In the past week, I’ve received emails from several evangelical organisations, whose leaders I know and respect, calling for a day of prayer in September and a march of witness on the anniversary of the Abortion Act in October.

All my life I’ve been a man of action and I’ve responded eagerly to any opportunity for making my witness in public. As a student I used to stand up and preach the gospel in the Market Square in the centre of Nottingham, and when I was pastoring a church in London for many years, I used to speak on Tower Hill on Wednesday lunchtimes. I used to say some outrageous things to get the first hecklers because I knew we would quickly gather a crowd – and then I could start declaring the gospel.

I’ve always wanted to get into the action, but, strangely enough, I have no witness in my spirit for a day of prayer or a march of witness against abortion – I am really surprised at myself. So the following is a bit of self-examination, which might be helpful to others – and if it’s not, I won’t be offended – simply bin it! It may even be that it’s right for others to take part, but not for me.

A message of warning

For 40 years, I have tramped around towns and cities across Britain and in many other countries around the world carrying a warning message from God of a great catastrophe that is coming upon the nations. It is spoken about many times in the Bible in such places as Isaiah 24, Jeremiah 25, Joel 3, Haggai 2 and Zechariah 14 – and that’s just the Old Testament passages.

For 40 years, I have tramped around towns and cities across Britain and in many other countries around the world carrying a warning message from God of a great catastrophe that is coming upon the nations.

There are plenty of similar warnings in the New Testament, including strong words from Jesus of judgement coming upon the nations; and in Hebrews 12 – one of the last books to be written in the Bible – it repeats the prophecy of Haggai, linking it with the times leading up to the second coming of Jesus. Of that day God says, “Once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens. The words ‘once more’ indicate the removing of what can be shaken – that is, created things – so that what cannot be shaken may remain” (Heb 12:26).

Events unfolding

Then in 1986, at a gathering of international ministry leaders seeking the word of God for today, we were clearly told that the prophecy from Haggai and Hebrews of God shaking all nations would come true in the near future. As so often happened in biblical times, judgement begins with a plague such as we have seen engulfing all nations since Covid 19 struck. Now Eastern Europe has been plunged into war with thousands of Russians and Ukrainians dying needlessly in a pointless conflict, driven by a megalomaniac who has even more fearful weapons in his armoury which, if he does not get his own way, he is liable to loose upon his neighbour. This has the potential to escalate and bring untold destruction upon the world of the type foreseen in Isaiah 24 where the foundations of the earth are shaken, and the earth is split asunder.

Plague and war are two of the weapons of God for bringing judgement upon the nations. The third weapon in God’s armoury is famine, and if we are rightly reading the signs of the times famine is likely to come upon many nations in the near future –indeed has already begun – and in times of shortage greedy men fight for scarce commodities. So conflict is likely to increase, and many nations will see the breakdown of law and order.

Unheeded calls for repentance

This is what we are likely to see in Britain in the coming months, with the rail strike triggering the first wave of unrest that is likely to spread rapidly across the nation as prices increase and shortages drive people to display their anger in the streets. But it is scenes like this that we have been prophesying in Prophecy Today since 1986. All the warnings that have been given have been accompanied by calls for repentance and change – but they have never been heeded. We are a nation that has turned its back upon truth and has refused to hear or heed the warnings that God, in his love and mercy, has sent to us. Now the inevitable results of our own waywardness are coming upon us.

Now the inevitable results of our own waywardness are coming upon us.

As far back as 1980 I was told that these times were coming and that the turmoil would increase until as a nation we reach the point of despair and begin crying out to God. At that time – like the father responding to the prodigal son in the parable of Jesus – the father will respond to cries for help by using his people – the Bible-believing remnant – to bring the word of the Lord to the nation so that there will be repentance and turning. This would be the dawn of a new day which is the hope that I have held for many years.

It is God shaking the nations

This is the reason why I have no leap of faith within me to join in a day of prayer or a march of faith: because I believe that it is GOD who is shaking the nations! I cannot cry out to the Lord to stop the shaking any more than I can cry “Peace, Peace”, when the Lord is saying, “There is no peace!” (Jer 6:14). I can only ask the Lord to fulfil his purposes in shaking the nation, and in a time of judgement to show mercy to those who call upon his Name.

I can only ask the Lord to fulfil his purposes in shaking the nation, and in a time of judgement to show mercy to those who call upon his Name.

It may be that I will join my brothers and sisters in a day of prayer to show love and unity with them – but I will not be asking God to stop the shaking of the nation because I would be afraid of putting myself against God (Jer 7:16). I could only ask him to fulfil his purposes; and to show mercy in the midst of judgement – judgement that I know to be fully justified.