Dear Friends and Prayers:

We don't know how this beautiful summer now turns into September tomorrow, but here we are. Our many visitors have brought some wonderful prayer times and great encouragement as well. And as if that weren't enough, the Lord gave me an amazing dream a few nights ago and I hope it encourages you as much as it has us.

In the dream Gladys and I were with some of our recent visitors standing out somewhere in an immense field. The grass all around was about knee high and beautifully lush and green. We had simply been sharing stories about the goodness of the Lord and were filled with gratitude. At one point in our conversation we suddenly found ourselves engulfed in the presence of the Lord. It was a joyous realization that He was visiting us in a new and powerful way and it was growing more intense.

Then somehow, among the surrounding grass there appeared a great number of colored hoops in varying sizes, like the old-time hula hoops. They were standing vertically and they were spinning and vibrating and sending out light of different colors as they spun, like the colors of a rainbow. We didn’t notice how many there were at first but we were surrounded by these wheels of light and color and they were somehow connected as if by invisible cords to a luminous cloud of the presence of heaven itself above us. We found ourselves caught up by joy as the awareness of the presence of God continued to grow upon us.

When we looked a little farther away we saw our friends from Florida, who had just been here the previous week, standing not far from us, and they too were surrounding by these spinning wheels of glorious shimmering light, and we shouted over to them, “Hey, Steve, hey y’all, this is so amazing! Glory, glory!” And we were looking at each other and loving each other and loving Jesus and admiring His amazing grace towards u,s and we sensed a wondrous fulfillment of His promises now coming into this world and making Himself tangibly present.

Another look showed that there were actually hundreds and thousands of these colored spinning wheels that extended throughout this vast countryside. We saw another group not far away in another direction and realized they too were experiencing the same thing, and as we looked at and loved one another, the mutual awareness of God’s presence and glory made our hearts soar and our spirits overflow with worship, adoration, and love.

As we looked farther afield we saw more and more large and small groups who were also enraptured with this visitation from heaven. It just went on from there, reaching ever outwards as we just watched and admired and adored the Lord Jesus. As more and more people came into God's presence, the joy grew immeasurably. Those that had been unbelievers received revelation and were converted on the spur of the moment, and we all knew this was the beginning of what we have been praying for and longing for—ourselves for decades, and countless other saints over the centuries.

May this be encouragement for your hearts and fuel for your prayers as we cry out to God for Wales and the nations. "For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea." Habakkuk 2:14

Dick & Gladys

Dear Saints:

Last Monday our friends from Hand to the Plow Ministries in Florida arrived and were hosted by the Kirbys next door. You can imagine their surprise to find an antique plow on the back patio which they had recently acquired. That seemed to set the tone for most of the four days they were with us.

The following is my narrative from Tuesday morning at the chapel.
"It’s almost impossible to believe what’s happening before our eyes. Our friends have come up to the chapel with us this morning—their first full day here on the ground. They knew I had done some work on the baptistry and that was the first place they wanted to see. We had a most incredible time there as we heard how they have been baptizing people and God has been moving among their church. It is far more than I could ever put in words. This link is a video of a short segment of the pastor's prayer and I’m sure you would be blessed and encouraged to hear it.

"As we came up out of the baptistry, I told them the story of a vision the Lord showed me in 2004. I found myself standing near the top of the lane down to the chapel and I saw a long line of people waiting to be baptized. Then I told them we'd better hurry up and get into the field if they wanted to pray among the golden ripe barley, because the harvester might come any minute.

"And as that words came out of my mouth, I looked up towards the top of the drive, and there were the farmers assembling the combine to start the harvest. The timing of this is beyond belief! Here our friends have come from 4,100 miles away where they have been praying for us and for God to work here in Wales for 10 years. And then He fits these events together like a hand into its glove. From what we just prayed and prophesied and heard in the baptistry just minutes before we watched the harvest being started before our very eyes. Truly God is a God of wonders!

"As I walked back down the lane to join the group at the bottom of the field, having just spoken with the farmer and told him what we were doing, he gave us his blessing to walk around in the field and pray and admire God’s handiwork. He has known for many years what we are doing here, and I’ve spoken at length with his sons who also work on the farm. He was more than happy to accommodate us, and said to take whatever time we need. So here we are spread across the field praying and communing with the Holy Spirit as the combine at the top of the field begins it’s labor. Such a prophetic day!

"Our friends haven’t even been on the ground here 24 hours, and I can’t imagine or wait to see what happens in the next 72 before they take off for North Wales where they also visited ten years ago."        (See October's spontaneous baptism here!)

The three days we spent together were packed full and we had more extraordinary times of prayer at Blaenannerch Chapel, St. Govan's Chapel on the south Pembrokeshire coast, and other strategic places.

Thursday we visited the remote chapel at Soar-y-Mynedd near Tregaron where Daniel Rowland was powerfully touched by the Holy Spirit in the 1770's and revival spread "like a heath fire" across Wales. We had another beautiful time of prayer and communion there.

We were delighted to hear that they were so taken by the place and its spectacular surroundings that yesterday they returned there from North Wales to join the group that meet on Sundays during the warmer months. They reported that, " The pastor said he felt the Holy Spirit moving today. He was very stirred. He even preached in both Welsh and English." That was a special blessing for them because services are usually only in Welsh.

So as you can see, things have been very busy here, and we are very thankful for such hunger and prayer for revival from so many places. We are feeling a bit stretched by it all, but it's good practice for what is yet to come. The Lord has us in this place for such a time as this, and we are constantly overwhelmed by His goodness and favor.

As we continue to pray together from different corners of the world, may we all know more of His attentive presence as we intercede for Wales and the nations,

Dick & Gladys

Dear Praying Friends:

The sounds of worship poured out through the doors of Jabes Chapel in the Gwaun Valley this past Tuesday at  Ffald-y-Brenin's monthly Prayer Day. The ground floor of the small chapel was packed solid and the balcony was far from empty. A dancer with flags sought more space outside and the expression of joy and worship just couldn't be contained by the thick stone walls.

This just seems to speak of what is to come in the future. For far too long the church in Wales has been meeting with a minimal impact, if any at all, on the world around them. But as more and more believers both here and abroad grow in their hunger and prayers for revival, the impending move of God draws closer. Some churches are reaching out into their surrounding communities with compassion for the lost, and hope and expectancy are growing.

We have been very busy as groups of visitors are coming to pray in Wales from afar. This group is from a church in Singapore whose pastor and wife we've known for about eight years since their first visit. It was wonderful to meet so many young people with a heart for the Lord and a passion to see His kingdom break into today's world.

Their visit coincided with the Revival Study Tour organized by the Cornerstone Church of Singapore and based at the Bible College of Wales in Swansea. I had the privilege to meet with both groups at the Blaenannerch Chapel and share about Evan Roberts' "bend me" experience here in 1904.

That young man had been praying for years about the minimal influence that Christianity had on the society of his day, and many saints were praying fervently for divine intervention for their nation. And as we heard how God came onto the scene in revival in 1904, it was of great encouragement for all as we find ourselves in the same situation today.

We then had a time of worship led by a young man from Shillong, India, where revival has had a major impact over the years through Welsh missionaries that went there just after the 1904 revival. From there we moved into a very powerful time of intercessory prayer and crying out to God for His purposes to be fulfilled both in Wales and the world. It was a wonderful time this group from ten different nations was the largest yet that we've prayed with at this historic place.

Then in the afternoon, we went to our Cilfowyr Chapel for another time of prayer with the first group. There we were joined by a few local friends and once again pressed into God's presence with a storm of praise and prayer. The Holy Spirit moved with extraordinary grace and we were all brought to a deep place of travail, tears, and heart-rending intercession. Our spirits were refreshed and empowered through the precious working of the Holy Spirit, and by the end of our time we were filled with joy at the prospect of God's ultimate victory, and we all knew that we had accomplished heaven's business for the day.

We now have three people from the tour with us until Tuesday and have been having wonderful times of fellowship and showing them some of the local scenery. They also got to experience Welsh Chapel life Sunday morning at a joint meeting with another nearby chapel. And then today we have another group of nine people arriving from a church near Sarasota, Florida. We've known them since their first visit here ten years ago and look forward to seeing them again since our visit to their church several years ago.

We are so thankful for how the Lord has continued bringing saints from around the globe to pray together with us for His will to be done on earth is it is in heaven.

Be encouraged as we, each in our own place, press on into God's heart for the nations. And may you, as did young Samuel in the temple, "...grow in favor both with the Lord and men." 1 Sam.2:26

Dick & Gladys