(Photo Credit - Davids Tent)
Back in July I wrote a blog post titled 'July Storytelling.' I stated that I felt encouraged to tell the every day stories from my life as well as to tell the stories of what I felt God was doing and saying to me and possibly to you the reader. In that little piece I promised a review of these words spoken over Great Britain because I felt that something would be happening in August.
" The city that mothers the world and the land of the giants is being realigned.
- There is an inheritance in Great Britain that is being released to bless the world."
I was re speaking words that I had heard and felt a conviction that these words were true and needed to be spoken and prayed over my nation. At the time I felt that these words were tied to BREXIT and the unfolding chaos unleashed over our political system. In the shaking there has been a removal of many and we are not over yet! We have all watched the exposure of hidden agenda's. The painful realignment of allegiances. I remember back in December 2018 ( Blog post - Comfort those who mourn) I felt like I was warned to get ready for some unbelievable stuff. With the passing of time I can reflect that this warning has come to pass, 'the unbelievable' was a very accurate description of our last year.
The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nought; He makes the thoughts and the plans of the peoples of no effect. Psalm 33:10
But on a second more important level I felt the words spoken actually reflected a steady massive tidal wave that has been flowing behind the scenes for decades.
What am I talking about?
I am talking about the steady growth of the church in Great Britain. Now I know the statistics state that the church is dying. I have no idea where that little lie started but it has gained momentum and been accepted as truth by those too lazy to do any research. Where did this idea originally come from? Well no surprise there. We have an enemy who specialises in lies. Possibly official statistics on the Anglican and Catholic church were used to support this argument, but they are definitely not a true reflection of the church of Great Britain.
Over the summer a couple from New Zealand knocked on my door and introduced themselves as having lived in my flat back in the 90's. They and their 2 children all squeezed into my humble little space. I was delighted to meet them and find out more. As is becoming a pretty regular occurrence in my life, the jigsaw pieces were fit together and we were able to trace the finger of Gods' hand over our lives, bringing us to this meeting point on a hot summer day in August 2019. In the course of our conversation they asked how the church was doing in England? They remembered living here and struggling to find a place to fellowship. They told me that in New Zealand they had been told that the church in England was dead.
I laughed... haven't you heard ?!
The media played the funeral music for the church in England and Europe too early. The death toll that was predicted is not an actual fact. The church is alive and well and flourishing.
I grew up in Guildford in the 80's and 90's. I remember the church scene very well. There were a handful of solid strong churches and that was it. We had to hunt down the places where exciting supernatural occurrences were happening. I remember having to drive up to meetings in London, or across to Horsham. There was a smattering of small gatherings in large manor houses, a handful of growing University and School Christian Unions and a few small little pockets of revival. But they were few and far between.
Today you will struggle to find a space to rent on a Sunday in Guildford because they are all filled with churches. From G Live - the old Civic Hall that holds a thousand people, all the way down to hotel rooms, village halls, University lecture theatres, school halls and even pubs.
Today G Live, the Electric Theatre and the Yvonne Arnaud Theatre all host growing churches and that is not to mention the myriad of churches that own their own buildings.
In my humble opinion, I sincerely believe that the land of the giants is stirring and there is an inheritance currently being released that will reach the furthest corners of the earth.
Of course it won't get mentioned by the media because they are too busy feasting on the fall out over Brexit. Like a scorpion bending its tail over its back to sting its own head, one by one the figures have fallen, falling prey to pride, knocked out by their own words. While the toxic mud slinging continues and everyone has been distracted by big personalities like Boris Johnson, the media has missed what has really been going on right in the heart of their political crisis. They were focussing on the wrong mr Johnson!
In July tens of thousands of Christians from all over Europe gathered at the O2 Arena for the Hillsong Conference. The media may have been distracted by Boris Johnson, but a more powerful B Johnson with a humble heart was quietly going about the miraculous right under their noses! At a similar time New Wine was gathering thousands of Christians together in some muddy fields in Northamptonshire. Over the summer there were actually so many Christian events and festivals that they are too numerous to list here. You may have heard of Glastonbury, but did you know that there has been a far larger gathering of young people at a huge Christian festival in Poland in a previous summer. Why does the media not tell us about that?
Has nobody else noticed the colossal shift in the church scene in Europe? Is it just me who can remember the past 30 plus years? Today in 2019 it is a normal occurrence to host 24/7 weeks of prayer in churches all over the world. Yes, that is solid prayer, pockets of fire that burn at all hours, marching quietly through the night.
For me the most exciting event over the summer is Davids Tent, hosted in the grounds of a grand old country estate, Wiston House. On this ancient piece of real estate a feisty, determined genteel lady of South African origin and her husband have prayed and laboured over their ancestral land. Releasing blessing and an open heaven where every year over the May Bank holiday weekend the Big Church Day Out is hosted and in my opinion, more exciting, Davids Tent has been running every August Bank Holiday.
What is Davids Tent? It is 3 solid days of worship. 72 hours, all through the night and into the early hours of the morning - non stop worship. And why? For no other reason than because He is worthy. Pouring out our lives in worship and adoration. No breaks. No turning out the lights. Just hundreds of Christians camped around a huge marquee, coming and going through the day and night in non stop worship.
Is that really the sign of a dead church? I don't think so.
All of these events have global impact, from London to Stockholm to Australia. From sleepy Sussex to sunny San Diego in the USA. This is the greater story. This is the giant that is rising.
" I will build my church and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it " JESUS
( Photo Credits - Davids Tent )