Destiny Ministries International

Dear Friends,

I am writing this article to share to us what I believe God is unfolding in the spirit in the light of what He has been doing in our midst, as a people and what He has in stored for us to experience in the coming days. I believe there is a strong mandate on us to establish a REVIVAL CULTURE. We are to aim for and move towards longevity of the move of God and not just to settle for events or momentary breakthroughs in the ministry. This means that we are called to dream, desire, and pay the price for this vision to become a reality in our time and to be sure to pass it to the next generation. We are dreaming for a community transformed where the Kingdom of God evidently influences all aspects of our lives and our society. I pray that by the Holy Spirit we would be able to capture this vision of establishing a REVIVAL CULTURE in our time. Read on and catch the fire!

Co-laborer in Christ,

Paul Yadao

LIVING FOR A REVIVAL CULTURE

My definition of revival is God’s Kingdom coming IN POWER on earth over particular geographical areas or groups of individuals with accompanying supernatural manifestations and glorious outcomes not possible by any human means. It is a supernaturally distinct time when the Church is so filled with God’s manifest presence, glory and power. The Church shines the brightest in the midst of darkness of the world around when there is revival.

In revival, the power of God is evident in healings, miracles, signs and wonders, salvation of sinners and the authority released in the proclamation of the Word. In revival times, the gates of hell are bombarded with the mighty prayers and proclamations of the believers and its power is broken over individuals and localities. The Kingdom of God expands in the dark places of society with such authority and conviction. God is glorified for all that He is when there is genuine revival.

During revival the passion of the individual believers for the things of God is beyond the usual, the average, the cold, religious and shallow devotion they once had to the Lord prior to it. There is fervency and deep passion in the hearts of the saints as evidenced by their service to God, their love for one another and for the lost. The things of God captivate their hearts more than the cares of the world. Literally, revival is people being saturated with the manifest presence of God.

The general result of revival is the transformation of lives and societies. History shows that one of the visible fruits of revival is the harvest of multitudes. Sinners who used to refuse the Gospel suddenly find themselves so receptive to the Message because of the great conviction and the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit. History records the different revivals that literally became the very launching pad of transformation of communities, societies, and nations.

DESTINY PEOPLE- A REVIVAL COMMUNITY

This is what we are living for as a people- REVIVAL, the coming down of HEAVEN on EARTH IN POWER! This is how Destiny Ministries International (DMI) was born in the early 90’s and this is how we will progress in our God-given vision. To the core, we are called to be a REVIVAL COMMUNITY and from God’s viewpoint, that is truly who we are. Our vision as a body and as a family says it. Our corporate cry and dreams express it. Our worship, prayers and services to God and men are all motivated by it. Years passed and it has never died down. The fire and the passion for His glory on earth burn brighter in our hearts like never before. We refuse to tame this blazing fire within but instead, as ever, we will allow this fire of passion for a revival of “heaven on earth� to define and shape everything that is us- the Destiny People.

In the first century Church, the leaders and the believers lived in a revived state. After the initial outpouring of the Holy Spirit in Acts 2, the saints constantly and progressively were filled with the Holy Spirit with corresponding increase in the magnitude of mighty signs and wonders accompanying the preaching of the Word of God. Several times throughout the Book of Acts we see that prayer, worship, covenantal brotherly love and mighty proclamation of the Word with signs, wonders and miracles are all part of the believers’ everyday life. No wonder even in the midst of persecution when they were scattered, the saints went about preaching the Word of God with mighty signs and wonders. This happened because all of them have it as part of their lifestyle. They oozed out with the power of God because they were filled with the Holy Spirit.

What they had was a REVIVAL CULTURE established by the Holy Spirit. Literally, the Kingdom of God came down on earth IN POWER empowering common people, like you and me, to do great exploits for the King. This is the very model for all of us to follow- by the Holy Spirit, we will establish a culture of revival that will transform the world around us and increasingly grow in intensity and glory from generation to generation.

A CHANGE OF VIEW

I used to view revival as something intermittent, sporadic and something that would only last for a period. In my readings on this topic in the past, most of the authors presented revival with this perspective. It is only recently that I finally am convinced that revival in God’s design and intention should be something continuous, progressive and will grow in depth, supernatural demonstration and impact through time. Thank God, for Leif Hetland, Bill Johnson, Randy Clark, Heidi Baker and many more who are the spiritual forerunners of our time. Their lives and works are living models showing that revival can be sustained progressively until cities, nations, cultures, and peoples are transformed.

Revival progresses from one level of glory to another. This is consistent to the nature of the Kingdom of God. It is said in Isaiah 9:7 concerning the Messiah and His Kingdom that “There will be no end to the increase of His government or of peace, on the throne of David and over His Kingdom�. If this is the nature of His Kingdom then revival ought to increase without end from generation to generation until Jesus comes. Jesus is coming back for a Bride, the Church, in full glory without spot and wrinkle. It is through these continuous, progressive moves of the Spirit that She will be prepared to meet Him as Esther went through carefully selected beauty preparations of purifications and fragrance before meeting with the king.

Our level of experiences must never be the bar on which we measure and explain the move of God. The standard is Jesus and to Him it is no less than to bring down heaven on earth. Where we are right now, to where He desires us to be, is the very journey of faith we have to take and contend for. We need successive outpourings of the Holy Spirit to bring us to that level. We need a greater measure of Him in us and through us. The unfinished task we have to accomplish in our generation.

We are not alone on this pursuit. God is moving around the globe today, setting ablaze individuals and ministries who are desperate to see the Kingdom of God manifested on earth. The supernatural manifestations and the unimaginable harvests and breakthroughs among the nations are just phenomenal to say the least. As I am writing this very moment, there are ongoing revival fires in Africa, India, Argentina, Colombia, China, Indonesia, Brazil, Thailand, Eastern European nations and different parts of the world. The Philippines is catching up. God is doing a new thing in our midst. Praise God we are in the middle of all of these He is doing.

HEAVEN ON EARTH- OUR DIVINE ASSIGNMENT

If REVIVAL indeed is the COMING OF HEAVEN ON EARTH IN POWER then this should be the very purpose of our life here on earth as saints- to live for a REVIVAL CULTURE. Jesus taught us how to live our lives here on earth that is, to “Seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness�. This is our first priority in life- the King and His Kingdom. Further He taught us to pray “Your Kingdom come, Your Will be done on earth as it is in heaven�. We are not just to seek for it, but we have to pray for it to come and pay the price to be the very instruments to demonstrate its reality on earth just as it is in heaven. A high bar of standard He set us to live for and believe for. Anything less is missing the mark.

RISING TIDE NOT JUST WAVES

The illustration I have for revival is a continuous rising tide sustained by increasing waves. Many thought the moves of God as separate waves based on how they view history. For me, the silence in between the waves of the Spirit are very much part of the whole process of the increasing tide of revival.

Many a revivals died out because of different reasons. One of these is when those who were used in the revival themselves believed that the revival had already ceased, then it did. Instead of bringing it to a higher level in the realms of the Kingdom, many settled to just maintaining what has been achieved in the outpouring. Instead of habitation, they settled for a visitation.

Another reason is that the next generations of believers were not willing to pay the price for the move of Spirit to go to the next level of increase. Most of the time, the succeeding generation tends to slow down and institutionalized the move of God instead of pushing for greater things. The radicals of yesterdays become the conservatives of today as Ian Green said in one of his preachings. The revivals in the past did not progress to the next level of glory because of these reasons.

Nevertheless, if we observe the history of revival carefully, as soon as the revival ceases in one generation or ministry, God raises up individuals or ministries who are desperate enough and willing to embrace His new move. This is how it progresses to the greater level of glory. Misreading the history of revivals may lead us to conclude otherwise. Right understanding of revival however brings us to a greater hunger and desperation for more as the Kingdom of God increases from glory to glory.

Instead of settling for a sporadic visitation, we should pursue the habitation of the Spirit of God in power in our midst at all cost. Once we have tasted it we cannot afford to loose momentum by sliding down to the level of maintenance and mediocrity. Like Israel, we have to move with the Pillar of Fire by night and the Pillar of Cloud by the day on our way to the Promised Land- all the fullness of God for us to experience here on earth.

LIVE FOR CULTURE NOT EVENTS

Revival must be pursued as a culture and not just an event. The first century Church is our model of a REVIVAL CULTURE. The lifestyle of the believers radically changed from the first outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost. From a segmented society because of religious, racial, political and economic barriers, they became one single divine organism, a community saturated by the Holy Spirit corporately doing the will of God and demonstrating the reality of His Kingdom in their generation. All that they did were divinely inspired. From their radical generosity to their boldness in declaring the Gospel, they were all under the influence of the Holy Spirit.

Everything started from the gathering of the 120 believers in the upper room to wait for the Promise of Father as Jesus instructed them to remain in Jerusalem until they are endued by the power from on high. These believers PRESSED IN for 10 days in prayer and worship. They received the Great Outpouring of the Holy Spirit. From that day on, they “continued steadfastly� in cultivating and treasuring the very things that they did to receive the Promise. Their commitment, passion and sacrifices are the very dry woods in their hearts on which the fires of revival continuously burned. This is how the REVIVAL CULTURE was sustained and spread-out from Jerusalem, to Judea, to Samaria and to the uttermost parts of the world in their time.

Theirs is not a carefully planned out development and expansion of a revival community. It was a glorious chaos. The activities they had are divinely orchestrated events that demonstrated the reality of heaven on earth. The Holy Spirit governed everything in that culture. This is what we need to catch, the corporate move of the Spirit among us and not just on few selected individuals. May we move as we are inspired and empowered by the Holy Ghost.

REVIVAL LANGUAGE

Central to the development of a culture is the language. The first century believers received a baptism of the Holy Spirit that enabled them to speak in unknown and diverse tongues. This is the initial supernatural manifestation that demonstrated the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. Together with this, the language that sustained the REVIVAL CULTURE is the declaration of the powerful testimonies of the mighty works of God in their midst.

The people begin to speak from the perspective of the supernatural as they experienced first hand the power of God. Their confessions radically changed because the way they see things from then on is no longer from their limited point of view but from God’s perspective. Everything became possible the moment they saw the mighty signs and wonders and salvation that happened in their midst. Their language changed from that of mere humans to that of men set afire by the Holy Spirit. There is an air of expectancy in the midst of the people as faith rises up corporately because of the testimonies they heard.

We should be speaking this language. We should be talking of the mighty deeds of God among ourselves, teaching them to our children and the generations to come. Testimonies are so powerful because they release a prophetic realm to those who hear it. The more we talk about it the more we experience the nature and the Person of God. We are reminded of the God who invades the impossible realm.

Language is not only the core expression of a revival culture it also serves as the fuel that feeds the fire of the Spirit. Positive confession brings about positive attitude that consequently leads to the corresponding positive action. When language is changed, the perspective is changed. When this happens the people of God sees things from the supernatural. In the Kingdom of God, what we keep on confessing we end up possessing. Declarations that are charged with faith, truth and authority whether as testimonies or preaching of the Word, when released under the anointing of the Holy Spirit, release life and confront darkness.

However, we are not just to talk about past victories but we have to pursue new and greater things in the spirit to be able to generate and declare fresh testimonies that will inspire and encourage others to experience new levels of spiritual breakthroughs themselves. This is how REVIVAL CULTURE grows. Our testimonies of breakthroughs become a corporate breakthrough for others.

BACK TO BASICS

No revival started without intensified, purposive prevailing prayers. God looks for someone to agree with for Him to release the reality of His heaven here on earth. With prayer is the passionate and reverential worship from the hearts of His people. God dwells and He is enthroned on the praises of His people. In revival, both prayer and worship is the priority ministry together with the bold proclamation of His Word.

The early believers started in the Upper Room in intensified prayer and worship to God. Reading through the chapters of the Book of Acts will reveal that in almost every major move of God prayer and worship became the fuel that brought the Church into greater measures of His Presence in the Kingdom of God. Everything from appointment of leaders, to sending of workers, to facing heavy persecutions, at all times the body of believers responded in prayer and worship. This is an essential truth to live in if we are to see the development and progressive increase of a REVIVAL CULTURE. The move of God only progresses in the Presence of God.

The Church is strongest when She is closest to the Lord. Intimacy positions the Church into a greater release of tremendous power and authority unavailable to Her otherwise. There are things in the Kingdom of God only accessed through desperation. This is where God is calling us back corporately as a movement- back to the basics.

Indeed, the main things are the plain things and the plain things are the main things. Like parables, the best of God’s revelations and blessings are available to the hungry ones. He still reveals His secrets to the one who fears Him. He still shows Himself strong in behalf of those whose hearts are totally His. He loves the chasers of His Presence, the dreamers of His dreams and He feeds the hungriest of all.

The most common denominator of the mighty moves of God in history and in our present time is prolonged, purposeful and desperate faith-filled prayers. This is the very reason we built the Prayer Room in the Destiny Center in Los Baños, Laguna. This room is a physical expression of what we really value and seek after most of all as a people- the Presence of God. More and more are coming to pray and seek His face especially during the wee hours of the night. We aim to establish a 24/7 non-stop prayer and worship chain. This is going to be the very heart, the spiritual womb of this REVIVAL CULTURE we are after for in Destiny. As we continue to press in for more of Him in our lives and in Destiny Family, we will see His hands moving mightily in everything that we do. In this season, we are experiencing a greater reality of His favor upon our lives. More and more are experiencing breakthroughs in their personal lives because of God’s favor upon them. Our hearts cry is to host His presence that He will not just visit us but He will inhabit us.

Generosity is one of the basic outward expressions of hearts that are overflowing with the Presence of God. As a people, we are now increasing in radical generosity. Testimonies of supernatural provisions, financial breakthroughs will abound as we continue step out in faith in radical generosity. Another aspect we are growing in corporately this season is faith. Faith is essential in accessing the grace of God. As we increase in faith, we will surely increase in spiritual breakthroughs, anointing, favor and fruitfulness.

GOING FOR LONGEVITY

REVIVAL CULTURE starts from a genuine outpouring in response to desperation. It is sustained through prayer, worship, fasting, sacrifice, radical obedience, humility and faith. We are living not just for intermittent, seasonal breakthroughs but instead we are pressing in for a progressive, purposive, expansive, power-filled, Presence-led REVIVAL CULTURE that will spill over to the world around us unto the future generations ahead. This is a commitment for life. There is no other option in the Kingdom of God but to do His Will and Purpose according to His terms. The Spirit of God is looking for hearts to transform and invade until they in turn become transformers and invaders for the Kingdom of God here on earth.

REVIVAL CULTURE is not a one-time deal. It will require our whole commitment and sacrifice. We have to catch this at the heart level. We have to make a decision once for all to live for the cause of BRINGING DOWN HEAVEN ON EARTH. All God-given assignments, visions and dreams point to this HIS KINGDOM COME HIS WILL BE DONE ON EARTH AS IT IS IN HEAVEN! May we live for this cause and give all that we are to make it happen in our generation.

All that I am is for a REVIVAL CULTURE. I have no other options and other plans except to align everything that I am to this heavenly call of bringing down heaven on earth in my generation.

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