It is with great sadness and fond memories that we heard recently that Bob Dunnett, who was a key strategic leader in Birmingham for many years and a great supporter of World Prayer Centre and the team, has passed away at the age of 95 years old.
It was in the mid 1980’s that a number of leaders from various churches and ministries in Birmingham met together at the Birmingham Bible Institue to pray for revival in our city. It was there that we met Bob and Di Dunnett, and those regular Tuesday mornings were for many of us the beginning of praying for the city.
It is impossible in such a short space to articulate the influence Bob had on the lives of those who gathered, accept to say that influence continues up to the present times and will continue into eternity.
Week by week, Bob led us in worship, prayer, opening up the scriptures, always open to the leading of the Spirit not only through those gathered but by those who would visit, or join us for a time. How well we remember Alan Redpath reminding us “it was always the Calvary Road”, or when Jean Darnell prophesied that that Pray for Birmingham should become Pray for the Nation, praying for spiritual awakening across the UK. Bob led us in taking that revival message across England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales.
Bob led us in taking steps of faith to hold days of prayer at the NEC Arena. Graham Kendrick approached us and the launching of Make Way was integrated into a day of prayer, as thousands gathered in the NEC. A day of ‘Return of the prodigals’ drew thousands to pray for their prodigals to return to the Father. I could go on about prayer conferences Bob would lead at Swanwick, special days of prayer in and around Birmingham, always undergirded by our Tuesday morning prayer times.
On a personal note, Bob was such a strength and encourager on our World Prayer Centre journey. Time and again he would be the listening ear to my frustrations and fears and then give wise and Godly counsel that normally finished with some super spiritual phase like “you haven’t lived long enough yet”.
To finish, for the last nearly two years, every Wednesday morning, people from England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales and other nations come together for our Revival Prayer Hour, in an ‘Upper Zoom’ to pray for revival. A fruit of a root that came out of Bob’s heart in BBI all those years ago.
THANKS, BOB. THANK YOU JESUS.
Bob Dunnett was an ordained minister, and was formerly vice-Principal of the Birmingham Bible Institute and a leader of Prayer for Revival, a national prayer/teaching network in the UK. In retirement, he continued to be involved in teaching and prophetic ministry, Understanding the Times.
Ian Cole
Founder of the World Prayer Centre
