Revival

This past weekend I was privileged to lead a revival in a church of about 200 people.  Although it is an aging congregation the music and worship was awesome.  The pastor is a man with a great vision for the church.  Like most churches, he sometimes runs into some challenges when he begins to move the church towards the fulfillment of that vision, but it was obvious from talking to many in the congregation that there are a number of people ready to move forward.  The messages were well received and a number of people came forward for prayer and to talk to the pastor at the close of the message.  I left there feeling good about the future of the church and its impact on its community.

Did revival happen during those three days?  I doubt it, but I do believe there were some seeds planted in the hearts of men and women that may lead to revival in the future.  Several people told me throughout the three days of something I said during one of the messages that spoke to them in powerful ways.  It was obvious that they had not just heard my words but had heard the Spirit of God speaking to them, and he was continuing to speak to them after the services closed.  These people are now praying about the best way to respond to the messages they heard.

As I explained at the start of the services, revival seldom breaks out on an entire congregation at once.  It normally begins as one person responds in some meaningful way to the leading of God in their lives.  It can then begin to spread from that person to another and then to another until eventually it has spread throughout the congregation, and from there it can go into the community.  But it begins with that one person who decides to simply be obedient to something God is calling him or her to do with their lives.

The same things can happen in your church, and you don't have to invite a special speaker to come in for that to occur.  Just continue to preach the Word with boldness and confidence, and challenge the people to respond to that Word in tangible ways.  Invite people to open themselves up to God in new ways and not to try to limit what God might be wanting to do in and through their lives.  Begin to personally challenge those you sense might have a special call of God on their lives, and if they are willing, invest yourself in their lives.  Let them catch your vision for mission and help them develop a passion to see that mission occur.  As they become more focused on what God is doing in and through their lives they will begin to experience a personal revival that could infect the whole congregation.