By John Abiola.
“Will You not revive us again, that Your people may rejoice in You?”
Psalm 85:6
This message bears witness to a ministry not built on pulpits, platforms, or public applause, but on obedience, endurance, and hidden labour before God.
For thirty years, and continuing by God’s grace, the calling of intercession entrusted to John Abiola has unfolded largely in obscurity through prayer, fasting, spiritual travail, and inspired writing for revival, repentance, and the preparation of the Church for the return of Jesus Christ.
Intercession is foundational to God’s work. Before God moves publicly, He works privately. Before revival manifests outwardly, it is first birthed inwardly through prayer and obedience. Scripture declares, “I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men” (1 Timothy 2:1). This calling is not secondary; it is essential.
Throughout Scripture and history, God has always raised intercessors who stood between heaven and earth. Abraham interceded for nations. Moses stood in the gap when judgment loomed. Samuel considered it sin to cease praying for the people. Jeremiah interceeded for God’s people to to turn back to Him .
Daniel altered national destiny through prayer. Anna served God with fasting and prayers night and day. Epaphras interceeded for believers to be perfect and complete in God’s will. Jesus Christ Himself lives to make intercession for us, and the Holy Spirit also intercedes according to the will of God. Revival has never advanced without hidden intercessors.
When doors are shut to the Gospel yet nations open, it is because someone unseen stood in the gap. When missionaries break through hostile territories and souls are saved, hidden intercessors have already won the battle on their knees. When revival breaks out suddenly, it is not accidental; it is the fruit of quiet, persistent prayer.
Every genuine move of God carries a hidden prayer cost.
The journey of this ministry began thirty years ago with a deep burden for prayer, revival, repentance, and the salvation of souls. In the early years, it involved evangelistic outreach through written gospel letters, tracts, leaflets, revival prayers in churches and homes, and mobilising believers to seek God earnestly.
Few years after, through a divine encounter in a vision, the Lord instructed a withdrawal from public ministry into full-time hidden intercession. Public outreach was cancelled. Platforms were removed. Fundraising was forbidden. Denominational affiliation was set aside. prayer continued day and night, often in silence, isolation, and obscurity.
The cost of this obedience has been high. There have been seasons of hunger endured with thanksgiving, loneliness, prolonged isolation, misunderstanding, mockery, and lack of institutional support.
Yet God has remained faithful. Basic needs have been met, sometimes miraculously and sometimes quietly, but always sufficiently. Though a few faithfully subscribed to the vision through partnership and support, there has often been no shortage in meeting basic needs.
Still, the burden has remained unchanged for thirty years: revival and spiritual awakening, repentance and holiness in the Church, the salvation of lost souls in Nigeria, Africa, and the nations, and the preparation of the Bride of Christ for the soon return of the Bridegroom.
Alongside intercession, God released a gift of writing for revival. Over one hundred articles and books under the banner Revive Us Again have been written and published through platforms such as Church Times Nigeria, WhatsApp networks, newspapers, and independent publications, reaching readers across Nigeria, Africa, and the world.
Many prayers prayed in secret have produced visible fruit, including conviction of sin, renewed hunger for prayer, revival conversations, and encouragement to pastors, and missionaries, often without the intercessor being known.
Behind visible ministry success stands unseen intercession. Many pulpits shine because someone else knelt. Many altars burn because someone else travailed. Many ministries stand because someone else stood in the gap. Scripture reminds us, “Except the LORD build the house, they labour in vain that build it” (Psalm 127:1). Intercessors are God’s quiet infrastructure, rarely celebrated, often misunderstood, yet essential.
Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote:
There is a great evangelist whose ministry once saw multitudes respond to the Gospel. Suddenly, the flow changed and altar calls became unfruitful. In brokenness, he withdrew to seek God. In a vision, the Lord showed him an aged woman, a quiet and unnoticed member of his church, and said, “Your powerhouse has been called home to glory.” In that moment, he understood that this woman, unknown to men, had been a general in the spirit. Her hidden intercession had sustained the authority and fruit of the ministry. What people called decline, heaven revealed as the absence of a hidden intercessor.
Ralph Waldo Emerson captured this principle when he wrote, “There is no limit to what can be accomplished if it does not matter who gets the credit.”
This testimony is shared not to accuse, but to awaken. Hidden intercessors are not optional contributors; they are divinely appointed watchmen. Where they are neglected, ministries weaken. Where they are honoured, the work is strengthened. Scripture affirms God’s order that those ordained to labour in His work should be sustained, including those called to long-term intercession.
To pastors, leaders, and missionaries, your labour is not in vain. Behind enduring fruit is enduring prayer. To hidden intercessors, if your prayers are unseen, heaven sees them. If your sacrifices are unnoticed, God remembers them. Do not measure your impact by applause, but by obedience.
Thirty years do not mark an ending. They mark faithfulness so far. Intercession does not retire. It does not depend on recognition. It does not expire. The burden remains. The watch continues. The ministry continues.
“I sought for a man among them, that should make up the hedge, and stand in the gap before Me for the land” (Ezekiel 22:30).
The Revive Us Again series was birthed from prayer to awaken repentance, holiness, and renewed hunger for God within the Church and among the lost. It is shared freely as a ministry resource, not as a commercial venture, but as a vessel for spiritual awakening. Those whom God touches through these writings, and who discern the value of sustaining intercessory labour, are invited to stand with this work through prayer and support as the Lord leads.
“Not because I desire a gift, but I desire fruit that may abound to your account” (Philippians 4:17).
By Prophet John Abiola.
Revive Us Again Series 117
Revive Us Again is a global prayer movement for revival
Contact: globalintercessors7@gmail.com
nigeriaglobalintercessorsngi@gmail.com
