Over 20 000 join Asbury revival at weekend but outpouring now moving off campus

Compiled from articles in CBN News, Church Leaders, The Christian Post and Relevant Magazine

After a weekend of massive crowds at the Asbury University revival, with a 4km backup of cars entering Wilmore, Kentucky and five overflow buildings opened on the grounds, steps are being implemented to move services off campus.

The change of strategy was announced by university president Kevin Brown on Sunday night — after 13 days of continual student-led worship services which had brought an estimated 50 000 people into their town of approximately 6 000 people. About 20 000 people came to Asbury on Saturday night alone and on Sunday social media posts showed that the city posted traffic signs telling visitors “No Further Entry” and “Revival Over Capacity.”

“We had authorities that had to redirect traffic away from Wilmore. Our town’s institutions and our town’s infrastructure is just not in a place to absorb the influx of the blessed guests that we have had,” Brown told  those worshiping on Sunday night.

He said public worship services in the university’s Hughes Auditorium — where the move of God started on February 8 after a routine chapel service kept on going — would end on Monday.  From Tuesday February 21 he said services available to the public would be held at another location in the central Kentucky area, while Asbury would still host evening services for college-age and high school students (25 and under) through to Thursday February, which is the National Collegiate Day of Prayer.

Brown said that since the continuous worship service started, he had witnessed “radical humility, compassion, honesty, confession, and life-altering commitments.” 

“We are not the keepers of this movement. We are hearing amazing stories across the world,” Brown shared. “People are hungry, and they’re hungry for something more. I think of Matthew 5:6 from Jesus’ most famous sermon, where he says, ‘Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they shall be filled.’ In other words, blessed are those who have a hunger for right relationship with God and a right relationship with others. They are the ones who leave the table satisfied.”

He said they are looking to other universities, churches, and ministry communities to be co-commissioners in the movement God started at Asbury.

“My heart is for this young generation, and whatever happens from here, our deep desire is to see a life transforming renewal of our younger generations to faithfully serve their communities, their schools, their churches, and their professions,” Brown said, expressing that he wants to “see them go into the difficult and dark places in the world and to be light”.

Sparked by the Asbury revival, other Christian academic institutions inside and outside Kentucky are also experiencing similar gatherings of spontaneous worship among students.

Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama, is just one of the campuses seeing a move of the Holy Spirit. A series of regular prayer and worship services began last Wednesday following a morning prayer gathering.

Bobby Gatlin, a campus pastor at Samford University, told The Christian Post that their nightly prayer and worship meetings began “very organically” last week when “a Christian ministry class prayed for God to bring a spirit of revival to campus similar to what was happening at Asbury.”

“One by one, God began to create a sense of expectation among individual, disconnected students. On Wednesday night, a student brought a few friends to Reid Chapel to play piano and guitar for a time of personal worship,” Gatlin said.

“As they sang, another student arrived to pray for revival. Soon a few others joined, and God began to move. As our men’s basketball game was ending, text message group messages began to circulate telling students to stop what they were doing and get to Reid Chapel.”

According to Gatlin, hundreds of students made their way to Reid Chapel last Wednesday, with testimonies, Bible reading, worship and prayer lasting until 3 a.m.  

“At least five students have given their lives to Christ in the services, and a spirit of unity and confession continues to fill the space,” Gatlin added.

Samford continues to have services organized by students held mainly at night, with people coming to the chapel for quiet prayer and worship throughout the day.

Gatlin also told CP that campus leaders have expressed their “complete support and encouragement,” as Samford President Beck Taylor “has participated on multiple occasions along with other faculty and staff.”

The Asbury University revival has also influenced the students at Lee University of Cleveland, Tennessee, who have seen their campus as a place of extensive prayer and worship.

Rob Fultz, a campus pastor at Lee, told CP about how a group of students who had watched the events of Asbury “asked their professor if they could go to the chapel and pray that God would move on our campus as well.”

“The professor said, ‘yes.’ The class of eight to nine students went to the chapel and began to pray. Within a couple of hours, the room started to fill with students, faculty, and staff,” Fultz added, describing the continuous time of prayer and worship at Lee as “a predominately spontaneous movement of prayer” and “a beautifully sacred movement” that continues into this week.

“We currently are not incorporating worship teams, speakers — other than some students, faculty or staff — or scripted worship service,” Fultz told CP.

“It is still going on. However, as the week progresses, I do anticipate the administration updating the schedule and availability to the public.”

Fultz noted that the campus administration “has responded with overwhelming support,” adding that they were “working hard to ensure students are being served well and supported fully.”

The revival has also spurned some churches and other ministries to hold services, including Pulse of Minneapolis, Minnesota, a ministry centered on reaching out to young adults.

Nick Hall of Pulse told CP that, after visiting Asbury, he and other leaders of the congregation “felt led to change our regular, monthly college and young adult service in downtown Minneapolis to simply make space for God to move.”

“The elements were simply Bible, prayer, worship and repentance. We said we would stay as long as people were hungry,” said Hall regarding last week’s service.

Holding the service “felt like we opened a hospital,” he added, as hundreds of people “flooded our space for 53 hours, non-stop,” with more than 50 people making professions of faith.

“At times, the space was overflowing with 500 plus. At other times it dwindled to 20, but every time we thought we would end, someone else showed up needing prayer,” said Hall.

“We are working with the leaders at Asbury, praying for next steps and potentially helping to lead a gathering at Rupp Arena. We are also working with leaders across the nation wanting this to spread.”

Their service lasted until Saturday at midnight, with Hall telling CP that while Pulse “doesn’t have firm plans” on next steps, he believes “this certainly isn’t ending.”

“It’s about people turning to Jesus, and God pouring out his love,” he added. “I believe this is about God healing His people. So many have been wounded and jaded, especially over the last few years.”

“This is a moment to encounter the healing power of the love of God. It’s about us being filled, not so that we go back into striving and doing … but filled until it overflows into those around us.” 

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