“…there shall be showers of blessing.” Ezekiel 34:26b

“There shall be showers of blessing,
Precious reviving again;
Over the hills and the valleys,
Sound of abundance of rain.”

I would like to share a portion of an account of a revival that took place 381 years ago. It is from an article from John R. deWitt {see link below} – Brother Shawn

“A remarkable illustration of this is what took place on June 21, 1630, in the little village of Shotts, on the road between Edinburgh and Glasgow, Scotland. This day has not been forgotten by those who still love truth and long for the revival of God’s work in Scotland. It was the communion season, and several notable ministers had been gathered together for the preliminary services and the administration of the Lord’s Supper on June 20. It was decided that the communion season should be lengthened by an additional day and that a young man named John Livingston should be asked to preach on that occasion. He had great fear and trepidation at the thought of doing that. He was inexperienced, and there were others present who had already been much used in the quickening of the church. Livingston turned to God in prayer. He sought a place of solitude apart from the thousands of people there present and poured out his heart to God. He asked God for power and for a text which would be useful in extending Christ’s kingdom.

At mid-morning Livingston preached on Ezekiel 36:25-26: “Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you. A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.”

Livingston expounded that text for an hour and a half, and the people hung on every word. There was an evident movement of the Holy Spirit across the face of that great congregation. Toward the end of his exposition rain began to fall, but people were crying out from the depths of their being, and Livingston was led to speak for an additional hour, addressing himself particularly to the unconverted. God came down, and the preaching was so majestic, so glorious-God was so manifestly present in the midst of His people-that on every side men and women both of high station and low were crying, “Sir, what must I do to be saved?” More than 500 were converted. {emphasis mine}

So much did that 21st day of June become a part of the spiritual history of Scotland that for centuries afterward, when the communion season came to be held, there was on the Monday following, a service of praise and thanksgiving. In revival, preaching comes alive in an intensification of its fundamental character.”

From the article, Preaching the Means Of Revival by John R. deWitt

Audio sermon by John R. deWitt,  The Importance of Doctrine in Revivals