Disclaimer: I have no real relationship to speak of with John Paul Jackson. I met him three times. Twice were at conferences and the other was when he was speaking at a church I knew the pastor. The longest discussion I had with him was maybe 10 minutes. In a ministry context, he did give me prophetic words but I felt and still do that they were off. It is also worth noting that I completely disagree with his teaching on Jezebel. I say this from the beginning so you know I am not in any way a “drummer boy” for Streams or trying to make prophecy happen here. Also, any prophetic revelation that I will add is in brackets!
There has been a renewal of interest in a prophetic encounter that John Paul Jackson (who passed away in 2015) had known as the Perfect Storm. In short, there would be an earthquake that actually re-formed the geography of the state of California. Many people, especially intercessors try and build whole theories around the what, when, and where it will happen.
This is foolish if you ask me. True prophetic fulfillment is clear. We do not need to try and make events “fit” into our prophetic words. They will be clear for all to see. When prophets spoke of the forming of Israel in 1948, they did not need to try and “make it fit” into their words. There are no denying the fulfillment. Prophecy was all over the news. The same can be said about the prophecy about planes being flown into New York’s skyscrapers in July 1999 by Rodney Howard Browne. When God does it, the whole world knows without ever fancy interpretations.
When intercessors do not allow end times event interpret themselves, we do not ourselves no favors. In fact, there is how many “conspiracy theories” and in some cases, heretical theology gets started. I believe this prophetic warning about private interpretation is critical in discussing “The perfect storm.”
John Paul Jackson was not alone
People like to quote prophets but not understand the wider picture of what was happening. John Paul Jackson was part of a larger prophetic movement that became known as the “Kansas City Prophets.” The names include Bob Jones, Larry Randolph, Jim Goll, and Jill Austin to name a few. The pastor of the church they were part of was Mike Bickle. (It is interesting that Mike Bickle and John Paul Jackson were very close and was neighbors at one point) Many of the fathers in the prophetic today were young men and women in Kansas City in the 1980’s.
John Paul Jackson was an associate pastor and was known to spend a lot of time with Bob Jones in those days. Why does this matter? God often uses mentors as the platform to expand our understanding in prophetic encounters. I believe that the Perfect Storm as we understand it today really started in 1975 with Bob Jones. While JPJ had talked about these events living in Kansas City, it was being around Bob that helped him give language to what he had saw. The details were much easier to understand because at the point, the people around him understood what he was trying to share.
What is my point? When trying to understand the prophetic words, we often do ourselves a disservice by trying to translate them as independent encounters instead of one piece of many that God was given to a people. Trying to understand one prophetic word apart of the overall message that God was speaking to the people is dangerous at best. The Spirit often gives many pieces to many people and only together do we really understand the full message from the Lord.
Some would say that John Paul Jackson gave this word in 2008, long after his departure from Kansas City. While this is true, I believe it was part of a much larger over-riding message from the Lord to the people of faith and the seeds of that encounter started in the 1980’s in Kansas City. He first shared this message at a church in 1979.
The “Perfect Storm” is a very important piece of prophetic work but it is still only a piece. It ties right in with things that Bob Jones, Paul Cain, Jill Austin, and Noel Alexander among others in those days at Kansas City Fellowship saw. We need to view it was a piece of the prophetic work the Spirit was doing in those days as we look at it.
Why is the Perfect Storm happening?
In the letter that was send from John Paul Jackson (Click here for it.) he states the following very clearly,
The storm is coming because the Church (Body of Christ) is no longer the backbone of this nation. From our inception, the Christian faith has been the plumb line of decisions made at all levels of life. (p.5)
While many people get all caught up in the economics, military, political, geographical, and religious issues at place; what really grabs my attention is that John Paul stated that the reason for the Perfect Storm was the Church, the faithful, in America had lost its’ backbone. In the 1980’s, when this vision began; the Church was more worried about making the preacher famous than the making Jesus famous. They thought if they had a TV ministry and a large mailing list; it would relate to national outpouring somehow. We sold our soul to the devil in our churches for “church growth.”
Then Jim Bakker happened. Jimmy Swaggart happened. The church world was rocked to its’ core. We started to realize that we had lost our witness to the world and while we could fill up offering plates; we was not really influencing America that well. Our response was not a return to the gospel though, sadly. It was the forming of a “Christian right” party in politics. By 1992, the church has lost all moral authority in the national discussion. We have replaced the gospel with “Republican values.”
By the time that the Toronto Blessing (that was prophesied in 1984 in Kansas City) and later the Brownsville Revival broke out, the damage to the moral fiber of America was done and the Church has lost its’ voice. While there would become a remnant of people out of those movements that would seek to bring moral clarity back to the town square; it has never been fully recovered.
Physical Manifestations coming?
You can read all the things that John Paul said he believed are coming but there is a few that I find interesting given new information since this was released.
He believed that there would be whole cities have to move because of a lack of drinkable water. It is interesting because Phoenix, Arizona is a time bomb waiting to go off as far as when they will run out of water (with no way to get more!) [There is a spiritual connection between Phoenix and Los Angeles]
He said that earthquakes will happen in the Midwest. It is not totally unheard of but Missouri has a history of earthquakes. In 1811, there was one that destroyed much of Southeastern Missouri and literally changed the flow of the Mississippi River! There has been also 4 of them since 1974 that was at least magnitude 4.5 or greater. There also has been several small earthquakes closer to Kansas City in the last decade.
He believed there would be a major volcano go up and it could even be Mount Hood in Oregon. According the new list of volcanos put out by the government, Mount Hood could still be a threat. Scientist believe that it is very hard to monitor. [ I personally hold that Mount Shasta just outside of Redding, California will be the major blow!]
However, it seems that a lot of people have taken interest in this part of the prophecy of late: A category 5 hurricane with winds of 180 MPH and storm surges that flood miles inland. I believe that the images from Hurricane Dorian in the Bahamas and the threat in could have created along the eastern United States led people to begin this inquiry. It did not sit over a city for a week as John Paul saw and it did not cause flooding for miles inland on the mainland of the United States.
After he released this prophetic word, he would go on in 2011 and tell people about a coming earthquake that change the shape of the United States. I do not see the interest in the prophecy in recent weeks from people and I will tell you why after the video.
John Paul point blanks says it will be after a great hurricane or a great storm that does much destruction. He says very clearly that the earthquake that happens will not happen until there is a great storm or hurricane that comes at California from the Pacific. This is not Hurricane Dorian. There is no way. So to answer the question I have been getting about if this storm could mean the earthquake in California is next; the answer is no.
As I said, no prophet is an island. They all see in part and give parts of God’s plan. However, Bob Jones, Jill Austin, and Paul Cain all saw a coming earthquake that takes California off the map. Most any prophetic voice, including myself, believe that the state of California is on borrowed time. [One of the last phone calls I had with Paul Cain was about the coming earthquakes in California]
Why has it happened yet?
The rest of this article is my thoughts, both theologically and prophetically. Just wanted to clarify this.
Just as God would not release judgement on Sodom and Gomorrah if there was just five righteous among them; God will relent judgement on California as long as there is revival in the land. Today, there is a massive move of God happening in Los Angeles county that reaches up to 30,000 people every week. I believe that the work that the Dream Center is doing among the poor is holding back the judgement of God on the state. As long as there many evangelistic work under way in the inner cities of Los Angeles and San Diego; I believe we can hold off the judgement. It will not be forever but intercession and evangelism working hand in hand can delay it for quite some time.
I believe if it was not for the work happening in Echo Park with Barnetts (the father is the leader of the largest church in Phoenix), we could have very well see California as a very different place. The Lord told me several years ago that earthquakes were coming to the San Gabriel Valley but the only thing hold them back was the work of the harvest in Echo Park and Pasadena. I was living in Pasadena at the time due to “The Call.” THE SAN GABRIEL FAULT IS GOING TO MOVE! How soon will be determined by our response to intercession and evangelism.
When this fault shifts, it will sit into motive the “big one” that John Paul Jackson saw. San Gabriel will shift right into the San Andreas fault that is the largest in the United States. When it goes, it will literally reshape the state. Anything could happen. Los Angeles could be in the ocean. It could become an island. It could be destructed like Haiti was in 2010. Any of these are options at that point. Make no mistake about it: San Gabriel fault will trigger San Andreas fault and California will be re-shaped.
Can we stop the Perfect Storm?
Joel 2 gives us the model on how to stop judgement in the land. If we will rend our hearts and not our garments; return to the Lord with fasting and weeping; He will be faithful and turn back the judgement. This does not mean we not see some of them happen still. However, if the church returns to the Lord and become the moral voice of America again. The Pentecostal church has to return to being the backbone of the nation.
If we want to see some of what John Paul saw relented, we have to do it on our knees crying out for God to anoint us with power on the gospel. There is no way we can stop all the things that are coming in the next decades but when the Assembly of saints becomes a praying, worshipping, and evangelistic Bride; I do believe many of them will be seriously lessened. There is even a greater number of them that can be delayed such as the earthquakes I saw in Pasadena.
“Even now,” declares the Lord, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning. ”Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity. (Joel 2:12-13)
