The prayers that fueled the great Welsh revival and other revivals/awakenings
Part 2 – The prayer for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit
Joel 2:28 - And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions…
Even before Evan asked the Lord to bend him, he and others had been praying for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. They knew that only the Holy Spirit could bring the revival (and awakenings)[i] they longed for. But guess what?
They were not the first to claim Joel 2:28 in praying for a revival nor were they the last.
In studying about revivals, I keep running across this verse. I planned to blog about why Evan Roberts and his friends prayed this way. Then I heard Joel Rosenberg, a Jewish Christian, interview Dr. Michael Glaser, a Jewish Christian who was also saved during the Jesus Revolution. When Joel asked him why he thought the Jesus Revolution happened, he brought up Joel 2:28 and then said:
“The climate was ripe for an outpouring of the Holy Spirit.”[ii]
You’re probably thinking I’ve already made my point about the necessity of the Holy Spirit in revivals. True. However, I didn’t “get” the significance, specifically the outpouring of the Holy Spirit until I heard Glaser. Maybe too, I finally “got” it because I too was saved in San Francisco a few years after he was.
Dr. Glaser spoke about how friends of his were getting saved in the 60s before the Jesus Revolution was “officially” recognized as a revival. He was saved in 1970. Wow, that is so similar to what happened with the Welsh Revival and the Scottish ones and others.
After listening to him, I became even more excited by what I see happening today. So I have to talk about what happening. Yeah, this is yet another pause in the story of the Great Welsh Revival. Sorry, but there is so much evidence that God is moving again!
Remember too that I share these stories not to merely reminisce about the good ol’ days. No, I share them to connect our times with history because their stories show us that our lives differ little from past generations. We face similar dilemmas, i.e., economic downturns, wars, globalists, etc. We can learn how to handle those dilemmas if we listen to their stories.
Revivals continue to happen because of God’s faithful to His plan of redemption.
Most importantly, we see that God has been faithful as He promised. Otherwise, how could we be here if He had not been faithful to them? Think about it. God’s faithfulness sustained them and made our lives possible.
Furthermore, God is still in the business of saving souls and will continue to do so right through the Great Tribulation.[iii] Below are several of the revivals that have happened within the last few months.
Baptisms happening all over the U.S.
I saw the headline below just this morning.
“A Move of God”: More than 2,000 gather for baptisms across the U.S., as people are wanting hope.”
“When God does something, He makes it known!! This is not about a person or ministry; this is about A MOVE OF GOD,” Weaver wrote in a social media post on Tuesday…
Praise the Lord!
College Campuses
“God is moving”: Thousands of U.S. students “hungry for the truth” flood revivals as hundreds baptized.
An organization called “Unite Us” has been holding events at various campuses with amazing results. I reported on the one held at Auburn University in Alabama and Florida State University (FSU) previously. One held at the University of Alabama in March saw 260 baptized.
University of Georgia - Unite Us saw 100s baptized with over 6,000 attending their event the night in March of this year.
Wow! I hope you’re as excited about what God is doing as I am. Sometimes, by the way, those numbers are higher than the number of students (not paid professional protestors) protesting per campus. In case you don’t know, more professionally paid protestors are involved in the campus protests than students. Quite the opposite of what happened in the 60s.
Many students involved don’t even know what they are protesting. If you happen to catch the protesters in a candid shot, you can tell. Of course, the media and the protest organizers try to keep them off-camera. Many of them are searching for meaning just like the protestors in the 60s and 70s were. Sadly, many of us don’t see it because we are buying the media’s narratives.
I’m not saying we have nothing to worry about. No, we have plenty to worry about. Hate does spread. More importantly, however, these students are lost and going to hell without Jesus. The Jesus Revolution happened because many Christians didn’t care what anyone said including the hippies, druggies, and women libbers, they worked to reach them with the Gospel.
Churches
Cornerstone Chapel, Leesburg, VA (Located outside of DC) - Over Easter weekend 500 made professions of faith. 500 in one weekend! That is amazing. We should all be shouting hallelujah and praising God especially when you consider how close it is to DC. Let that sink in.
Gary Hamrick, Cornerstone’s lead pastor, preached at a conference last week. One hundred made professions of faith. That is a significant number regardless of the size of the conference.
Grace Community, Sun Valley, CA (John MacArthur’s church) – His church began experiencing unprecedented growth since the COVID lockdown. I don’t have any numbers. I only know this after listening to his sermon on how God blessed and provided for his church during the COVID lockdown.[iv]
“A Christian Revival is underway in Britain.”
In the article, Justin Bierly brings up many well-known former agnostics and atheists who are turning to Christianity. He mentions Russell Brand, Tom Holland, Ayaan Hirsi Ali, and Joe Rogan. Many of these have written articles and books about turning to Christianity. While I am rejoicing that they are turning to Jesus, that wasn’t what excited me the most.
Now if you are stuck on the first sentence about attendance “in some denominations being in free fall,” let me add another piece of data. Jack Graham recently started a Bible-reading podcast. He recently told Joel Rosenberg that he figured a few thousand might listen in. Instead, millions are listening in. Yes, millions are tuning in. Let that sink in. Praise God.
I’m not surprised that some denominations have been declining. They focus on church programs more than preaching the true gospel, forgetting that people need Jesus, not church programs. When life became hard for people during the faux COVID lockdown and all the woke craziness, they began searching because they found the promises of ideologies, be they political or religious, empty.
Before the Great Welsh Revival and the Jesus Revolution, God began to pour out His Spirit on the people, causing small revivals to break out.
We are seeing that today and not just in the Western world either.
China - Per Voice of the Martyrs, “Revival and rapid church growth have characterized China’s church since the 1990s.”
I was fairly certain revivals were happening there. It was good to see this update this morning.
Iran –Millions are being saved inside of Iran. To appreciate this outreach, I need to explain the restrictions and a bit of history about Iran. Christianity is outlawed and they monitor Christians very closely, especially online communications. In addition to their morality police, they have one of the largest cyber police forces in the world. The penalties are severe for Christians, i.e., imprisonment, torture, and death.
So how are they being saved? Through Christian Satellite TV.
“The signal comes from the sky. It’s not local. The government cannot stop it.” ~ Dr. Hormoz Shariat
Basically, it (his program) beams over the heads of the government, over the heads of the Islamic clerics, right into the privacy of people’s homes.” ~ Dr. Hormoz Shariat [v]
There is one other fact that makes this even more of a miracle. Officially Iran bans satellite dishes but it is not strictly enforced at all. Satellite dishes are clearly visible. They have failed in their efforts to enforce the ban. I wonder why? Hmm…could it be that God holds them back? Yes, God has something to do with that. Don’t miss His part here.
Dr. Hormoz Shariat shared the results of an independent survey with Joel Rosenberg. The survey showed his channel, Iran Alive, as the most-watched Christian channel in Iran. Per the survey, about 6 million Iranians tune in daily to Iran Alive.
We have even more to praise God for when we look at the history of mission work in Iran.
In his 40 years as a missionary to Iranian Muslims, William McElwee Miller saw 10 Muslims come to Christ. Dr. Shariat contrasts that with an account of what’s happening today.
One listener called in and reported, “My extended family, about thirty of us, and I get together to watch your program. We have discussed Christ among ourselves, and we have all decided to follow Him. We have purchased a speaker phone, and we are gathered in my living room. We want to know how to become Christians.”
That day, one of our phone counselors led that entire family to Christ.[vi]
30 saved with one phone call versus 10 in 40 years. Remember phone calls like this one happens regularly. It is even more of a miracle because it happens inside a country where the government monitors all communications. Let that sink in.
Ireland – I am Irish by marriage and a few decades ago we mentored an Irish couple who came to the U.S. to study for the ministry. Consequently, Ireland holds a special place in my heart.
Again to appreciate what God is doing, we need to understand Ireland. It is approximately 69% Catholic. As is typical in countries dominated by Catholicism, Bible-believing churches are not welcome, making it extremely difficult to get the Gospel out.[vii]
Over the last few decades, our friends have slowly made some progress. Then the unwarranted COVID lockdowns happened. Around that time, the station asked if they could do a weekly broadcast. Before that, the radio station would allow them 10 minutes once or twice a year. They have gone from 2 broadcasts per year to 52 plus per huge. Let that sink in.
Recently, people have randomly been showing up. Again, this is very atypical even though they reach out to their communities. One man said,
"I have no idea why I'm here. I just felt like I was supposed to be here."
He was there because of the Holy Spirit working in his heart. Yes, God is pouring out His Spirit on Ireland. Praise the Lord.
Why did Evan Roberts and others in 1904 pray for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit?
“When [the Spirit] comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment.”
They knew that revivals only happen when people realize they are sinners in need of a savior.
Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come. 14 He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you.
It is the Holy Spirit’s job also to tell them of Jesus. He does not speak of Himself nor does He glorify Himself. Consequently, Evan would frequently urge people to pray:
“Send the Spirit now for Jesus Christ’s sake. And then, send the Spirit powerfully now for Jesus Christ’s sake. Send the Spirit more powerfully now, for Jesus Christ’s sake.”[viii]
Note they asked for the Spirit for Jesus Christ’s sake.[ix] The focus was never on experiencing the Holy Spirit, rather it was on obeying Him. In fact, that is one of Evan’s four principles for revival.
“Obey the promptings of the Holy Spirit.”
Obeying the Holy Spirit unleashes the Holy Spirit’s power to revive people’s hearts.
Probably someone reading this who is wiser than me is thinking. “Well, duh, Nina, you have been writing about it, haven’t you? True. Why wasn’t I getting it? Well, the answer is simple. I saw it as something they did in the old days, forgetting that God works the same today as yesterday. In other words, I understood intellectually the need for the Holy Spirit in revivals but Dr. Glaser’s comments brought it home.
The stories of revivals don’t belong to the efforts of Evan Roberts or anyone else, rather they belong to God. They are His story of pouring out his Spirit to redeem mankind.
[i] Just a reminder that when I speak of revivals, I mean revivals and awakenings. There is a difference between the two, but for the sake of simplicity, I am just referring to both as revivals. That said, history shows that true revivals lead to awakenings.
[ii] The Rosenberg Report. Interview by Joel Rosenberg, Trinity Broadcasting Network, 2 May 2024, www.tbn.org. Accessed 9 May 2024.
[iii] And I said to him, [a]“Sir, you know.” So he said to me, “These are the ones who come out of the great tribulation, and washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. (Rev. 7:14)
[iv] “2020 Clarity: Reflecting on God’s Goodness in the Last Year.” Grace to You, 17 Jan. 2021, www.gty.org/library/sermons-library/GTY178/2020-clarity-reflecting-on-gods-goodness-in-the-last-year-.
[v] The Rosenberg Report. Interview by Joel Rosenberg, Trinity Broadcasting Network, 2 May 2024, www.tbn.org. Accessed May 11, 2024.
[vi] Shariat, Hormoz. Iran’s Great Awakening: How God Is Using a Muslim Convert to Spark Revival.
[vii] American Catholicism is very different than countries like Ireland, Spain, and other Catholic countries.
[viii] Backholer, Mathew. Revival Fires and Awakenings, Thirty-Six Visitations of the Holy Spirit: A Call to Holiness, Prayer and Intercession for the Nations. ByFaith Media, 2018.
[ix] As I looked at various records of the revival, some meetings appear to be Pentecostal or charismatic. On the one hand, I wonder if those opinions are colored by people who favor those movements. On the other hand, I wonder if they meant filling but it was translated to baptism. I don’t know and, of course, I was not there. Regardless, the Holy Spirit was not the focus of the revivals, rather He was the initiator of them.