Tag: revival

Daily Reading: 01 July – The Cross of Christ: The Ascension – Acts 1:1-11

Friday of the Thirteenth Week in Ordinary Time

+ In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen!

E100:14.e – The Cross of Christ

The Ascension – Acts 1:1-11 (NLT)

The Promise of the Holy Spirit

1 In my first book I told you, Theophilus, about everything Jesus began to do and teach 2 until the day he was taken up to heaven after giving his chosen apostles further instructions through the Holy Spirit. 3 During the forty days after he suffered and died, he appeared to the apostles from time to time, and he proved to them in many ways that he was actually alive. And he talked to them about the Kingdom of God.

4 Once when he was eating with them, he commanded them, “Do not leave Jerusalem until the Father sends you the gift he promised, as I told you before. 5 John baptized with water, but in just a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”

The Ascension of Jesus

Ascension (Life of Christ) Giotto, ca. 1300 Cappella degli Scrovegni, Padua
Ascension (Life of Christ)
Giotto, ca. 1300
Cappella degli Scrovegni, Padua

6 So when the apostles were with Jesus, they kept asking him, “Lord, has the time come for you to free Israel and restore our kingdom?”

7 He replied, “The Father alone has the authority to set those dates and times, and they are not for you to know. 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

9 After saying this, he was taken up into a cloud while they were watching, and they could no longer see him. 10 As they strained to see him rising into heaven, two white-robed men suddenly stood among them. 11 “Men of Galilee,” they said, “why are you standing here staring into heaven? Jesus has been taken from you into heaven, but someday he will return from heaven in the same way you saw him go!”
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Prayer for a New Great Awakening

Gracious and merciful God, we pray that through the Holy Spirit all Christians may hear the call of Revival and seek a deeper relationship with your Son, Jesus. Specifically, we pray –

  • That this Revival will renew your church, inspiring Christians to “go forth and make disciples of all nations” and transform society through the power of the Gospel.
  • That Christians may heed the words of Christ — “do not be afraid” — and strengthened by the Holy Spirit’s gift of courage, give witness to the Gospel and share our faith with others.
  • That Christians may become like the father of the prodigal son — filled with compassion for our missing brothers and sisters — and run to embrace them upon their return.
  • That all people yearning to know Christ may encounter him through faithful Christians who witness to his love in their lives.

Loving God, our Father, strengthen us to become witnesses to the saving grace of your Son, Jesus, our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
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“Revival” – Robin Mark

Closing Sentence

Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen. – Ephesians 3:20-21

+ In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen!

West Belfast: there and back again

Sunrise from West Belfast
Sunrise from West Belfast

Peanut Gallery: Can any good come out of Belfast? The answer is a resounding YES!

Belfast, Northern Ireland (UK) is Europe’s last best hope. But it is taking a movement of God.

“Some nations boast of their chariots and horses, but we boast in the name of the Lord our God.” 
Psalm 20.7 (NLT)

Northern Ireland is struggling… and the communities that make up West Belfast are on the bottom of the pile. Economic stagnation, unemployment, poor health and education, cramped housing, general poverty, teen pregnancy, and crime… all contribute to the highest suicide rate in Northern Ireland. Kids roam the streets at night with nothing to do and nowhere to go. As they congregate, police move them on from one place to the next. It’s not an environment I’d want for my kid.

While some areas of Northern Ireland are prospering, predominantly Nationalist West Belfast is being left behind.

It’s been 15 years since the Belfast Peace accords (Good Friday Agreement) were signed and while everything has changed, nothing has changed. There is no peace… only a fragile truce, or cease fire, which is being strained to its limits by extremes in both the Nationalist and Unionist communities.

One woman said: “The young people involved in the current round of protest and violence never lived through The Troubles. We are reaping the harvest of my generation’s unforgiveness… and passing it on to our children.”

And yet, in the middle of it all, God is pouring out His Spirit… lives are being changed and the Kingdom of God is at hand… accompanied by signs and wonders. Believers from all sides of the divide are sacrificially pouring out their lives in worship and prayer… and in untold acts of kindness and mercy. The invisible Church is rising up… and God is moving among His people.

Robin Mark captures the mood in “Revival in Belfast” while the video background overviews the city. More later….
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Revival in Belfast – Robin Mark (with video of Northern Ireland)

I hear the voice of one calling, prepare ye the way of the Lord. And make His paths straight in the wilderness. And let your light shine in the darkness. And let your rain fall in the desert.

As sure as gold is precious and the honey sweet, So you love this city and you love these streets. Every child out playing by their own front door. Every baby laying on the bedroom floor.

Every dreamer dreaming in her dead-end job. Every driver driving through the rush hour mob. I feel it in my spirit, feel it in my bones. You’re going to send revival, bring them all back home.

I can hear that thunder in the distance. Like a train on the edge of town. I can feel the brooding of Your Spirit. “Lay your burdens down, Lay your burdens down”.

From the Preacher preaching when the well is dry. To the lost soul reaching for a higher high. From the young man working through his hopes and fears. To the widow walking through the veil of tears.

Every man and woman, every old and young. Every fathers daughter, every mothers son. I feel it in my spirit, feel it in my bones. You’re going to send revival, bring them all back home

I can hear that thunder in the distance. Like a train on the edge of town. I can feel the brooding of Your Spirit. “Lay your burdens down, Lay your burdens down”.

Revive us, Revive us, Revive us with your fire!