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Word for 2021

Introduction

 

This is a ‘year of uncertainty’, where at times we will feel unsettled and unclear. It is not a predictable year. Don’t assume you know what God wants you to do but yield your agendas to Him and ask Him questions. The Lord says, ‘I invite you into what I am doing – stop inviting me into what you are doing.  Maturity will come out of this great shaking.

Those who are on the Lord’s side must stand strong amid this increasing uncertainty, fear, and confusion. Choose in your heart whose voice will you listen to; cry and shout forth that, ‘the joy of the Lord is our strength’ (Nehemiah 8:10). We are in days of great warfare to build the Kingdom of God versus the kingdom and structure of man. The mature children of God (Romans 8:19) are starting to move with a governmental authority that will shift what influences the whole earth as we rule from above, seated in Heavenly places, knowing who we are. We are awakening to who we are, the knowledge and experience of the glory of the Lord is beginning to cover the earth (Habakkuk 2:14).

2020 was the beginning of great transformation on a global sphere and the beginning of a three-year process of total systemic reform. What we experienced in 2020 has been the precursor to the shaking itself, where the financial and psychological impact will be much more severe than the pandemic itself. But this opens massive evangelistic doors for those who see the harvest.

Church, be prepared, for this is a year of gathering the harvest (Isaiah 60:2). We will see greater conversions, especially within the Islamic community worldwide, as well as greater penetration among communities resistant to Christianity.

Crisis has been the provocation for the harvest, and many are running to Jesus. Watch as Christianity jumps percentage-wise as the world’s dominant belief system. These figures will shock social commentators, but remember that we are watching the knowledge of the glory of God rising to cover the earth (Hab. 2:14).

 

Part One – Words to the Church

The Church – The Year of Disruption of Structure

We are experiencing a global shift. 2020 was the year of ‘disruption of activity’; 2021 is the year of ‘disruption of structure.’ This disruption will not be fully resolved this year. The Lord has released a ‘divine dichotomy’, both destruction and creation, as we transition through a dismantling into complete structural change.

We have called what is merely ‘fresh’, ‘new’ but the destruction that crisis ushers in shall become the pathway for the full weight of the true newness (not just ‘upgrades’ or ‘refreshes’) of God’s creative force to move throughout the earth. Watch for the patterns of destruction and creation, of falling and rising. Just as the earth was formless and void before God created new life, so the Lord says, ‘I have allowed a formlessness to come to the earth before a new form comes.’

We are in days of great warfare to build the Kingdom of God versus the kingdom and structure of man. The deconstruction/construction is happening in the church. First comes deconstruction (Ezekiel 10:18): The Lord is making redundant whole church structures, entire frameworks that have been scaffolding around us. Even some traditions, institutions and great leaders have been marked for the ‘archive’. As a result, expect disruption to the structure of the Church of England in the next two years.

People have learnt to service the organisation and have not allowed the organisation to serve the people and so the Lord is removing the machine of ministry and a seed of dissatisfaction is being planted in the hearts of believers. Do not be nostalgic for an era you no longer live in. There will be closures of churches that appear to be alive but are dead (Revelation 3:1). Many churches and ministries will be repurposed, some will need new vision and others will need to redefine their mission. Those who have been running on their own agendas and in the ‘same old, same old’ systems and protocols have an opportunity to graciously realign back to Father’s heart. Closures will make way for new birth and massive growth.

Some significant church buildings will literally burn, as a physical sign of what is happening in the spiritualaThis word was shared in November 2020, before the news of some significant church fires around the world.. Take these events as signs that the structural change has begun; though you mourn the loss of what is impermanent and physical, rejoice that what falls is the false kingdom of man.

Beware of church closures leaving rural areas of the British Isles without spiritual provision. Multi-stream church planting cooperatives must cover the gap. The sudden shock of realignment will bring about the correction of stiff necks. Listen for the sound of humility and yielded-ness. The message to church leaders is, ‘transform or get replaced’.

The Lord says, ‘I am breaking the wrong hold of the denominational spiritbThe denominational spirit is the marrying of the religious spirit of control and the political spirit that causes divisions, takes sides and starts fractures, schisms, and wars. off my people. It has hindered my people’s desperation for me and has stopped their hunger for my presence. It put in people a high value for defence, criticism, and limitation of others. It has capped church advancement and progress.’

The Church will do more with less because there are new strategies to found that will enhance gatherings.  We will see the digital campuses built online with the ability to reach and disciple many in a short time. New voices will emerge overnight with the rise of a church that utilises and inspires social media platforms. Online congregations should not be dismissed as a fad, even as the Lord is creating more synergy in his body, and a greater capacity for relationship.

Rest and Prioritise

Planning and prioritising from a place of rest will result in maturation. Take the time to learn what God is highlighting to you as important. Allow Him to redirect your paths and rectify your list of priorities (Isaiah 43:18). Be prepared to feel that your passion is gone for some things that you spent time building before; some things that tasted good will not anymore.

The Church – The Birth of a New Fear of the Lord

2020 was a year of labour which has continued into this year. The church has been pregnant for over a decade with what God wants to bring forth. She has at times been sick and tired, at other times she has glowed with fullness and at other times she has been fat and bloated. However, she is yet to give birth and in this time of labour, complications have arisen due to unbelief. How long this procedure lasts is entirely up to church and her willingness to align with the Spirit of Christ. But the promise is that He is bringing something forth that will bring change in the body for his glory. This will be characterised by the intensity of His presence, purity, and the fear of the LORD.

God is determined to see transformation in the church before we see it in the nations. It will be gracious, but it will not be gentle. It will be merciful, but it will be confrontational. The Lord says to the Church “when fear [of the Lord] returns, so shall glory.” Trembling will become the dominant manifestation in the church going forward as a sign of the fear of the Lord coming to the House of God (Isaiah 66:2). The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom (Psalm 111:10). Coming are the days when the wise church shall rise because she first fears first the LordcFOR PRAYER: Pray Psalm 34:11 for you and the church. Pray, ‘God restore to me trembling in your presence, trembling in your courts, your house. God, I need to see the bigness of who you are that I might understand that you’ve called me to tremble’..

In 2020 the church was reactionary but in 2021 the church will be in transformation. God is inviting the Church into a corporate renewal of her thinking. It is the year to restructure, re-evaluate and reframe. This is not the time to come on the back of someone else’s old idea. Copycat approaches to church will not work in 2021. You are not followers of ministry fashion but are fashioned in His image for His glory.  Don’t try to re-market or re-sell something that God has called, ‘no longer fit for purpose.’

There is space and light for new growth. Around the fringes of the church, new life is springing up. Look to the edges and the margins, this is where God is moving, and this growth will revitalise the church. The phrase ‘hard to reach’ is no longer legitimate language in the church, as we begin to see unprecedented growth around the margins of society.

There will be the dispersing of seeds of new organisations, businesses, new political parties and church movements and streams. There is coming a grass roots movement across this nation. Locally empowered mission movements, as small as twos and threes, will be releasing fire and fervour. Expect powerful testimony and healing at a grass roots level. Local breakouts of miracles will bring sobriety, upheaval, as well as joy. In the new church wineskins, success will be measured by levels of mobilisation – those sent, not those gathered.

The Church – Worship and The Performance Spirit

God is clearing the entertainment culture that has ruled in the church. He says: ‘You have been entertained by my Spirit rather than hosting me. Entertained by my presence rather than being transformed by me. Entertained by worship rather than engaged in me. Entertained by preaching rather than learning from me.

The Lord says to us: ‘You continue to say, “the show must go on”, but I say, “the show has been cancelled”.  Therefore, those ministries and platforms that we used to look to in the last season are being and will be pruned to prevent the church making idols out of man.

Jesus is cleaning away the things that we, the church, think make us look good. The Father is looking for those who worship him in spirit and in truth (John 4). The Lord is wiping away from His bride all the caked makeup that in her immaturity she had put on. The makeup is the spirit of performance: the desire for platform and for status. When our chief concern is how something looks/sounds to man, or our goals become Likes/Views, then we prostrate ourselves before a foreign altar.

God is restoring David’s fallen tent. Worship services will become unconventional and ‘unscripted’, as the Lord re-sensitises the church to Him. And, as He cleans the caked makeup from us, Jesus says to his bride, ‘Let me see your face, let me hear your voice, because your face is lovely, and your voice is sweet.’

There will be a new and unusual level of joy and dancing that comes into the church as walls fall and we stand amid what has been decimated. You will dance with delight during these uncertain times because you will see that it has been a righteous smashing of what has been. Just as in the days of Jericho, so today, God’s people will cheer in the toppling that will happen.

Praise and prayer will be given a much higher priority in the body because they lead to the presence. Not elevated at the expense of the word, but rather Our understanding of God’s word will be revolutionised and weaponised in His presence. Hunger for God’s word will become a characteristic of what happens next. The word of God will be woven into worship as our praise becomes more militant.

 

Part Two – Words to Leaders

Leaders – Transformation

The Lord is repositioning the stance of the church from defensive to offensive. God-fearing leaders will be fierce and flint-faced (Isaiah 50:7). Dynamic leadership must rise and challenge oppression with boldness. Ecclesia arise and be strong, as the rebuilder and reformer of nations, beginning with the rebuilding of the house of the Lord and the walls of the city.

God is calling up powerful, anointed leaders from the least and the last, from the rough and ready. People will marvel, like they did of Peter and John (Acts 4:13) at the wisdom and anointing of poor and uneducated men and women, who will be called into leadership, seemingly coming from nowhere, young, and fiery. Their passion for Jesus and their hunger for righteousness will be a challenge to the comfort of many in the church. They will face opposition, as many with religious spirits (who want to hold onto the old ways and wineskins) will resist them. But they will be vindicated by the Spirit of the Lord, who will use them to bring many to salvation in the UK and He will fill them with such a powerful anointing for miracles, signs and wonders and a desire for purity, that many will want to learn from them.

Leaders must move towards deep heart connection with one another, like David and his warriors (2 Samuel 23:14-16), otherwise, isolated ministries and leaders will perish. Even as David was able to unify the tribes and establish peace in the kingdom, church leaders must arise who will put aside age-old, denominational walls and quarrels. If there will be peace between ‘tribes’ then the Lord will command His blessing and the Church will become ‘impregnable’ because of her unity.

Work in relational networks with collaborative leadership approaches. By joining up and working collaboratively, the church will be better mobilised for mission. Increase and blessing comes through healthy relationships.

Apostles, push to build relationally – regionally, and nationally – intermixing across boundaries. Do not just stay in comfortable relationships but fight for those that challenge and sharpen you. Be strong together.

In the British Isles, apostles and prophets will come together in a beautiful, circular dance, moving in and out, like a living organism. The prophets will be a provocation, initiating the dance to begin. There is life to be found in the relationships between the prophets and apostles and discussions and conversations will take place across boundaries.

A new breed of leaders will bring unity by reaching and connecting younger generations who do not respond to the hierarchical power-plays of previous generations. They will honour their leaders and become new and loyal ‘mighty men’ of the Kingdom. They will do great exploits.

 

Part Three – Words to Prophets

Prophets – Come Up Here!

Prophets, I am propelling you forward with a force. You must rise up like Ezekiel! I am pulling you up by the hair, prophets, so that you are lifted up between heaven and earth (Ezekiel 8:3). Expect to be pulled up into more supernatural encounters in the Spirit realm – seeing what is happening in the realm of the spirit is essential for you.

Many in the church have become entangled with the strongholds of politics, religion, and pride. God will restore the sharp sight of His prophets. This may be a painful process if there is no willingness to repent, to be accountable and to allow God to reformat the prophetic movement. Sharpened prophets, full of God’s love, will pioneer and break open the way for the Church to flow in the right direction. They will be people of integrity, humility and righteousness who can be trusted.

God is forming a womb in the British Isles for a new breed of the prophetic known as, ‘Prophets on Their Knees’, pure prophets whose allegiance to the Kingdom of God alone. Such prophets will allow God to purge them from political bias, prejudice, and agendas. They will be undiluted voices who speak words of no compromise, no matter what it costs. Their lives will be laid down and their hearts surrendered entirely and in them there will be no division or mixture. They will speak and pure words will come that will resonate throughout the nations. Prophets need each other more than ever beforedpursue John 17:20- and should be a collective womb for birthing new beginnings, and new days.

A new prophetic culture with sure foundations of character will allow prophecy to flourish in uncertain times. Forget celebrating ‘celebrity’ voices and instead celebrate character as much as gifting in 2021. Prophets must be rooted in the word of God and kept buoyant by the Holy Spirit, not by political systems, popular opinions and vote-winning or like-winning statements.

There is a sound of war coming against the self-serving spirit of entitlement. A youth army is rising-up who will overthrow the self-promotion and self-aggrandisement that has become prevalent across culture and generations. This new breed will be robust and marked by hope and life. They will deny themselves and will raise a battle cry of love for others. This is not an egocentric generation, but they operate in ‘Holy Hushe‘Holy Hush’ – see 1 Kings 6:7- they build with the Spirit of the Fear of the Lord. They will only build in accordance with my Ephesians blueprints.

God is tying the prophet’s value to the Church to their effectiveness in the nations. It is therefore vital that prophets are builders in the house and if they are not building in the local church, they will lose their voice in the nations. Prophets will be at the heart of building the local church to transform the nations.

Refugee revivals are coming. The Lord is calling for prophets who will go to refugees and immigrants and He says, ‘Bring my house to their camp and welcome them in, as I have welcomed you in.’ Angels of Harvest have been dispatched on a mission to refugee camps and to borders. They are looking for brave prophets to partner with them to steward the harvest breaking out in these camps and prophets who are sent shall be voices from the margins for the margins. Do not look to church buildings for potential revival outbreaks – look to the places where the outsiders gather, look to the fringes of society and there my power shall be found and released.

 

Part Four – Words to the Nations

Shaking

“On your knees, oh nations of the earth.” The Lord says “do not be deceived. I am not looking for great nations. I am looking for weak and humble nations whose dependency is upon me. For in all the shaking my purpose is this – that on mass nations shall be brought to their knees and find a posture of weakness and humility that causes me to rise and take the reins once more. I am looking for nations that cry like Paul did – “when I am weak then I am strong” – for it is only in weakness that my strength is released.

We are seeing God’s justice amid the evil and ungodliness of our nations. Look around at how the Lord has allowed shakings and judgements to begin to form the optimum environments and atmospheres for humanity to wake up to the fact that, without Christ, we are already dead (Isaiah 26:9-10). God’s justice is pushing people towards Him. ‘Expect radical advancement of my Kingdom purposes in the nations of the earth’, says God. Nations shall be turned upside down and inside out. Sudden and severe earthquakes and eruptions — both spiritually and naturally — shall take place that will shake and shift the nations and bring many to their knees.

Racial Justice

‘I am not done executing racial justice in the nations’, says God. There are men and women of all races, ages and walks of life, who have been specifically anointed by the Lord to confront racial injustice within the church and in the culture. Though they will face insurmountable resistance, threats, hindrance, and rejection they will not be stopped. The very intensity of the opposition they will face in the church reveals the urgency, weight, and importance of their assignment.

Many have been shut down in the past because of this intense opposition, but the Lord is again stirring them up, awakening them with fire in their bones and they will not be able to resist speaking the words He will put in their mouths. They will remove the invisible line of separation between the black church, the white church, Asian church, and the Hispanic church. They will build a church-of-all-nations, tongues and tribes.

Dependent On God

The British Isles is walking into a continued period of God-ordained weakness. Weakness will not be a sign that the land is walking devoid of God but is rather walking toward God. This weakness shall be witnessed in continued financial uncertainty and a decision fatigue in political negotiations across the board that will cause certain processes to take longer than they ought to. Do not fear this! Nor resist these things as they occur. People of the British Isles, you must address your integrity and stop speaking deceitful and worthless words to one another (Psalm 12:1-2). Integrity, defined by honesty, truthfulness, fairness and having moral principles, will bring stability and clarity. Those who address their own in integrity, who review the words they speak in relation to the actions they take, will have the blessing and the favour of the Lord upon them.

Growing mistrust between the governments and nations will cause greater participation in revolts against social injustices. The faces of local high streets are being changed but more Kingdom-minded businesses will move into the high street.

There will be an increased favour on the church to provide solutions where the secular powers and authorities have run out of ideas. Projects will spring up, all over the British Isles, led by the church, which bring freedom, innovation, and creative solutions to social issues, as well as business initiatives that provide jobs and stability to local economies. Young leaders, future Daniels and Josephs are ready to come out to the light above ground. Pray for them, find them, nurture them, commission them, be ready for them. They have new ideas for wealth creation, technology, pharmacology, and engineering that will reduce dependence on the tertiary economy to provide new jobs.

Gold In Wales

There is gold to be found in Wales – both physically and spiritually. The physical manifestation of this will be the discovery of new and significant gold seams in Wales.fSince this word was first shared in November 2020 news reports have indicated a new discovery of gold in Wales.

A Creative Renaissance

Although the year ahead will be chaotic and turbulent there is a renaissance of creativity. Even those who were overlooked, undermined, and negatively judged will rise and break past the ‘I’m not good enough’ threshold into activation. They have the potential to birth ideas that can distinctively elevate and reposition the church to have a cutting edge. Wake up master craftsmen and tap into the creative realm of God – receive insight and revelation – and translate this into masterpieces. You will reshape culture, redefine excellence and beauty, and give us a vision of the future – even during chaos and disruption.

ABOUT THIS WORD

This word is a compiled, edited summary of prophetic words from twenty five BICP prophets, submitted and shared at a (virtual) gathering of the British Isles Council of Prophets at the end of November 2020. Please feel free to copy and share in an unaltered form. You can download a pdf copy here.

Please Note

As we know from reading Scripture, prophets receive, interpret, share and apply revelation from God in a myriad of different ways. No one prophet sees everything* and rarely will any two prophets sound completely alike. In collating and compiling this document we have striven to bring together a good representation of what the BICP prophets are seeing, feeling hearing, and communicating in this time.

Many hours of video and sixty pages of written submissions have been summarised in the paragraphs below. The word is, by its very nature, as short and concise as possible, so that it can be like a highly sharpened arrow. We have made every effort to retain the flavour and weight of what is being carried by this group of prophets and hope that, by the grace of the Holy Spirit, this document accurately represents a portion of the Father’s heart for these islands and beyond.

Nevertheless, we encourage the reader to seek out good prophets and prophetic ministries (in the UK, Ireland, Europe and around the globe) and to listen, study and weigh what they are saying as individuals and groups. The BICP is not the only prophetic grouping in the British Isles and we do not in any way seek to set ourselves up as the ‘elite’ or ‘the only voice’.

The word below has been carefully, prayerfully and thoroughly ‘weighed and tested’ (1 Corinthians 14:29) by the British Isles prophets and their advisors.

Finally, we believe that every one of you also is able to hear God for yourself too – if you need help with this, look up some of the prophets/ministries listed below. Many of them run training courses or schools in the prophetic.

* 1 Corinthians 13:9-10 For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears

About Predictive words

Not all prophecy is predictive (e.g. “a thing is going to happen”) but predictive prophecy is an important way that God communicates through His prophets. Predictive prophecy is conditional (unless quoting Scripture) and will usually read along the lines of, ‘if you do this… then this will happen…’ There are opportunities outlined in the prophetic word above that will only come to pass under certain conditions – for example, if one remains obedient. Similarly, a prophecy may take longer that a year to fulfil – and some may take many years to fulfil. Further, it is possible that prophetic warnings will have their desired effect (and we hope they do!), causing a person or nation to repent and turnaround. This may then mean that any consequences that had been warned will now not take place.

One of the most famous Biblical examples of this is in the book of Jonah. Jonah’s prophecy brought the city to repentance and God relented and spared the city. The glory of repentance trumps any desire that we as prophets might have to be proved ‘right’ by our words.

The Contributors

On 29-30 November 2020 many of the BICP met online to pray, prophesy, and share revelation with each other. Contributing to these meetings and this word were:
Emma Stark (BICP Core Leader), Simon Braker (BICP Core Leader), Rebecca King (BICP Core Leader), Louise Reid (BICP Core Leader), Adele Richards (BICP Core Leader), David Stark (BICP Core Leader), Simon Baddeley, Sarah-Jane Biggart, Mark Birch-Machin, Rebecca Briggs, Melanie Brooks, Hellie Brunt, Rob Cates, Dylis Chi, Claire Harrison, Preethy Kurian, Jennie Pitt, Moses Rankin, Sam Robertson, Phil Sanderson, Sue Sinclair, Veronika West, Sarah Wren, Liz Wright. The BICP Advisors are Julie Anderson, Tim Eldridge, Rachel Hickson, Canon John McGinley, Dr Sharon Stone. 

Notes & Prayer Points

Notes & Prayer Points
a This word was shared in November 2020, before the news of some significant church fires around the world.
b The denominational spirit is the marrying of the religious spirit of control and the political spirit that causes divisions, takes sides and starts fractures, schisms, and wars.
c FOR PRAYER: Pray Psalm 34:11 for you and the church. Pray, ‘God restore to me trembling in your presence, trembling in your courts, your house. God, I need to see the bigness of who you are that I might understand that you’ve called me to tremble’.
d pursue John 17:20-
e ‘Holy Hush’ – see 1 Kings 6:7
f Since this word was first shared in November 2020 news reports have indicated a new discovery of gold in Wales.