Rodney Kingstone - 22^nd June 1997

As revival is coming to the United Kingdom, so He has earmarked you to experience and to see and to participate in the full manifestation of revival here in this place and this city.

But He is asking for intercessors to give themselves particularly to aspects of His revealed will concerning revival. But because God is Sovereign and has earmarked you to revival does not exclude you from bearing prayerful responsibility to pray into being His Word and His Will.

I believe God is saying that you are closer now to revival than you were a week ago. That does not mean that revival is going to happen next week, but it does mean this – that every day that passes is the day that you come closer to the full manifestation of revival in this place.

And the Lord says, “I will fill this place to overflowing, for as the river runs through your city close by, so a river of My Spirit will begin to flow from this place to reach out both to the city and to the immediate area and to affect some nations even beyond the borders of the United Kingdom. I am releasing a river of life, a river of healing, a river of health, and soon people will get to hear of the river that is flowing, transforming whole hamlets and villages around.

‘The river will flow to the south down to the New Forest, sweeping in some of the villages there as the river flows up to Christchurch and Bournemouth and the two rivers, as it were, become one mighty tidal move of the Holy Spirit to the south of this city.  It will flow to the north of the city, somewhat limited to the west but still flowing, and flowing east.”

Concurrent with the flow of the river, I believe God is saying that He will start a move of the Spirit amongst the student community of Winchester, that they will see revival occurring amongst the student community, for He has destined that He will begin to transform many educational establishments through the meeting of heads of education who are only potential now as students, but through an impact of the Spirit of God, God will begin to bring back righteousness into the educational establishment out of revival through this city.

I do believe that God is saying that He wants particular intercessors to arise and pray this revival into being, to pray for the filling of this place, to pray for the flow of the river and to pray for revival amongst the educational establishment.

Anna Clements:

The church is like a clock, it is resplendent and beautiful. It has been cared for over many years, each cog, each chime, each piece of the casing has been preserved. This is an ancient clock, a clock of beauty and splendour. It has not always worked as it should and the clock maker has come to mend and take apart to make sure everything is in working order. It has had times of greatness and apparent times of ruin. Now God is coming to give the clock a real overhaul. God is beginning to take off the casing of the clock, the appearance of the clock so long in place is being taken away and God is getting to the very heart of the matter. God is going for the cogs, the heart of the church. The heart of the church is prayer. It’s what makes the church tick and function correctly – dedicate yourselves to this, to the functioning of the cogs, for this is God’s heart right now, this is what occupies Him.

He is tenderly approaching the clock with an oil can and He is pouring oil onto the cogs to free them up to pray. He knows exactly how much oil to pour in, how much that will allow the cogs to move completely freely. He goes to the larger cogs, the ones always on show despite the casing and also the smaller cogs hidden away behind the clock face. God is letting the oil pour over all the cogs. He is exposing His church again, exposing the heart of the church, exposing the rust and the missing cogs. He is replacing parts long missing or dislodged. The cogs cannot operate without all of them being in place – if one is missing the clock cannot function. There must be unity in prayer, there must be. Each cog encourages another to move in the right way.

There is relationship at work in prayer, at work in the clock if it is to function correctly - if it is to be in time with God. God is pouring out His Spirit to create a passion for prayer to allow this to happen, to allow the clock to work properly. Look, see the hands are moving already! Hear the clock ticking! Can’t you hear and see the things already happening? Listen to the tick, tick, tick as people begin to pray. More and more people are having prayer birthed in them and it will grow, for all must participate for the clock to stay in time with God. All who God calls to prayer must come and not resist His Holy Spirit, for God is coming, but one must be prepared… to be prepared means to pray.

Cath Moffat – July 2004

Be ready for the new thing I am doing in prayer. I want you to be fervently laying hold of the promises I have given you as a church. I want you to be bringing your requests to Me as children come to their Father, reminding Him of His promises. I am going to do a new thing in Prayer.  I am going to light a fire that will consume you from which you will not escape. I will consume you with a desire to see My purposes brought to fruition, and My Name glorified. Your hearts will be consumed by Me and My purposes. I am doing a new thing with your prayer life. Be ready for Me to come and mess up your prayer meetings. Be ready for the untidiness as I throw away that which is old and no longer fits you, and bring in something new. New ways of doing prayer. New ways of gathering corporately to seek Me. New ways of petitioning Me to fulfil My promises. New ways of interceding. Get ready.’

Chris Kilby - 30.4.06

“We had been singing from the passage in 2 Chronicles 5:

'A sacrifice was made

And then your power came

They knelt upon the ground

And with one voice they praised'

I felt that God was speaking to us about four distinct seasons that we were to recognise and enjoy as a church - one corresponding to each line of the verse.  They were as follows:

A season of sacrifice - 'A sacrifice was made - 'I felt God wanted to encourage us that we have been in a season of sacrifice from the time we moved out of Stanmore Lane. It was recognition from God of all that we have done individually and as a church to sacrificially give to the projects he has called us to. I felt too that God wanted to encourage us that even though this extraordinary season will not last forever, it will change, and there will be many faith ventures in the future!'

A season of power - I felt that this next season was chronologically our time in the Guildhall & Stanmore Lane. That God would powerfully mark our time out of the MBC by an increase in the things of The Spirit, particularly in power gifts such as healing and miracles, but also in our experience of the Spirit in worship on Sunday mornings and evenings. I felt that these gifts would increasingly become a sign for unbelievers. I felt that we should make provision for this by encouraging gifts, fanning them into flame on Sundays and praying for the sick etc. early in the meetings, regularly, and with faith.

A season of devotion and consecration - In the passage in 2 Chronicles the priests consecrated themselves, and were also later unable to perform their service such was the powerful presence of 'the cloud'. The trumpets and singers also joined together in unison. I really felt that as we return to the MBC next year, it would almost be a time of re-consecration to God - a dedicated and unified commitment to carry out His mission, and the great commission, for us in this city. As we all kneel before God and respond to his presence and his power and grace in our lives, he will put his loving hand on our shoulder, as a father to a son, and will reassure us of his presence with us until the very end of the age.

A season of unified praise - In the passage in 2 Chr. 5 they praised God, singing 'He is good; his love endures forever'. God really impressed upon me the ongoing love of God for his own Glory, and for his name to be praised. I felt that in the future we are to be a people that are marked by our worship, and desire above all things to bring Glory to God. He is so desirous of our worship, and wants us to catch his gaze and to know the intimacy of his eyes meeting ours in praise and worship as we outwork the reality that 'He is good' and that 'his love endures forever.' I felt that God wanted us to see these four seasons as a testimony to the faithfulness of our God. He is worthy of all our sacrifices, he loves to demonstrate his power in us and, through us, He is calling us to wholehearted devotion, and revels in our praise.”