International House of Prayer University Forerunner School of Ministry
I was so blessed to have chanced upon this school, because I’ve been following IHOPKC / Mike Bickle’s teachings on-and-off through the years. IHOPKC’s main mandates are to teach on the beauty of Jesus (Psalm 27:4), the End-Times (there are apparently more than 150 chapters in Scriptures that speak to this), and intimacy with Jesus/ the Bride of Christ. These teachings resonate with me greatly for two reasons:
(1) Like the school, I believe wholeheartedly that teaching on the End-Times must be matched with teaching on Jesus. Without the latter, we may well just focus on the events and this would be too depressing, not to mention incomplete and lopsided.
(2) Timing. In the same way that the Sons of Issachar understood the times they lived in (1 Chr 12:32), it just seems to me that we too are living in a very late hour. My own conviction is that this coming decade will see an increased escalation of world events. This pandemic that brought the world to a standstill is just the tip of the iceberg. If so, how do we grow in understanding of the season we are in, and to prepare ourselves so we can carry our hearts rightly in the midst of growing perplexity and pressure. God has also prepared us beforehand, with the numerous passages in Scripture of what is to come. So as “children of the day”, it would be tragic if we are people with no answers to questions about the times.
“But of the times and seasons, brothers, you have no need that I write to you. For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord comes as a thief in the night. For they shall say, ‘Peace and safety, then sudden destruction comes on them, as travail on a woman with child; and they shall not escape. But you, brothers, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. You are all children of light, and the children of the day; we are not of the night, nor of darkness. Therefore, let us not sleep, as others do; but let us watch and be sober.”
1 THess 5:1-6
Having nearly completed the IHOPKC 7-month Forerunner School of Ministry (FSM), I am so thankful for the opportunity to be a full-time student these past months. It’s been a blessing to be able to do this online as well, from Asia. The school provides flexibility so those in a different timezone don’t have to attend classes in real-time, but are able to keep up with the videos and recordings. And I must say that they do a really swell job helping the online students integrate and feel like we’re part of the family.
Given IHOPKC’s focus areas, my FSM classes have been on “Growing in Prayer”, “The Excellencies of Christ”, “The Global End-Time Movement”, “Being a Forerunner”, “Growing in Prophetic Worship” etc.
What I love about the school is that it’s not seminary in the dry sense of the word. I decided to attend it because I wanted to pursue God, and to grow in seeing His beauty (Ps 27:4). This heart transformation really happens in a place of prayer. And the IHOPKC environment (which has a 24/7 prayer room onsite and streamed real-time) is an excellent incubator grow in these areas. In that sense, it calls itself a vocational school. It’s not a brand-name seminary that is highly academic (in the sense of having to learn Greek/ Hebrew, or to turn in long 5,000-word essays). So the focus is less on the paper qualification, although the teachings and my classmates are very high-calibre. The focus is more on helping us to understand the prophetic season we are in, and how we can be disciples that understand God’s heart, and to grow in abiding in Christ. So it’s not just all head, but also deals significantly with the heart, and lifestyle. And these are students it attracts — people with a passion for Christ.
The other thing that has been so wonderful is the international community, and the fact that my classmates are of different ages (many are in their 20s, but our oldest is in her 60s).
Apart from the Forerunner School of Ministry, there is also the Forerunner School of Worship (FSW ) and Forerunner School of Media. There is opportunity to major on one, but to take modules in another too. So I may just add keyboard to my mix of classes next term. If you’re looking for a school that emphasises the love of Christ, the Second Coming of Jesus, prayer, worship, and the prophetic, I highly recommend it!
To find out more, check out https://ihopu.org/
Bible College of Wales
The three-month Bible College of Wales (BCW) is a physical school in Swansea that runs twice a year (Spring and Autumn terms). BCW is an incredible place, with a deep history and legacy, built on the life of Rees Howells. His biography, “Rees Howells: Intercessor” by Norman Grubb never fails to inspire! The story is told of how he and the students of BCW played a pivotal role in interceding during WWII, and miracles such as the Dunkirk evacuation owe much to prayer in BCW’s Blue Room. I visited the place some years back when the derelict estate had just been purchased by Singapore’s Cornerstone Community Church and was in the process of being restored (To read the back story of how Cornerstone came to buy the property, click here). Today, BCW attracts students from around the world for its twice-yearly cohort, preparing them for intercession, missions and revival. One day, God willing, I hope to go back, even if it is just to pray in the Blue Room where so much history was forged in the presence of God.
To find out more, check out https://www.bcwales.org