"River Doc" Releases Hope for Revival across Canada

by Daina Doucet

According to Canada’s prophetic voice, Patricia King, founder of XP Media, "God is going to release revival in the earth through media. He’s looking for a company of those who’ll serve Him in the entertainment media realm to get His heartbeat, His kingdom values, His goodness out to the nations.” She adds, “In the Great Awakening and other revivals of history, sometimes it was just a sermon that was released that opened up the realm of glory in that day. Today it’s going to be media."

The release of a new documentary on September 18th by Canadian television and film producer Marney Blom of the Acts News Network (ANN), “grounds” Patricia King’s insights in the reality of today.

The release of the film coincided with Rosh Hashanah – the beginning of the New Year on the Jewish calendar. It opened in 220 church-based venues across Canada in every province and territory from Victoria, British Columbia to St. John's Newfoundland and to Resolute Bay, Nunanvut, to an estimated 10,000 viewers.

Titled From the River to the Ends of the Earth, the documentary explores the history of revival in Canada and examines trends that suggest Canada is moving toward unprecedented spiritual revival that could impact the nation spiritually, socially and economically. It also features First Nations and Inuit spiritual leaders who affirm, through dreams and visions, their belief that the entire nation is on the verge of a powerful awakening.

Christian leaders share their experiences of previous revivals and their perceptions of God’s plan for Canada’s destiny and purpose among the nations. “At every level of life in Canada, [the country resonates] with a destiny and a purpose and a clarion call that will be sent out to all the nations of the world,” states Dr. Alistair Petrie, director of Partnership Ministries and an authority on revival.

The “miracle” say viewers, is for the “River Doc” to play in 220 churches without an advertising campaign to promote its release. “It had to be God,” maintains Dave Cockle, of Burlington, Ontario. Response to the showing has been enthusiastic, but viewers report that unlike a regular movie, this documentary carries an anointing that touched hearts and permeated prayer for Canada afterward. “The atmosphere was amazing, filled with the sweet Spirit of the Lord,” writes Brent Ryder of the Christian Life Centre, Fort St. John, British Columbia. “I was crying under the power of the Spirit as well as from a longing to see the prophecies in the film fulfilled,” reports Patricia Bootsma, London, Ontario. We went into two hours of … worship and intercession for Canada. It was powerful!”

Viewers also indicated the film offered a sense of hope. Dawn Rosemary from Carmacks, Yukon Territory writes, “We were weeping throughout a lot of it. …Some of us have been waiting a long time and this DVD has given us renewed hope that God is going to move soon and suddenly like that big [breaking] wave [in the film]…” The documentary grew from a short news feature Blom produced for ANN. Blom, who currently resides in Jerusalem and is a member of Israel’s foreign press corps, found the material to be so intriguing that she felt compelled to create the 52-minute film to impart to Canadian viewers the essence of her discoveries concerning Canada’s destiny. It took three years to produce.

“As we looked into the historical DNA of our nation, examined our spiritual foundations and listened to many top Christian leaders, we began to see that Canada has an exceptional calling,” says Blom. “Our sense is that most Canadians have no comprehension of the nature and magnitude of this nation’s destiny."

The trailer can be viewed on the ANN website. The DVD, From the River to the Ends of the Earth, is available in English, French and Inuktitut. It can be ordered online. To order, follow the links on the Acts News Network.

For those interested in organizing a public showing of the film, please enquire through riverdoc@actsnewsnetwork.com

ANN is a news service that produces video, audio and print news stories for distribution to media outlets.

DOWNLOAD FILM INFO PACKAGE