Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; and he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began.
Acts 3:19‭-‬21 KJV

2023 seems to be a year where God is bringing awakenings starting with Universities and Churches and even cinemas, as well as national gatherings. Many sought on the net to discredit these awakenings as being fake for various reasons. I found that the week following the Lord indicated to me what He was doing. Zechariah 12 was the Scripture the Lord zoned in on. In a context of a siege Jerusalem is granted an awakening and a washing of all the motives which the Lord allowed the armies to surround the city. We seemed also be under siege by the escalation of the Russia and Ukraine war, with Nato preparing a full conflict with Russia. Not only that it is interesting that God should visit University campus across the USA as these can be a hotbed for immorality and all sorts of ideologies.

Repentance is a gift God gives

The verse above starts with the word “Repent” which is key to the start of any awakening. Those so theologically minded might state this is a hallmark of authenticity but forget that repentance is a spirit of Supplication that Zechariah talks about, given by God! You cannot repent without the action of the Holy Spirit. In Asbury on 8th February the repentance that came on those people was something God initiated and kept going for days. So if God leads us deeper into greater consecration then it is He who initiates it. It seems that whilst the critics were putting their yardstick on the events it seems I ascertained a great lesson. When we are zealous about theology and authenticity we forget no revival is clean and we in our zeal can criticise what God started. This criticism can lead us into a vain pursuit which leads us into religiosity of the worst kind! No one can truly repent without that God draws him.

Times of refreshing come from the constant Presence of the Lord.

The Word “times” is the Greek word “kairos” which is translated “season”. These kairos times are not measured like its counterpart word Kronos, which measures physical times, hours, days etc. It is not governed by the significance of a particular date. Rather when a particular group or Church fulfils certain conditions then God comes to refresh His people. What we forget is that the Presence of the Lord should be a daily reality in our lives, however refreshing is a specific work for a specific season.

The result of refreshing is lift up the expectation that God’s people must have in that God specifically visiting His People. And who knows if the closed Churches through the pandemic caused different groupings to seek God more intensely. It may have contributed. The refreshing comes to bring new life, new faith and new vision. We all need this and who knows if we are so close to Jesus’s return that this refreshing comes to bring a final impulse to the final harvest of souls.

Restitution of ALL things

I sense we have passed through many a season where we were just about to break through and something came along to block it. In the refreshing it seems to lead onto this reality, and we must push for it to happen, restitution. The unity of the Church must be restored as a priority. This will unlock the blessings of Psalm 133. The Church must also embrace Jesus as He is, as we have preached Saviour and High Priest far too long, we must also embrace King and Judge of all the Earth. Holiness will come from embracing this truth. The truth of God’s Word must not stay as written words but manifest also. That is we must even embrace the things we like less in Scripture. The restitution is to take back what the devil has stolen through ignorance and deception. The serpent of Genesis 3 deceived Eve over God, that same serpent has deceived the Bride of Christ over Jesus. We must see Him as He is.

Spoken by ALL God’s holy Prophets

We are moving into a time that prophets glimpsed in their prophesying. We are moving toward the Glorious triumph of Christ and His saints. Persecution may come but Christ is returning. This is going to be the best prophetic hour! Let us be expectant that as we are in His Constant presence His refreshing may come TO us as Christ coming TO His Church, so that the Church experience restitution of all that has been lost or stolen. This time, this season is now, we just need to believe!