"Will You not revive us again, that Your people may rejoice in You" (Psalm 85:6).
I use the term 'revival' loosely here to mean 'a supernatural and ongoing moving of God'. One day a buddy of mine took me to a 28-Day Fast for Revival morning prayer. While I was there, God used three people to reveal that despite prayer and fasting, there would (will) be no revival without boldness.
There are many elements to revival. Boldness is one of the foundational ones. God spoke that way during that morning prayer because the two ministers leading the prayer looked pretty effeminate like they bathed in milk and honey three times a day. They wanted to receive prophetic words of how great they were and weren't adding anything to the focus on revival itself. One man to my left said God was telling him that revival will not come without boldness. Several minutes after that, the only two elderly men there each said they were receiving a message from the Bible (there were eight men all together). Here are the passages they shared:
1.) 1st Man: "Now, Lord, look on their threats, and grant to Your servants that with all boldness they may speak Your word, by stretching out Your hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done through the name of Your holy Servant Jesus... And when they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness" (Acts 4).
2.) 2nd Man: "Pray always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints— and for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel" (Ephesians 6:18-19).
We agreed that boldness was 'the word of the hour'. But practically speaking, there is a lack of courage in modern christianity. Courage has been traded for showmanship, men acting confident and tough when they're usually just ignorant or rebellious. As I say, "In America, we have haughtiness rather than dignity; arrogance rather than confidence, and conceit rather than self-esteem." It isn't difficult to notice the lack of boldness and to realize the need for boldness if we will have revival. I have seen revivals begin in seed form, fetal stage, or infancy stage only to be stifled, aborted, or suffocated. So God isn't waiting only for some appointed time to send revival; the world, the flesh, and the devil play major roles in suffocating all the revivals He has been trying to send for many years.
Unfortunately, most christians don't want revival because they're comfortable. For many people , asking for revival is like asking someone else to come and have dominion over your home and all your finances and possessions. Who does that? Revival 'draws' Jesus to stage an incursion into our world. I think many people's worlds are safe and comfortable enough, at least there is a possibility of it becoming comfortable enough, to where we don't need anything more. But revival is definitely on God's mind and always has been. It's supposed to be a normal way of life for christians-- not the 'goosebumps and glory' so many are looking for but 'the settlement of God among His people'. Israel wasn't too thrilled about it on the mountain either. But there are people who are longing for it; furthermore, the world needs it. God also will be glorified, so 'revivals' are on the way.
I use the term 'revival' loosely here to mean 'a supernatural and ongoing moving of God'. One day a buddy of mine took me to a 28-Day Fast for Revival morning prayer. While I was there, God used three people to reveal that despite prayer and fasting, there would (will) be no revival without boldness.
There are many elements to revival. Boldness is one of the foundational ones. God spoke that way during that morning prayer because the two ministers leading the prayer looked pretty effeminate like they bathed in milk and honey three times a day. They wanted to receive prophetic words of how great they were and weren't adding anything to the focus on revival itself. One man to my left said God was telling him that revival will not come without boldness. Several minutes after that, the only two elderly men there each said they were receiving a message from the Bible (there were eight men all together). Here are the passages they shared:
1.) 1st Man: "Now, Lord, look on their threats, and grant to Your servants that with all boldness they may speak Your word, by stretching out Your hand to heal, and that signs and wonders may be done through the name of Your holy Servant Jesus... And when they had prayed, the place where they were assembled together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness" (Acts 4).
2.) 2nd Man: "Pray always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints— and for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel" (Ephesians 6:18-19).
We agreed that boldness was 'the word of the hour'. But practically speaking, there is a lack of courage in modern christianity. Courage has been traded for showmanship, men acting confident and tough when they're usually just ignorant or rebellious. As I say, "In America, we have haughtiness rather than dignity; arrogance rather than confidence, and conceit rather than self-esteem." It isn't difficult to notice the lack of boldness and to realize the need for boldness if we will have revival. I have seen revivals begin in seed form, fetal stage, or infancy stage only to be stifled, aborted, or suffocated. So God isn't waiting only for some appointed time to send revival; the world, the flesh, and the devil play major roles in suffocating all the revivals He has been trying to send for many years.
Unfortunately, most christians don't want revival because they're comfortable. For many people , asking for revival is like asking someone else to come and have dominion over your home and all your finances and possessions. Who does that? Revival 'draws' Jesus to stage an incursion into our world. I think many people's worlds are safe and comfortable enough, at least there is a possibility of it becoming comfortable enough, to where we don't need anything more. But revival is definitely on God's mind and always has been. It's supposed to be a normal way of life for christians-- not the 'goosebumps and glory' so many are looking for but 'the settlement of God among His people'. Israel wasn't too thrilled about it on the mountain either. But there are people who are longing for it; furthermore, the world needs it. God also will be glorified, so 'revivals' are on the way.
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