THE REMNANT WILL RISE – STAY THE COURSE AND HOLD THE LINE!!!
Have you ever considered if our prayers were answered in this last election??? God has realigned His church and we have been humbled and put back on course! Was this a designed plan to move the church into its rightful place. Yes!
The Lord’s answer is found in Psalm 2: “Why do the 1 nations rage, And the people plot a vain thing? The kings of the earth set themselves, And the b rulers take counsel together, Against the LORD and against His c Anointed, 4 saying, “Let us break Their bonds in pieces and cast away Their cords from us. He who sits in the heavens shall laugh; The LORD shall hold them in derision. Then He shall speak to them in His wrath, and distress them in His deep is pleasure: Yet I have set My King6On My holy hill of Zion. I will declare the decree: The LORD has said to Me, ‘You are My Son, Today I have begotten You. Ask of Me, and I will give You The nations for Your inheritance, And the ends of the earth for Your possession. You shall 8 break them with a rod of iron; You shall dash them to pieces like a potter’s vessel. Now therefore, be wise, O kings; Be instructed, you judges of the earth. Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, and you perish in the way, When His wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all those who put their trust in Him.”
Where do you see America on this scale below?
(Every 200 years nations have progressed through the following sequence.)
1. Bondage and Severe Persecution – Result of selfishness and depravity.
2. Spiritual Faith – Vision, purpose and destiny birthed in a few.
3. Great Courage – People rise up and make a stand.
4. Liberty – Freedom comes from self-sacrifice and pursuit of truth.
5. Abundance – Blessings resulting from freedom.
6. Complacency and Apathy – Ease, comfort, affluence, distraction, lack of prayer.
7. Selfishness – People again turn to living for self, pleasure, and lusts. –
8, Dependence – Work ethic is destroyed, welfare, and people live off of others.
9. Degeneracy and Moral Depravity – The flesh rules over spirit and sin abounds.
10. Bondage – The enemy of our souls brings captivity and judgment.
We must run right into the battle!
The votes have been cast. The celebrations have begun for some, while others are staring at election results wondering what happened to the country they thought they knew. For many Christians, the frustration runs deeper than which political party won or lost. It is the realization that candidates and proposals representing values they believe contradict Scripture continue to find support among millions of Americans. Ideas once considered radical are increasingly treated as mainstream, while traditional biblical convictions are often dismissed as outdated, intolerant, or even dangerous.
After months of political arguments, campaign promises, and warnings about America’s future, an unavoidable question remains:
Where do we go from here?
But perhaps the more important question is whether Christians have become so focused on winning elections that they have forgotten what it actually takes to change a nation. Elections can change who governs a nation. They can change laws, policies, and the direction of government.
***But they cannot, by themselves, change the human heart***
And that may be the most important lesson Christians need to remember after the ballots have been counted. One of the greatest dangers following a disappointing election is allowing political frustration to become spiritual discouragement. Christians can become so invested in particular outcomes that when those outcomes fail to materialize, they begin acting as though God’s purposes have somehow been defeated. Again, after reflecting on the outcome of the election, I believe our prayers were answered.
So many of you prayed, attended gatherings, made decrees and declarations. I woke up the morning after election day frustrated, angry and despondent – nearly depressed. I rarely get down or depressed but all of a sudden, I shook that spirit of deception and defeat attempting to make me give up…and the HS ministered to me and said there is something bigger at stake here. The church will become stronger. God was realigning his church to a new level of understanding.
Luke 19:13 says “Occupy until I come” so take the offensive for next 2 years. I felt this so deeply I was energized for the battle ahead.
Scripture gives us encouragement!
Daniel served faithfully in Babylon, surrounded by pagan rulers and a culture that rejected the God of Israel. Joseph remained faithful in Egypt. The apostles proclaimed the Gospel under Roman emperors who neither embraced Christian morality nor recognized the authority of Jesus Christ.
The early Church did not possess political power, favorable courts, or a government committed to biblical values. Yet Christianity spread across the Roman Empire and eventually transformed entire societies. Its power was never found in controlling the government. It was found in the transforming message of Jesus Christ.
I asked myself if I had personally drifted from that focus. There are good doors we are offered and best doors. We must choose the best doors now. I was made aware what Ret LT General Boykin called “Mission Creep”. This does not mean elections are unimportant. I have now become more aware of Socialism, Communism, and Islam. Yes, laws can protect the innocent, restrain evil, and preserve religious freedom. Political decisions have real consequences for families, churches, and future generations. But Christians must distinguish between losing a POLITICAL battle and losing the SPIRITUAL war. God has not surrendered His throne because voters made decisions we disagree with.
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STRATEGIC STEPS TO TRANSFORM A CULTURE
(Ret. Lt. General Jerry Boykin other Contributors)
As we have entered into a culture war, we must realize first that we are in a spiritual war. The greatest advantage an enemy can have over you is to make you believe he does not exist. We must know the enemy! They live among us executing their strategy and plans.
IMPORTANT: There are battles and there is a war. We must stay focused on the war even though the battles are important. The church must act like an army (2 Timothy 2:1-4, Ephesians 6:12-18). It must organize itself as an Army. We know the church finally wins the war as it states in the Bible, but we are put in the midst of the various battles. We have artillery and air support, the intercessors (prayer), from a spiritual perspective. What about the command structure that is needed to win the war?
THREE LEVELS IN COMPLETING A MISSION
1. The Strategic Level is led by a key general or national leader(s) who has the vision and command of the whole theater (United States). His staff lays out the plans and the strategy. There are a number of national ministries who have capable leadership. Who are those national leaders in America?
NOTE: The mission is to bring hope and change through transformational change. It will take unity with “one cry” of the church as we pro-actively engage the cultural gateways.
2. The Operational Level is led by another general(s) who leads key ministries for a state (Michigan for example). Let’s unite and work together as one. Campaign plans are developed by these group(s). These campaigns have many faces such as advancing the Kingdom of God; birthing a great harvest of souls; the fight to end abortion; maintain traditional marriage; stop Sharia law; bring a Biblical worldview paradigm into education and government; etc. The sum of all the parts equals the whole spiritual war we face.
3. The Tactical Level includes individuals (soldiers) working at the ground level facing the enemy eye to eye. They develop operational ground plans. Pastors, local ministry, and community leaders are at this level…as they take the Gospel into the communities leading their congregations to be the salt of the earth. They work at the grassroots to bring forth that transformational change that our culture so desperately needs.
PROBLEM: Many times, people try to do another person’s job on another level and not focus on their own assignment. Christ trained 12 men and they went out to build the church. He did not micro-manage them. He sent them out, trusted them and empowered them. People below each level must be released so they can reach their potential.
NINE PRINCIPLES OF SPIRITUAL WAR – Ret. Lt. General Jerry Boykin
1. Determine the Objective: It is defining what you are trying to accomplish. Many times organizations start doing one thing then end up doing another…this is loss of focus and direction (Mission Creep – military term). Objective must be determined and you must stick to it and not veer off the path. Leadership must make sure you stay focused. Remember, plans are built out of capability and available resources…but capacity is critical. With God nothing is impossible (Luke 1:37).
The Holy Spirit is a force multiplier that enables one to go beyond any human capacity. What is force multiplication? Force Multiplication is using a small force of well trained and dedicated people to build a force of many. Their efforts are multiplied as they recruit, equip, organize, and equip others to become a force more powerful and effective than they would be operating on their own.
You may not have the capability but do you have the right capacity for it? Can prayer produce a Divine empowerment and increase that capacity? Yes! Is small the next big? Yes! The Lord will use the foolish and weak to accomplish great things (1 Corinthians 1: 26-31). Define the objective and what you are trying to achieve and see what God can do.
2. Take the Offensive: You do not win on the defensive. You cannot work from a reactionary realm. You must get ahead of the enemy. In the spiritual this means the intercessors must pray ahead of things and not wait for something to manifest. We must have people of prayer who can see prophetically, have discernment and hear warnings from God because they have relationship with Him. Identify strongholds ahead of time and pray and take action. There must be no mercy for the enemy that blinds men’s souls.
NOTE: Individuals who are called to engage any one of the cultural gateways must not be reactionary, but lead the way in any community. If the problem has already surfaced, take the offensive to push it back.
3. Mass: It is generating and consolidating all your combat power in a specific place at a specific time to accomplish your objective. Unity is a key to see victory. Spiritually we see the church divided. The Church not unifying in our past and present election is a prime example. A good portion of professing Christians did not even vote. We must unify around a Biblical Worldview paradigm…or all will be lost.
4. Economy of Force: Special Forces go in to set the stage for a larger assault. These Special Forces are applying an economy of force. A few well-trained intercessors will go into an area of conflict, deal with a serious issue, or attack against the church. The tendency of the Church is to run to every challenge and lose focus of the main mission – so “specialist” should be sent in instead. Who are called to universities, Dearborn and Islam, State Government?
5. Maneuver: When the enemy has changed his tactics we must maneuver staying focused on the objective. The plan must be adjusted without losing the main focus. During a maneuver when the spiritual enemy is on the run you pursue him with no mercy. Intercessors must continue to pray for total destruction of strongholds that bind the hearts of men and women. Remember, the enemies are the principalities and powers who are out to destroy men’s souls (Ephesians 6:10-20).
6. Unity of Command: It is based on the supposition that we must submit ourselves to someone’s authority (pastor/ministry/community leader). It begins with Jesus Christ as the Head, then the spiritual leader God has placed you with. The problem in the church today is the lack of submission to authority. The enemy is destroying the church by leading revolts against the pastors. If you are leaving a church – leave with a blessing from the pastor! The church must establish a perimeter where we watch each other’s back. This is done through love, bearing the burdens of others, forgiveness, reconciliation, restoration, trust, covering each other’s sins, casting down jealousies, competition, strife, manipulation, control, and speaking blessing instead of cursing. God has appointed individuals to lead…pastors and ministry leaders.
7. Security: Watchmen are needed to watch out for spiritual leaders such as pastors and ministry leaders. Leaders must be surrounded by trusted people who will be able to speak to that leader’s heart as a help and safeguard to them. The flanks must be guarded so they are not caught off guard. Leaders must be able to take corrections. People need to be enlisted to be praying for leaders to provide a covering.
8. Surprise: Strike at a time when the enemy is weakest. God will give that order to move if we are listening to His instructions. You use the economy of force to strike. Find the enemies weakness and find those who are studying his tactics to prepare for a surprise assault. Today very few understand the dangers of Islam and what their agenda is to destroy our nation. Never let the enemy know what you are going to do. Look beyond the problems and see the possibilities and utilize surprise.
9. Simplicity: When things go bad and discouragement sets in remember the objective. The commander’s intent must be known so job can be done. It must be simple…simple…simple!
Point to Ponder: “It is likewise interesting the alignments that are now taking place. In the church, there are gatherings of believers from almost across the spectrum of denominations and movements who want to join together, not in a denominational organization, but as different groups who have a common enemy, a common threat to their existence. There are non-religious groups who want to join with the religious because of the overwhelming threat of evil they perceive. It is truly a remarkable time, and it seems that the greatest of all battles between good and evil is now unfolding, and we get to be in it!” – Rick Joyner
NOTE: Stop Expecting a nation who calls itself Christian without Christian convictions to Vote Biblically!
Conviction: Are we willing to lay down our lives and stand for Biblical principles? Will we noy compromise our Biblical Worldview. Islamist have convictions and are ready to die for the Islamization of our culture!
Preference: A greater liking for one alternative over another or others. These people waffle under pressure and compromise their supposed Biblical beliefs. Politics destroy many professing believers.
REMEMBER – Truth + Error = Error. We must maintain our Biblical Worldview with deep convictions.
An American Lesson we must Learn
Perhaps the most uncomfortable lesson from modern American elections is that the political landscape increasingly reflects a much deeper cultural and spiritual struggle. Christians sometimes express disbelief when voters embrace policies they believe undermine biblical morality, redefine marriage and family, or elevate government solutions above personal responsibility.
But why should we expect a society increasingly disconnected from Scripture to consistently make decisions based upon Scripture? What has happened? For many decades, biblical literacy has weakened, church participation has declined, and younger generations have grown up in an environment where traditional Christian beliefs are frequently challenged.
Many Americans no longer share the basic moral assumptions that once influenced public life. Even the meaning of words such as truth, freedom, justice, and morality has become a source of disagreement. An election does not create these divisions. It reveals them.
And that should force the Church to confront a difficult reality: We cannot expect political victories to compensate for generations of spiritual neglect. If Americans no longer believe that God’s Word provides an objective moral standard, why would we expect them to vote as though it does?
If children are raised without a biblical understanding of human identity, marriage, sexuality, or the sanctity of life, why should we be shocked when they eventually embrace competing ideas? The answer cannot simply be better campaign advertisements, TV ads, more political donations, or louder arguments on social media. The Church must recover its confidence in teaching biblical truth clearly, consistently, and without apology.
GET BACK TO BASICS
FOUR PURPOSES OF MANKIND
1. Fellowship with God – Seek His presence
2.Work – Cultivate your Garden – Your Sphere of Influence – Reidentify that sphere now
3. Be Fruitful and Multiply – (Spiritually and Physically)
4. Lake Dominion over the Land
NOTE: WE ARE PRIESTS AND KINGS WHO CARRY GREAT AUTHORITY! DO WE REALIZE IT? ARE WE WALKING IN IT?
POINT TO PONDER – Do pray for oil for our Spiritual Lamps – Read Matthew 25 – Have you prayed for that oil to be a wise Virgin in our present turbulent times. I cannot give you my oil nor can you give me yours. We need to seek the Lord in our prayer closet ask and for that oil to fill our lampstands so we can see and hear properly in these challenging days ahead.
Washington DC cannot produce a Spiritual Revival!
There is a dangerous temptation among Christians to view political leadership as the primary instrument for restoring America’s moral foundations. Elect the right president. Secure the right judges. Pass the right legislation. Defeat the right ballot initiatives. These efforts may accomplish important objectives. But none can accomplish what only the Gospel can do.
A government can discourage certain behaviors through legislation, but it cannot produce repentance. It can protect religious liberty, but it cannot make someone love Jesus Christ. It can establish public policy, but it cannot transform the human heart. America’s deepest problems cannot be solved exclusively through legislation because many of them begin long before anyone enters a voting booth.
Broken families, fatherlessness, addiction, dishonesty, materialism, sexual confusion, and spiritual emptiness are not merely political problems. They are also moral and spiritual challenges.Second Chronicles 7:14 calls God’s people to humility, prayer, repentance, and turning from wickedness. Although that promise was originally given to Israel, the call to spiritual self-examination remains a powerful lesson for Christians.
Notice where the responsibility begins: not with unbelievers, not with politicians, but with God’s people. Before asking why the nation has abandoned biblical values, perhaps churches should examine whether they have consistently taught and practiced those values themselves. A Church that compromises biblical truth to remain culturally acceptable should not be surprised when the culture sees little reason to take its message seriously. Remember, the spiritual law of Sowing and reaping Galatians 6:7, Hosea 10:12, Proverbs 11:18.
Our Children are the next Great Battleground
While Christians spend enormous energy debating what happens in Washington, another battle is unfolding much closer to home. It is taking place in classrooms, on smartphones, through entertainment, and across social media platforms that influence children for hours every day. The next generation is being taught competing answers to life’s most important questions: Who am I? What is truth? What makes something right or wrong? What is the purpose of marriage? Does God have authority over my life?
If parents and churches are not intentionally answering those questions, someone else will. This may be one of the most important lessons Christians can take from any election. Political victories can sometimes slow cultural changes. But they cannot replace the daily responsibility of raising children who understand Scripture, recognize deception, and possess the courage to stand for their convictions.
Deuteronomy 6:1 describes faith as something parents are to teach diligently throughout ordinary life, not merely during an hour of Sunday school. Do not give up on your children, grandchildren, nephews and nieces. Yet how many Christian families can discuss political controversies in great detail while struggling to explain foundational biblical doctrines?
How many young people know the political arguments surrounding morality but cannot articulate why they believe the Bible is true? The Church cannot afford to raise a generation of political conservatives who lack a personal commitment to Jesus Christ. Winning an election means little for the long-term future of Christianity if the next generation abandons the faith.
Don’t retreat from the Public Square!
None of this should be interpreted as a call for Christians to abandon political involvement. Scripture does not command believers to remain silent when injustice occurs or to ignore the welfare of their communities. Christians should continue to participate in civic life, defend religious freedom, advocate for the vulnerable, and speak openly about their convictions.
But there is a difference between faithful engagement and allowing politics to consume our identity.
Political outrage can become addictive. Every headline demands a reaction. Every controversy becomes an emergency. Every election is portrayed as the final opportunity to save the country.
Eventually, Christians can spend more time arguing with strangers online than sharing the Gospel with their neighbors. That is a spiritual imbalance worth correcting. The answer is not withdrawal. It is perspective. We can care deeply about our country without making it an idol. We can defend biblical principles without allowing bitterness to consume us. We can oppose policies we believe are wrong while remembering that the people supporting them are also people who need Christ.
Our calling is bigger than defeating political opponents!
Our Ultimate Citizenship Is Not Determined by Elections!
Philippians 3:20 reminds believers that our citizenship is in heaven. Hebrews 12:28 speaks of receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken. Those truths become especially important when the political and cultural landscape appears uncertain.
America is not the Kingdom of God. No political party represents the fullness of biblical truth. No election can guarantee a righteous society, and no electoral setback can cancel the promises of Christ. For Christians who study Bible prophecy, this should be especially familiar territory. Scripture never promises that the world will steadily become more receptive to biblical truth before Christ returns. Instead, believers are repeatedly warned about deception, lawlessness, persecution, and growing hostility toward God.
Our responsibility is not to panic when the world behaves like the world. It is to remain faithful. So, what happens after the elections? We must pray. We teach our children. We strengthen our churches. We serve our neighbors. We speak the truth. We remain engaged in our communities. And we refuse to surrender our hope to political circumstances.
The election may be over. The cultural battles will continue until the upcoming Presidential election. But the Church’s calling has not changed, and neither has the God who gave it.
The Radical prayer and action Ecclesia Remnant is rising!
In biblical theology, the concept of the “remnant” is a recurring theme that signifies a small, faithful group of people preserved by God amidst widespread judgment or apostasy. This theme is woven throughout both the Old and New Testaments, highlighting God’s sovereignty, faithfulness, and redemptive plan.
The idea of a remnant first emerges in the narrative of the Flood, where Noah and his family are preserved as a remnant of humanity (Genesis 6-9). This pattern continues with the account of Lot, who is saved from the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 19).
The remnant theme is particularly prominent in the prophetic realm as well. The prophets often speak of a faithful remnant that will survive divine judgment and serve as the foundation for future restoration. For instance, Isaiah prophesies about a remnant of Israel that will return to the mighty God: “A remnant will return, a remnant of Jacob, to the Mighty God” (Isaiah 10:21). Similarly, the prophet Micah speaks of a remnant that will be gathered like sheep in a fold (Micah 2:12).
The Babylonian exile is another significant context for the remnant theme. Despite the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple, God promises through Jeremiah that a remnant will return: “I will bring them back to this place and let them live in safety” (Jeremiah 32:37). This promise is fulfilled when a remnant of Jews returns to rebuild Jerusalem and the temple under the leadership of Zerubbabel, Ezra, and Nehemiah.
We must apply these examples today after this election. The Lord is recruiting this Radical Remnant modern day ecclesia now. Enlist as Soldiers in Christ.
New Testament
In the New Testament, the concept of the remnant is expanded to include Gentiles as well as Jews. The Apostle Paul addresses this in his letter to the Romans, where he explains that not all who are descended from Israel are part of the true Israel. He cites the example of Elijah, who was assured by God that a remnant of 7,000 had not bowed to Baal (Romans 11:4-5). Paul concludes that there is a remnant chosen by grace, emphasizing that God’s promises have not failed despite Israel’s unbelief.
The remnant theme is also evident in the teachings of Jesus. In the Gospels, Jesus often speaks of a narrow path and a small gate that leads to life, suggesting that only a remnant will find it (Matthew 7:13-14). Furthermore, the early Christian community, composed of both Jews and Gentiles, can be seen as a remnant that carries forward the mission of God’s people.
Theologically, the remnant serves as a testament to God’s faithfulness and mercy. It underscores the idea that God preserves a faithful group through whom He continues His redemptive work. The remnant is not merely a passive group but is called to be a light to the nations, embodying God’s covenantal promises and purposes.
The remnant theme also highlights the continuity of God’s plan from the Old Testament to the New Testament. It demonstrates that God’s promises to Israel are fulfilled in Christ and extended to all who believe, regardless of ethnic background. This continuity assures believers of God’s unchanging nature and His commitment to His covenant people.
The biblical concept of the remnant is a profound illustration of God’s grace and sovereignty, revealing His ongoing work of redemption through a faithful few amidst a world often characterized by unbelief and rebellion.
Study history as our example – We declare it is a new day!
Throughout history of the church, God has repeatedly demonstrated that He does not require a majority in order to transform a territory
Again and again, when culture was deteriorating, religious systems. had grown cold, or nations were drifting farther from righteousness, the Lord raised up a consecrated people who refused to accept darkness as inevitable. They prayed, preached, discipled, confronted injustice, served their communities, and carried the presence of God beyond the walls of their gatherings. This is one of the great lessons we must recover in this hour. The Remnant has never been defined primarily by its numerical strength. It has been defined by its willingness to hear God and obey Him when others would not. Scripture establishes this pattern long before we as we research church history. Gideon’s army was reduced before victory came. Elijah stood against the prophets of Baal while seven thousand remained who had not bowed the knee. Jesus began the New Covenant movement with a relatively small company of disciples, yet within generations the Gospel had penetrated throughout the Roman world.
The history of the New Testament Ecclesia continues that same testimony. At crucial moments, the Lord has raised up relatively small communities of believers whose impact became far greater than their size.
YOU ARE THAT REMNANT!
THE MORAVIANS: When prayer became a mission to the nations!
Remember how John Hus was burned at the stake. The Moravians faced much persecution throughout history which led to Herrnhut. The Moravian movement began with Christian Martyr John Hus being burned at the stake in the 1400’s. He was singing hymns! Read this account of Herrnhut below and may hope rise up out of the desperate circumstance you may be facing. The answer to change America and save our nation is recorded in history. Can we learn from lessons in the past? I believe we can as the radical remnant is surfacing. He wants to use each of us.
Herrnhut – Impacted America
The greatest revival in modern history was begun in a little village which was formerly known as East Germany. It was a town called Herrnhut and led by Count Nicholas Von Zinzendorf. In 1727, a group of Moravians fled persecution in Czechoslovakia and immigrated to Germany. Zinzendorf allowed them to settle on his estate. They came and built a village they called Hernnhut which means – “The Watch of the Lord”.
Earlier in their history a prophet by the name of Malchoir Schaefer, gave a prophetic word that stated, “God will place a light on these hills that will illumine the whole world.” This may appear to be impossible as a group of 300-400 people in a little village could birth such a word. These were refugees, kicked out of their own country that was living in an obscure place in a backwater corner in Germany. Can you believe that God would do something here that would affect the world?
POINT TO PONDER: “We must begin to believe that God, in the mystery of prayer, has entrusted us with a force that can move the Heavenly world, and can bring its power down to earth.” – Andrew Murray
In 1722, Zinzendorf bought the Berthelsdorf estate from his grandmother and installed a Pietistic preacher in the local Lutheran church. That same year Zinzendorf came into contact with a Moravian preacher, Christian David, who informed the young Count of the sufferings of the persecuted Protestants in Moravia. These Moravians known as the Unitas Fratrum were the remains of John Huss’ followers in Bohemia. Since the 1600s, these saints had suffered under the hands of successive repressive Catholic monarchs. Zinzendorf offered them asylum on his lands. Christian David returned to Bohemia and brought many to settle on Zinzendorf’s estate, forming the community of Herrnhut (The Watch of the Lord). The community quickly grew to over three hundred. Yet due to divisions and tension in the infant community, Zinzendorf gave up his court position and became the leader of the brethren, instituting a new constitution for the community.
On August 13th, 1727, they went to a nearby village of Berthelsdorf to meet together in the Lutheran Church for a communion service. Count Zinzendorf got up to lead the service and got part way through when the Spirit of God fell. No one who was there ever gave a detailed description of what happened. They just said the fire of God fell, there were signs, wonders, and miracles, and they were never the same again.
Fire on the Altar
There was a new spirituality that characterized this community, with men and women being committed to encouraging one another in the life of God. August of 1727 is seen as the Moravian Pentecost. Zinzendorf said August 13th was “a day of the outpourings of the Holy Spirit upon the congregation; it was its Pentecost.” The next week they said, “How do we keep this going? God’s presence is with us. How do we keep it?” They turned in their Bibles and found that in Exodus 29: 41-43, God gave instructions and how to live in His presence! If you keep the fire burning on the altar (Exodus 29, Leviticus 6:13), I will dwell with you! They determined to keep the fire on the altar. They divided the clock into watches and took turns praying 24 hours a day 7 days a week! Within two weeks of the outpouring, over twenty men and women covenanted to pray “hourly intercessions,” thus praying every hour around the clock. They were committed to see that “The fire must be kept burning on the altar continuously; it must not go out”.
POINT TO PONDER: “Don’t pray when you feel like it. Have an appointment with the Lord and keep it. A man is powerful on his knees.” – Corrie ten Boom
A Missionary Movement Born
The Spirit of God began to send them out as missionaries. In the 1700’s missionaries went from there to Greenland, North and South America, South Africa, Australia, and even Tibet. They also went to England and one person that was saved there through their ministry was John Wesley. He met a Moravian Bishop Peter Bohler as they were crossing the Atlantic on a ship in the mid 1700’s. They came upon a storm and the ship was being overwhelmed. The British passengers were in a panic state as they thought they were going to die. John Wesley was stunned by the calmness of the group of Moravians led by Bohler. These German Moravians were singing hymns and had this sense of peace. Wesley thought they were unaware of the storms severity and they were about to perish. He approached Peter Bohler and said we are about to die. Bohler responded by saying, “We’re not afraid to die. We die daily.” This impacted Wesley so much that he resolved to learn about these people. He went to Herrnhut and caught the fire of the Lord and brought revival to England.
POINT TO PONDER: “God does nothing except in response to believing prayer.” – John Wesley (Famous evangelist who spent 2 hours a day in prayer)
CLAPHAM BELIEVERS: The remnant entered the gates of Government.
In reflecting on an increasingly partisan and negative atmosphere during this election season, I’m reminded again of the importance of training up future servant leaders who can engage our culture in a winsome way for change that glorifies God. There are many examples throughout church history of men and women who served this way. In fact, the inspiration and name for our school comes from such a group.
Clapham is today an area of southwest London. In the late 18th and early 19th centuries it was the place for worship and fellowship by a group of believers who became known as the “Clapham Saints” or the “Clapham Sect” (as they were negatively called in the London press). Their devotion to Christ helped change countless lives in London and beyond. Perhaps the most famous member of the Clapham Saints was William Wilberforce. As a young student at Cambridge in the 1770’s, he turned away from his evangelical youth and pursued a worldly lifestyle. Socially gifted and very wealthy, Wilberforce exuded the qualities of a natural leader while still an undergraduate.
He eventually became one of the youngest and most charismatic members of Parliament. His life changed, however, after taking two trips to the Continent with a dear friend and mentor, Isaac Milner. It was on these trips that he immersed himself in his own study of the classics and Scripture, was convicted of the depth of his sin, and turned to Jesus.
Wilberforce felt compelled to retire from public life and Parliament, but after some counsel was persuaded instead to utilize his position of influence to serve Christ. He dedicated his parliamentary life to the abolition of slavery, and he and his friends in the Clapham Saints labored over twenty years until slave trade was outlawed. He lobbied another 25 years for emancipation. Three days before his death, he was sent word that the House of Commons had outlawed the institution of slavery.
Other members of the Clapham Saints included Hannah More, a well-known writer and social reformer, an advocate for the poor and for the education of women. Their meetings were often centered at the Holy Trinity Church in Clapham, London, then pastored by John Venn. Undaunted by ridicule or opposition and tireless in their cause for moral reform, this group set up numerous Christian societies and published volumes of Christian material concerning social reform. They founded the British and Foreign Bible Society and the Church Missionary Society and led the charge for prison reform.
Wilberforce and his friends understood the calling of the Christian to stand for what is right. They understood the Scripture to be good and true and lived under the compulsion of its commands. Together they stood against the powerful tide of their culture.
With these examples it should be obvious why we chose the name “Clapham” for our school. However, one final point may be the most important. Many schools are named for individuals who achieved greatness in some way or another. Our school is named for a community of individuals. They, together, exemplified the idea that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. Through all night prayer sessions, solid biblical teaching and encouragement from each other, they made a difference in early 19th century England. We can thank God for their example and pray for more like them in our culture today.
John Wesley a Circuit Rider
Wesley was a spark that led to the first Great Awakening. The nation was “transformed” and England was saved from a bloody revolution that France endured.
The revival in England affected America. It was called “The Great Awakening” which transformed America as it swept through the colonies. Church attendance doubled in America. The U.S. Constitution was written, for most part, by men impacted by the “Great Awakening”. The very foundations of our government were influenced by this prayer movement where people were faithful to take watches before the Lord and pray.
At the beginning of the 18th century, England was mired in immense spiritual darkness and a moral quagmire. Thomas Carlyle (1795-1881), a historian of the time, described the country’s condition as “Stomach well alive, soul extinct.”
Deism was rampant, and a bland, philosophical morality was standard fare in the churches. Sir William Blackstone (1723-1780), an English jurist and politician best known for writing the Commentaries on the Laws of England, visited the church of every major clergyman in London, but “did not hear a single discourse which had more Christianity in it than the writings of Cicero”, an eloquent Roman orator of the 1st century BC.
In most sermons he heard, it would have been impossible to tell just from listening whether the preacher was a follower of Christ, Mohammed, or Confucius! And during this time conformity with the Church of England was expected, and great efforts were made to persecute those who disagreed with the liturgical form of the service and it’s beliefs, where it often only empowered human reason.
How is it possible that there are no symptoms of deterioration in an increasingly humanistic society?
Even nonconformists, whether dissident Protestants or Baptists, who disagreed with certain Church of England beliefs, suffered severe persecution over many years. They were excluded from all civilian and military appointments and could not enter the universities.
These Protestant dissenters felt that their faith was directed solely by God and that Christ was the sole leader of the Church. They resisted taking an oath of allegiance to the monarch and saw the Scriptures as the only rule of faith and conduct.
One such spiritually dead clergyman was John Wesley (1703-1791), who later became the evangelist who sparked a great spiritual awakening in the mid-18th century in England. But not without first going to Georgia with James Oglethorpe (1696-1785) to work as a missionary among the Indians.
He soon returned to England in despair and wrote, “I went to America to convert the Indians; but oh who will convert me!”. On the ship going to Georgia, Wesley had met some Moravian immigrants and was impressed by their spiritual strength and joy in the Lord. Back in England, as Wesley struggled with his own sinfulness and need of salvation, he received spiritual counsel from the Moravian Peter Boehler (1712-1775).
On May 24, 1738, during a meeting at Aldersgate, Wesley experienced God’s saving grace and wrote:
“I felt my heart strangely warmed. I felt I did trust in Christ, Christ alone for salvation; and an assurance was given to me that he had taken away my sins.”
The love of Jesus Christ lit up Wesley’s heart and he knew he couldn’t keep quiet. There had to be some way to reach the millions of people who would never walk through the door of a church. Initially, Wesley was convinced that the Gospel could only be preached within the structure of a church. But with so few people attending church services, he was forced to consider other options and learned from George Whitefield (1714-1770) the importance of preaching outdoors to reach the crowds. He found a high point on the outskirts of the city and began preaching to those who would listen. A crowd of three, five, even ten thousand people gathered. Many of them were touched by God and their spiritual state awakened.
The Welsh Revival…1904-1905
Yet, to truly comprehend how a spark from a young preacher in Loughor could ignite an entire country, we must first understand the unique social, political, and religious pressures that had been building for decades. The often-overlooked story of pre-revival Wales is not merely a prelude; it is the key to understanding the soil that was so ready for the seed. It explains the spiritual hunger, the societal tensions, and the national mood that made such a widespread awakening possible.
For this reason, our history begins there. However, if you wish to proceed directly to the story of the revival itself, its leaders, and its immediate effects, you are welcome to begin at Section Two.
The 1904–1905 Welsh Revival was a watershed moment in modern religious history, an explosive and transformative spiritual awakening that, for a brief period, fundamentally reshaped the social and moral landscape of Wales. Ignited in the small chapels of Cardiganshire and fanned into a national conflagration by a young former coal miner named Evan Roberts, the movement resulted in an estimated 100,000 conversions to Christianity in less than a year. Its impact was immediate and profound: crime rates plummeted, public houses emptied, and a wave of fervent piety swept through the industrial valleys and rural towns.3 Yet, the revival’s significance extends far beyond the borders of Wales.
News of the awakening spread globally, acting as a direct catalyst for other major spiritual movements, most notably the 1906 Azusa Street Revival in Los Angeles, which marks the genesis of the worldwide Pentecostal tradition.
This report posits that the 1904–1905 Welsh Revival was not merely a spontaneous spiritual event but a complex socio-religious phenomenon, born from the crucible of industrial modernization and a deep-seated Nonconformist tradition. While its immediate, transformative impact on Welsh society was profound and its role as a catalyst for global Pentecostalism is undeniable, its character as a populist, experiential, and anti-institutional movement contained the seeds of its own brief lifespan and foreshadowed the subsequent decline of institutional Christianity in Wales.
William Booth – Salvation Army – Warfare turned to Compassion
The son of a speculative builder, Booth was apprenticed as a boy to a pawnbroker. At 15 he underwent the experience of religious conversion and became a revivalist preacher. In 1849 he went to London where he worked in a pawnbroker’s shop at Walworth, hating the business but bound to it by the necessity of sending money home. At this period, he met Catherine Mumford, his future wife and lifelong helpmate Cathrine Booth. In 1852 he had become a regular preacher of the Methodist New Connection, and in 1855 they were married. After nine years of ministry Booth broke loose from the New Connection and began his career as an independent revivalist.
Booth held the simple belief that eternal punishment was the fate of the unconverted. Coupled with this was a profound pity for the outcast and a hatred of dirt, squalor, and suffering. In 1864 Booth went to London and continued his services in tents and in the open air and founded at Whitechapel the Christian Mission, which became (in 1878) the Salvation Army. Booth modeled its “Orders and Regulations” on those of the British army. Its early “campaigns” excited violent opposition; a “Skeleton Army” was organized to break up the meetings, and for many years Booth’s followers were subjected to fines and imprisonment as breakers of the peace. After 1889 these disorders were little heard of. The operations of the Army were extended in 1880 to the U.S., in 1881 to AU, and later to the European continent, to India, to Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), and elsewhere—General Booth himself being a world traveler, organizer, and speaker.
There is an important lesson here for those of us who speak about spiritual warfare. Territorial warfare is not merely identifying demons, strongholds, or spiritual resistance. Sometimes the most devastating blow against darkness is feeding someone who is hungry, discipling someone trapped in addiction, restoring dignity to the forgotten, caring for children, strengthening families, or giving someone a genuine opportunity to rebuild their life.
Fulton St Awakening before Civil War – NY
It was exactly 12 noon on September 23, 1857—a little more than 100 years ago. A tall, middle-aged former businessman climbed creaking stairs to the third story of an old church building in the heart of lower New York City.
He entered an empty room, pulled out his pocket watch and sat down to wait. The placard outside read: “Prayer Meeting from 12 to 1o’clock—Stop 5, 10, or 20 minutes, or the whole hour, as your time admits.” It looked like no one had the time. As the minutes ticked by, the solitary waiter wondered if it were all a mistake.
For some three months he had been visiting boarding houses, shops, and offices, inviting people to the eighty-eight-year-old Old Dutch North Church at Fulton and Williams streets. The church had fallen on slim days. Old families had moved away. The business neighborhood was teeming with a floating population of immigrants and laborers.
Other churches had gotten out. Many thought that Old Dutch should throw in the towel. But the trustees determined on a last ditch stand. They decided to hire a lay missionary to conduct a visitation program.
The man they picked was Jeremiah C. Lanphier, a merchant who had no experience whatsoever in church visitation work. At forty-nine Lanphier gave up his trade position to knock on doors for a salary of less than $1,000 a year.
The going was slow. A few families came. But often Lanphier returned to his room in the church consistory weary and discouraged. At such time he “spread out his sorrows before the Lord.” And he never failed to draw new strength from his time of prayer.
While going his rounds of visitation, the idea occurred to him that businessmen might like to get away for a short period of prayer once a week while offices were closed at noon. With permission of church officials Lanphier passed out handbills and put up the placard. When the day of the first meeting came, he was the only one on hand for it.
Six Come to Pray
He waited ten minutes, then ten more. The minute hand of his watch pointed to 12:30 when at last he heard a step on the stairs. One man came in, then another and another until there were six. After a few minutes of prayer the meeting was dismissed with the decision that another meeting would be held the following Wednesday.
That small meeting was in no way extraordinary. There was no great outpouring of the Spirit of God. Lanphier had no way of knowing that it was the beginning of a great national revival which would sweep an estimated one million persons into the kingdom of God.
Looking back, historians can see that conditions were ripe for revival. The Revival of 1800 began a golden age of religious interest. But by 1843 a nation intent upon getting and spending had lost interest in religion. The West had opened up. Gold was discovered in California. Railroad building was a craze. The slavery issue was hot. Fortunes ballooned. Faith diminished.
Lanphier did not know much about such things. All he knew was that men stood in need of prayer. Twenty men came to his second noon-hour meeting. The following Wednesday, forty. Lanphier decided to make the meeting a daily event in a larger room.
That very week—on Wednesday, October 14 the nation was staggered by the worst financial panic in its history. Banks closed, men were out of work, families went hungry. The crash no doubt had something to do with the astonishing growth of Lanphier’s noon meeting (by now called “the Fulton Street prayer meeting”). In a short time the Fulton Street meeting had taken over the whole building with crowds of more than 3,000.
Lawyers and physicians, merchants and clerks, bankers and brokers, manufacturers and mechanics, porters and messenger boys all came. Draymen would drive up to the curb, tie up their horses and come in for a few minutes.
Rules were drawn up. Signs were posted. One read: “Brethren are earnestly requested to adhere to the 5-minute rule.” Another: “Prayers and Exhortations Not to exceed 5 minutes, in order to give all an opportunity.”
It seemed that the Fulton Street meeting had touched a nerve. The revival-prayer impulse flashed from coast to coast. On November 5, 1857, a New York newspaper carried the story of a revival in Hamilton, Ontario Canada, in which 300 to 400 people were converted in a few days. Accounts of local revivals began to appear in religious papers in November. And in December a three-day Presbyterian convention was held at Pittsburgh to consider the necessity for a general revival. Shortly thereafter a similar one was called in Cincinnati.
New York Bows in Prayer
Within six months 10,000 businessmen (out of a population of 800,000) were gathering daily in New York City for prayer. In January 1858 there were at least twenty other prayer meetings going full tilt in the city. Many of them were sparked by the Young Men’s Christian Association. Other cities had them too.
By January of 1858 newspapers were sending reporters to cover the meetings. “The Progress of the Revival” became a standing news head. Remarkable cases of awakening were detailed at length. And there were many.
Charles Finney – Great Awakening!
CHARLES FINNEY, and all of the new theology and practices associated with him, came charging upon the religious scene in the United States in late 1825. At that point the length of the Second Great Awakening was remarkable; for over a quarter-century it had blessed America, fostering the sending of missionaries abroad, the founding of schools and colleges, and the conversion of tens of thousands.
One of the foremost evangelists had been Asahel Nettleton, a quiet, scholarly Calvinist who insisted on reverence in his meetings. But it would be Finney who propelled the awakening onto center-stage in America, and gave it another fifteen years of life. The side-effects became more widespread than ever before: out of it came power for the antislavery crusade, women’s rights, prison reform, temperance, and much more.
Finney was tall and handsome, and he had penetrating, hypnotic eyes which riveted his audiences. His eyes were “large and blue, at times mild as an April sky, and at others, cold and penetrating as polished steel,” one observer stated. Along with that, he possessed a majestic voice, which could be immensely persuasive with crowds. In addition, he had studied to be an attorney, and he turned the legal logic he had developed, and his courtroom skills, to the use of the pulpit.
In Finney’s day preaching was often very formal. As he plunged into evangelistic work in the back woods of upper New York State in 1824, he offended some who said he destroyed the dignity of the pulpit with his direct, personal style. But Finney’s informal preaching had a rapid-fire impact on large congregations, and converts grew in number. Many warned him that being dramatic in the pulpit might turn away the educated. Just the opposite proved to be the case. Finney remarked, “They would say, ‘You will not interest the educated part of your congregation.’ But facts soon silenced them on this point. . . . Under my preaching, judges, and lawyers, and educated men were converted by scores . . . Under their methods, such a thing seldom occurred.”
By late 1825 he had left behind the rural areas, and began campaigns in the area of Utica, New York. When Finney opened evangelistic meetings in the town of Western, NY, in October 1825, he could not suspect that he was beginning seven years of the most intense evangelistic activity that the United States has seen. The results would be far reaching and crucial in modern evangelism to this day.
The revival Finney began in Western soon spread to nearby towns. When he moved to Rome, NY, 500 converts were soon made. Then he moved his work to the city of Utica; a Presbyterian pastor there said the services were made “solemn and sometimes terribly so by the presence of God which made sinners afraid and Christians humble and still.” In Utica another 500 converts were made, and 1,000 added to the rolls of churches in the surrounding area.
As Finney’s fame grew, some of his practices were condemned. Asahel Nettleton, particularly, charged that Finney introduced “New Measures” which upset the order of society and church life. These new methods included praying for persons by name, allowing women to pray and testify, encouraging people under conviction to come forward, mobilizing the entire community through groups of workers visiting homes, and displacing the routine services of the church with special services held each evening, sometimes for periods of weeks.
Yet, for every critic who found fault, Finney had supporters who praised his aggressive evangelism. The New Measures were successful and valid new evangelistic techniques, his followers urged. Still, the methods were so new and striking that they were bound to stir controversy.
A concern was raised about the possibility of fanaticism and disorder in Finney’s meetings. Rumors and exaggerations had, of course, been flying; according to these, Finney was a wild eyed ranter of the most dangerous type, who was bringing the Second Awakening into disgrace. Finney and his supporters made it clear that they were as firmly opposed to the ranting and uncontrolled physical excesses of the Kentucky frontier revivals as anyone.
Soon he clashed again with older views, for Finney’s entire concept of awakening was new. He taught that awakening was not a miraculous act of God, but a simple use of human choice. He saw revivals very differently from Stoddard, Edwards, Whitefield, or Wesley, who understood that Christians could do nothing about periods of sin and backsliding until the Holy Spirit brought about renewal. Finney put the initiative in the hands of Christians: if they did the right things, revival would come. There was nothing at all miraculous about the coming of revival. Many said then—and have since—that Finney changed American religion from God-centered to man-centered.
Whatever people’s opinions on these issues, there was no denying that Finney was winning great numbers of converts wherever he spoke. In the fall of 1830 the pinnacle of his evangelistic career was reached when he began meetings in Rochester, New York.
The Smith Sisters – Hidden Ones – Hebrides Island!
Church history is filled with spectacular moments when God seemed to come down and shake territories with his presence. These moments have stood as an eternal testimony that God is indeed longing to dwell among his people.The Hebrides revival was one of such moves of God that never ceases to amaze me.
Intercession
In 1949, two old women named Peggy and Christine Smith, one of them 84 years of age and the other 82 were greatly burdened because of the state of the body of Christ in their community. The church in the little island of Hebrides was in need of an awakening. These women took it upon themselves to pray until revival comes. They spent hours in prayer, sometimes praying from 10pm to 3 or 4am in their little cottage.
As the intercession intensified, some ministers joined the sisters for prayer every Tuesday and Friday. They began to pray the promise of God in Isaiah chapter 44, verse 3:
“For I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground: I will pour my spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring.”
During one of their prayer sessions, God showed Peggy and Christine that a Scottish preacher called Duncan Campbell was to visit them and that he would be used to bring about revival. After a series of events, Duncan arrived for a two weeks visit. This visit lasted for about 2 years. In Duncan’s first meeting, nothing major happened but one of the deacons encouraged him: “Don’t be discouraged, it is coming. I already hear the rumbling of heaven’s chariot wheels. We will have another night of prayer and then we will see what God is going to do.”
About 30 persons gathered at a cottage that night to pray. At about three o’ clock in the morning, God swept in and about a dozen were laid prostrate upon the floor. As they left the cottage that morning, they found men and women seeking God. No one seemed to think of sleep. Three men were found lying by the roadside in conviction crying for God to have mercy upon them. The whole Island was shaken.
Revival
The next night, buses came from the four corners of the island, crowding the church. Seven men were being driven to the meeting in a butcher’s truck, when suddenly the Spirit of God fell upon them in great conviction and all were converted before they reached the church. As Duncan preached, a wave of conviction swept over the congregation. Cries were heard all over the place.
The meeting closed when people began to move out. As the last person was about to leave, a young man began to pray. He prayed for three quarters of an hour. As he prayed, people kept gathering until there were twice as many outside. When the young man stopped praying, an Elder read Psalm chapter 132. As the people sang the old hymn, they streamed back into the church and the meeting lasted until 4am. Hardened sinners were saved.
Just as the meeting was closing, someone hurried up to the preacher, very excited: “Come with me! There’s a crowd of people outside the police station, they are weeping and in an awful distress. We don’t know what’s wrong with them, but they are calling for someone to come and pray with them.”
Describing the scenes outside the police station, a minister declared:
“I saw a sight I never thought was possible. Something I shall never forget. Under the starlit sky, men and women were kneeling everywhere, by the roadside, outside the cottages, even behind the peat stacks, crying for God to have mercy upon them.”
Revival had come. God came down and shook the little island of Hebrides. I’ve watched testimonies of people who saw the literal shekinah of God descending and resting on houses even as dishes clattered under the weight of the glory. Some claimed they saw a ship but there was no sea where they saw the ship. It was indeed heaven on earth. The revival lasted for two years. It is said that over 90 percent of the island was saved.
The Cry of the Spirit
The cry of the Spirit is revival. When we become content with “Lord, bless me” Christianity, then there’s a problem. Jesus came to show us that heaven is near. Heaven must be manifested in our homes, communities, family. If we seek it, we will see it. We owe this generation an encounter with God! May we see greater moves of God in our days.
AMERICA will Awaken – A New day!
When we study these movements together, a remarkable pattern begins emerging. These believers did not merely gather and complain about what was wrong with their generation. They sought God until they understood what obedience required. Prayer became mission. Revival became discipleship. Conviction became reform. Compassion became ministry. And spiritual awakening eventually became cultural influence.
This is where the modern Remnant must mature. We cannot spend our lives identifying everything darkness is doing while never asking what Heaven has assigned us to do in response.
Paul reminds us in 2 Corinthians 10:4–5 that the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty through God for the pulling down of strongholds. Yet Paul never envisioned spiritual warfare as passive religious rhetoric. The apostolic Church prayed, preached, planted congregations, confronted false systems, discipled believers, cared for people, entered cities, and established Kingdom communities within hostile cultures.
Likewise, Ephesians 6:12 tells us that our struggle is ultimately not against flesh and blood. That truth should change the way we engage our cities. People are not the enemy. Political parties are not the ultimate enemy. Broken people are not the enemy. Our warfare must remain spiritual even while our obedience becomes profoundly practical. The question, therefore, is not simply whether darkness exists in our city and nation. We already know it does. The question is whether there is an Ecclesia in our cities that knows what Heaven has assigned it to do. The Lord has raised up Remnant believers and congregations whose obedience shifted the spiritual and cultural atmosphere around them. Some affected neighborhoods. Others affected cities. Still others influenced regions and nations. The Remnant has never been called merely to observe history. We have been called to become obedient participants in what God desires to do within it. God desires to use each of us. Who will rise up? Our children and grand-children are at stake. Create a legacy for your family that will bless generations to come! We are in a spiritual revolutionary war. I have decided to make a stand – will you? Did the mid-term election prove what we are facing today?
Point to Ponder: As in the movie The Perfect Storm, the storm I see coming to the United States is a combination of more than one element, and when the elements unite, the storm becomes exponentially more dangerous. However, unlike the movie, this storm is not just a storm of merging weather patterns. This storm is worse; it involves 5 different elements: religion, politics, economics, war, and geo-physical events. Massive problems in these five areas will come often, or in combination, and sometimes repeatedly. Each element has potentially several events that will have national and international ripple effects. Some ripples will be worse than others, depending on where you live and how you make your living. Different areas of the United States will experience different severities. Some will experience more economic elements, others more geo-physical elements; some will experience all elements. Remember, it is the combination and the rapidity that will make the storm problematic.” – John Paul Jackson
TIPPING POINT – THE PRAYER AND ACTION MOVEMENT
One of the purposes of this communication was to help encourage 24/7/365 day and night prayer and action manifest in the United States. I was hoping to see a “tipping point” materialize where there would be a great shift in our culture. History has proven a dedicated few can change the course of history – for good or evil.
In Russia during the Bolshevik revolution 20,000 people turned a nation of nearly 200 million to Communism. It led to Lenin and Stalin as dictators where millions of lives were taken through purges. Communism was a great evil that came upon that land and impacted the world. Just as good can come from a dedicated few – so can evil take over a nation and impact the world.
Point to Ponder: The tipping points in history have usually come from a tiny percentage of the people. One study determined that the number of people required for a profound impact on cultural change was as few as the square root of 1% of the population. That means just 100 people can have a profound impact on a city of a million. Rick Joyner
There is a call for the radical remnant (the dedicated elite few) to go into the prayer closet to birth a “tipping point” of prayer and action. I believe the Lord has revealed to me that personal intimate prayer time, where individuals seek the Lord daily, is the answer. I am sure there are others who feel the same way. I hope to co-labor with them and join hand-to-hand to make this vision a reality. This is the only way that a true 24/7 day and night prayer will develop. It will take individuals who feel the stirring of the Holy Spirit and the call to pray. Little prayer fires are burning across each state, and they can make a big difference especially as these fires join and burn together. The prayer movement is on the move and is becoming very contagious because of the need of the hour and the season of time we are in. A few can turn back many and can create a “tipping point”that moves God’s hand in our behalf.
“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. Or what man is there among you who, if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask Him! (Matthew 7: 7-11)
It will take unity of the Church as well as pastors and ministries cooperating with one another to make this a reality. Division, control issues, offenses, jealousy, and all types of competition must come to an end. Jesus said a house divided will not stand. Is unity in our diversity attainable? Yes! Why not in the region where you live?
What about divisive politics?
It is apparent there is division in the church between various cultures such as Hispanic, White, African American, Asian churches, etc, – even in the prayer movement. Politics many times is the driving force in this division. We must forget about the elephant (Republican Party)and the donkey (Democrat Party) but pray, vote, and choose the Lamb who became the Lion of Judah (Jesus Christ) and promote His Kingdom. We must think vertically (God’s Kingdom) on righteousness issues. Thinking horizontally will not save our nation. When the horizontal (church) lines up with the vertical (Kingdom of God), this praying intersect is the Cross that will bring a “tipping point” of life and transformation!
Moving towards the Tipping Point
Not too long ago I read a secular book called, “The Tipping Point – How Little things Can Make a Big Difference,” by Malcolm Gladwell. In it I discovered a conceptual method that could be applied to the prayer movement in any state and our nation. I have come to understand how little things can make a big difference. Small is the next big!
Who is your sphere of influence?
Each individual has a sphere of influence that God has called them to impact. One lit match or spark can burn an entire forest down. If we decided to be a fire-starter we could create a “spontaneous combustion” across or nation. And as I look at the state of Michigan (U.S.A. – as an example), I ask, who are the fire starters in the prayer and action movement? We are in a time when we need to pass the torch and take the sword to contend with the evil that is around us. Sit down and take time and identify and write down your sphere of influence. Seek the Lord on how you can impact these lives.
Point to ponder: Again, can you imagine what one person can do with a match in a dry forest? One individual could burn a whole forest down. One individual with God given vision can take a city, a state, a nation! Faith moves mountains – Mark 11: 22-26.
Doesn’t it take just one person who has the flu to start an epidemic? The critical mass or a social epidemic that takes place is the “tipping point”. Why could we not cause a spiritual prayer epidemic in the church which would rally people into their prayer closets and take action? It can be done! Because of God’s grace, I believe every state in the nation has individuals who are infected with a prayer and action contagion.
“But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty;” (1 Corinthians 1:27)
Can you believe with me?
Use any state or region as an example. We will take this from a microcosm (church) to a macrocosm (United States). The tipping point (law of the few) is between 6 – 10% of any population (some say less). Each of the examples listed below I have taken approximately 8% of the total number. Remember that little things can make a big difference or little matches can cause big fires. Imagine with me that this 8% are those who have been stirred to pray and individually see the need to seek God in their prayer closet, whether on a weekly or daily basis. Let’s give an example:
CREATING A TIPPING POINT TO BIRTH TRANSFORMATION!
(Using 6% – 10% – Law of the Few)
A. CHURCH of 100 PEOPLE = 8 people praying (closet time) in that church body.
B. COUNTY WITH 300 CHURCHES = 24 Churches taking the prayer closet seriously.
C. STATE WITH 83 COUNTIES = 5 to 8 Counties pursuing 24/7/365 Prayer.
D. UNITED STATES OF AMERICA = 5 States who actively pursue 24/7/365 Prayer.
The Law of the Few – From Malcolm Gladwell “Tipping Point”
Note: This can be applied to the Radical Remnant Ecclesia!
The Law of the Few is about the people who spread messages, ideas, or viruses and cause epidemics to tip. These are specific types of people who have the contacts, knowledge, and social skills to effectively spread an idea far and wide.
When you’re trying to spread a message, idea, or product to epidemic proportions, you can’t do it all yourself; you need people to help preach your message and spread the word to the masses. But not just anyone will do. The Law of the Few proposes that there are certain, special types of people who are much more effective at broadcasting your idea and getting people to listen and follow suit in order to create an epidemic.
These special people fall into three personality types that make them exceptional either in their social connections, knowledge, or persuasiveness.
Connectors: People With Strong Social Networks
The idea of “connectors” is important to understanding the Law of the Few. Connectors are people who seem to know everyone. You can find Connectors in every walk of life. Connectors are sociable, gregarious, and are naturally skilled at making — and keeping in contact with — friends and acquaintances.
Mavens: People Who Are Always in the Know
While Connectors are people specialists, Mavens are information specialists. They also contribute to the Law of the Few. They are the kinds of people who are endlessly curious and adept at gathering and retaining information on a wide variety of (sometimes obscure) topics.
Mavens not only collect information, but they also enthusiastically share their knowledge with other people. They are socially motivated to help people with the information they’ve gathered; a Maven may give you some of her coupons, and remind you when a sale is coming up. Mavens have no ulterior motive for sharing information; they just want to help. Their genuine helpfulness inspires more trust and credibility, so when they give recommendations, people tend to take them more seriously.
Whereas a Connector’s influence lies in knowing many people and spreading information widely, a Maven’s influence is in the power of her recommendation. People know that Mavens are knowledgeable and trustworthy sources of information, so a Maven’s word carries a lot of weight. If a Maven suggests you check out a budding epidemic, you’re inclined to listen.
Salesmen are the persuaders
They are the people (radical remnant ecclesia) whose voice tone, gestures, and emotional contagion make others want to agree. Where Mavens are about information, Salesmen are about energy. An idea moves fastest when a Maven discovers it, a Connector spreads it, and a Salesman closes the persuasion at the end. Identify which of these three exist in your network or sphere of influence.
Why not apply this strategy to the prayer and action movement, I believe there will be a transformation of a nation. If we can encourage 6 to 10% of the people in “the church in America” to seek God diligently in the secret place or the prayer closet, we will witness a historic move of God. A spiritual epidemic of prayer will bring forth a “tipping point” and transformation of a society. Divine intervention in the cultural gateways will be a result.
Point to Ponder: Anything is possible if the task at hand is broken down into incremental steps.
The “tipping point” strategy indicates there are three characteristics that need to be considered. One is contagiousness, the second is littlecauseshavebigeffects, and the third one is that changeshappennotgraduallybutatonedramaticmoment. Why can’t those who have a heart for prayer and action come together to create a tipping point to bring transformation to any state or even the nation? God is giving us the door of opportunity to step through as a perfect storm is upon our land.
Five types of people you will encounter!
There will be five types of individuals we would encounter in our vision casting and fulfillment of the assignment given to us. We must apply this to building the prayer and action movement in the state or region you occupy. We must learn to align with particular groups of individuals or we may lose hope and give up! I had to learn to let groups or individuals go.
1. The Excited – They see how you see and are passionate, because the Lord has
implanted in them the same seed of vision. They are the minority but are the catalyst.
(Approximately 3 – 5%)
2. Embracers of the Vision – These people see the potential of the vision and will
certainly be supportive. (Approximately 10 – 15%)
3. The Middlers (ones in the middle) – This is the largest grouping. They ride the
fence and can go can go either way. They are important in the process and are
needed. (Approximately 60 – 70%)
4. Late Embracers – This group is smaller. After they see the work in progress is
having an impact, they will come on board and become late supporters of the vision.
(Approximately 10 – 15%)
5. Do Nothings – This group is small. No matter the progress or success, they will be
hardened and stubborn and never supportive because of pride, jealousy, envy, control,
offenses, or other issues. (Approximately 3 – 5%)
IMPORTANT: We must learn to focus on the excited and the embracer group. They are the ones who would be encouraging and supportive of the vision to build a prayer movement. They
would act as your delegates to win the middle group over. Our role is to encourage and
exhort, instill faith and confidence, so the task would be accomplished. Is it God’s
will that prayer increase? Yes! We can do all things through Christ who strengthens us?
Point to Ponder: “Time spent in prayer will yield more than that given to work. Prayer alone gives work its worth and its success. Prayer opens the way for God Himself to do His work in us and through us. Let our chief work as God’s messengers be intercession; in it we secure the presence and power of God to go with us.” – Andrew Murray
As far as the late embracers and do nothings, they must be let go. They would consume too much of our valuable time and spiritual energy! We must attempt to apply this principle and let them go – pray for them…YES! We must allow the Lord to do the work and fight the battles.
REMEMBER: The breastplate prayer must be considered and applied!
YOUR PERSONAL PRIESTHOOD BREASTPLATE OF PRAYER
(Bishop Larry Jackson – contact Breatplateprayer@gmail.com)
TOP ROW OF THREE STONES
*Select and pray for 3 unsaved family members.
1.____________________ 2.____________________ 3. ____________________
SECOND ROW OF THREE STONES
*Select and pray for 3 friends or acquaintances.
1.____________________ 2.____________________ 3. ____________________
THIRD ROW OF THREE STONES:
*Select and pray for 3 individuals in the workplace or neighborhood where you live.
1.____________________ 2.____________________ 3. ____________________
FOURTH ROW OF THREE STONES:
*Select and pray for 3 individuals you would never meet or encounter.
1.____________________ 2.____________________ 3. ____________________
