Sunday, May 12, 2019 -
God has given me such a huge burden for revival. But it seems the average Christian is just too comfortable to call upon God to bring revival into their own life, or their own family. Yet I know that we as a nation will never see revival until it takes place in individual hearts, in individual families, and individual churches. Only then will it spread through our communities and throughout the entire nation.
For we cannot ask God to revive our community, our church, or our nations unless we begin with our own lives. And every revival in history happened when individuals began independently to completely submit themselves to God and surrender everything to His will. This begins with searching our own hearts and repenting of our own desires, interests, and self-preservation. Once we submit such things to God, He is then able to use us in a powerful way. God gave Jesus all authority in Heaven and Earth (Matthew 28:18) and He, in turn, has given us power through the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:8). And so we become His witnesses. This same power that the early church and disciples in Acts had, God has given to you and me. He expects us to use it to be His effective witness in our communities and throughout the world. Chuck Colson said it well, “Jesus came not only to comfort the afflicted but to afflict the comfortable!” How true! But to be used of God, our will and desires must be His will and desires, not be self-serving.
And this means giving up certain things and making Him truly Lord of everything! And so we must begin, when praying for revival, by examining our own lives and hearts and motives, and become like Christ, comforting the afflicted, but also afflicting the comfortable. I pray, if you’re reading this and are a little too comfortable with your own cushy life, these words might afflict you in such a way that you, too, might examine your life and heart. For revival in our nation must begin with you and me.