Dear Praying Friends and Saints,

119 years ago today, what began as a small meeting of young people in Loughor, near Swansea in South Wales, quickly blossomed into a revival that would impact the course of modern Christianity. I'm sharing the story of October 30th and 31st to remind us of what happened back then and to inspire our prayers and hopes for today and the future. These portions come directly from my friend Maurice Smith's book, When The Fire Fell. (See link below to read or download the whole book)

October30, 1904

"And one Sunday, as I sat in the chapel, I could not fix my mind upon the service, for always before my eyes I saw, as in a vision, the schoolroom in my own village. And there, sitting in rows before me, I saw my old companions and all the young people, and I saw myself addressing them. I shook my head impatiently, and strove to drive away this vision, butit always came back. And I heard a voice in my inward ear as plain as anything, saying, 'Go and speak to these people.' And for a long time I would not. But the pressure became greater and greater, and I could hear nothing of the sermon. Then at last I could resist no longer, and I said, 'Well, Lord, if it is Thy will, I will go.' Then instantly the vision vanished, and the whole chapel became filled with light so dazzling that I could faintly see the minister in the pulpit, and between him and me the glory as the light of the sun in heaven." [2]

After this vision, Evan Roberts went to Principal Evan Phillips (a mature Christian and a Moderator of the Welsh Presbyterian Church) and said, "I keep hearing a voice telling me you must go home and speak to the young people about Christ."  He asked Principal Phillips if this was the voice of the Spirit or the devil. Principal Phillips wisely counseled him that "The devil does not give such thoughts. It was the voice of the Holy Spirit."[3] So, on Monday, October 31, Evan Roberts decided to return home and conduct a week of meetings among the youth of his church.

Robert's sudden return home caught his family by surprise. His mother thought that perhaps he had been preaching somewhere on Sunday and was just calling on the family on his way back to school. But he proceeded to explain that he was home for the week, that he had experienced a very remarkable blessing, and that he had come home to lead the young people of the Moriah church in some meetings. His sister related what happened next:

"When Evan came home, Dan (his brother) was lying on the couch looking very disheartened. Evan could not understand what was wrong, and then Dan told him that he was losing his sight . . . and that a Llanelli specialist had told him that there was no hope . . . (Evan) turned towards Dan and said, 'You shall have your sight - the Lord has need of you.' Suddenly Dan regained his sight. A sort of miracle happened, and when he went to see the specialist [later on], he marveled, unable to understand what had happened." [4]

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Monday, October 31, 1904

Evan Roberts went to Pastor Daniel Jones of his own church, the Moriah Calvinistic Methodist Church in Loughor, and asked to speak to the young people. Pastor Jones was somewhat reluctant, telling Roberts that "I might try and see what I could do, but that the ground was stony, and the task would be hard." [5] Pastor Jones told Roberts that he could speak after the Monday prayer meeting that evening to anyone who was inclined to stay. So, on Monday evening the 31st of  October, 1904, Roberts spoke to 17 people who stayed after prayer meeting, telling them of his experiences and visions, and of his belief in a coming revival.

The meeting was hard. The people were unresponsive and  Roberts resorted to prayer three times during his long and protracted appeal. The Welsh Christians of that day had a reluctance about giving a personal testimony of assurance of salvation. But by 10 o'clock all 17 had testified of their faith in Christ, including Evan Roberts' brother, Dan, and his three sisters who publicly professed their faith for the first time. "Young men and women who had never been known to speak openly of any experience of saving grace stood and testified fearlessly".[6]

The first result of this personal revival was a change at home. Evan Roberts wrote to a friend, Elsie Phillips, about the events of this first week, "Our family has had a grand change. We have had a family altar this week for the first time. This again is the work of the Spirit. And last Wednesday evening, before the meeting, while I was away from home, they held a prayer meeting at home; and father for the first time prayed in their hearing. Another proof of the grand work." [7] The beginning of the greatest revival Wales had ever known had brought personal blessing to the revivalist himself and his own family.

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You can continue reading a brief day-by-day overview of the events up through November 12th of 1904 when the newspaper headlines read, "CHAPELS OVERCROWDED, SCOFFERS SAVED, DESIRES FOR REVIVAL FULFILLED!" at this link.

This whole book is a free download as a .pdf file, courtesy of the author, and is available at this link.

May these testimonies strengthen our faith and encourage our fervent prayers for God's visitation among the nations in these precarious times!

Dick & Gladys

Dear Friends and Prayer Partners:

Many of you may remember this photo from back in 2010 that I took in Blaenau Ffestiniog in North Wales. As the result of a series of extraordinary events, in 2009 the Lord led us to start monthly meetings there in December of that year to pray specifically for revival in this strategic town. A friend accompanied us on our monthly visit in September of 2010 and was inspired to have us "purchase" this field as a prophetic declaration of its use for God's purposes there. This was 13 years ago! You can read the story at this link.

Now let's fast-forward to 2023. In late September we made contact with a young Welshman who moved with his wife and small family to Blaenau 18 months ago seeking to reach the community's young people for Jesus. Incredibly, he was sponsored by the Welsh Rugby Union to work with high school youth on these very fields! Joseff said in a recent email, "We have a thriving new youth work we’ve started here that just tonight saw over 90 young people in attendance! We honestly feel we’ve been carried by God over this season, riding a wave only he can generate and have been wanting to meet with some of the people we believe that have been key in the strange favour we’ve experienced since moving here. Things have happened that can only be explained by the saints gone before and present that have and are sowing into this place in prayer."

You can imagine our excitement and gratitude to hear about this amazing development. In our last email, I mentioned the Heal the Land Conference teaching that said, "Just as in the agricultural realm, our seeds of prayer also have to be left to the faithful working of God." And it was just days later that we heard this wonderful news. Joseff and Lydia were subsequently joined by two other young families and they are trusting God to fulfill His plans for their work in that close-knit Welsh-speaking community.

There are wonderful stories of how God moved on this community in the past centuries and brought many to salvation through the power of the Holy Spirit in revival. And a great many of those touched by God were not only the results of others' prayers, but they in turn gave themselves to prayer for unsaved families and friends. Surely at times, the darkness of the slate mines was illuminated by the praises and prayers of the miners, and the fruit of those prayers became visitations of God's presence in homes and chapels alike.

During the early years of the Blaenau prayer meetings, we came to realize that our involvement was only a small part of the Lord's people in praying for this entire area. Our meetings were visited by many others who were also praying in their communities in other parts of North Wales, and it was encouraging to us all. It seems clear that all of our prayers are an extension Jesus' prayer in John 17:20-21, "I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me."

This is a new chapter for Blaenau Ffestiniog, and you have a part to play as well. Please keep these saints and the youth and their families in your prayers. We hope to visit there soon and will keep you updated.

Meanwhile, the world heartbreakingly continues to tear itself apart on a greater scale than ever, and prayers are desperately needed on every front. But be it through wars, earthquakes, disease, or natural causes, one thing is certain as stated in Hebrews 9:27-8, "And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment, so Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many."

May our prayers reach out to every corner of the world for peace, and that all might know that Jesus came to bring salvation and eternal life to every needy heart,

Dick & Gladys