When the Lord asked Ezekiel, “Son of man, can these bones live?”, his reply was, “O Lord GOD, You know.” I'm sure you're familiar with this powerful vision that Ezekiel received from the Lord in chapter 37. These words came to me this morning as I was praying by the chapel. And as surely as Ezekiel saw those dry bones come to life, we know the eternal hope we have in Christ is rock solid truth. Through Jesus' sacrifice the countless believers throughout the ages will live forever with Him after the resurrection.

These gravestones are a reminder of this wonderful and Living Hope we have. And just as amazing as this reality is, so is the seemingly overwhelming objective of our intercessory prayer here for revival. God's words in Joel 2:28, “ And it shall come to pass afterward That I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh;" speak life into a dry and barren land, and fuel us onwards in the strength of His many awesome promises.

A few months after I originally received the call to come and pray in Wales in the spring of 2002, I returned by myself to pray here at the chapel and seek more confirmation. I spent considerable time then praying both inside and outside. One day I was praying out in the cemetery, and went over to a large gravestone that had lots of writing on it, and it was in English!

I tried hard to see the letters but could only make out enough to see that they were scriptures. I struggled to read them because they had weathered so much since the mid 1800’s. While I was trying to piece the legible words together, suddenly the sunlight fell across them from behind a cloud and filled each letter with shadow, and I could suddenly read them quite clearly!

These are the verses that were revealed:
“Because He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained. He has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead.” Acts 17:31
“Behold this day I am going the way of all the earth.” Joshua 23:14

“And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, so that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life.” John 3:14-15

These scriptures contain the message of the gospel in succinct clarity, and just tell it like it is. I've come to call this message the "Tombstone Sermon". I expect this will be a central component of revival preaching when the time comes. And it is coming! Our prayer is, “Lord may You quicken Your words to your people in this very way with the light of Your countenance!"

On another note, please continue your prayers for Gladys' health. We have decided to postpone our trip to the U.S. until the spring, and are trusting the Lord for her total recovery of strength and vitality. Thankfully her symptoms are gradually improving, but a diagnosis of any treatable disease still remains to be found, and tests are ongoing. A heartfelt thanks for your prayers and notes of encouragement!

Love and blessings to all, and may your Thanksgiving be filled with God's love and presence,

Dick & Gladys

The last six days have been a flurry of activity accompanied by much joy and fellowship. We had three guests at first and even five one night, and we were delighted to see the rooms of our home filled with people! We were able to furnish our second guest room just in time, and "Hen Ffynnon", the Welsh name of our house meaning Ancient Well, was overflowing with people whose hearts long to see the earth filled with the glory of the Lord.

It was a special blessing to see how the Lord brought people together from different places. The three men that came from the U.S. and Canada en route to the conference in Scotland shared in some of the local churches in the area. And besides them, for the "revival tour" that I mentioned last week, some other friends of ours "happened" to show up at just the right time. Our friend Pastor Steve Evans by a "chance encounter" also brought along another two people, and so we were a good sized group.

To the left is the chapel at New Quay where young Florie Evans cried out, "I love the Lord Jesus with all my heart", in a young people's meeting in early 1904 led by Seth Joshua. Many hearts were touched and confronted by the presence of the Lord and this was the early beginning of what become the great Welsh Revival of 1904-05.

Another highlight of our trip was a visit to the chapel in Llangeitho, where there were several periods of revival during the 1700's. Daniel Rowland was one of the men that God used in an extraordinary way to bring thousands upon thousands of souls into the Kingdom. As a result of Rowland's annointed preaching, one writer describes how on one occasion, "The whole chapel seemed as if it was filled with some supernatural element, and the whole assembly was seized with extraordinary emotions; hundreds of them, with tears streaming down their faces, some evidently from excess of sorrow, others from the overflowing of joy; some broken and contrite with penitence, and others rejoicing with the hope of glory." - Isn't that a wonderful description? Won't you join us in praying for this in our times?

Outside the chapel where Rowland preached is this statue to commemorate his life and ministry. I was particularly touched by a quote in Welsh inscribed on the monument. In English it says,

Oh Heaven, Heaven, Heaven!
All your lovely places would be
sadly empty unless Zion bear you
up children from here on the earth

This seemed to reflect what I shared last week about Jesus "bringing many sons to glory." Just being in a place where this longing of God's own heart was so fervently and effectively preached and so many souls were borne from earth to heaven was envigorating and challenging to us all.

We are so very blessed to be here in Wales for a time such as this. It is a great privilege for us to be connected to so many wonderful saints, and a joy to help make connections among others whose hearts beat with the same longing for an outpouring of grace and revival in this land and the nations of the world.

Thank you for your interest, your love and your prayers,

Dick & Gladys

This is just a brief update on some things that are going on recently. As you can see in the picture we have put our "prayer booth" up again for the coming winter. We are able to heat this small space when we're there and it makes a big difference from the forty something degrees inside the chapel!

I have started on Welsh classes again for the school year. It is a challenge and also makes me wonder if this dog is too old to learn new tricks. I just hope that it eventually will sink in and actually be of some use. Because everyone speaks English so well, it is very difficult to make much progress because efficient communication always seems to take precedence over practicing Welsh. Your prayers are appreciated in this respect.

This week we will be hosting some friends from America that will be participating in a Revival Conference in Scotland later this month. A local pastor friend offered to organize a tour of key revival spots in Cardiganshire - places you may have read about - Blaennanerch Chapel of Evan Roberts' fire baptism, the chapel in New Quay where the first evidence of revival started in early 1904, and other sites of important movings of God from the previous centuries as well. We are looking forward to what will surely be an educational and inspirational time for all involved!

Just a quick comment about the election results: a lot of people are happy about the result, and a lot of people are not. But one thing is clear - we need to pray seriously for President-Elect Obama and the U.S.A. I heard him profess his faith on a recording of the Saddleback Church Forum, and heard him quote Micah 6:8, "He has shown you, O man, what is good; And what does the LORD require of you But to do justly, To love mercy, And to walk humbly with your God?" So I think that is a good prayer to say for him. And we should pray that as the weight of the responsibility mounts on him, that he be inexhorably drawn to the Word of God for counsel. As as Paul prays at the end of Galations, may the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with his spirit.

Thank you very much for your continued prayers for Gladys. Although we still have no answers from the medical practicioners here, she is beginning to show signs of improvement. There are still days when she is experiencing tiredness and other things, but some of the uncomfortable symptoms are not as frequent or long lasting, so that is good news, and raises hopes of our being able to travel in early December to visit family over the Christmas holidays. We are really looking forward to seeing our children and friends, so please do keep your prayers going heavenward.

Yesterday morning in the chapel the Lord showed the beauty and power of this scripture in Hebrews 2:9-10, "But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, for the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone. For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings." It struck home to me that this is the essence of our cry for revival in the nations, that our heavenly father indeed bring many sons (and daughters) to glory!

Our strength is renewed in His love,

Dick & Gladys

When I got in my car this morning to go up to the chapel, this is the view that greeted me from the inside. These beautiful designs were formed by the first freeze of approaching winter, and look like they could have been made by angels' wings brushing their feathers a little too close in the early hours of the dawn.

I was reminded of the verse in 1 Corinthians 13:12 that says, "For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known." Of course I know that these dark forms are the banks and trees of our driveway. However I saw this as a picture in relation to the purpose and goal of our prayers here. We have a sense of things to come, but any details are still beyond our view. Like in this photo, the lower segment is too dark to make out anything. And so it is also many times in the earthly and practical level.

But when we lift our eyes higher to "look towards Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith," we do see the beauty of the Lord's workings around us - in our relationships with other saints, in a growing openness and hunger among church leaders for more of God's agenda, and many other ways as well.

Unlike in the car where I could clear the windshield and get moving, we can't hasten the Lord's timing and see around the next corner. But with patience and persistence we will see clearly when the time comes. We know that He will complete the work that He has started, and will fulfill the plans for which He brought us this far. We are always encouraged by His goodness, and so very thankful that His tender mercies are new every morning!

In His wonderful care,

Once again the fields are plowed and made ready to plant winter wheat. And in like manner we continue planting through prayer and look to God with joy for the coming harvest. Speaking of which, we recently joined a small choir at one of the local fellowships and Saturday night sang at Mt. Zion's Harvest Thanksgiving Dinner near Cardigan. One of the songs we sang was "Restore, O Lord" by Graham Kendrick, which we have been practicing during the past month.

I had never heard this powerful song before, and have been deeply touched by the lyrics. The words express some of the many aspects of our prayers, and the longing that the Lord has put in our hearts for this land. So I've been actually praying through the words lately in the chapel, and found it to be a wonderful platform for our intercession here. So I am including the lyrics as an encouragement and stimulus for your own prayers.

Restore, O Lord
The honour of Your name
In works of sovereign power
Come shake the earth again
That men may see
And come with reverent fear
To the living God
Whose kingdom shall outlast the years

Restore, O Lord
In all the earth Your fame
And in our time revive
The church that bears Your name
And in Your anger
Lord, remember mercy
O living God
Whose mercy shall outlast the years

Bend us, O Lord
Where we are hard and cold
In Your refiner's fire
Come purify the gold
Though suffering comes
And evil crouches near
Still our living God
Is reigning, He is reigning here

We know that He is indeed reigning here, and we see the evidence gradually mounting of His moving throughout the land. As we get to know and share with more and more people we discover collectively there is a definite stirring and working of the Holy Spirit on individual hearts and lives. Yesterday we enjoyed a visit from our friends Qday and Bridget with their son Noah, whom we have known for a couple of years. I took them to see the chapel and we spent some time worshiping and praying.

At the end of our time there Qday told me he had seen in the spirit that there was a crack that had formed in the wall, and that water was beginning to seep through it, and there was evidence that the crack was growing as well as the amount of water coming inside. It was apparent that this was Living Water gradually making its way into the structure of the chapel!

Of course we were overjoyed to hear this, and know things are moving forward in God's perfect timing. I did, however, think within myself momentarily, "Are we going to be ready when God's Spirit comes pouring out in sovereign power?" And I take this not only as significant for our particular situation in the chapel and this area, but in the greater Body throughout Wales and beyond.

As I write this, I remember late last week I had a dream that we were in an old building with many people sharing supper around tables, and suddenly the presence of the Lord began to move on a few people at one table. And I found myself in the dream asking the same question about if we were ready, if this was really the time?

So we are constantly encouraged and challenged by these things, and are looking forward with great hope and anticipation of what God has in store for those of us that love Him, and the countless thousands that will learn to love Him in the times ahead. As we all press on in the pathway where the Lord has each of us strategically placed, remember the words of Paul in 1 Corinthians 15:58, "Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord."

Keeping our hands on the plow and our eyes on Jesus,

Dick & Gladys

We just got home from the barium x-ray exam and they could see NOTHING ABNORMAL in Gladys's colon and abdominal area, so we bless the Lord for that!

They will do a detailed study of the x-rays, and then figure out what step to take next as far as trying to find the cause of her difficulties. But for the moment we can lay to rest any momentary concerns about any potentially serious problem.

We appreciate your continued prayers, and will let you know what progress is made. Meanwhile, we're believing the Lord for her to be totally restored to great health in short order!

With love and thanks,

Dick & Gladys

This is the last cucumber of the year from our greenhouse, unless "global warming" really kicks into high gear! I've been cutting a bit of firewood on dry days, and the smell of autumn is in the air. Tomorrow is the Harvest Thanksgiving service in the chapel and the pastor has asked me to do the opening prayer and read Psalm 100 which I consider an honor. I'm wondering if I dare try it in Welsh!

We have a special request for prayer concerning Gladys' health situation. In early August we had asked you to pray for a few incidents of shortness of breath. Well, that has mostly disappeared, thank God, but at the same time she was dealing with a stomach virus which still has not cleared up. After a round of antibiotics, she continued with difficulties, and the problem seems to have centered mostly in her colon.

She saw a specialist a few weeks ago and on examination he couldn't see anything noticeably wrong, and has scheduled her for a barium X-ray examination of the digestive tract this coming Tuesday. We hope they find nothing wrong of course, but also think it would be a blessing if they found a situation that can be easily remedied, and at the same time eliminate the possiblity of anything "sinister" as the doctor here mentioned. She has also lost enough weight to make her clothes be very loose. She has been going through pain and bloating for over two months now, and at times loses sleep because of it. And the resulting tiredness has been giving her a bit of dizziness recently now also. Lying in bed at night awake, her mind is having to deal with questions and doubts. We are planning to travel to the States to see our children in December, and she wonders if she'll be able to travel at all. So it really has been very difficult for her, and we would highly value your earnest prayers on her behalf.

We know that while there is breath, there is hope, and so are learning to trust the Lord through these times of physical adversity. Seven or eight years ago Gladys struggled with hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) and at times it was very severe and debilitating. And then without any particular "event", God touched her and healed her completely! And so by the time we got the call to come to Wales, that old condition never even came to mind!

So we know, and Gladys knows first-hand, that God can and does heal. But when and how is still the mystery. But it seems that since our trip to Crete in May, she has been hit with one thing after another, and we are both learning to be strengthened by it rather than getting worn down.

Romans 5 says, "3 And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; 4 and perseverance, character; and character, hope. 5 Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us."

And with our friend Tony's recent healing from cancer, we are indeed hopeful, and praying and trusting Him for grace and health and strength for Gladys. We deeply appreciate your support and prayers for her during this time, and will keep you abreast of the situation.

So glad our hope is in Him,

Dick & Gladys