The topic if revival has been on my mind quite a bit for the past few months. Revival is something that is often talked about in church circles, but not something we actually see. I grew up hearing the stories of the great revivals that have happened in the past.
I loved hearing about Smith Wigglesworth and Jonathan Edwards. I was in awe of the stories that told of men of God like them going into a public place and simply their presence there (or rather the presence of God in them) caused people to fall on their faces and begin weeping and repenting.
When I was 14, I began hearing the stories of the Brownsville revival in Florida and the Toronto Blessing in Canada. I was in awe. I had this realization that revival was not a thing of the past. I knew then that God desired to pour out His spirit in fresh and new ways on the Church here in the U.S.
I began praying for revival. There was nothing I wanted to see more than a mighty move of God in Great Falls MT. I was absolutely certain that I was going to see this happen before I graduated high school. I was having prophetic dreams and seeing visions. Other people were telling me about dreams they were having about me relating to revival. I was excited and had so much expectation.
As time went on and nothing seemed to change, I became discouraged. I continued to pray for revival but not with the intensity and passion I had at first. As more time went on, my prayers for revival became less frequent. I was giving up. By the time my senior came around, I had all but given up. I decided that if God hadn't answered my prayers in four years, it likely wasn't going to happen, at least not while I was there.
I moved away after I graduated and gave no more thought to revival in Great Falls.
Since then, I have lived in Great Falls off and on and every time, I am reminded of the things God spoke to me when I was in high school. It wasn't until this past year, though, that I began to really press in and ask for God to begin to do what He had promised all those years ago.
Eight months ago I set aside my Thursday afternoons to pray for revival to come to my church. For at least two hours most every week since then, I have been crying out to God to send revival and fall in my young adult's group and in my church. I started out with expectancy. I was certain I was going to see God show up like never before. In January I began to get discouraged. I was not seeing any change. I began to ask if it was even worth it. I was all prepared to quit when God began highlighting Galations 6:9 to me. It says: "And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up."
So I began to press in more. To continue to ask with expectancy. Still, I was not seeing any real change, nothing was happening. I was becoming confused. Why was God not answering? Why was I not seeing any fruits? On Friday I got my answer.
I was talking to a lady I work with about Church. We were talking about church culture and theology and such. She asked me what I thought about a certain church in town and I began to tell her why I disagree with some of their theology and why I don't like that church. That led to talking about another church. And suddenly it hit me. Part of the reason that I have not begun to see revival in Great Falls even though I have been seeking after it for a year now, is my lack of prayers for the Church in Great Falls.
I use the big C Church because I am talking about the entire body of Christ in this city. God told me that I have been praying for revival in my small "c" church but His heart to pour out revival on ALL of the churches in this city and until I came into alignment with His will in that area, until I began praying for the Church as a whole in this city, until I quit talking about all of the things I dislike about the other churches in town, I would not see revival come.
So, for all of you reading this who go to a different church in Great Falls than I: Forgive me for talking bad about your church. Forgive me for not praying for you and wanting to see God grow your church (in numbers as well as in maturity). Forgive me for not loving you as my brothers and sisters and having a critical and negative attitude towards you and your respective churches.
My heart is to see God's will come in this city. In EVERY church in Great Falls. To see exponential growth in your church and my church. To see an outpouring of the Holy Spirit like never before. To see us come together in love and unity with the understanding that though we don't all agree on the same theology, we agree the One thing: that Jesus is the son of God, that He died for our sins, and that He is the only way to God. Let us come together with the knowledge that we are all striving after the same thing: to see God's kingdom come in Great Falls. To see Him draw ALL men unto Himself.
Let us cry out for revival in this city.
Revival starts with us; it starts with the people of God.
I don't want to hear the stories anymore. I want to write the stories.
Let us come back to life!
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