AZUZA 1 AND 2

AZUZA


Page 1 of 2


In April of 2006, during the worship service of a conference at which I was scheduled to speak, an unusual presence of God began to settle upon me. The heavier God's presence became, the more caught up in a heavenly realm I was. I found myself in the middle of an IMAX or 3-D-like experience. It was as if I were in the middle of an action movie.
I saw an unusually large number of men coming toward me, dressed like rugged, ancient men. They were scruffy-looking, strong and muscular—almost scary—and were wearing animal skins. They had swords, clublike weapons, axes, bows and arrows, and shields. Many of them were on horses. The best way to describe them is to liken them to the army in the movie Braveheart. They formed a massive ancient army.

All of them were rushing toward me in attack mode. The army was so aggressive and intimidating in its advancement that I asked the Lord, "Are they for us or against us?"
He said to me, "They are for you."

As soon as the Lord answered me, it was as if I were taken up into the sky to the altitude where jets fly. I looked down at the United States and saw that there were very few lights on anywhere in the nation. The whole nation looked like very rural or remote places I had flown over. There was one light here and another light there, far removed from each other.

However, as this army galloped across the nation, lights began to turn on in the places that the army was moving through. Furthermore, the lights remained on in the places they had already passed through. The lights increased in number until the cities and towns across the nation were completely lit up. It was as if a massive fire had been set that engulfed entire areas.

Going back to Earth, I saw that the galloping army was not deterred by anything; it galloped through walls, buildings, obstructions, fences—anything that stood in the way. Nothing slowed the men down or stopped them.

They were supernatural in strength and courage. There was no hesitation in them. It was as if someone had placed a computer chip inside of them that said, "Straight ahead; don't stop or look back until you have reached the other side of the nation." Billboards, buildings, skyscrapers and houses flew every which way as they galloped right through them.

The further they advanced, the more lit-up the nation was, until there were huge areas where the lights had become contiguous. What had been dark was now fully lit. I looked down on almost blindingly bright cities, towns and even rural areas.

The Lord said, "This is My army."

When I first received this vision, I interpreted it spiritually. In other words, this was not a physical event but a spiritual one—one that happened invisibly but had natural results.

However, now that I have been observing the unfolding of current events both nationally and globally—both in the church and outside of it—I believe that the army I saw is one God is sending to level entire organizations or certain aspects of them, as well as various structures, corporations, governments, churches and so on that are not in line with God's purpose or His nature and character. God is doing something brand new. He wants to fill us with Himself.

Page 2 of 2

Just as what Cain built was outside the presence of God (see Gen. 4), so is much of what has been built in our day. But we are on the verge of a great awakening, a revival of unprecedented proportions. God's presence is going to fill His people in such an all-encompassing way that what we thought was the glory in times past will pale in comparison to what is about to be manifested. William Seymour, the leader and visionary of the Azusa Street Revival, prophesied that there would be another move of God about 100 years after Azusa that would outshine it. His timeframe would put us into the present day: 2009-2010.

But before God can come in this all-encompassing manner, certain things have to be moved out of the way. We are in a massive restructuring and rebuilding "program." God has removed and is removing His blessing from those things personally and corporately that are not carriers of His presence and power. He is allowing them to fall or to fail. He is even throwing "grenades" into programs and activities that keep us busy and distracted from our No. 1 priority: Himself.

God also has to break our trust in everything that neuters our faith in Him. He is looking for a people who are radically surrendered to and dependent on Him. The kingdom of God can move with the greatest power and demonstration only through those who dare to risk all and believe.

Do not fear or be anxious about what you see falling apart or breaking down in this season. I believe God is orchestrating the destruction to:

Cleanse us of the things we put our trust in that will keep us from leaning wholly on Him
Break down formal structures that impede His presence and movement so the original intent of Pentecost as a grassroots, bottom-up movement (not a hierarchical, rigid structure) can be recaptured
Move out of the way the things that consume our time, energy and devotion but are no longer our assignment
Restore our focus on relationship rather than tasks. It is relationships—first with God and then with people—that frame the mandate for our tasks.
Create desperation. When everything we have been, done and trusted in breaks down or goes awry, we begin to cry out. There is a crying out that not only saves but also delivers. The Israelites experienced it in Egypt (see Ex. 2-3). But the cries weren't birthed until the way they were living no longer worked for them.
Do not fear the breakdowns occurring all around you. Begin to lift up your voice and cry out to God. God is about to light up every person, every place that cries out in honest desperation.

The army has arrived and is marching across this nation. Things are falling apart on every side. However, the purpose of the collapse is not destruction but transformation. If we respond to God, the lights will turn on across this nation with the greatest awakening in history—greater than Azusa Street.

It is time to cry out. Don't delay! Lift up your voice and unabashedly cry until God hears, comes and pours out His salvation.

About the author: Barbara J. Yoder is the founder and senior pastor of Shekinah Christian Church (shekinahchurch.org) in Ann Arbor, Michigan,



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------