Early Tuesday morning I was musing over my WApp to the previous evening’s house group “I submit that the timing is surely of the Lord, for not only myself but others too, I trust” – as well as in recent blogs of current news and changes across Islam delaying my introducing a friend’s new book on the Book of Revelation.

Then came Sunday’s service featuring the mission to Iran of Elam Ministries together with excellent teaching on Revelation 1.

(With gratitude to unknown source)

Immediately upon musing “Whyever I should think there may be any significance of timing, am I imagining it, why me?”, this came straight to mind, as though a Holy Spirit ‘drop’:

“It’s triple 47: 47th year (my birth) of 20th Century! 47th year of Iranian regime! 47th US president!”

By the way regarding numerics, the timing of Michael Bennet’s What Was Whispered email at 11:10 yesterday is significant regarding our ‘3-in-1’ God: thus 11 = The Father and Son (“The Father is in me and I in Him” John 10:38) and 10 = Holy Spirit; zero being nothing is ignored and so 10 is 1. AND as told at the close below, we have yet more evidence of the Lord’s hand in the timing of this post and the next post.

Also, in that blogged ‘briefing’ I refer to a very personal experience in 2019 of the Lord’s glory in a Catch The Fire conference in Fleet, Hampshire. Nina and I knew the pastor and wife and a leader of CTF, Alan Shemwell, later led an excellent study of the Book of Revelation, even presenting attendees with certificates. I asked, therefore, about the availability of his notes and diagrams available and the story unfolds below…and I note that 1989 is the re-start of both our lives!!

BIO

‘Alan was always enthralled with ‘End-time’ stories even before becoming a Christian, at age 26 in 1989. Then he was drawn to the books of Revelation and Daniel.

He struggled to make sense of prophecies, especially the number of years mentioned, which simply didn’t add-up. He jumped at the chance to hear any speaker on Revelation. Almost always, their interpretations simply did not sit right with his spirit and seemed too naïve, simplistic, biased, dismissive, worldly – seemingly quick, lazily formed interpretations, not well thought through, and not Holy Spirit inspired.

For 35 years he sought a clearer, more rounded, unified, God-inspired interpretation.

Alan has been happily married to wife Sian for 35 years. They met in school (6th-Form). and have 3 sons, all in their 20s. Alan and Sian became Christians at the same Billy Graham event in Aldershot, a year before they married. They moved from Somerset to Hook, Hampshire and found a lively, Spirit-filled church. Within months they were leading home-groups, involved in evangelistic outreach, attending international Christian conferences by John Wimber and other notable Christian pioneers. For years they led Christian introduction (Alpha) courses. Their journey of faith was on an exponential trajectory. They are still very active in their walk of faith. Until recently they were part of the core-team for a new Catch-the-Fire church plant in Farnborough. Alan enjoys street evangelism, Healing-on-the-Street (HOTS) and Christian teaching. Sian is gifted in hearing and responding to God’s heart – demonstrating compassion for the lost and broken.’

As for myself, Richard, having introduced to eschatology and geopolitical history of the Middle-East a few years before becoming born-again in 1989 and 20 years later began emailing on the subject and attending Neil Mackereth’s teaching at Winchester Vineyard and launching this blog in November 2011, I found Alan’s to be an excellent course. He relates The Apocalypse (Greek title) to current events and I’m pleased he’s now been able to find a publisher.  And I particularly like his easy-to-read style and typography.

GOD-INCIDENTAL TIMING

Alan posts very little on his Facebook but for once I dropped in this morning and find this of Monday relating to TODAY:

“The book is also available on the Waterstones.com site. The prices on Amazon.co.uk are currently not correct. I’m told this often happens with Amazon, just before publishing date but will soon correct itself on the Publishing date 26th March. Pricing is correct on Waterstones.com”

SO I invite my readers and visitors to read all about Trustworthy and True in the next post in a few hours and seriously consider buying…