Zechariah 10:1 Ask the LORD for rain in the springtime;
it is the LORD who makes the storm clouds.
He gives showers of rain to men,
and plants of the field to everyone.

The context of this verse is that Baal was considered the “storm god,” so it was significant that the people were being told to ask Yahweh, not Baal, for rain. It might seem very removed from modern society, but today we could rephrase it as, “Ask God, not the government, for what you need.” We aren’t the agrarian culture that prevailed for most of the world’s history until the Industrial Revolution, but farmers today would be quick to agree that everything starts with rain. Various governments are still trying to control the weather, but the results have been sporadic at best, and they don’t take into account the interlocking influence they would have on the rest of the world if they were to succeed! This verse speaks of “the latter rain,” (the NIV says “spring rain,”) and as such has been dearly loved by revivalists. There was even a move of God around the middle of the 20th Century that started in Canada that was called the Latter Rain Movement. Asking God to pour out His Spirit is certainly not a bad thing, even if using this verse as justification is a bit shaky! The biggest “takeaway” from this verse is that God is the source of everything we need, and we must not fix our hearts on anything less.

Over 30 years ago I was blessed by some people who had been involved in the Latter Rain Movement, but the impression that has stayed with me is that it is futile to try to recreate a particular move of God. I’ve also been involved with people from what has been called the Brownsville Revival, from Pensacola, Florida, and I would say the same about that. God desires a Bride for His Son (Revelation 21:2, Ephesians 5:25-27) that is committed to Him in purity and passion, so it is never wrong to pray for cleansing and energizing of the Church. However, when we have fixed ideas of what that is going to look like, we tend to miss God. The “Jesus Movement” of the second half of the 20th Century is a case in point. Lots of churches missed God completely because He showed up in long hair and sandals. I am not to dictate to God how He is to move, in Japan, in this city, and in this church. Rather, I am to press in to Him personally, setting aside other priorities and repenting of my lukewarmness, and calling others to do the same, so that He may pour out what He knows we need, for the sake of His kingdom and His righteousness.

Father, thank You for how You have been calling me to greater dedication and closer fellowship recently. Help me respond indeed. I recognize more and more how shallow I have been, and I desire to go deep with You. Help me order my days, each day, by Your priorities, resting, relaxing, and rejoicing in You, rather than seeking my refreshment from the world. May I be Your agent on every level at all times, and not just occasionally, so that Your purposes may be accomplished on Your schedule in and through me, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!