Article first published as Book Review: 'Rushing the Floodgates of Heaven: For Those Who Are Thirsty! by Nathan A. French on Blogcritics.
October 5, 2018
Rushing the Floodgates of Heaven: For Those Who Are Thirsty!
Nathan A. French
Aviva (2018)
ISBN: 978-1947937741
New Book Shares One Pastor’s Unique and Personal Relationship with God
In Rushing the Floodgates of Heaven: For Those Who Are Thirsty!, Nathan French, a pastor in Washington State, provides a special look at the personal conversations he’s had with God. French previously wrote It’s NOT Meant to Be a Secret: God Wants to Talk to You, in which he shared his dramatic story of drug use and a failed suicide attempt—failed because he believes God intervened to save him for better things. Nathan’s father, himself a minister, came to bring him home and help the healing begin. In addition, his mother has been his chief supporter and the editor of his writings, fully believing in her son’s ability to communicate with God and convey His words. God has clearly blessed Nathan with phenomenal parents.
In Rushing the Floodgates of Heaven, Nathan shares with readers the personal journal entries he made between September 2011 and April 2012, picking up where his first book left off. In each entry, he records what he hears God telling him. These are not prophecies like those of Isaiah and Jeremiah, but more like friendly conversations, although the voice of the Old Testament God is heard clearly here as is the gentle voice of Jesus. Besides the words themselves, Nathan often has visions of Jesus doing simple things such as sitting beside him that reflect the personal closeness that God wishes to have with all of His children.
In the passages, we receive a few hints about Nathan’s conversational process with God. Nathan writes down what God tells him. In one passage, God says:
“When I speak these things to you, it is important to remember that you do much better when you do not have your own thoughts in the way. Write only the word I give you next. Your faith brings the next word forth. That is how you know it is from Me because surely if you did this apart from Me, you would not have complete sentences.”
In another passage, God remarks:
“Notice that when you write by faith, you don’t know what the next word is going to be until you write down the last one. Write by faith—not by thoughts. Process information by My Spirit, which bypasses the mind and sends signals from the heart. The purer the heart, the purer the signal. Root out all that is not from light and let My light shine.”
But more important than the process of how Nathan communicates with God are the words God shares with him. Some of these words are quite dramatic. For example, during a church service, God tells Nathan:
“Point to the solution—don’t focus on the problem. Always remember that I reward every act of faith. Put your foot in the water and strike the rock the way I tell you to. I am preparing to bring fire, and every person will experience Me. Raise your hands to the sky; then drop them down and say, ‘I release the Holy Fire of heaven.’ I will come down to purify my saints.”
Following this message, Nathan tells us that “During the church service, one young man was freed from addiction. His feet were so hot that he took his shoes off for several days.”
All the messages have daily themes or topics, and sometimes there are multiple ones per day. Topics discussed include how people treat Santa Claus compared to God, the importance of forgiveness of others, forgiveness of sins, the value of unity among Christians, guidance on how Nathan should serve as pastor, gossip, jealousy, obedience, and the need for people to return to the Lord. I love the passage about the importance of Unity among Christians when the Lord says: “Everyone has issues and hurts that need help. People need each other—the days of Lone-Ranger-Christianity are over. Unity requires more than one.”
About Nathan’s church, The Rock of the Harbor, God tells Nathan to explain to people when they ask what the church’s mission is: “We are a non-denominational Christian Church that is non-competing. We welcome people from all walks of faith with a focus on love and acceptance. Our vision is to unite the body of Christ. Testimony, prophesy, healing, and deliverance are a regular part of our ministry. Equipping the body of Christ in the fullness of God is our mission.”
In one passage, Nathan is conversing with God, not knowing his parents in the other room are listening to the blind singer Andrea Bocelli on TV. During their conversation, God tells him, “The reason my blind singer can sing with such purity and power is because he cannot see the audience. When you no longer notice the audience and just do according to My purpose, it will become the open door through which many will walk. My will is to bring you victory. My will is to tear down strongholds. A stronghold cannot exist in total surrender. I do not tear down strongholds unless I receive a request giving permission.”
In another passage, God calls Christians to repentance and self-examination:
“Too many Christians do not know how to do a proper self-check. The hurts of rejection, abandonment, and the fear of not measuring up or the haunting of past sins keep them from wanting to examine themselves. It is like having a room in your house that you put junk into—the more time that goes by, the more junk gets collected and the more you do not want to go in there. The bigger the mess, the more the torment and the less the peace.
“The secret is to clean out the chambers of your hearts and keep them clean by often evaluating what you are putting into them. Constant evaluation and reflection will help you let go of offenses and bitterness from offenses caused by judging. Perfect peace is found when the house is clean and in order. To get your house in order means more than your place to live or your environment—it means your body, soul, and spirit. To have perfect peace, one must spend time with Me and My words. Then you can see clearly into the mirror and know what needs to be corrected.”
I could quote many more passages from the book as examples. Instead, I’ll just say there are a few amazing stories in the back of the book of times when God has told Nathan to speak to certain people that have allowed him to help bring them to Christ. There are a couple of stories of what might even be considered miracles, such as how Nathan got money to buy a house and how he asked God to let him meet Joel Osteen and God did so for his birthday.
I am sure there will be skeptics out there, but that is why you need to read Rushing the Floodgates of Heaven for yourself. The Lord works in mysterious ways, so we never know how God will choose to speak to us. Perhaps God’s drawn your attention to Nathan’s book for a reason.
For more information about Nathan French and Rushing the Floodgates of Heaven: For Those Who Are Thirsty, visit www.therockrevivalcenter.com and www.nathanfrenchministries.com.
— Tyler R. Tichelaar, PhD and award-winning author of When Teddy Came to Town
