Live from Altars: Regional Altars

Hey folks, John Tyson here. As you know earlier this year, we gathered here in New York City

for our annual Alters Conference. And what we've heard over the last few days, the stories of

what God's done has been incredible. We had leaders preach, word shaping, hunger-inducing,

scripture-infused sermons. And we want to be able to make these sermons as widely available

to as many people as possible so that they'll be a blessing to you and your church. Alongside that,

we recorded some deeper conversations with the people who taught and some other key voices

around the themes of prayer and revival, going deeper into their stories. And these conversations

are going to be available through the Awakened Network and you can find out more at AwakenNetwork.com.

And we're excited to announce tickets for Alters 2027 are available now. We're back here in New York.

Last year they sold out quickly. So if you want to be with us, get your tickets today. I hope

these talks and gathering together will be a blessing to you and your church. See you at Alters.

Hey, you're listening to the Awakened Network podcast. And this is Zach Mirkriebs, one of

the friends of John and Sam. In this episode, we are live at Alters Conference in New York City.

You're going to hear some noise, some laughter. That's because we're just kind of backstage

with our family. And that's our heart for Awakened Network is just continue to create spaces

for family, pursuing awakening, multiplying vessels and Alters. Today, you're going to hear from

someone who has spoken at conference and we're just going to kind of double click on their topic.

So I hope you enjoy and we hope to see you soon.

Hey, all Zach Mirkriebs here. We are at Alters Conference 2026 live in New York.

I'm here with my co-host, Keith and Shwan.

Am I dear friend? It's not so ominous to me.

Intensity and seriousness is not for the spirit. Joy is.

And yes, we're here and we're backstage. So you're going to hear some chatting,

crying babies, sirens, stuff like that. And we're here with two dear friends from Australia.

This episode is getting our eyes off of our own church, our own prayer rooms, our own country.

And seeing what God is doing in Australia, a place that

Awakened Network has been present. I've done these one days. We're planning

some leadership one days in March. So we'll make sure that information is on there if there's

Aussies and folks from New Zealand that are watching listening. And yeah, so we got

some of my brothers. Why don't we take chance just to introduce ourselves and then Keith and take it away.

Hey guys, Jimmy Lamont here from Melbourne. My wife and I planted a church in Melbourne,

Saints church coming on two years now. Well, I'm stoked to be here in New York with you guys.

And at the conference, it's good to be here. Amazing. So good. Yeah, Charlie Burke here,

along with my wife Jess, we planted in Western Sydney for my Oaxiddy church now, Crossway Oaxiddy

church. But that's just one of the hats that I wear also doing some stuff with Awakened Network and

with exponential and you version and love jumping around in some different spaces and saying what

the Lord's doing. But husband to one father of three. Well, love that. You guys have been at the

conference for a couple days now. What are some of the like early takeaways or things that you've

seen God do in the room? A lot of people listening to this may not have been able to join us. So yeah,

what are you? What are you taking away? Yeah, listen, I think the thing that's immediately jumped out

to me from the last two days. And of course, the hunger, it's the sense of what we're doing in the

room. And yet, I think the thing that's deepened for me over the last two days has just been

and passed a John spoke about it perfectly on the first morning just in terms of like this,

what we're pursuing and contending for not out of self-reliance. It's not a trend. Yes,

it's not those so helpful. Yeah, like it's not something that's just like the flavor of the month.

And we're going to move on to the next thing in 12 months. Actually, there is like a bill curve

that is going up and up and up. And we're not going to move on to the next thing. And I think that's

just deepened in my heart. Yeah, these last two days is like sometimes particularly if you're listening

to a podcast like this, you can probably feel like you're the crazy one. Like you're the outlier.

And not in a self-righteous way, but you just feel like I'm the black sheep. We're pursuing

and contending for you just feel like, oh, am I the only one? But it's just strength in the inner

resolve within me over the last two days. There is something holy upon what the Lord is doing.

Just try that. Yeah. Yeah, probably also to that as well, that this is not just for this moment,

like that this is for a region. Like it's a make this moment feel like it's for a meta,

for a much larger purpose. And this is the starting line for something greater. And we certainly feel

that we feel like that. We came here from Australia to catch something to take home. And I feel like

that that was encouraged and has been encouraged through it, that this is not just a conference to

feel good and get goosebumps for here and now. But this is like to ignite something to take back

or to take home. And so yeah, we feel stirred to take that home and to really contend for Melbourne

for our city. Yeah. Yeah. What would you guys say if you were going to let us in just to what

God is up to in Australia? No, Charlie, we've talked about just the unity that has been moving and

even across like background and denomination and whatever people, I think the level of desperation

for God to move turning to like some level of unity. But I'd be curious to hear from you guys,

just like what has got up to in Australia? What are you seeing? What are you sensing as you've been

leading in that context? Yeah, I'm happy to riff off with you there, Jimmy, because like one because

you know, collectively we both see across both our regions, but also what the the Lord is doing in

our nation. But I just feel like particularly over the last probably two or three years that's

just been like, and I know I'd precedented is often an overused word, but it just feels like

particularly the next generation of leaders that are coming through. Yes. I just going, we want

the real thing. Yeah. We want we want kingdom. Yeah. We want prayer. We want encounter. Yeah.

And historically, Australia has been a very denomination leader by the nation. Interesting. Yeah.

And yet it just feels like one of the things that is characterizing hungry leaders and the spirit

that are coming through is just like we just we just want to be before King Jesus. That's the thing

that we want more than anything. We want the people that we're leading to encounter him. Yeah.

We want to be leaders that lead first in that way that we're we're kind of fortifying the walls of

our own heart around what it means to be a later under encounter. Yeah. Yeah. So what has it

been like going from seeing something that's so divided and then now you're experiencing the fruit

of getting making the main thing the main thing like drawing a new chapter. Like what has

that been like for you to see because you live through the desert of it and are now seeing the

early signs of something different. Yeah. Listen, I think particularly when you're stepping into

new one and you see. Yes. I think it feels very foreign. Yeah. Like it feels very much like we are

building the bridges we're walking on. Yes. I think anyone necessarily knows what the next 10 years

looks like. Right. And I think we all have ideas but like I think some of it's just I've been saying

to a lot of my brothers and sisters in the Lord, let's forge a new path. Yes. Like let's and we

honor the generations that have gone before us. Yes. And the way that the Lord has worked in our

nation and yet God is writing in your chapter. Oh. And so let's not just fall back into the

traps of maybe where we've come from but actually really try to just honor what the Lord is doing

now. Of that. Yeah. Well, thank you for your work in that. Yeah. How about you Jimmy? What do you

see in God? Yeah. I think there's I think that hunger definitely started in people like I had a

congregational level and I think leaders are also sensing that now and leaning into it and certainly

in our city. We hold a like a combined prayer night last year and we it just started with me

and I'm sending out an email to anyone that we knew in the city and on the night we weren't sure

of 15 20 people going to show up. We would have been stoked. There was 60 passes there from eight

different denominations there on the night praying together and we just said like this is not

is not going on social media. We're not going to we're not going to promote this. This is like

the secret place of Melbourne and we are going to pray for matters that affect our city, domestic

violence, youth violence, all of the things that are affecting our city and the leaders really

lent in but again it's new ones getting so bad Catholics praying alongside charismatic

penicostles alongside like and so it is like how do we navigate this new space of unity like

between leaders and I think it's just a beautiful thing. I think the the Lord is pleased with

that. I just think he loves unity. Yeah. Yeah. His kids play well together. Wow. Yeah that's so good.

So those are some of like the things that you're seeing unity spread. We've been experiencing

here in the states just like waves of young people being interested in faith returning to to

church in ways that all of our secular friends were like that that would be impossible. We're like

literally living in an impossible moment from a lot of the the data over the past few years. What

are you experiencing when it comes to this awakening to God in Gen Z or Gen Alpha? Is there anything

coming from Australia in that regard? Yeah absolutely like we're seeing I think I think I don't

know if we're seeing as much as maybe the UK we're definitely praying for yeah. We're definitely

contending for that move. We've definitely seen like an uptick in youth that that are just coming

that are hungry that are like well I open the Bible at home and and from like families of no

Christianity in their family whatsoever that are just opening the Bible or we had two youth

walking there I think they were 14 and 12 walked into our church on a Sunday because they just

wanted a Bible like and they asked us for a Bible and now just like that's that kind of stuff was

never heard of growing up like I was like yeah you just never would be seen in a church even if you

went to a church you wouldn't tell them people that you went to a church let alone like walking

in because they just wanted a Bible or so we're definitely like seeing that happen in other places

and going God do it yeah do it in Australia do it in Melbourne yeah yeah I think Pete's word on

like the the search for a savior I think that's definitely I think we're starting to feel the

rumblings of that in Australia like again yeah your your reference there Jimmy to like the UK like

one of the things that's been talked about a fair bit at the moment has been like this idea

of Australia going from being like a post-Christian nation to a pre-Christian nation yes well

this enormous opportunity that so many people even up into their 20s and 30s have just never set

foot into a church and you know may therefore not have the baggage of some of the hang-ups of truth

and so like for instance at an our local youth group almost the entirety of our youth group

would not have grown up in a Christian family it's amazing and they're searching for something like

the stories that we're part of like a friend of mine that recently came to faith who had no

Christian background whatsoever and those stories were coming more and more common and I think

that the unique opportunity that we have as church leaders in this moment is firstly to get our

knees and contend that God would move and that the Holy Spirit would break into people's lives but

also just to simply and clearly present who Jesus is absolutely yeah but who who is Jesus and

how can he change people's lives and the transformative power of who Jesus is the character of God

like those things are so compelling yeah it's yeah I don't want to sound simplistic but it's

actually not that hard yeah you know I mean yeah yeah yeah as I as I've gone to know you Charlie

and I had the joy of having dinner and and and get to know you and your bride Jimmy I want us to like

think about the other nations that listen to this so you guys are plowing pioneering in Australia

there's also countries that listen to this podcast New Zealand Iceland's up there UK

some of our brothers in the Middle East you know Jimmy you did you talked about a simple email to

local pastors in the risk to be like yo this isn't we're not posting it's like diverse cross

boundaries prayer and Charlie that I've this is like a mantle on your life and in light of a

waking network and altruist conference in this concept of these altruist specifically the

altar of a region yeah you guys you know your testimony Jimmy and your and your experience Charlie

talk to the other countries or to Americans um talk to us about setting up a altar of a region

yeah yeah and think and help us practically yeah like is it just like get off your butt and write

the email yeah is it you know get practical on how we build an altar of a region because I believe

you two are lead builders pioneers of the Australian altar yeah yeah I mean I I don't want to

quickly give a quick special shout out to out New Zealand brothers and sisters Keora like I know

there's there is like profound desperation in yeah in terms of like we we can't wait to be there

with a waking network in March but honestly like Regios for that and also just like the hunger

that's amongst church leaders at the moment New Zealand is just off the charts yeah and I think part

of that is like when you're desperate you you just ask different questions yes like when you

when you're desperate for God to move because you see the barrenness of the the landscape around you

like by way of secularism and the the culture that is pervasive in New Zealand and this has come

from many dear friends of mine that like you you're desperate and so therefore they're going we

need to do more together yeah we need to pray we need to get on our knees and something like a

waking network I know it's just been nourishing and feeding a lot of New Zealand pastors and so

just want to give a quick shout out there I mean I think and I'll get Jim and it taught more

as to practicals in just a moment but I also think just from a spiritual level and I think past

the John let us in this so well this morning how often do we truly as church leaders pray for

the churches now Regios like you you can't criticize someone that you're praying for yes that

which you bless yeah you forfeit criticism that which you bless you forfeit criticism yeah it's

beautiful and I just think particularly as we're doing that today over the regions that we're all

from over planet earth like sure there's going to be church down the road that's different from

us or maybe there's been history or all sorts of stuff yeah when you begin to pray for those churches

say God would your kingdom come in my region man it's pretty hard to kind of get on your high

horse and become critical of that so true yeah I think to get it together I think for us we took

a leaf out of your book Zach and what we learned from you of just going low like and I think even

in our posture towards other leaders like yes it wasn't like this is a saints church thing come

and pray it our thing it was like our city so we led with the needs of our city so it's like our

city's bleeding like a city's hurting like it's really good like I'm sorry to interrupt no good I

think to crystallize unity around what breaks the heart of God yeah and by your church's persona

or even an alter of the region yeah no we build an alter a region for the fire I've got to fall

down yeah and solve what breaks his heart yeah yeah yeah that's so good which for us it's not

was wasn't like let's pray for each other's churches or let's even pray for growth in our churches

like that was one thing that we did pray for but it was ultimately like this is what our this is

where our cities are bleeding like this is where yes there's yeah things that would break God's

heart and so it's like we gathered around that macro view of what our city needs yes and I just

said if it's not us who's doing it who's gonna do it and so it's like we are the passes of this

city we need to come together and we need to because this is a spiritual battle and so we need to

contend in this place and sure we're all probably doing it individually but let's come together

and do it together I love it could you let us in on what we're a few of those things that would

unite a region to contend in Melbourne so for us in Melbourne at the moment last year in 2025 I

think it'll be this it could be the same or it's the same now it's the high we have the highest

levels of domestic violence that we've ever seen in our cities history well same with youth

violence and like gang violence have never seen anything like what we're seeing now just unrest

politically as well which probably is similar in a lot of countries just with the way things are

and so we just said we need to we need us for this it's great we are the spiritual resistance

to darkness yes and so we need to come out and pray together yeah and I think the thing that

like comes up in my mind as you talk about that Jimmy and as we've experienced this week at

altars is also like yes it's the issues but also taking a layered deeper it's like what are the

territorial principalities that I think you know with it's I think you know my word for the year

as I asked the the Lord for a word is to to wait out into the deep like what are some of those

things that are like maybe historically with me like oh that's a little bit weird yeah but like

actually would we be prepared to wait more into the unseen spiritual realm and actually realize

that there are there are battles to be won there as churches as church leaders yeah and I'm sure

we could do a whole different podcast on on territorial spiritual principalities but just

yeah but I think I think you're bringing attention to it you know when Lewis and screw tape talked

about like the demonic is just fine with us believing that they don't exist so if and then it's

funny because we if you don't have like a theology of spiritual warfare you can be running up

against brick wall on brick wall on you know difficulty on difficulty and just chalk it up to human

factors and it's like yes there are human dynamics to everything but what what don't we have access

to take ground in because we've just been pretending like this all all doesn't exist yeah yeah just

a moment of like reckoning that could be actually super helpful so things that we were afraid to talk

about maybe in in humility and not like a weirder hyped up way but addressing actually could create

to being more helpful to people yeah yeah so um just as we as we wrap up here um I would love

for you guys to be able to just speak to leaders in Australia about a quarter of our listenership

is um people from Australia that are hungry and tuning into um learn about revival and awakening

in their context and in their nation so if you were going to just have a moment to just address

that crew what would you say to them well how would you want how would you speak to rally them

around the altar of the region in Australia I would I would say get to the one day events and in

your city um for me it was great um and and plug for for the one days but it was actually good I

actually saw other church leaders there they didn't know we're going to be there beautiful and

that are like you know half an hour up the road for me then I'm like oh you also value prayer and

contending in this space and and so then we've connected afterwards like and so in terms of

bringing people together it's it's been a brilliant tool to to be able to do that because I think

you can listen to podcasts but still be so isolated from and so I think the those events like if

they come to your city are a brilliant to to be able to bring people together connect people like

in an offline physical way yeah yeah I think as you know and it's soft and such a

such a profound and learning experience to step outside of your own

region country and I think as again we've been a part of altars this week I think I've just

been struck by the level of humility that is required to truly begin to play our role and

seeing a move of God in our respected parts of the world and I'm probably speaking directly

to my Aussie friends right now where humility has not always been something that has characterized

the Australian church we have been known by our hubris we have been known by our tall poppy syndrome

and when you when you sit in a desperate room like this and I'm not trying to over emulate or

overliners what's been happening here but it has been significant yeah just to go what does

that really mean for us as Australian church leaders to be driven to our knees in prayer and

camaraderie and humility yeah I don't know like this for me when I see those things I just my prayer

for the Australian churches man we need to see more of this yeah it's great for one let's come

alongside one another let's drop to our knees yeah it's it's the Lord of the Harvest

yeah so that's that's what's really striking me about this yeah what I'm what I'm feeling in my

spirit is just to challenge those who are listening to be foolish enough to build their altar

of a region for yeah I think altar of the heart makes sense altar of the home makes sense

probably a lot of us who are listening to our pastors are like full-send altar of the church

but altar of the region probably requires the most child likeness yes yeah yeah to be like

they'll actually show up to the thing yeah they they'll do it or I'm gonna do it and I might be

the only person in the room but I'll be foolish enough to do it yeah well so I just wonder if

there's a there's some foolish people listening to set up a altar of a region yes and send the

email send the text by the pizza whatever and then and then build altar through prayer unity

confession yeah and and I want to remind everyone who's listening and this is something I've

been passionate about is we do all this for Jesus guys all this honors Jesus unity honors Jesus

humility honors Jesus the email to the pastor across the city honors Jesus not yeah not unto

revival not unto a breakout of a spirit but that's that's John 17 yeah let them be one like we are one

Lord yeah so that's yeah that's I wonder if we are foolish enough to build some altars and yeah

it's good very good we're gonna land the plane uh to pray for y'all so if you're listening on a

treadmill driving a car during a quiet time walking through the streets in New York whatever

maybe don't close your eyes but pray with uh I'm gonna have Keith and pray because I might lose

my voice and I have to start praying in tongues but um Keith it's gonna it's gonna pray and uh when

he's praying will you go to war for Jimmy his family his beautiful kids yeah his beautiful church

his city Australia will you pray for Charlie his beautiful church his family his kids

what he carries will you actually not listen right now and just go after it as Keith and praise and

we're just grateful that you took a listen and uh yeah like they said Australia New Zealand

around our way to you in March uh so jump on our website if you haven't heard about these one

days but uh yeah guys thanks for listening and Keith and lead us yeah how we pray for you to do what

only you can do over Australia and Lord we've come to the end I just sense the humility in these

leaders of coming to the end of what they are able to do in the flesh are able to see results in

just more strategy or more um effort and God we just ask for you to come and awaken the nation

how would you would you draw young people to yourself in droves God we pray for the deconstructed

in those regions that they would return home the protocols would return home God I pray for those

who are now generationally steeped in a secular context that they're so far from you that they're

pre-Christian God thank you almost for the moment that we find ourselves in where you can be setting

the foundation of who you are God without all of the baggage and without all of the the heartache

and the and the difficulty so God would would Australia find this moment ripe for the harvest

now we pray over these two laborers that they would be generous in sowing seed that um across all

all parts of the nation God you would just send forth your word and that it would find good soil

God I pray for generous sowers across the nation of Australia they wouldn't be um empire builders

or people that are operating at a fear or scarcity but a generous sowing of the seed and I just

get that line um from Jesus parable in my mind um when he says are you envious because I'm generous

and I just feel over the nation that there would just be this mutual celebration of one another

that leads to the elevation of the sun Jesus you said if the sun of man be lifted up you'll draw

all people to himself so we just take you at your word and I just bless the Australian church to

lift the name of Jesus and you would draw all to yourself in Jesus name amen.

Hey guys thanks for listening I hope it was encouraging and equipping if it is encouraging

jump on awakenetwork.com if you want to be in this community we have a membership

for you we have these awakened leadership one days where we'll talk about topics like this one

leave a review share all that podcast stuff but God bless you guys in Glacian 6.9 says do not grow

weary in doing good for in due time you'll reap what you sow if you don't lose heart