William Seymour would be proud—and humbled.
The man who initiated the Azusa Street Revival in 1906 would most likely be filled with joy at the construction and opening of the 3rd Pentecost Azusa Street Prayer Tower and ministry center, which leaders of the project believe will help spark massive global revival for the kingdom in the coming years.
One of the principals for the prayer tower, Church of God Bishop Sean O’Neal, says he believes Seymour would be beaming that Jesus has kept alive the mission of the Azusa Street Revival alive for nearly 120 years—and for the tower to serve as a center of prayer pursuing the finish of the Great Commission.
In 1922, prior to his death, Seymour prophesied that in 100 years, God would pour out His Spirit like in the days of Azusa Street. It is exactly what O’Neal and his partners have envisioned.
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“I really believe that this represents the heart of William Seymour,” says O’Neal, the administrative bishop for the California and Nevada region for the Church of God. “I think he would be excited about the possible fulfillment of his prophecy from a century ago, and we hope this is one of the catalysts to bring that forward.
“We know that we’re not the only ones to do this. It’s a consensus gathering. But I also think he would be very happy that this is a multi-cultural and a multi-generational effort. We’re thrilled to be able to carry on that legacy.”
The 3rd Pentecostal Azusa Street Prayer Tower is built in the heart of Los Angeles, a city of more than four million people. The tower, which O’Neal and his partners hope to have open by mid-August, is a seven-minute walk from City Hall and will serve as a hub for prayer, evangelism, gospel training and church planting.
It is also approximately 120 feet from where Seymour preached, and the Azusa Street Revival was launched 117 years ago.
O’Neal, along with Niko Njotorhardjo—senior pastor of the Gatot Suborto in Jakarta, Indonesia—and Raymond Pranoto—senior pastor of International Bethany Community Church in Washington, D.C., initiated the idea of the prayer tower in 2021, prior to the height of the COVID pandemic.
None of the three knew if the plans for the tower would ever be approved by the city. But they filled out the paperwork and received the blessing of the city with “no trouble.”
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“That was a surprise because of the secularization of our culture,” O’Neal told Charisma News in an exclusive interview. “We thought the media might have a problem with it, and we expected a battle, a struggle. But it was pretty miraculous.
“This has been a long journey, but the biggest issues we’ve had are mainly construction issues; inspections, things like that. But right now, we’re in the midst of finalizing things and we know that this has all been God to get to the finish line for this prayer tower.”
O’Neal says he isn’t sure exactly what the capacity will be for the prayer rooms in the tower, but he hopes that they will be able to fit 120 individuals in at one time and 40 more in the outer area, which he said is called the Gallery of Pentecost.
The 3rd Pentecost Azusa Street Prayer Tower will have two main purposes:
- To provide a place for people from throughout the world to come to pray for a Holy Spirit outpouring that will sweep across the globe and for a global Great Awakening.
- As a ministry center to provide training for Holy Spirit empowerment, the establishment of prayer movements, intercessory prayer, church planting and gospel, soul-winning evangelism.
O’Neal says he anticipates members of the 600 million population of the global Pentecostal Charismatic Movement will travel to Los Angeles and pray at Azusa Street.
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“There are three things the Holy Spirit imparted to me recently about the prayer tower and what it’s all about it,” O’Neal says. “It’s about humility, unity and community. None of this is driven by personalities. If those three things happen, there is no telling what the church can accomplish.”
William J. Seymour most likely would be smiling broadly that the legacy of Azusa Street will carry forward boldly.
To learn more about the prayer tower, visit azusastreetprayertower.com. {eoa}
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Shawn A. Akers is the online editor at Charisma Media.
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