I remember when I started writing about revival in Leicester a couple of years back, a well-meaning friend warned me not to do so. His comment was along the lines of 'the moment you declare revival, God walks away.’
This is simply not true. Throughout the Bible, men and women
of faith have declared God with them. God's response to faith is to walk
towards them, not away from them. The history of revival is full of wonderful
declarations of what God is doing which in turn stirs the faith of believers
and attracts the interest of those without a faith.
It is intriguing that Spectator Magazine has headlined
revival in Britain. The article itself is more nuanced than that but it is a
delight to see such declarations in the secular press, especially from the
oldest magazine in the world.
What we are seeing in Leicester is, I believe, the start of
something much more. Leicester is an early ‘heat spot’ on the map. There are
many more and there will be many more to come.
The history of revival shows that often when a country is at
its lowest, people begin to realise there must be more to life. That's what's
happening. In a time of low-grade politics, increased poverty, together with increased
addictions and suicide, there is an answer.
Today is Good Friday. The answer is right in front of us.
