Williams. I agree.

We’ve lost the centre. Politics has become extreme. My choice today is a right wing/Brexit Tory government or a left wing/can’t govern Labour one. I can vote for the smaller parties, but our voting system doesn’t help – look at what happened to the extremely well thought out policies of the Change party.

One of my Christian friends on Facebook said I shouldn’t worry and that God was in control. That’s a cop-out. As a Christian, I am called to pray for my leaders – and I do – but that doesn’t mean I agree with them or should just assume it’s what God wants. That’s the road to not voting, a loss of democracy and the rise of extremism. At least three European countries have what appear to be racist policies and propaganda…. And what to make of our cousins over the Atlantic?

So, I’ll continue to wonder what could have been. And to vote for what could still be.

I Still See Her Face

I still see her face. An innocent one-year old. Such trust as she climbed onto my lap and fell asleep. She had no idea as to what had happened to her and her family.

I’m so pleased that Amena’s story has made it into print. You can read my article on life in the Syrian refugee camps in the latest issue of Christianity Magazine.

By God’s grace, Amena and her family will find their way home to a peaceful country. In the meantime, let’s continue to pray.

I Don't Know Her Name....

I don’t know her name. But God does.

A big city in central India. The middle of a Christian festival. Over 400 had come forward for prayer and to commit their lives to Christ.

A feeling there was meant to be one more. A debate with God. ‘Really God, there are 400 here already. What’s one more? And the meeting has moved on. It would be difficult to say something now.’

But, no. I’m sure God is prompting me. There is a girl here, He says to me, a student. She’s been away from faith in Christ for a while. But she’s here tonight. And she should have come forward.

Okay. The announcement is made. The meeting moves on. Many people healed. Amazing times.

Then, as we make our way back to the car at the end: ‘Please sir, please sir. I’m the one! I’m the girl! It’s me.’

I don’t know her name. But I know that on that night, in the middle of a crowd of thousands, God singled her out.

We prayed. I left. We may never meet again. But I know that on a warm night in central India, a young student girl gave her life back to Christ, recommitted herself to God. And I know that at that moment, God gave her a hope and a future. A destiny only she can fulfil.

I don’t know her name. But one day, probably the other side of this life, we will meet again and I will see the wonder of all God did on a warm India night.

The Journey

One day your life’s journey will be over, and you will enter eternity. But what kind of journey will it have been? At the end of your life, will you look back with sorrow and regret, realising too late that you have travelled the wrong road? Or perhaps that the road you travelled was the right one- but you had allowed the troubles and temptations of this world to hold you back and keep you from reaching your full potential?

Instead, my prayer is that you would have been on the right road in life- and not only that, but that you would have reached the end of your journey with joy. My prayer is that you would have known God’s presence the whole way, and that even in the midst of life’s deepest trials you would have found your strength in Him.
…Some day this life will be over. I look forward to that day, because I know that beyond it is heaven. I pray you do too.

Billy Graham, ‘The Journey’

Prayer resolution

It's that time of year. Resolutions are made. Fitness clubs and slimming programmes get oversubscribed. Then, for most, the promises are forgotten in the hurly burly of daily life.

My own resolve- which I hope I will be able to keep- is to pray more. I know prayer works. I've seen the results. But so often, it gets crowded out. A good example of the urgent replacing the important.

So this year, I will pray more. For my family, the city I live in, the nation I am part of, the world I can affect.

C H Spurgeon, the great 19th century preacher, said "prayer is the lisping of the believing infant, the shout of the fighting believer, the requiem of the dying saint." I'm ready to shout.

Cathartic days

Once in a while I get away for a day. Today was such a day. In fact I drove north to see a seal colony on the Lincolnshire coast. About 3000 grey seals and about 1000 of them are new pups. To be able to go right up to them, to walk around them, was amazing. It's not often I get to take a day out, but to spend time on my own is my way of recharging the batteries. Some thinking, some praying and a lot of seal gazing!

Sometimes we get too busy. And when the urgent crowds out what we really need to do, it's time to look at the seals.