In 1982, David Pawson was invited to speak in New Zealand. His had a reputation as a bible teacher, so people the people of Wellington were surprised when he said that he had a prophecy. He carried two burdens that God had given him for our nation. One burden was as follows:

God wants New Zealand back.
He wants New Zealand back as
a nation that will be a model to the nations
of a people who are living under the government of God.
God intends New Zealand to be one of those nations
where he demonstrates his Kingdom.

God wants New Zealand back.
He is wanting his people to reign with him.
Don't wait for eternity to begin to reign with him
He is looking for a queen to reign with him now,
because New Zealand has a king and his name is King Jesus.
This country needs a change of government.
New Zealand is a nation that could be brought
under the government of God
and be a light to the nations.

This burden was not understood; his second burden was simple:

God wants to bring revival to New Zealand for the first time.
God will bring revival through economic ruin.

He then asked, "Who is willing to pray for economic ruin, to make revival possible". This burden was not well received in Wellington, but when visiting Dunedin he was handed a vision of a Commando Army that confirmed his burden, David Pawson took the message of "revival through economic ruin" around New Zealand.

The burden of David Pawson contained four important points.

David Pawson was well known in New Zealand through his Bible teaching tapes, so his authority was widely acknowledged. He took this message of "revival through economic ruin" around New Zealand, but it has mostly been misunderstood or forgotten. This is sad, because God was providing a wonderful strategy by which he could bring about a great victory. He was challenging and warning his people, so they could prepare in advance.

Long Delay

God wanted to reach New Zealand before hearts became too hard. If his people had been prepared, he could have turned the nation back with one quick shake (possibly in 1987). He offered the church a quick, painless victory, but we refused to get ready, so the opportunity passed.

David Pawson shared his burden,
he also told us how to get ready,
but no one listened.
A word that is not heard,
cannot be fulfilled.
God shared his strategy,
and people listened,
but they did not hear
Crash, Crash, Amen, Amen! they said,
but no one got ready.
So God could do nothing,
he could not fulfil his word.
A word that is not heard,
cannot be fulfilled.

The church has had thirty years to prepare, but did very little. Most Christians are still not a place where they could cope with a real economic crisis. Very few could be strong during a time of disaster.

An interesting question is why David Pawson's burden has not been fulfilled. The reason for the delay is that God was giving his people time to get ready. If he had allowed an economic disaster to strike New Zealand at that time, many of his people would have been ruined.

Many Christians would have been swept away,
because they were not prepared.
If the economy had collapsed,
most people would have been shaken
and many would have fallen.
God needed his people standing together,
so they could minister
to those who were shaken.

Despite the advance warnings, we did get not ready. Our complacency has held back God's ability to shape our nation.

Pause Ending

While God withheld his hand to protect his wayward people, evil continued to increase. Evil has now been unrestrained for thirty years and has penetrated so deep into our culture that he cannot hold back any more.

Now the long pause,
between forgetfulness and consequence
between sowing and reaping
is coming to an end.
Within a year
of a bright light being snuffed out
the economy will start to shake.
Just when people are saying,
The doomsayers were wrong.
We have avoided the hard landing,
a strident shudder will strike.

The time of comfort and goofing around is over for the church.
It is time to get serious and prepare.

Second Burden

God still has an important purpose for New Zealand. Most Christians do not realise that back in 1982, David Pawson bought a second far more important message to New Zealand. He said,

God wants New Zealand back.
He wants New Zealand back as
a nation that will be a model to the nations
of a people who are living under the government of God.
God intends New Zealand to be one of those nations
where he demonstrates his Kingdom.

God wants New Zealand back.
He is wanting his people to reign with him.
Don't wait for eternity to begin to reign with him
He is looking for a queen to reign with him now,
because New Zealand has a king and his name is King Jesus.
This country needs a change of government.
New Zealand is a nation that could be brought
under the government of God
and be a light to the nations.

Although this burden was far more important than his warning of economic crisis, it was not understood. God promised to things.

These are wonderful promises that should stir the heart of every Christian, but they were quickly forgotten.

Strategy Change

Our nation cannot be snatched back to God by a quick economic crisis, but his long-term strategy has not changed. He is still working to establish his Kingdom in New Zealand. He still wants his kingdom here to shine as a light to the nations.

The greatest obstacle to the Kingdom of God in New Zealand is faith in human government. That confidence will have to be shaken before the Kingdom of God can come. The next crisis will advance the cause of the Kingdom by smashing the power of human government.

In America, the next crisis will lead to a huge escalation of state power. Most Americans believe that their government rescued the world economy by taking quick action, so they will expect the President and the Fed to do the same again. American political leaders will take unprecedented political powers as they attempt to hold back an even worse economic crisis.

In New Zealand and a few other places at the edges of the earth, the outcome will be different. The powers of evil will overplay their hand and destroy one of their greatest tools: political power. The crisis will leave political leaders and powerbrokers crushed and confused. They will flee from their positions and power, and human government will collapse under the stress.

David Pawson's word will eventually be fulfilled in this land. God will use the next economic crisis to bring about a change of government. The human political order will be swept away and New Zealand will come back under the government of God to shine as a bright light to the nations.