Over the last few months our church has been experiencing new depths of the presence of God. I’ve usually been out with the kids rather than in the meeting, but I’ve still had more remarkable encounters with Jesus over this time than I have had in many years.

From belly aching tears in the intimacy of my living room, to hearing audible rain indoors during an evening worship meeting, the manifestation of God’s presence has been undeniable. Seeing our young people captivated by Jesus, and people who never normally share in church bringing words and testimony has been massively encouraging. And as someone already eager for God to move, it’s been making me more and more hungry for His presence!

At the end of March, a friend and I went on a girly night away. The hotel had an outdoor jacuzzi. We got there and it was absolutely pouring down with rain. Not ones to be deterred, we sunk into the bubbly water, and relished in the downpour. We were warm, full of joy and laughing at the wonderful absurdity of it all. It felt so prophetic.

There’s a real sense that these times in His presence are the first drops of rain of a deluge that is coming. A deluge we want to get drenched in, not seek shelter from. God is walking amongst us and stirring our hunger. And what’s especially amazing is that this is just a tiny taste of what’s to come.

“Look among the nations and watch. Be amazed and astonished. I am going to do something in your days that you would not believe even if it was reported to you.”

Habakkuk 1:5

Last year I went to Borough market in London with some friends. We were hoping we could fill up on those little samples of food that stall holders give away to entice you in. We ate tiny cubes of cheese, sticks with a little blob of paste on the end, and a crumb or two of chocolate. Needless to say we still had plenty of room for dinner!

When I was reading Psalm 23 this week, I felt God tell me that what we have been experiencing is like those tiny little morsels of food – a mere taster of what is on offer.

The Psalm talks about God preparing a banquet for us. A banquet is an elaborate meal held in someone’s honour.  I’ve never been to a banquet, but I understand they are pretty impressive. Leigh Denton, an Australian lawyer and the granddaughter of a Victorian era downstairs cook, writes of the Victorian banquet;

“The Victorian dinner party was a grand, flamboyant and opulent affair. Picture if you will an endless procession of soups, fish, meats, salads, vegetables, puddings, ices, meringues and pastries served on exquisitely decorated china and serving dishes and a dining table heavily decorated with flowers, ferns and stands of fruit and decorated cakes. By the mid 1870s it was not uncommon for up to 12 or 13 courses to be served by the conscientious hostess.”

LEIGH DENTON

Imagine it! And I am absolutely certain the banquet God prepares for you and me would put any Victorian banquet, or any banquet before or after for that matter, to shame!

Amazing as recent encounters with Jesus have been, they are just a crumb – a bit of paste on the end of a stick – compared to what is to come.

“You heavens above, rain down my righteousness; let the clouds shower it down. Let the earth open wide, let salvation spring up, let righteousness flourish with it; I, the Lord, have created it.”

Isaiah 45:8

Over the last few months, I felt a poem growing inside me. I only had the first few lines but I knew it had to do with what God was doing amongst us. One day I felt God tell me to sit and write it and the rest would flow. It did. In a first for me and with some encouragement from a friend, (and in a definite step outside my comfort zone), I have recorded the poem as well as written it out. I pray that it blesses you and gives you a glimpse of what I think God is doing amongst us. Keep seeking his name, keep asking for more, keep praying for rain.

We need to raise our expectations. And we need to keep hungry – let’s stop doing things that suppress our spiritual appetite and start doing things that work up an appetite. Let’s not fill up on junk, waste our time on bad habits, or be too busy to eat, but fill up on the word of God, let’s eat healthy regular meals, exercise and spend time in his presence and with others who carry the aroma of Jesus.

“When Pentecost […] came, all the believers were together in one place. Suddenly, a sound like a violently blowing wind came from the sky and filled the whole house where they were staying. Tongues that looked like fire appeared to them. The tongues arranged themselves so that one came to rest on each believer. All the believers were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages as the Spirit gave them the ability to speak.”

Acts 2: 1-4

It’s exciting to think about what God has in store! When God’s Holy Spirit fills his church and revives his people, it’s for purpose. It’s not just some happy, ethereal existential experience to bless and encourage us; just as the rain waters the plants to produce fruit, it is to prepare and equip us to reach the lost. It’s often marked by a deep need to get right with holy God, a hunger for more of Him and a passion for those who do not know him. As we fuel our hunger for God’s presence, our heart for those around us will increase, and so will our impact.

“I will send you rain in its season, and the ground will yield its crops and the trees their fruit.”

Leviticus 26:4

After Peter was forgiven and restored by Jesus following his earlier denial that he knew him, he and his fellow disciples were powerfully filled with the Holy Spirit (Acts 2: 1-4). Peter got up and preached an absolute belter of a sermon. About 3,000 give their lives to Christ (Acts 2:41). Not bad for a man with no education!

Later in Acts, we see the disciples having been threatened and ordered never to teach about Jesus or even mention his name (Acts 4:18), praying not for their persecution to stop, but for boldness to speak God’s word, and for miracles.

“When the apostles had finished praying, their meeting place shook. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God boldly.”

Acts 4:31

Let’s press in to God, keep our attention on him, and pray for increases in our faith, obedience and boldness to see revival and awakening in our communities.

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The rain is coming...

Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip. Can you feel it?
Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip. Can you hear it?
Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip. Can you see it?
Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip. Can you smell it?
Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip. Can you taste it?
Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip, drip, drip, drip
The rain is coming

The first drops are soft, like the first shoots of spring, tender and gentle as a new baby’s skin
Then drops fall like ice, piercing my heart, they bring me to my knees, lance my sin like a dart
My heart cries out, my Father forgives.
Shame, guilt, baggage, it all disappears.
As my chains fall off and I raise my hands, lay down my life, for his ways and his plans

The rain’s still coming, fast and exciting, it’s filling the river which looks fresh and inviting
The river is rising, it’s beckoning me in, should I or not – I’m not sure I can swim
Will I get too wet? Will I get too cold?
Will I be swept away? Is there something to hold?
Will the mud give way from under my feet, as the rain makes it sludgy and slippery
underneath?

I take a breath, put my trust in God, jumping in and under - my spirit soars
Submerged in God’s presence, full of joy, peace and love, my gaze transfixed by my Father
above
The river is bubbling, I’ve chosen to get in
I’m utterly soaking right through to my skin
Laughing and dancing as the rain comes down, uninhibited like a child and certain of my crown

Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip, Drip, Drip, Drip

The time is coming, the Father calls, I will pour out my Spirit and smash down the walls
Strongholds will fall, kingdoms be displaced, and people will call on my mercy and grace
I’ll pour out water, on dry ground
And rain on the land – can you hear the sound?
The harvest will be big – there’ll be masses of grain, as my name is exalted again and again

Jump in the river, and see where it goes, be immersed in my presence and feel me close
Be like little children, who rush outside, when the downpour starts not once it subsides
Excited to be drenched, hungry for more
Eagerly awaiting what I have in store
Miracles on the earth as my people cry out, and my banner raised with a joyful shout

My beautiful children, who I love and adore, keep seeking my name, keep asking for more
I’m a generous Father and I love giving gifts, and when you ask me in, I’ll be extravagant and
swift
I’ve so much for you, if you open the door
Love, joy, freedom, it all can be yours.
So throw off caution, dignity and pride, and join me on this extraordinary ride

Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip. Can you feel it?
Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip. Can you hear it?
Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip. Can you see it?
Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip. Can you smell it?
Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip. Can you taste it?
Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip, drip, drip, drip
The rain is coming

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