Anticipating Revival

At the International House of Prayer of Kansas City, we are a people committed to the evangelical understanding of Scripture’s inerrancy and unique inspiration. The canon is closed, and all Scripture is God-breathed, suitable for correction and instruction, and sharper than a two-edged sword. Once a month, we corporately recite the Apostle’s Creed as a statement of our profound agreement with the historic, unassailable doctrines of the Church. We believe in community, healing for hearts and bodies, and the present power of the Holy Spirit among His people.

The distinguishing factor of our spiritual community is not to be found in unique doctrine, which is thoroughly orthodox (i.e. “correct belief”), but in our attempts to form a sustainable orthopraxis (“correct conduct”) rooted in a culture of prayer combined with worship. In our own small way, we have tried to follow divine patterns from King David to the Book of Revelation. We tried and stumbled, and kept trying. As a result, we have all experienced firsthand a measure of what Isaiah promised 2700 years ago, when he declared that God would one day bring His people to His holy mountain “and give them joy in [His] house of prayer” (Isaiah 56:7). The infinite dimensions of God, even the smallest glimpses of the beauty of Jesus as Bridegroom, King, and Judge, spur us on with lovesick longing. Like Moses, we cry, “God, show us Your glory!” and He answers back, “I will make all My goodness pass before your eyes” (Exodus 33:18–19).

But let’s be real. Prayer can be daunting and dry, like piling spiritual rocks. So where does the joy come from? As a community, we have learned and practiced a rhythm that routinely brings powerful daily encounters between average, weak humans and the great love of Jesus; and these encounters leave our hearts burning for more. As we pray the Scripture, we find ourselves caring about what God cares about. Our hearts move into alignment with His heart, and we don’t even realize that transformation is happening. No wonder so many justice and compassion ministries have launched out of this place: ministries to end human trafficking, adoption ministries, labors to end abortion, ministries to feed and clothe the poor, and on and on.

Over twenty years, from 20,000 former and present staff (conservatively speaking), 20 million man-hours of prayer have ascended to heaven out of this place. Now pause and take that in.

In light of the undeniable historic pattern revealing that dramatic revival and awakening movements are always preceded by the steady, soaking power of prayer, and further considering that tens of thousands of other houses of prayer have also sprung up around the world in the largest, most strategic, most coordinated prayer initiative—in all of human history—divinely inaugurated by the Holy Spirit, what must God have in store for America, North America, Asia, Europe, Africa, South America, and all the islands? What is coming to planet Earth?

What do you believe God is doing in our day to bring revival?