Asbury Revival Eyewitness: ‘The Lord was Present, Imparting Peace…’
In February 2023, a few students at Asbury College were so hungry for more of God that they lingered in worship for hours after their chapel service had concluded.
Leaders of the university discerned that this was not just an ordinary extended worship time. What started with around twenty students turned into over one hundred students by the end of the day and then over fifteen thousand visitors in one week. For more than two weeks there was round- the-clock worship, prayer, and pursuit of God.
There has arguably been an asinine amount of criticism sur- rounding the events that took place at Asbury. Every move of God has a certain amount of disapproval, but from my standpoint this particular outpouring had far less of the typical controversial manifestations and issues than past revivals or outpourings and still managed to have the same amount of criticism.
About three days into this outpouring, a few friends and I hopped in a car and took the trip up to Asbury. Let me start with a disclaimer that we were only there for a short period of time, although I have friends who are on staff or spent significantly more time there than I did. My friends and I were uncertain of what to expect because at the time there was not much information being shared about the specifics of what was happening inside the chapel. The building was almost to capacity, but it was before Asbury became a trending topic across social media platforms so it was easily possible to grab a seat in the early evening. Our hearts were hungry to see what God was doing in this precious moment. When we walked in the room, the first thing I noticed was the fact that there were at least forty young people on the stage appearing to be leading the room. There did not seem to be one “main” worship leader or speaker. As the evening continued on with the sweet Presence of Jesus tangible, I was shocked as I noticed what I could only consider a miracle. For hours upon hours, these young people stayed on the platform, engaged in worship, not checking their phones—that is a miracle if I have ever seen one!
As the evening turned into night, the majority of the people left as these hungry college students stayed. The older leaders went back to their homes, but these young people continued to press into worship throughout the night. Their sheer hunger for Jesus reminded me of Joshua, who would stay inside the tent, obsessed with the Presence of God, long after Moses returned to the camp (Exodus 33:11). Just like Bartimaeus, I saw a group of young people with a cry in their heart that said, “If Jesus is moving, then I will not let Him pass me by!” In response, I believe, Jesus stopped. His Presence came in waves day in and day out in the Asbury Chapel.
The night that our group was leaving Asbury, church vans from all over the country were showing up to little Wilmore, Kentucky, to get a taste of what God was doing there. The very night that we left, the leadership decided to open one of the other campus chapels to facilitate the masses that were gathering. There were so many people trying to get into the chapel that speakers were set up outside for those in line to listen in. At one point people were waiting up to eight hours hoping to get a seat inside. The hunger of those few Gen Z college students initiated a move of God that went on to touch the nations. Within one week, Asbury went viral.
For a generation that has been deemed as lost, there was an undeniable fervency to pursue Jesus. Multiple times throughout the outpouring, space was made for testimonies to be shared from the front. There were countless stories of young people who were convicted of their sin and gave their lives to Jesus; others who, once exposed to the Presence of God in that measure, chose to rededicate their lives to Him and fully surrender their lives. I can’t remember how many testimonies I heard of anxiety, depression, and even suicidal thoughts leaving. The fruit from the continual worship time was being seen.
This should not be shocking to us. The Presence of God transforms lives. Holy Spirit takes the broken, the sinful, the addicted, the jaded, and He forgives, heals, sanctifies, and revives. That is revival—hearts being revived to Jesus Christ. Much of the dis- agreement surrounding Asbury had to do with how much the Gospel was being preached (or the lack of it), if repentance was occurring, and essentially the glaring question, “If all they are doing is worshiping, is that enough to call it an outpouring?” I would first comment that the Gospel was being preached, people were repenting, and much more was happening every day in addition to hours upon hours of Christ-centric worship; however, in spite of that, are we going to argue with a generation of young people that their way of pursuing Christ in humble adoration is inadequate? I, for one, do not want to minimize God’s ability to transform a life in one instant in His Presence, just as He did Bartimaeus, just as He did me, just as He has done an innumerable number of times.
After things calmed down from the Asbury Outpouring, I reached out to Greg Haseloff, the university pastor and associate dean of spiritual life at Asbury College to gather more information from behind the scenes of what occurred at Asbury. Greg happened to be the pastor of the Wesley Foundation at Texas Tech University, which I attended while I was in university an unmentioned number of years ago. These are my questions and his responses with regard to Asbury and Gen Z.
1. Can you give us a short reflection on what occurred the first day that the Asbury Outpouring started?
On Wednesday, February 8, we were focusing on the third or fourth chapel in a series titled: “Love in Action.” The series was moving through Romans 12–14, and seeking to unfold an orthopraxis of “loving your neighbor as you love yourself.” Our Gospel choir was leading us in worship, and Zach was preaching on Romans 12:9— essentially laying out how we fall short of loving one another if it is not the love of God moving through us.
As chapel closed that morning, no students responded to an altar call. About thirty students remained after the vast majority went to class following chapel. The students lingered and continued to sing for another 20 to 30 minutes—sweetly being with Jesus and responding to the Holy Spirit. During that time about a dozen of them came to the altar and prayed. For those who were in the room, there began to be a sense that the Spirit of God was moving in a special way, that many would describe as the manifest presence of God—often described as “the cloud of God falling on us.” One student shared a testimony of hope. The Gospel choir responded to the movement of the Spirit and kept leading the praise. When classes dismissed before noon, a few more students trickled back into the room. After lunch another handful of students filtered in. Between 1 and 2 pm more students migrated back in to Hughes Auditorium, hearing from friends a description that Jesus was present, worship was continuing, and they were encountering the love of God in a special way—sweet, filled with peace, and authentic. By late in the afternoon and early evening, much of campus was aware that “chapel had continued.” This didn’t mean that all students came back to the auditorium. Some had responsibilities, others knew that for one reason or another they weren’t being drawn there. However, the movement of worship, the peace of Jesus’ presence, and the clear sense of the love of God being poured out confirmed that worship would continue.
2. What made you and the other leaders decide to let the students continue to stay in the chapel that day?
Our students experience Hughes Auditorium as a place of worship, not limited to morning chapels on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. When students are seeking God—whether singing in praise, or prayerfully at the altar—our chapel team, spiritual life team, faculty, and other leaders make room for how God is at work, for our students’ genuine seeking after the presence of God. While some students certainly had classes to attend, leaders would typically not interrupt the continuation of worship expressions. In the ethos of our community on campus, we seem to have an implicit trust between students and faculty/staff who discern and respect how God is at work. All those involved in the spiritual leadership of chapel were unified. The calling was to steward the presence of God and follow what the Spirit of God was orchestrating.
3. What are some of the attributes that you would consider unique to the Asbury outpouring?
The first and maybe most obvious would be the uniqueness of this move of God among college students. This outpouring of His Spirit has been upon Generation Z, which in American culture has been viewed as a generation of declining faith—the least amount of belief of any generation.
Second, the vibrancy of the worship. The joy that filled the worship and the peace that filled the room during more gentle times were both so authentic and rich that one can only imagine that joy and peace were “displacing depression and anxiety.” Joy and peace were being elevated in our worship, juxtaposed to the polarization being elevated in society. Jesus was moving toward our brokenness and fractures in the midst of a world that perpetuates the fractures. The Lord was present, imparting peace to a generation, and a world, that has struggled to know peace.
Third, a unique attribute was the “lack of production,” which was expressed as simplicity in the leading of worship. This included no words on the screens and no high-tech production of what was unfolding on stage. This attribute means very little in the history of awakenings and revivals, yet it is worth reflection in this cultural moment of the last fifty years. As production can garner too much attention in the church—and as cell phones sky- rocket our distraction thousands of times per day, 24/7—suddenly an old auditorium with stained-glass windows filled with desperate, hungry college students thirsting for righteousness captured our attention. Jesus actually captured our attention, and it seems this particular attribute eliminated peripherals that have often distracted us—in order that Jesus could more completely and fully receive our attention!
Fourth, worshipers coming for consecration. Encounters at the altar were marked by people’s desire for their lives to be fully consecrated. Being delivered from pornography addiction, alcohol, drugs, or other addictions came because people where thirsting for complete purity. The words over the altar are Holi- ness unto the Lord—and this was the hunger within the people at the outpouring. They came to have their lives consecrated and completely surrendered to the Spirit of God filling them with holy love.
A fifth attribute of this outpouring might relate to diversity—generational diversity, ethnic diversity, and international diversity. Attendees were of all ages. In the first week the worshipers created prayer huddles for the younger generation to pray over the older generation and for the older generation to pray blessing over the younger generation. The people gathered for worship were of many races, and the outpouring included many international attendees from every continent in the world. Flags from multiple continents were visible over and over again—in particular at two of the venues.
Last, the timing of the outpouring in the midst of a country experiencing deep polarization and a world that is roughly one year beyond the Covid-19 pandemic is interesting. The emotional healing, reconciliation, hope, and joy many received certainly qualifies as a unique attribute during the cultural climate of 2023.
4. In your opinion what made the Asbury outpouring go viral?
While none of us can answer this question with certainty, a couple of key factors might be at work. Followers of Jesus do trust He is Lord over all—for “from Him are all things, and to Him are all things”—so He can receive the glory from a viral movement. The world is looking for hope and desperate for an authentic move of God, which seems to play a role in how many had their attention captured by this work of God. Lastly, the simplicity that was visible appeared to validate the genuineness of God’s presence. For example, the worship was joy-filled and low-tech. The singing was so rich, boisterous, filled with celebration, and exalting of Jesus’ name. Often people would say, “I couldn’t leave because of the presence of Jesus and the singing.” The music had very little production and no lyrics were being projected. The bands were not leading times of worship that were highly produced. The absence of streaming worship and the simplicity of what was captured apparently played an intriguing role in the viral movement.
5. In your personal opinion, would you rather this time be called a revival, outpouring, or does it even matter?
There is a recognition of what unfolds in John 9 when the disciples asked, “Who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” Jesus responded that “This happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him.” Whatever the events of February might be called, we know that the works of God were displayed.
I have a preference of this particular move of God being called an outpouring. As we listened to how people were encountering this move of the Holy Spirit and how people experienced attributes of this awakening, we sensed it was an outpouring of God’s love, peace, and presence. The word revival is a word that is on equal footing with renewal and awakening—though the most accurate use of any of these words may await more time to discern the fruits of the movement. Revivals can be planned or spontaneous, and can take on a wide variety of expressions depending on the particular stream of Christian tradition. In order to move beyond some of these realities, we’ve most often described this special time an outpouring.
6. Why do you think God picked Asbury, or would you explain it in a different way?
The timing and place of God choosing to encamp and tabernacle comes with significant mystery. We do know that college students have been crying out for God to bring revival, renewal, and awakening on the college campus and to their generation. College students hungering and thirsting for righteousness, who were lingering and waiting for God, were the forerunners of this movement. We might ask the question with less emphasis on “where” and more emphasis on “who.” Who was it that was desperate for God to move and most desiring of His presence?
7. Would you say that this move was predominantly student-led?
Yes. Students were clearly at the forefront. They were the intercessors, the lead worshipers, the men and women hungry for purity, seeking to be filled with holy love, and the ones saying yes to being sent as carriers of the good news of Jesus. Would they say they were the only ones? I don’t think so. Every generation of Jesus’ followers is acutely aware of two realities—they are connected to believers who have gone before them and invested in them, and they are called to disciple and love those who are coming after them. The movement began with the Spirit of God being poured out on college students hungering and thirsting for righteousness; among college students who had interceded for the Spirit of God to bring awakening, renewal, and revival on university campuses; and among college students acutely aware of their own brokenness and need to receive salvation, purity of heart, healing from anxiety and depression, deliverance from addictions, secure identity in Christ, and a confident calling to be ambassadors of good news. In these realities of being predominately student-led, the students at the front of the movement were grateful and connected to the transgenerational beauty of the body of Christ.
8. Why/how was the decision made to let the students continue to lead?
Regarding worship teams, students leading is very natural and congruous with our university rhythms. They are often our worship leaders. When it came to other elements of worship like Scripture and prayer, their leadership was central and in the flow of what God was doing in this movement. We sensed less of a decision, per se, but rather we were on a quest of stewarding the presence of God that included discerning what God was doing. We had complete unity in naming that the movement began with college students, was in very significant ways for college students, and that the leadership of college students would be instrumental in the spread of this movement unfolding with Gen Z on campuses across the country and the world.
9. What were some of the pros/cons to allowing students to lead in something like this?
All of the pros are expressions of new wineskins. The church’s prayer for a movement of God among young people is absolutely dependent upon young people leading the movement. Students will affirm how powerful the sharing of testimonies was during the outpouring. Every time testimonies were shared, we quoted Revelation 12:11: “They triumphed over him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony.” So we could also understand this verse as a declaration that we can triumph over the enemy’s attack on the students’ generation by the word of their testimonies. Students experienced the work of Jesus in their life overcoming their fears; overcoming identity crises; overcoming anxiety, depression, pornography. Their leadership and their voice was more than a positive—their voice was essential. Students are more than the church of tomorrow—they are the church of today!
10. Would you give any advice to other leaders who want to empower the younger generation?
First, get out of the way. Second, after embracing the first priority of getting out of the way, discover your purpose as a leader with and beside college students. College students who are courageously seeking to follow Jesus are also longing to follow Jesus with humility. Humility keeps them interdependent upon the transgenerational gifts in the body of Christ. Older followers of Jesus grow hopeless and grumpy when they lose touch with the presence of God in younger generations. College students grow misdirected and entitled without healthy relationships with older generations of believers. The outpouring included sweet and powerful times of Generation Z praying for their elders and the older generations praying blessing upon blessing over Generation Z.
Our Response
This leaves me with an excitement that just maybe we will see the fulfillment of the prophecies over this generation. That this Bartimaeus generation will rise up and be leaders in this next move of God on the earth. If He is truly calling them the Bartimaeus generation, what if Asbury is a prototype of what God wants to do in the earth? Perhaps the biggest questions are not “what if,” but if so, then how should we respond?
Through key prophetic insight and biblical teaching, I share practical tools and strategies that can help you respond in my new book, The Bartimaeus Generation.
