Dear People Who Keep Company With God,
Bob Jones encouraged us to pay attention during Hanukah, the Jewish Festival of Lights, as God may reveal something to us. On the evening of Dec. 22 I asked the Lord to speak to me in a dream and He did! He spoke to me about my spiritual roots and DNA.
In the first part of the dream I was in Wales in what seemed to be a cave and heard a voice directing me to go to the mouth of the cave. As I emerged from the cave I was in a wide-open space in a dark part of the day. There was a wind blowing, although it was like a mighty wind it was gentle, having no effect on me physically. I knew it was the breath of God. As the wind blew across my body I could feel my spiritual roots and DNA coming alive in me. I was experiencing an awakening.
In the beginning of my Christian life I was part of a church, Lamb’s Chapel, whose spiritual influence came from men who had spiritual roots in the Welsh Revival. The spiritual DNA those men carried was imparted to us, became our spiritual DNA and set the course of our lives. It is who we are spiritually. We did not choose it, we were chosen for it.
According to Wikipedia, “The Welsh Revival (1904–1905) was the largest Christian revival in Wales during the 20th century. While by no means the best known of revivals, it was one of the most dramatic in terms of its effect on the population, and it had repercussions that reached far beyond the Welsh border, triggering a series of revivals in other countries.” One example is the Azusa St. Revival in the United States.
Some of the defining characteristics of the Welsh Revival were:
· A Revival of Young People
· A Revival of Worship
· A Revival of Prayer
· A Revival of Evangelism
· A Revival of Personal Experience
Those characteristics sure seem to describe who we are as a people. And we are desperate for revival in our nation. I read a quote by Bill Johnson recently that pretty much sums it up. “When there is revival, hell is plundered and heaven is populated. When there is no revival hell is populated…period.”
A dictionary definition of revival is an improvement in the condition and strength of something. That something would be us, our families, church, ministries and nation. We all can go for that.
Lord, let this be the year that we experience revival!
Many Blessings, BW