The Church
Wildly expectant : We need your help to get into a new property
We are looking to pull the trigger on leasing a different property for Revival Church and theLab—your participation will help determine what type of property we choose.
IN THIS MESSAGE:
- Finding a new property (this week?)
- The (huge!) vision
- Amy’s story of giving to a better storehouse (So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.)
We have our eyes on several properties now, and have offers to share them with another church (like we do now).
I’m feeling a very, very powerful swirl of the Holy Spirit today…huge expectancy. So, I thought I’d get you all praying with me. Something unusual is going on!
If you feel God is calling you to give a financial gift toward a new property, now is the time to do that. We’ll be making a decision on where we go soon based where God is leading and on the finances we have to use (possibly this week—we have to be in a new place no later than May.). We are committed to staying out of debt, so we’ll only move on something that we can afford.
As of Sunday, the church only had $130 in the bank, but then the Lord moved nicely and the offering was our largest ever—$2300. So, I think God is really touching some hearts in this area now.
We pay $800 a month to share the current property, and won’t go much beyond that when we move to a new place—unless we receive a significant donation that makes it clear that it would be wise to get something a bit more.
THE VISION
We are called to fulfill a very important mission here in Detroit. Our ministry has a mandate to be a prophetic regional center of revival.
What does this mean? A few things:
- We have regional focus. We envision a team of pastors from all throughout the region locking arms and focusing primarily on strategic regional events.
- We are raising up a team of prophetic messengers and revivalists. theLab internship is helping fulfill the call to create a company of people who will station themselves in the mission command center for Detroit. They receive prophetic data and instructions and communicate it to the pastors and leaders of the region.
- Continual apostolic intercession is a foundational ministry for us. Not only do we want to intercede, but the call is to hear God’s plans clearly, and then respond immediately and appropriately. We’re gathering 1000 intercessors, pastors, leaders and burning men and women of God to pray very aggressively and intentionally on site together each week.
- theLab team is being trained and equipped to carry the call to gather leaders and to host large scale prophetic prayer events. theLab events are purposed to bring in key, anointed national and international leaders to deposit fire into the desperate Detroit region.
Now, to pull all of this off, we need a large campus. A 2000+ seat auditorium plus prayer rooms, class rooms and other facilities will be necessary. At this point, we’re willing to either take that giant leap, or we will take a much smaller incremental step by simply finding a place to meet on Sundays. We’re open to the exact plan of God for us.
We don’t want to go for the campus if we are supposed to share a property, and we don’t want to share if we are supposed to find the campus at this time.
You can donate at www.detroitrevivalchurch.com/donate.
THE BETTER STOREHOUSE
On Sunday, God dropped a timely message into my spirit, just before we received the tithes and offerings. I was reminded of a situation in our household, and then shared a scripture that I’ll pass along to you. Detroit is shell-shocked financially right now, and I’m concerned that people are attempting to entrust their own storehouses (a reaction of fear) instead of God’s risk-free system of giving toward the storehouse of the church (a reaction of faith).
Here’s our story:
First, Amy went to pay the bills, and discovered that we were $630 short. She was very frustrated, and couldn’t figure out why that was. She had to take some money out of our savings (our storehouse) and move it into our checking account so we could pay the bills.
Then, later that day, Skylar found a check for $630 that Amy thought had already been deposited. Well, there was the missing money. So, Amy was about to deposit it into our savings to replace what she had to move over. God then said, “All of your bills have been paid, right?” Hmmm. Yes, it was true. We were not in lack, and we did have an excess of $630. So, Amy decided to give $50 out of her thankfulness.
God then said again, “All of your bills have been paid, right?”
Right there, Amy was faced with her financial nervousness contrasting with God’s clear ability to take care of us—and was convinced of the importance to put our money in the right storehouse. She wrote a check for $500 and gave it to The Fireplace (a revival movement here in Detroit) and put aside another $130 to be used to treat some pastors to dinner.
The money was given to a much better storehouse.
Luke 12:15 And he said to them,”Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.”16 And he told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man produced plentifully,17 and he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?'18 And he said, ‘I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods.19 And I will say to my soul, Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.'20 But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?'21 So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.”
Let me know if you have any thoughts at all.
Blessings!!
5 supernatural points : A return to the cross will introduce an extreme supernatural reality
Core, historic biblical truths must be embraced in the church again—and we should expect an unusual supernatural reality to result.
It seems that the weirder the Charismatic camp gets, the more the cross and other key Christian doctrines are minimized. The new wine and fresh revelation often trumps a radical adherence to the very foundational, scriptural truths. The cross must become central again. Repentance has to well up and cry out of us again. As we return to these core doctrines, we will be surprised to experience the shock and awe of a realm that is so supernatural, so other-worldly, that the most demonstrative Charismatics will pale in comparison. THE CROSS When the cross is preached in power, miracles, signs and wonders are an expected result. Matthew 27:51-54 (ESV) 51 And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, and the rocks were split. 52 The tombs also were opened. And many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised, 53 and coming out of the tombs after his resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many. 54 When the centurion and those who were with him, keeping watch over Jesus, saw the earthquake and what took place, they were filled with awe and said, “Truly this was the Son of God!” When we preach the cross, we’re not just encouraging people to ask Jesus into their heart. True ministry of this earth-shaking (literally) event will result in a drama that we couldn’t invent if we tried. Did you see what happened when Jesus died? Note, this was before the power of the resurrection! It’s before the keys to death, Hell and the grave were taken! It was at a time of seeming defeat! The power of surrender in this story is phenomenal!- The curtain was torn—Preaching of the cross will result in eyes being opened and supernatural encounters becoming standard. So many are blind and numb to the volatile invisible realm that’s all around us. The cross grants us access not simply to a hope to enter Heaven when we die, but access into the very presence of a fearful God right now!
- The Earth shook—Get ready! A great shaking will come, a trembling from deep within, as we all grab hold of the bloody cross of Christ. As we embrace our own crosses, and surrender our lives fully, the Earth will shake! I prophesied that this coming revival will result in a literal trembling in us that won’t stop until we leave the planet. Many have been shaking deeply already, and the more the cross is preached, the more it will build.
- Rocks were split—The cross is so powerful that unbreakable, immovable boulders will be shattered in our lives. Deliverance and dramatic freedom comes, and Jesus is the one who receives all of the glory! If you crave freedom, don’t simply plead the blood of Jesus, declare the power of the cross!
- Tombs were opened—What power! A sleeping church is about to be awakened! The offense of the cross will cause some to mock and flee, but the true church will immediately break free from the power of death and slumber and rise up with messages of life on their lips!
- Those who crucified Jesus were filled with awe—God will be praised by even the most vicious attackers! The proof of God’s greatness isn’t in the wisdom of words, but people will be convinced as they watch God’s power explode right before them!
Daily meetings becoming standard in the church?
As we progress toward the 24/7 church, revival is brining calibration to the biblical model in Detroit.
I’ve written books and articles and taught countless messages on the emerging 24/7 church that’s coming to this nation. I was convinced that it would take a revival atmosphere to finally draw people together every night—into the 24/7 model—simply because they would then be convinced that there was literally no better place to be or no more important thing to do than encounter God with others.
A PROPOSAL: THE FLEX CHURCH STRUCTURE
Local churches have the unique position of either being a great threat to a regional outpouring, or a great strength. The demands of the regional, corporate gathering are increasing in intensity, and any competing activity (within the church or outside of it) will put the greater city mission at risk.
For example, the need for laborers at The Fireplace is growing. We need people in position—intercessors, pastors, ushers, cleaning crews, musicians, techs, etc. If local churches don’t release their people to participate, then this outpouring is at risk.
Another example of what I’m trying to communicate occurred shortly after I moved to Detroit. Long story short, I was asked to be the keynote speaker at The Palace (where the Detroit Pistons play) where an all-city church outreach was planned. Sadly, churches refused to cancel their own local Wednesday night services so their people could support the event. So, it was cancelled. Do you see what I mean?
Here’s the FLEX CHURCH STRUCTURE proposal: Have a primary local church service that trumps most everything else. Meet on Sunday mornings, for example, and have a high bar of expectancy that your congregation will gather together. Also, have vision-driven, prayer-fueled meetings at other times of the week (Bible studies, youth meetings, small groups, etc.). However, they must be ready to flex—to give way to the demands of the greater regional focus. If a regional call is sounded, pastors will lead their congregations to that event.
Additionally, we as leaders must have open hands and release the people under our care into other churches and ministries. The regular schedule may include Sunday morning at your church, Sunday evening at a house of prayer, Monday evening at a church well known for it’s strengths in teaching, Tuesday evening in a Bible study at another ministry, etc. through the rest of the week. The 24/7 church will be 1.) regionally focused and 2.) include participation with multiple ministries and churches each week.
So, if there’s a Bible study on a Tuesday night, but a fire is lit in another part of the city, then cancel the Bible study and lead the people to the fire. If there’s a youth meeting on a Friday night, cancel that and head to the regional event that God is uniquely moving in.
Check out what Pastor Joe Sazyc wrote this morning:
Something hit me last night after the service… I could do this til Jesus comes! Yes, I the guy who didn't want nightly meetings in the beginning!
There is a hunger in this city! Word is spreading.
What if someone needs God on a Monday night? Do they need to wait for Sunday to have a touch of glory? And what if the glory doesn't “fall” that Sunday or NEVER falls in their church? I am being haunted by Brian's phrase a while back… “God doesn't just want you to have a house of prayer here, he wants you to have a house of GLORY!” All this is reminding me of a passion I have had for years, but all my busyness has stifled in recent months. I have always believed church should be 24/7! Even long before I knew about 24/7 prayer and before IHOP or anything like that existed! I've got to believe a major metro area like Detroit (especially one being marked by God for Awakening) can certainly sustain at least nightly meetings if not 24/7.
All that to say, I'm so hungry for this, I'm tempted to keep this thing going after the 21 days, even if no one were to go with me. It may not look exactly like what we have now, but SOMETHING that invites God's GLORY needs to continue nightly. The Fireplace cannot go out! I KNOW I cannot do it on my own, so I pray our team stays intact and even grows. I pray we begin to see an influx of crazy people who will staff this thing as musicians, ushers, tech people, etc… I think we need to AGGRESSIVELY pray for laborers (Matt. 9) and resources. What's encouraging is that I believe GOD wants this. We won't be bending a reluctant arm!
Do you want monthly outpouring meetings in Detroit? Response requested
If the response is HOT, pastors in Detroit are considering planning monthly outpouring meetings in Detroit.
**Send me a quick email at [email protected] (by 2pm today if at all possible!) if you are interested in participating in monthly events—I have a meeting with some pastors today from 3-5pm, and we’ll be discussing the level of interest, the prophecy behind it and the timing.
Everything that happened at the Fire in February conference is leading us to believe that God is preparing his church for a very unique and heavy manifestation of his presence in Detroit.
Here’s what we’re looking for:
- Pastors and leaders who will rally their churches and invest their time and resources into this movement
- Hungry people who will spread the word and participate at a high level as we pursue revival together
SHOULD THE CHURCH BE ALIVE?
This movement absolutely depends on the response of the church to be together on a city level. People can’t be alone, and churches can’t be alone.
I was watching the TV show I Shouldn’t Be Alive the other day, and a warning for the church jumped out at me.
The show is a dramatization of life and death situations—people lost at sea, climbers injured on Mt. Everest, etc.
This show was about a man who decided to go rafting alone in a remote part of the Grand Canyon. His raft was lost and he was alone, wet and freezing in the night air. He had a small fire that he was working hard to keep burning.
Then, the narrator said, “If he falls asleep, and the fire goes out, he will die.”
There it is.
Here’s the breakdown of this clear message to the church:
- We can’t be alone. Our individual church pursuits are important, but only as they fit into the larger city church mission. Instead of wondering how we can reach our local church goals, we must start asking the question, “What must I do to help fulfill the greater city-church mission.” The local congregations must gather together regularly with the greater city church in prayer and mission advance.
- We can’t fall asleep. To be asleep means that we are not alert, focused and engaged in what is most demanding. We seek comfort and relaxation ahead of advancing toward the fulfillment of the mission. It’s possible to be wide awake to finding friends, climbing the corporate ladder, being entertained and also to anxiety and fear and stress…while being numb and disengaged to prayer, ministry and mission.
- We can’t let the fire go out. Simply, we must be burning continually. We have to be people that pray in the Spirit, who know God deeply, who are wrecked, undone and full of the never ending burning of the Holy Spirit.
If we are alone, asleep and without the fire, we are near spiritual death. If we gather together continually, stay on task and are alert corporately and burn as a single unit, Detroit will encounter God in power.
This vision of monthly outpouring meetings, along with weekly prayer gatherings will ensure we’re not alone, we’re wide awake and the fire is hot and getting hotter.
**Please let me know if you are ready for a movement like this in Detroit.
I’m accessible. Here’s how you can contact me:
- Email: [email protected]
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/johnburton
- Twitter: www.twitter.com/johneburton
- Youtube: www.youtube.com/johnburtonministries
Two videos : A Casual Approach : Prophetic warning
Watch two brand new videos—theLab vision explained AND a teaching on prophetic warning and a casual response.
Amos 3: Will a trumpet sound and the people not be afraid?
Last night at Revival Church rocked us.
As a prophetic center of revival for the region, and as a ministry that has our finger on the prophetic pulse of the nation, God is starting to release key strategies to us.
Watch TWO VIDEOS that deal with this issue.
First, head on over to www.revivallab.com and check out the new video on the sidebar where I explain the critical prophetic mandate for the pastors, leaders and intercessors in Detroit to gather together every Friday at 10pm.
Then, watch the teaching on A Casual Approach to a prophetic warning from last night’s service.
You can watch that teaching at media.johnburton.net.
You can also subscribe to the RSS feed at http://media.johnburton.net/rss.
The teaching notes are also there for you to follow along with.
Becoming Unoffendable video : theLab Broadcast tonight
As predicted, last night’s message on Becoming Unoffendable had great impact!
You can watch that video, or listen to the audio right now at http://media.johnburton.net. You can also read along with the notes as I teach.
Also, TONIGHT at 8:30pm theLab Broadcast is on the air!
Simply head on over to http://media.johnburton.net/live right at 8:30pm, and that’s it! The video should be playing.
Spread the word about the gathering of 1000 intercessors in Detroit. We’re looking for 1000 people to travel with us each week as we pray in a different church every Friday night.
I’ll be talking about this and more TONIGHT on theLab Broadcast!
See you there, and be sure to check in and use the chat room!
Raising the Dead teaching video : Becoming Unoffendable : Noon prayer
Watch my latest teaching, Raising the Dead, at media.johnburton.net now! And, this Sunday, I’ll be teaching my most requested sermon, Becoming Unoffendable.
First—We have landed our next location for theLab this Friday at 10pm! Head on over to www.revivallab.com for info. ALSO, you can receive an alert on your cell phone each week. We’ll text you the location.
Simply text: follow revivalinfo to 40404.
The teaching Raising the Dead had quite an impact this past Sunday, and the altar time was wild. Prophecy was intense and people were lit up! See it all now at media.johnburton.net.
THIS SUNDAY at 6pm I’ll be teaching my most popular and most request sermon, Becoming Unoffendable. This message has the potential to literally and radically change the way you think about life, and to set you free!
NOON PRAYER
Every Monday, Wednesday and Saturday from NOON to 1PM we’re contending in unified prayer for revival in Detroit.
Join us at the International House of Prayer East Detroit for this important hour of prophetic intercession as we encounter God, pray with passion and enjoy the rapid advance of the vision.
Seeking early adopters : Breaking away from the marginal Christian experience
The call at Revival Church : Three burning focuses will help rip the Christian church out of a marginal, stale state into a tremble that never ends.
I’m waiting.
I’m looking.
The strategy of God in this nation requires people who refuse to live according to a skewed Christian experience that has suffocated the church into a near flat line.
As a leader with a humanly impossible mission to call together people who will form their entire lives around the prayer room and the activity of the Holy Spirit, I find myself waiting and looking as I sound the alarm for the willing ones to move into position.
A radical response will result in a nuclear explosion of shock and awe that the nations of the Earth will witness—and then tremble.
My current city of Detroit must wake up. The church must destroy the habit of a casual response to a terrifyingly urgent call to repent, to respond immediately and to follow the feverish pace of the Holy Spirit toward revival.
During a prayer & whiteboard session on Monday, God refined the burning focus of the Detroit mission. We are intent on calling people together to participate in the mission at Revival Church… and the call is unapologetically and necessarily extreme:
REVIVAL CULTURE
The focus every day at Revival Church is to develop a culture of revival. The presence of God simply must press against us at every turn. It’s hard to believe that church services actually are allowed to continue without it! How can we teach and worship without the fire of God burning in our midst?
This culture is impartation and refreshing driven—meaning, God desires to impact, heal, deliver and pull destinies out of every one of us. Additionally, this focus results in communities of fiery love. People who are intentionally committed to one another… people who become family…who go deep in relationship and Holy Spirit fueled love.
Also, a key focus of this ministry is taking the fire of revival to the cities of the Earth. (If you are ready to book me, go to www.johnburton.net/booking) Teams of revivalists will be moving out with me as I minister in churches, at conferences and other events. We desire to train and coach others into a vibrant culture of wild revival.
REVOLUTION MANDATE
The second strategy of our ministry is all about reformation. Revolution.
Understand, the Sunday style of ministry must end. The 24/7 church must emerge. Now.
People who are used to living their lives throughout the week and attending church for a couple of hours on a Sunday morning must brace for an abrupt shock to their systems. A Kingdom perspective is being imparted into the forerunners who will be leading the church into it’s new reality.
Today, the church tends to be focused on feeding people… tomorrow the focus is for the people to feed God. To minister to him. To pray.
Today, the church gathers together, on average, 2-4 times a month. Tomorrow, people will be together several days a week.
Today, people tend to seek out teaching. Tomorrow, they will receive equipping and instruction with an expectation of response…ministry…action.
There are a lot of changes coming, and the call is now for the early adopters to respond and change their lives unlike few are willing to. At Revival Church, we are setting up shop to appeal to these early adopters.
REVELATION DRIVEN
The entire church and Christian experience must be driven by the voice, activity and revelation of God himself.
It must become normal for every Believer to be a person of extreme, zealous and fiery prayer as their primary activity in life. The church must embrace this primary mandate. Revival Church certainly does.
As prayer becomes the primary reason we gather together in the church, and the number one activity of our lives, we’ll hear God’s instructions clearly and continually.
Revival Church is called to be a prophetic revival center for the region. We must hear God. We must have people in our midst who are zealously on their face in night and day prayer. This is non-negotiable.
I’ll say it very clearly. If Detroit is to experience Kingdom normalcy… a revival culture… drastic and momentous change must come now.
Are you hungry enough for such a drastic interruption in your life? Are you willing? OK, let’s go. It’s time.
THE REVIVAL CHURCH CALL
So, what’s the minimum call for this new-form mission at Revival Church?
- Be early for prayer every Sunday at 5pm
- Make it extremely rare to miss a Sunday evening service.
- Nurture a life of radical prayer, study in the Word and pursuit of God’s presence.
- Participate in theLab, our weekly 8:30pm Monday radio show at www.detroitrevivalchurch.com/thelab.
- Participate in all, or as many as possible, of our weekly prayer meetings at IHOPE. We pray at noon every Monday, Wednesday and Saturday. www.ihopedetroit.org
- Be extravagant tithers and givers
- Be an extreme communicator—participate in theLab, email us about what God’s revealing to you regarding the mission, be in contact with leadership and share your heart as often each week as you can.
- In order to understand the Revival Church vision, read John’s books, starting with 20 Elements of Revival (www.detroitrevivalchurch.com/resources)
The 24/7 church is emerging, and we’ll soon find ourselves in corporate ministry together at least 20 hours a week on the low end… and this transitional call of less than 8-10 hours a week will help ease our way into that new structure.
I’d love to hear from you! Are you ready to join the wild Revival Church family of revivalists? Contact me directly at [email protected].
Important video : New Revival Church prayer : wrecked by a mandate
I’m wrecked by the mandate of revival in Detroit and in the cities of the Earth.
First, the magnitude of the mission we’ve been called to steward is EXTREME. It requires a massive prayer effort…and that’s just to get us started on the journey.
Until further notice, starting Monday, December 27th, I’ll be at IHOPE-Detroit praying on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday from noon-1pm. Let’s see an army of intercessors and revivalists pray together several times a week as we prepare for the coming outpouring.
Speaking of the magnitude of the call, here’s what’s wrecking me and what’s burning within:
- 1000 Intercessors: In early 2010 God gave me a clear mandate to cast the vision for 1000 intercessors to intentionally and regularly gather, pray, stir the prophetic and release the plans of God into the region. I’m wrecked because of the weight of this call, and because the challenge to see even 10 or 100 people commit to this type of high level assignment is severe. CHUCK PIERCE and CINDY JACOBS sounded the alarm for 10,000 intercessors in each state this past summer. I don’t think it’s a coincidence. Detroit must see these intercessors who are revival minded step into place! So goes Detroit, so goes the world. Right now, the call is simple. We need 1000 intercessors to be on the weekly radio show theLab, every Monday at 8:30pm. That’s it. The place: www.detroitrevivalchurch.com/thelab.
- Reformation: A primary call of our mandate in Michigan is to call the church into a great reformation. The resistance to such a massive cultural change is absolutely insane. The enemy has done a phenomenal job of bewitching so many in the church, and the church and the body is deeply wounded because of it. You can watch a video that I just recorded about this bizarre resistance to commitment and mission in the church here. I’m wrecked because the call is so demanding but the response is so apathetic. I think of forerunner ministries like IHOPE-Detroit who are one of the few who are carrying the call of night and day intercession… and they are led by some of the most wholehearted and precious people I know. Yet, the call for financial support of their critical ministry is met mostly with silence. Reformation is needed. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again… the churches must be full of laborers. We are to pray for the laborers to move into position… the harvest is greater than the manpower available to handle it… and that’s an issue!
Leave your comments and let me know what you think. Are you ready to press toward revival with us? Let’s go!