Preface
I became aware of the phenomenon of revival and
began to read widely on the subject when I studied at the Bible College of
Wales, Swansea in the 1980s. The college
library had many books and biographies which told the stories of historical
revivals and the key figures whom God had used in them. During the three years or so that I spent
there, I read and re-read many of these books, and I have been drawn many times
to this subject since then. Reading about
revival always brings me close to God and stirs my faith.
During my time in Wales, I found that, because of
the many books available on the subject and because of personal acquaintance
with people who had experienced the revival of 1904-1906, many ministers and
believers were aware of this phenomenon and regularly prayed for God to visit
Wales again in such power. Wales has
experienced several such visitations from God since the 1700s, so revival was
and still is often talked about in conversation amongst Welsh Christians and is
held dear by many hearts. They often
refer to Wales as ‘the land of revivals.’
Indeed, the founder of the Bible College of Wales,
Rev. Rees Howells, not only experienced the Welsh Revival of 1904-1906 as a
young believer, but later developed a very powerful Spirit-filled ministry and
became the channel of a mighty revival himself when he was a missionary in
Africa, in areas which are now in Zimbabwe and Mozambique.
One of our lecturers, Rev. David Davies, after he
had graduated from this college many years ago, became a missionary with WEC in
what was then the Belgian Congo. He
experienced the revival that took place in the Congo in 1953 which is referred
to in this book. As students we once
asked him to take an evening session and to tell us what this revival was
like. What he shared about what took
place, with all the powerful manifestations and the deep conviction of sin that
people experienced, and the consequent growth of the churches there, held us
spellbound for as long as he spoke. His
descriptions of that time of God’s power sobered and silenced us, and brought
about a tangible awe and fear of God in the room.
In my heart, therefore, I have learned to value
the history of what God has done before.
Since those early days in my own walk with God, I have always prayed and
yearned to see God work powerfully and do great things, and I believe that this
inward desire reflects that of God’s own heart.
What God has done before, he can do again!
As you read these pages, my prayer is that God
will open your eyes to the phenomenon of revival, if you have not yet really
come across it before. And for all of us
who live in UK in this present generation, may God birth in our hearts a deeper
desire to seek him for greater things than we have yet seen him do!
Pastor Michael A. Brown
Spring 2024
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