Poignant place to cry out for a fresh move of Spirit

Moriah Chapel is regarded as the birthplace of the 1904 Welsh Revival, so what better place to seek God for an outpouring of the Holy Spirit today? Here, five leaders share what happened when Elim’s Welsh churches gathered there to do just that

On 23 June, 150 people from 15 Welsh Elim churches gathered to worship, pray and cry out to God for a fresh move of his Spirit in the country. It was a unique, pioneering evening, but what made it even more special was its location: the home church of Welsh revivalist Evan Roberts – Moriah Chapel.

The meeting was part of another Elim first, as the movement’s leadership team left their base in Malvern to begin holding their regular meetings in various locations around the UK – their first stop being Wales, at Swansea City Church.

“When we pray at our NLT meetings we invite other people to join us for an evening,” explains Regional Leader Steve Ball. “This time we invited our Welsh pastors, and we thought, with its history, wouldn’t Moriah Chapel be a great place to pray?”

Here, Steve and three of those pastors share their experiences of this Spirit-filled evening.

Steve Ball, Elim Regional Leader

There’s clearly a higher level of expectation among our churches for God to move because exciting things are happening at the moment. At this meeting it felt like people are optimistic, encouraged and have faith for even greater things in the days ahead.

Much of the evening was spent responding to God in prayer and crying out for a move of the Spirit in Wales. We prayed for all the Elim churches in Wales, mentioning them by name and praying for the pastors and church leaders present. We also prayed for young people under 30 in the room, sensing that God seems to be doing something fresh in that generation.

Other highlights were the worship, led by Phil Lyndon-Jones and his team from Swansea City Church, and John Bullock sharing about the church planting drive he’s planning to launch in Wales. John finished the meeting by leading us in prayer.

Moriah Chapel is regarded as the birthplace of the 1904 Welsh Revival, so what better place to seek God for an outpouring of the Holy Spirit today? Here, five leaders share what happened when Elim’s Welsh churches gathered there to do just that.

Mark Pugh led us through the evening and it was special that his dad, who is part of Ponty Elim Church, was there on the front row.

It was quite a night! It was great to have so many Welsh churches represented in the same room with the same heart and a high level of unity and encouragement. Whenever that happens that tends to draw the blessing and anointing of God.

Jeff Evans, Dowlais Elim

My wife Susan and I were so glad we made the 40-mile journey from our home in the Rhondda to attend this meeting. We lead Dowlais Elim in Merthyr Tydfil, we’re both born and bred Welsh and we’ve served Jesus primarily in Wales, so we know the historical narrative of what happened in Moriah in 1904 well.

In this particular gathering, the thing which struck me as reminiscent of the accounts of the Evan Roberts meetings was the fluid, effortless way we moved back and forth between anointed worshipful singing, prophetic declaration, heartfelt corporate prayer to God and one-to-one prayer for one another. There were other highlights. On our arrival, Mark Pugh asked Susan if she had her cornet with her. By pure accident – believe me – it was in the car! Some folks said afterwards that the sound of the horn brought a touch of something other-worldly into the worship so wonderfully led by the team from Swansea City Church.

Mark led the meeting with great sensitivity to the Spirit, while praying for every single Elim church in Wales, mentioned by name, and hearing prayer in Welsh by pastor John Bullock brought goosebumps.

James Ricketts, Elim Holyhead

When I heard the NLT were holding a prayer meeting for Wales in Moriah Chapel, the very place where the Welsh Revival was birthed in 1904, I was excited.

The fires of revival that swept through Wales – igniting hearts and transforming societies when God breathed on this land – cause a cry in our hearts for God to do it again in our day!

The worship was vibrant and the presence of the Holy Spirit was felt. All pastors present were prayed for, and they in turn went throughout the chapel praying for others – the emphasis being renewal and empowerment; for a fresh move of God in our hearts, our churches, and throughout this land, Cymru.

There was a great sense of unity with North, Mid and South Wales churches represented.

The vision and passion for planting new churches throughout the land was very encouraging to hear. Interestingly, I was contacted the very next day by a group in north Wales who were enquiring about joining Elim!

Arlette Frampton, Ponty Elim

I found the meeting at Moriah Chapel to be really meaningful and significant for everyone who attended. It was encouraging to see so many people gathering with the NLT, united by a shared purpose – to seek God for a fresh outpouring of revival, one that could be even more powerful than the revival of 1904.

There was a strong sense of unity and spiritual hunger in the atmosphere. One of the most moving moments was seeing ministers from various Elim churches across Wales being prayed over, and what a profound privilege it was for both young and old to receive prayer as well.

At one point, the General Superintendent encouraged us to press in through prayer and singing in tongues. In that moment, there was a tangible sense of God’s presence resting over the room.

This article first appeared in Direction Magazine. For further details, please click here.