Jennifer A. Miskov, Ph.D., taken from Ignite Azusa: Positioning for a New Jesus Revolution

If we have eyes to see, history can prophesy into our future. In a time when we desperately need to SEE MORE of God and understand His heart, learning about the life and legacy of African American, William J. SEYMOUR (pronounced “See” “More”) can open our eyes to give us prophetic vision into rewriting our future narrative. I believe there are keys within the Azusa story that will prophesy into how to navigate through our present storm of racism to unlock a greater destiny.

One of the greatest movements in history was ignited when handful of African Americans met together in a home with their only agenda to encounter more of God. William J. Seymour, son of slaves, blind in one eye, humbly paved the way and was used by God to ignite a revival fire that has since spread around the globe introducing millions of people to Jesus and to the Holy Spirit in a powerful way.

On April 9, 1906, just before leaving for the prayer meeting, Seymour's friend Edward Lee began to speak in tongues after he laid hands on and prayed for him. After this, Lee, Seymour, and the others walked the couple blocks up the street to the Asberry home on Bonnie Brae Street for the 7:30 p.m. prayer meeting. There, a handful of African American saints gathered together because they wanted to encounter God in a greater measure. There were only about fifteen people including children present at the meeting. They had a song, a few prayers, and several testimonies released. Seymour shared the testimony of how Lee spoke in tongues less than two hours before. Even though Seymour had yet to receive the “evidence” of speaking in tongues, he continued to preach about it from Acts 2 that night.

When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them. Acts 2:1-4 (NIV)

Then something happened that they had all been waiting and longing for. God crashed into that meeting like never before. Ruth Asberry’s cousin Jennie Evans Moore, who lived across the street, was resting on a stool, when she suddenly fell to the ground and began to speak in tongues. She is known as one of the first women in Los Angeles to speak in tongues during this time.

 She recalled that it felt like a vessel broke inside of her and water “surged” through her entire being. When this rush came to her lips, she spoke in six different languages that she had seen earlier in a vision. These tongues were each interpreted in English. Following this release, Jennie, who had never played the piano before, walked over to the piano and played it under the anointing while singing in tongues. She recounted the story in an article called “Music from Heaven” in the Azusa Mission’s newspaper called The Apostolic Faith:

For years before this wonderful experience came to us, we as a family, were seeking to know the fulnes of God, and He was filling us with His presence until we could hardly contain the power… On April 9, 1906, I was praising the Lord from the depths of my heart at home, and when the evening came and we attended the meeting the power of God fell and I was baptized in the Holy Ghost and fire, with the evidence of speaking in tongues…As I thought thereon and looked to God, it seemed as if a vessel broke within me and water surged up through my being, which when it reached my mouth came out in a torrent of speech in the languages which God had given me…I sang under the power of the Spirit in many languages, the interpretation both words and music which I had never before heard, and in the home where the meeting was being held, the Spirit led me to the piano, where I played and sang under inspiration, although I had not learned to play.

-Jennie Moore, The Apostolic Faith 1:8 (312 Azusa Street, Los Angeles, CA: May, 1907), 3.

A few days later on April 12, 1906, Seymour spoke in tongues for the first time after waiting upon the Lord and praying with a white brother, not giving up until he “came through” and spoke in tongues at nearly four o’clock in the morning.

Crowds of both black and white people from different churches in the area came to the house on Bonnie Brae Street to see and partake in what God was doing. At one point, the house swelled with people so much that the front porch caved in. No one was injured, but they realized that they had outgrown the house. Within a week, they moved to a vacant building at 312 Azusa Street. 

During a time of heavy racial segregation, Seymour, the leader of what became known as the Azusa Street Revival, created a place where everyone would be welcome regardless of their skin color or nationality. One of the biggest breakthroughs at the Azusa Street Revival was that the walls of race, gender, and age were broken down. Eyewitness and historian Frank Bartleman observed that “the ‘color line’ was washed away in the blood.” This was in relation to racial divides being abolished by the blood of Jesus.

To have people from different races worshipping alongside one another and praying for each other during a time when lynchings were common and many years before Martin Luther King, Jr. came onto the scene is truly remarkable. Seymour’s early leadership team was racially mixed and also included women. Regular participants of the Azusa Mission in the early years included people from various ethnicities and backgrounds including African-Americans, European Americans, Hispanic Americans, Asian Americans, Native Americans, and more. Visitors would come to Azusa and experience such love and humility present in the people. One person said, “From the first time I entered I was struck by the blessed spirit that prevailed in the meeting, such a feeling of unity and humility among the children of God.”

The early days of the Azusa Street Revival were marked by unity, humility, and love regardless of ethnicity, race, or gender. Seymour emphasized the need to develop the fruit of the Spirit, especially love. In 1908, the leadership at Azusa said, “The Pentecostal power, when you sum it all up, is just more of God’s love.” Love was what was needed for this baptism of the Holy Spirit experience to be sustainable. They realized that love heals, love restores, and love is the way forward.

They also wanted more of God in those days no matter what it looked like. They “did not have a thousand other things” they wanted before Him. Nothing was going to stop them from encountering more of Him. They were all in it together no matter the color of their skin. These early Pentecostal pioneers paved the way for us in such a remarkable way. We are greatly indebted to these beautiful saints who said yes to pursuing Jesus wholeheartedly no matter what the cost. Now it’s our turn build on their breakthroughs.

How will we build on the momentum of William J. Seymour and those at Azusa Street, of Martin Luther King Jr., and of so many others who have gone before us? How will we take what they have done for us and go even further in our day? What will happen in our day when love supersedes all differences and we run toward Jesus together with total abandonment? What does it look like to say yes to radical love today?

To learn how to let your voice of justice, love, and racial reconciliation be heard and to make a difference, join our 5 Day Ignite Azusa Challenge that has now been turned into an Ecourse.

Jennifer A. Miskov, Ph.D., is a Revival Historian, Author, Teacher, Writing Coach, and Itinerant Minister who loves to lead people into life-changing encounters with Jesus and invite them into the fullness of the Holy Spirit. Jen is the founding director of the School of Revival which focusing on raising up leaders to steward the upcoming billion soul harvest. Jen also facilities Writing in the Glory Workshops around the world to catalyze authors to write their first books. She has supported Bill Johnson in his Defining Moments book as well as authored Walking on Water, Ignite Azusa: Positioning for a New Jesus Revolution, Writing in the Glory, Life on Wings, Spirit Flood, and Silver to Gold. She founded Destiny House (2012-2019) and also taught activation classes at Bethel School of Supernatural Ministries (2014-2020). She currently teaches at her alma mater Vanguard University and also at The King’s University in Texas and recently launched The School of Revival. She is ordained by Heidi Baker with Iris Global and received her Ph.D. in Global Pentecostal and Charismatic Studies from the University of Birmingham, U.K.

by Jennifer A. Miskov, Ph.D. excerpt from Ignite Azusa

During a time of heavy racial segregation, leader of the Azusa Street Revival, William J. Seymour created a place at the Azusa Street Mission where everyone would be welcome regardless of their skin color or nationality. One of the biggest breakthroughs at Azusa Street Revival in 1906 in Los Angeles was that the walls of race and gender were broken down. Eyewitness and historian Frank Bartleman observed that “the ‘color line’ was washed away in the blood.”[1] This was in relation to racial divides being abolished by the blood of Jesus. To have people from different races worshipping alongside one another and praying for each other during a time when lynchings were common and many years before Martin Luther King, Jr. came onto the scene is truly remarkable.[2] In fact, it was when Seymour was praying alongside a white man until the early hours of the morning that he first spoke in tongues.

Seymour’s early leadership team was racially mixed and included women. Regular participants of the Mission in the early years included people from various ethnicities and backgrounds including African-Americans, European Americans, Hispanic Americans, Asian Americans, Native Americans, and more.[3] Visitors would come to Azusa and experience such love and humility present in the people. One person said, “From the first time I entered I was struck by the blessed spirit that prevailed in the meeting, such a feeling of unity and humility among the children of God.”[4]

The early days of the Azusa Street Revival were marked by unity, humility, and love regardless of ethnicity, race, or gender. Seymour emphasized the need to develop the fruit of the Spirit, especially love. In 1908, the leadership at Azusa said, “The Pentecostal power, when you sum it all up, is just more of God’s love.”[5] Love was what was needed for this baptism of the Holy Spirit experience to be sustainable.

These early Pentecostal pioneers paved the way for us in such a remarkable way. They wanted God in those days and nothing was going to inhibit them from encountering more of Him. They were all in it together. Now it’s our turn build on their breakthrough. What will happen in our day when love supersedes differences, when we recognize that every person is created in the image of God no matter what the color of their skin is?

To learn more about the significance of the Azusa Street Revival and why it is important for us today, join our Ignite Azusa 5 Day Challenge Ecourse available HERE

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 FOOTNOTES:

[1] Bartleman, How Pentecost Came to Los Angeles, 54.

[2] Unknown author, “Beginning of World Wide Revival,” The Apostolic Faith 1:5 (312 Azusa Street, Los Angeles, CA: January, 1907), 1. “It is a continual upper room tarrying at Azusa Street. It is like a continual campmeeting or convention. All classes and nationalities meet on a common level. One who came for the first time said, ‘The thing that impressed me the most was the humility of the people, and I went to my room and got down on my knees and asked God to give me humility.’”

[3] Robeck Jr., The Azusa Street Mission and Revival, 14.

[4] Louis Osterberg, “Filled with God’s Glory,” The Apostolic Faith 1:7 (312 Azusa Street, Los Angeles, CA: April, 1907), 4. “And before the meeting was over, I was fully satisfied and convinced that it was the mighty power of God that was working. From that time on I hungered more and more and felt that I could not be fully satisfied until the blessings of the Pentecostal life were mine.”

[5] The Apostolic Faith 2:13 (312 Azusa Street, Los Angeles, CA: May, 1908), 3.

by Jennifer A. Miskov, Ph.D. and friends

“The Color Line Was Washed Away in the Blood”

I want to share a testimony of what God poured out here in Charlottesville, Virginia this past week at the Writing in the Glory and Women’s Abide Conference I was a part of. Saturday afternoon November 10, 2018, I was ministering on a fresh baptism of the Holy Spirit and felt led to release a little of the Azusa Street Revival story along with some slides so people could see some of the main characters, including William J. Seymour. As we went into the session, deep worship and prophetic dance preceded my time of sharing and the music continued into the session. I shared an encounter Carrie Judd Montgomery had, then Ezekiel 47 and along with an invitation to dive into more of the Spirit. Then I shared about Peter stepping out of the boat yet another time in John 21 and how it doesn’t matter how many times we’ve previously encountered God or if we’ve already been baptized in the Holy Spirit, but there’s even more today than there was yesterday. After sharing some personal stories of not being afraid to use the voice God’s given and encourage others to be the unique gift He’s called them to, we waited upon the Lord for a fresh baptism of His love. As people came forward to the altar and began to get touched, I stepped out to bless what I recognized God was doing in the room.

In a mainly white crowd at this women’s conference, when I looked at the room, I saw that God was especially moving in the handful of African Americans in the room. Everyone I was drawn to pray for who I recognized the Spirit of God on in a powerful way happened to be African American. Then I took a step back and asked the Holy Spirit what was going on. Since that was the group highlighted to me, by the grace of God, I took a leap of faith and stood out on a limb doing something I’ve never done before. I called all of the African Americans to the front and the 8-9 of them came forward. I shared that I saw God was doing something special with them that day and He wanted to honor them, and also welcome their voice. I then held out my hand with the microphone for whoever of them wanted to speak. It was their floor. One of by one, some with tears, they shared their hearts while all the others in the room gathered around them up close in a circle together. It was a holy and prophetic moment that the Holy Spirit orchestrated.

Because I’ve been in such crazy transition in my personal life, I didn’t have time to research the city I was going to beforehand. I actually first thought I was going to Charlotte, North Carolina and told everyone I was going to be there until the conference director told me I had the wrong state and I was going to Charlottesville, Virginia. It was not until after God poured out His Spirit in a special way upon us that afternoon that I began to hear the story of the horrific thing that had happened in this very town a year ago. This was the place where a group of white supremacists marched in, even carrying torches and chanting horrible demonic things on August 11 and 12 of 2017. The event was called “Unite the Right” in Charlottesville, Virginia. During a rally, a white supremacist drove his car through a group of non-violent counter protesters where he killed a woman and injured many others. You can learn more about what happened HERE (warning, graphic images).

When I started to discover the significance of where God had sent me, I was in awe of how God moved that afternoon and my heart was broken for what all of these precious people had to endure when evil came in and targeted their city one year ago. With this new revelation, it felt to me that what had happened at the conference Saturday afternoon was even more significant that I realized at the time. I recognized it as one of those defining moments that I will never forget where God comes and moves in a special, tender, and prophetic way. I believe that what the Holy Spirit orchestrated was a seed not only for what He wants to pour out in that city and region but for our nation as well.

I believe that God has a great plan for Charlottesville because in my own experience of knowing the history of Destiny House, I know that whenever great evil is attracted to a place it’s because it’s a well of revival and there is great glory and inheritance in that place. I am confident that God is going to heal, restore and redeem what’s been stolen from this land and my prayer is that the greatest spirit of unity this world has ever seen will flow from this land of destiny.

This was a slide I released about the Azusa Street Revival that same day when I was speaking.

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 Stepping Out of the Boat: Extending my Time in Virginia

Later that evening, the night before I was to fly out, a couple of the lovely ladies from the conference came up to me and invited me to stay longer and welcomed me into their homes. Because of how God had moved that afternoon, I smelled revival. I felt the Holy Spirit doing something big in this region from all that He had been pouring out. I decided that I didn’t want to miss what He might have. I didn’t have much time to make a decision since I had already checked into my flight the next day but I was able to change my flight. Staying there meant canceling a week of activities. I struggled with doubt the first two days because I was delaying seeing people I loved in Redding and having to cancel teaching at the school of ministry which I committed to and so enjoy. Finally after much prayer with precious friends, I was able to embrace what God had placed in front of me and dove in as I counted the cost of saying yes to the tiny seed of what I thought might be the Lord. As a result of staying, we got to do another revival meeting and also open it up to the men to come along where God moved in power. I released the Azusa story in full and there was a mighty baptism of fire released where lives were marked by God’s presence. 

Making the decision to stay ties into the new shift in my life of helping to raise up pioneers. I find it interesting that these recent invitations to step out of the boat into unknown territory are happening at the same time that I am about ready to release my Walking on Water Encounter E-course as the first course in the online School of Pioneering Revival. See video below. Me pioneering into new territories makes sense and is important if I am going to help inspire and encourage others to step out of the boat. So this extended week was yet again, another one of those moments of stepping out of the boat and trusting the Lord.

The coolest thing is that when I chose to extend my time in Maui and rest before stepping into this clear yes in Virginia, I said no to a lot of opportunities that also would have provided for me financially. This conference in Virginia I sold out of all my books and I had triple the number of Writing in the Glory attendees I normally have. God totally covered and blessed me by providing for my season of rest. Entering into this huge “yes” fully rested was one of the best decisions and I’m so grateful for all God poured out during my time intersecting with this beautiful community.

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Revival Meeting: The Significance of 11-16

Since I had extended my trip, we were able to plan a region wide revival meeting where we could also invite the men to come along. The date was set for November 16, 2018 (11/16/2018). That evening, I shared a testimony of what happened to me on this same date on November 16, 2007 not long after I had first moved to England. I went to a church with a friend and was marked by the Holy Spirit. Before this time, I had become obsessed with the theme of Spirit baptism and had begun asking my friends about their experiences and was interested to learn more about it, especially as it was at the heartbeat of the Azusa Street Revival, which I was then studying in my Ph.D. there at the time. When I got home from the meeting that night 11 years ago, I was in awe of how the Spirit had marked me and as I prepared to set my alarm and turn off my phone for the night, I looked and it said 11/16 for the date at 11:16pm. I opened up the book of Acts 11:16 to see if God might be speaking. That verse was the only red letters on the page where it was recalled that Jesus said, “John baptized you with water but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.” I was in shock and so rocked by how specifically God spoke that night. It was amazing (to read the whole account see Spirit Flood).  

Because there’s so much momentum on that date in history and because I was releasing the story of the Azusa Street Revival that same night year later, I opened the meeting by sharing that testimony. As I continued to share the Azusa story, I released a prayer by eyewitness at Azusa, Frank Bartleman, about how the Heroes will arise from the dust of obscure circumstances. As I read the prayer over people, I hadn't noticed the extra significance of it until a couple came up to me at the end of the evening and asked if I had realized that the date he released that prayer which was noted on my power point was November 16, 1905. The very same date of that day except 113 years earlier! Jesus!!! How amazing is that! Unexpected and amazing how God speaks and moves even in the details.

Many lives were touched this past week in Virginia including a couple who is going to plant a worshipping community in Richmond as a result of what God did, another being awakening and introduced to the power of the Holy Spirit for the first time in her life, reconciliation between family, heart healing, voices unlocked, shifting into a new season, and an awakening of burning ones who re-consecrated their lives to be sold out for Jesus. Thanks to everyone who prayed, offered grace when I didn’t return back to Redding when planned, those who invited and welcomed me to stay, rearranged their Sunday church meeting to have me speak, and Joan Hutter for hearing from the Holy Spirit to invite me and Amy Lancaster to come out to Virginia for such a time as this. So blessed. May a new fire be ignited in you today, filled with His fiery love!

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Testimony: The Simplicity of One Yes

Here is a beautiful testimony by Kim Hager about her time at the Writing in the Glory, Women’s Abide, and other revival meetings that happened in Charlottesville, Virginia this week November 9-18, 2018

One persons “yes” has every potential to be another person’s breakthrough. I both experienced and witnessed this in substantial ways with Dr. Jennifer Miskov’s visit to Charlottesville, Va.  Her “yes” to the Lord to come to Virginia launched a chain reaction of breakthroughs this week in so many lives and without a doubt countless more to follow.  As for me personally, I was suddenly launched into a brand new life season. 

Ministering at Restoration Cornerstone church with Kim releasing worship on the keyboard in the back.

I had been wrestling to fully get up out from underneath the clutter of busyness in ministry and the rubble of a difficult past season. In the process, some of who I am and how I was made to be had begun to dry up. I knew the Lord was positioning me for a season of writing and so I attended the “Writing in the Glory” workshop. I expected to gain a helpful resource but I did not know I would get swept up into such a move of God in the process. The authority of Jen’s message, lifestyle, and testimony literally was a prophetic wind of God to breathe life into the dry places in my destiny.  

As she faithfully released what she was carrying in her spirit, an impartation came. Her ministry was the hand of Jesus pulling me up out of the clutter and rubble of my past season and setting my feet in the broad place of my now, new season. Jen was the prophetic voice that re-awakened the dreamer and adventurer in me and called me out into the very season of deeper intimacy and fruitfulness that I am now walking into. Praise God!

I was also given the honor to lead worship and help facilitate ministry times during Jen’s stay for later meetings (some of them unplanned but divinely orchestrated).  Having been under Jen’s messaging, I was instilled with a newfound courage to step out which resulted in me giving voice to a vulnerable part of my testimony during worship that I had never shared publicly before. As a result, lives on the precipice of darkness were brought into the healing breakthrough of Jesus and hope and strength for endurance was released. I also found faith and courage to allow the Lord to re-arrange my schedule to stay with the move of God that was being released among us.

Jen took the time to lovingly yet boldly challenge me to respond based on my new season not my old one. Throughout her time here we witnessed powerful moments of God as people were baptized in His Spirit, filled with fresh faith, received emotional healing, surrendered their whole hearts to Jesus, and stepped out into new things in God. We participated in the awakening rumblings of racial reconciliation and watched the Lord awaken dreams and destiny in His people. What a great and unexpected week its been! 
I am undone with gratitude for the goodness and kindness of the Lord in what He has done here through Jen’s “yes” to him and her love for us. Thank you Jennifer Miskov for being willing and obedient to come to Virginia. You have an inheritance with Jesus here.

*Check out some of Kim’s anointed worship music HERE

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Testimony: “You Want Me to be a Catcher?” And an Invitation to a Deeper Experience in the Holy Spirit

Testimony by Emily who was already an answer to prayer for me because she helped run my book table and all the books even sold out! May God bring you to deeper depths of His Spirit as you read her account of what God did this week.

What a week. I feel like I was thrust into this new world when Joan Hutter, the director of Women’s Abide conference looked at me and said, “You’ll be a catcher.” I thought, “how did she know I’m a great catcher? Wait, what am I catching?” It was a whirlwind of praying in tongues, people passing out, loud laughter and uncontrolled sobbing. How can so many things be happening all at once? I just knew I wanted to know more about this.

We’ve been studying Romans as a church and for months I’ve been anticipating Romans 8. I desperately want to know what it means to be walking in the Spirit. This conference came at a perfect time when my heart was already positioned to be looking for life in the Spirit...even though I was really only there because my boss asked me to help out at the conference with the logistics and such. I kept that as my excuse to not enter in. “I’m really just here for work.”

I mostly observed during the worship services; watching some women dance in one corner and others grab banners and twist them around like they were doing work. Women were face down on the ground while others kneeled at their chairs. This worship seemed intentional; like these women had praise and adoration to bring to the Lord and they were going to use their whole body to do it. How is there a whole community of believers coming together to worship and I feel like an outsider, like these were not my people?

I’m so thankful the Lord brought Jen to guide and help me through what was going on and to graciously answer my questions. There were a lot. To be clear, I have heard of the term “baptism in the Holy Spirit” but I had no concept of what it is in real life.

For a few days I asked questions, searched scriptures and read Jen’s book on Spirit baptism called Spirit Flood, and then Tuesday night things got weird. I had dinner at the house where Jen was staying with Nicole, and after asking a few rounds of questions from me along with some vulnerable moments exploring what was hindering me from moving forward, Jen asked if she and Nicole could pray over me. I’m not sure that I even know what happened. I am still praying about it and seeking understanding. But as they prayed over me and we took time to wait on the Lord there was something like a very heavy blanket that covered me. I looked at Jen so confused about why I was so heavy. She encouraged me to lay down and to take note of pictures and words that came to mind as this was an important time of hearing from the Lord. I laid down and almost immediately I heard the Lord say to me, “You’re clean, Emily. You’ve been washed clean.’”

This moment has changed me. Not because of some physical experience - while that is something to look into and explore with the Lord - it changed me because after years of knowing that I’m saved and that I’m covered by the blood, it was like I actually knew it and believed it for the first time. I’m actually clean!

For the past week now, I’ve been borderline obsessed with what it means to walk in the Spirit, to worship in the Spirit and to live in the Spirit. I want to spend time with the Lord, abiding in Him. What if He has more to say? What if He has more to make clear to me or has things that only He can help move from my head knowledge to my heart understanding? And more importantly, does everyone else know that they can be washed by His blood too and walk in the freedom He’s given us?

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Radio Interview

When I first arrived in Virginia, I had the opportunity to be on Jeff Gaffney’s radio show where I share some of my personal story and encourage people with hope. Enjoy these raw moments below and thanks for being a part of my journey today!

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“Heroes Will Arise from the Dust”

I close with the prayer that Frank Bartleman released on November 16, 1905, just months before revival broke out in Los Angeles at the Azusa Street Revival which later spread across the globe. I declare over Virginia, over California with all of the wild fires, and over our nation that God would pour out His Spirit of revival again in our day.

“The current of revival is sweeping by our door. Will we cast ourselves on its mighty bosom and ride to glorious victory? A year of life at this time, with its wonderful possibilities for God, is worth a hundred years of ordinary life.

“Pentecost” is knocking at our doors. The revival for our country is no longer a question. Slowly but surely the tide has been rising until in the very near future we believe for a deluge of salvation that will sweep all before it. Wales will not long stand alone in this glorious triumph for our Christ. The spirit of reviving is coming upon us, driven by the breath of God, the Holy Ghost. The clouds are gathering rapidly, big with a mighty rain, whose precipitation lingers but a little.

Heroes will arise from the dust of obscure and despised circumstances, whose names will be emblazoned on Heaven’s eternal page of fame.

The Spirit is brooding over our land again as at creation’s dawn, and the fiat of God goes forth. “Let there be light.” Brother, sister, if we all believed God can you realize what would happen? Many of us here are living for nothing else. A volume of believing prayer is ascending to the throne night and day.

Los Angeles, Southern California, and the whole continent shall surely find itself ere long in the throes of a mighty revival, by the Spirit and power of God.”

-Frank Bartleman November 16, 1905

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Key Resources

If you would like to learn more about some of the topics mentioned above, see these resources.

by Jennifer A. Miskov, Ph.D. and author of Ignite Azusa: Positioning for a New Jesus Revolution

Can thousands of people gathered together for one purpose shift a generation into the next Great Awakening? What if the date and location of this gathering tapped into one of the deepest wells of revival we’ve experienced over the last century?

On April 9, 2016, which was also the 110th anniversary of the Azusa Street Revival, our generation was inaugurated into a new era. Lou Engle and TheCall, in partnership with Bethel Church in Redding, California, hosted over 60,000 people in an event called Azusa Now. People from all around the world gathered together in the rain at the Los Angeles Coliseum to make the name of Jesus famous once again. The day was filled with worship, prayer, healing, miracles, prophetic acts, and signs and wonders. During the week preceding this event, Bethel School of Supernatural Ministry, Circuit Riders, Youth With A Mission, Iris Global, and many other ministries sent out armies of Jesus lovers to flood L.A. with the love and power of God. Deaf ears were opened, people got up out of wheelchairs, many were welcomed into the family of God, and signs and wonders were released.

Because of the prophetic words and impossibilities connected to the Azusa Now story, it is important to pay attention. This was not just another Christian worship event. Deep wells of the Azusa Street Revival (1906), which birthed over half a billion Christians and has spread to nearly every country in the world over the past century, were accessed on Saturday. At Azusa Now, many different streams of Christianity came together in unity for one purpose. Profound reconciliation occurred. Worship filled the stadium. Ripple effects that will impact the world and eternity will result from what was poured out at Azusa Now.

We Walk by Faith Not Sight

Something powerful and profound happened at Azusa Now whether we see and understand it now or not. Many stepped out in great faith to see God’s kingdom come to this generation. If all of this was done and only one person got saved or healed, it would have been worth it. What if that one person will later become the next D.L. Moody or Billy Graham we may never know. However, we do know that many entered into God’s kingdom and many others were restored, healed, and set free that day. We don’t know how many lives these ones will touch in the future but these will be the inheritance of what was poured out at Azusa Now.

In the evening session at Azusa Now, evangelist Daniel Kolenda shared how God marked him at TheCall D.C. over ten years ago. He was impregnated with a hunger and passion to see souls saved. He’s since brought thousands into the kingdom of God. The impact of what was released when he attended TheCall D.C. might not have become visible the next week or even the next year, but something significant happened that later contributed to the momentum of hundreds of thousands being led to the Lord. Whether we see profound results today or in the next ten years from what happened at Azusa Now, we said yes to what God asked of us. That is something to celebrate. We need to trust Him with the results as we continue to dive even deeper into His presence.

Healing on the Streets

When I was doing my Ph.D. on revival history while living in England, I helped my church set up Healing on the Streets in the city square where many youth gathered. We set up chairs in the middle of the square and put up a flag that said Healing. Anyone walking by who wanted prayer would sit in a chair and we would pray for him or her right out in the open. We did this every month and saw many miracles take place: legs grew, depression lifted, cigarettes disappeared, and people even grew taller. However, there’s one story I want to share that will help demonstrate the unseen impact Azusa Now will have in the future.

One time when we were out on the streets, we met a teenager named Ben. He had been hit by a car and his leg was in a cast. He was a rough looking kid but had allowed us to pray for him. As our team laid hands and prayed for him in the middle of the town square, the presence of God fell on him powerfully. However, when he left, he hobbled away, still on crutches with no visible sign of healing. Did we fail? Did we not have enough faith to bring him into his healing? I think not. I believe that every Holy Spirit-led act of faith is something to celebrate. Our job is to obey God. He is in charge of the results.

The next month we went back to the same spot and saw Ben running out to greet us. He shared how a week after we prayed, he was totally healed and even went out jogging!!! We hadn’t seen the effects in the moment we prayed, but God was working behind the scenes. Furthermore, one year after Ben got healed, we were all drinking coffee in a Starbucks and sharing testimonies after our ministry time on the streets. I noticed the Holy Spirit was doing something in Ben so I asked him what was going on. His grandmother had just passed away and he heard her favorite song come on which made him emotional. We prayed for him right there in the Starbucks and he began to weep. Then he said to me, “Jen, I never told you this before but a year ago when you all prayed for me, I had so much anger and rage inside of me that I was going to beat someone up that day. After you all prayed for me, that anger left and I have never been the same.” We found this out one year later!

We don’t always know or see the results of stepping out in faith, worshipping in unity, or doing prophetic acts led by the Spirit, however, in due time, these will surface. Azusa Now may or may not have been what we all imagined. We may have seen incredible miracles and salvations or we may not have seen what we were hoping for. However, something powerful was released either way that will impact generations. We must be content knowing that heaven is celebrating us each and every time we step out in faith to follow the leading of the Spirit. Yes, many people got saved, healed, and delivered which is incredible. However, Azusa Now was just the beginning of more to come.

The Rudder of Our Ship Has Shifted

The prophetic act of thousands of people worshipping together in one place, in one city, and on the anniversary of the Azusa Street Revival synergized and shifted us into a new era. What we did that day is like shifting the direction of a rudder on a large ship. Our generation may or may not recognize the radical change and the momentum that will carry on for generations from now from what was released at Azusa Now. However, even the slightest of changes on a rudder will re-direct the course of that ship. Over time, that ship will arrive at a completely different destination.

We are now going in a new direction, even if ever so slightly. This change will take us to a greater reality than any could ever have hoped, dreamed, or imagined. The New Jesus Revolution has already begun. Sometimes this happens in the smallest of ways. Never underestimate the power of Jesus working even in one small shift, one great decision made, or one person saved. Remember and record what happened in your life on Saturday April 9, 2016 and celebrate each seed of hope that was released. This is only the beginning. These seeds will one day grow and emerge into giants as they are saturated by more of the Holy Spirit.

I close by quoting a song by Bob Dylan. I encourage you to imagine God singing it over you and our generation:

“The storms are raging on the rolling seas

And on the highway of regret

The winds of change are blowing wild and free

You ain’t seen nothing like Me yet

I could make you happy, make your dreams come true

Nothing that I wouldn’t do

Go to the ends of the earth for you

To make you feel My love”

God has already gone to the ends of the earth to make you feel His love when He sent His Son Jesus. I pray that in this new era, your eyes are opened more than ever before to see and to receive a fresh revelation of the Father’s great love. I pray that you become a target for His blessing, favor, and presence. May your heart increase in capacity to be able to receive the great love God is pouring out and to overflow it to others. May you be apprehended by God’s extravagant and unceasing love like never before. Hang on tight, we’re in for the wildest ride of our lives! 

*See book Ignite Azusa: Positioning for a New Jesus Revolution by Jennifer A. Miskov with Heidi Baker, Bill Johnson, and Lou Engle to learn more about the Azusa Street Revival and the new move of God in our day.

by Jennifer A. Miskov, PhD and author of Ignite Azusa: Positioning for a New Jesus Revolution with Heidi Baker, Lou Engle, and Bill Johnson

Remember what life is like today because after Saturday, everything changes. At the 110th anniversary of the Azusa Street Revival to be held at the Coliseum in Los Angeles April 9, 2016, we take our first steps into a new era. The Call Azusa, where over 100,000 people will gather for one purpose, to worship Jesus and make His name great, will shift us into the next Great Awakening and a New Jesus Revolution. The name of Jesus will be celebrated once again. Being a Christian will be the coolest thing one can do. People will experience and receive Jesus for the gift He truly is without all the excess and baggage people place on Him.

Where two or three are gathered, God hears and acts on their behalf (Matthew 18:19). When the disciples and their friends were gathered together in unity to wait upon the Lord, the Holy Spirit fell mightily (Acts 2). When a handful of passionate saints met in a little home on Bonnie Brae Street April 9, 1906 for a greater outpouring of the Holy Spirit in their time, God crashed in and birthed a movement that is still having ripple effects to this day, over 100 years later. The flame that was ignited that day has brought more than half a billion people to Jesus and has spread the gospel to nearly every country in the world.

It only takes a few people to start a fire.

So if God poured out His Spirit in a powerful way through His twelve disciples and the others gathered on the day of Pentecost and also through those at Bonnie Brae Street, what might happen when not just a small handful of people gather for one purpose, but 100,000?  The prophetic act alone of worshipping in Spirit and truth with 100,000 other believers is sure to have ripple effects for eternity that will long surpass Saturday. God is awakening this generation once again.

The gathering at the Coliseum this weekend is no small thing. Make no mistake. Azusa Now will be something we will tell our grandkids and great grandkids about years from now. It will mark the beginning of a new era.

Do whatever you have to get there or to watch on live streaming. This is a once in the lifetime opportunity to be a part of something greater than we could ever dream of.

In June 1906, just months after the fire at Azusa Street was ignited, participant Frank Bartleman wrote the following:

Opportunity once passed, is lost forever. There is a time when the tide is sweeping by our door. We may then plunge in and be carried to glorious blessing, success and victory. To stand shivering on the bank, timid, or paralyzed with stupor, at such a time, is to miss all, and most miserably fail, both for time and for eternity. Oh, our responsibility! The mighty tide of God’s grace and favor is even now sweeping by us, in its prayer-directed course…It is time to ‘get together,’ and plunge in, individually and collectively. We are baptized ‘in one Spirit, into one body,’ - I Cor. 12:13. Let us lay aside all carnal contentions and divisions, that separate us from each other and from God. If we are of His body, we are ‘one body.’ The opportunity of a lifetime, of centuries, is at our door, to be eternally gained or lost. There is no time to hesitate. Act quickly, lest another take thy crown. Oh, church of Christ, awake! Be baptized with power. Then fly to rescue others. And to meet your Lord.

May a New Jesus Revolution emerge where the name of Jesus becomes famous once again and where being in love with Him is our one desire.

*Excerpts and inspiration from new book Ignite Azusa available here. See also Heidi Baker, Lou Engle, and Bill Johnson in video clip below where Lou also releases a blessing in the very end over Ignite Azusa.

*The following is an excerpt of Lou Engle from new book Ignite Azusa: Positioning for a New Jesus Revolution by Jennifer A. Miskov also including Heidi Baker and Bill Johnson. This excerpt is followed by a prayer of impartation by Lou over all who read.

A few years back, I visited Carrie Judd Montgomery’s healing home in Oakland, California, called the Home of Peace. When I was at this historic revival well, the host showed me the guest book from 1908 with an entry by Azusa Street Revival participant Frank Bartleman. Although I have never met Bartleman, he has always been like a spiritual father for me because of his deep passion for intercession to see revival. I feel he is up there in the great cloud of witnesses encouraging me on in these days. I discovered that he wrote out his own modified version of Isaiah 59:16 in the guest book: “And He saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercession.” I felt the Lord say to me, “Let San Francisco and California have an intercessor right now.” Not long after, my team and I decided to spend our forty-day fast for TheCall Berkeley at the Home of Peace in 2014.

Just as Bartleman interceded before the birth of the Azusa Street Revival because he could sense a historic shift, so I believe that we are also at a tipping point in our generation. It will be important to draw from the well at Azusa Street to gain insights on how we can better partner with what God wants to do in our day and go even further. When California seeks God like they sought for gold in the early days, God’s glory will return.

I pray for each one reading Ignite Azusa that you would have encounters and open heaven visitations. I pray for revival days to explode and that God would restore the breech, and repair the fallen down walls and city streets’ dwellings. I pray that God would pour out His Spirit like He did during Lonnie Frisbee’s time and that there would be another wave of revival in California, a new Jesus Movement. I pray that each one reading this book would have an encounter with God that will set the next stage of history in California, in America, and beyond.

Thirty-one years ago I read a book called Azusa Street by Frank Bartleman. It imparted fire into my being. A book can shift your life and can shift history. My friend Jen Miskov just wrote a book called Ignite Azusa. We believe this little book will light fires and prepare a people for another great outpouring of the Holy Spirit. So receive this book and as we put our blessing on this book, I want to pray you that you would receive an Impartation of a spirit of revival as you read it. I pray right now that the spirit that was on Azusa, that was on William J. Seymour and on Frank Bartleman would be released on those who read. Even now create hunger in their souls, desire and make them instruments of revival. In the name of Jesus, I bless you. Amen.

Ignite Azusa

Jennifer A. Miskov, Ph.D.

We are on the verge of one of the greatest awakenings of all time. Many have prophesied about a new move of God on the horizon that far surpasses any we have ever seen. Our generation is pregnant with birthing a new Jesus Revolution and we have been given the incredible opportunity to step into something truly special in our day.

The Azusa Street Revival is not just something that happened over a hundred years ago, it prophesies into our future of what God wants to pour out in an even greater measure today. There is great momentum for us to step into that was initiated in the Azusa Street Revival, a move of God that has brought more people to Jesus than in previous centuries combined. Lessons and keys for our destiny are embedded in their story. We can access these to unlock even greater realms of God’s glory in our day. The fire from Azusa is still burning and available today.

The Azusa Street Revival (1906-1909) was a significant spiritual awakening that played a crucial role in the emergence of Pentecostalism and the rapid growth of Christianity around the globe. On November 16, 1905, just months before the revival was sparked in California, an intercessor in Los Angeles named Frank Bartleman felt a stirring similar to what many of us might be feeling today. He said, 

The current of revival is sweeping by our door. Will we cast ourselves on its mighty bosom and ride to glorious victory? A year of life at this time, with its wonderful possibilities for God, is worth a hundred years of ordinary life. “Pentecost” is knocking at our doors. The revival for our country is no longer a question. Slowly but surely the tide has been rising until in the very near future we believe for a deluge of salvation that will sweep all before it. Wales will not long stand alone in this glorious triumph for our Christ. The spirit of reviving is coming upon us, driven by the breath of God, the Holy Ghost. The clouds are gathering rapidly, big with a mighty rain, whose precipitation lingers but a little.

Heroes will arise from the dust of obscure and despised circumstances, whose names will be emblazoned on Heaven’s eternal page of fame. The Spirit is brooding over our land again as at creation’s dawn, and the fiat of God goes forth. “Let there be light.” Brother, sister, if we all believed God can you realize what would happen? Many of us here are living for nothing else. A volume of believing prayer is ascending to the throne night and day. Los Angeles, Southern California, and the whole continent shall surely find itself ere long in the throes of a mighty revival, by the Spirit and power of God.[1]

Can you feel the stirring deep within your spirit? If we really believed God, can you realize what might happen? Many of us today are sensing the intensity and weight of what God is about to pour out in all the earth. We are indeed on the verge of the greatest revival we have ever seen. The momentum of those who have gone before us is great.

As you dive into the Azusa story, I declare that the weak be made strong, the hidden unveiled, the broken-hearted restored and made whole, and the wounded healed. I call forth the heroes to arise from the dust of obscure and despised circumstances. As you read Ignite Azusa, I pray that the Holy Spirit will ignite you with the fire of God like never before.

God, do it again in our day and even more. Whatever it looks like, we don’t care, just as long as we have more of You. Release the keys of intimacy and destiny that You want to deposit into our generation. Overshadow us and cause us to burn for You with a flame that will never go out. We are Yours forever, Lord. Mark us for your glory. We say yes to You, no matter what the cost.

*The above is an excerpt from new book Ignite Azusa: Positioning for a New Jesus Revolution with the following authors:

Heidi Baker, Ph.D. (Iris Global), Lou Engle (TheCall), and Bill Johnson (Bethel Church in Redding, California) partner together in Ignite Azusa to inspire courage to step into the momentum set before us today. They will also be in Los Angeles April 9, 2016 for the 110 anniversary of the Azusa Street Revival at the AzusaNow gathering. We are believing for a new Jesus Revolution in our day. Join us at The Call Azusa (thecall.com).

Jennifer A. Miskov has a Ph.D. in Global Pentecostal and Charismatic Studies from the University of Birmingham, U.K. She is the founding director of Destiny House, a ministry that cultivates communities of worshippers who do life together and who launch people into their destinies from a place of intimacy with God and connection with family. She currently teaches revival history classes at Bethel School of Supernatural Ministry and facilitates Writing in the Glory workshops at various places. Jen loves to lead people into life changing encounters with Jesus through her writing, teaching, and ministry. Order your copies of Ignite Azusa HERE

[1] Frank Bartleman, How Pentecost Came to Los Angeles: As it Was in the Beginning. 2nd edition (Los Angeles, CA: Frank Bartleman, originally April 1925), 39 and now printed by Christian Classic Ethereal Library (Grand Rapids, MI). This book is accessible for free: http://www.ccel.org/ccel/bartleman/los.pdf.