When You Need Revival

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Do you need revival? Maybe you’ve grown a little too lax in your relationship with God. You’re not as passionate about living for Jesus and sharing the gospel as you once were. You’re just going through the motions of worship or skipping church altogether.

We will never have revival as a nation until we have revival in our churches. But we will never have corporate revival as a church until we have personal revival.

What is revival? Re is the prefix for “again.” The root word vive means life. So to have revival is to have life again.

As many preachers remind us, you can’t be revived until you’ve been “vived” in the first place. So before we can have revival, we must examine our hearts (2 Corinthians 13:5) and make sure we have been made alive with Christ. (Ephesians 2:5)

First, has there been a time when you consciously repented of your sins and placed your faith in Jesus, believing His perfect life, death on the cross, and resurrection made it possible for God to grant you His righteousness by grace through faith? (See Know Jesus, Share Jesus for more.)

Then, we not only look to a specific time and place when we said the “sinner’s prayer,” but we also look at our lives since. (Remember, it’s not a prayer that saves us, but faith in Jesus.) As my husband/pastor often says, “our God is too big to come into your life and not make a difference.”

How did Jesus make a difference in your life then? How is Jesus making a difference in your life now?

(Most people struggle with doubts at times, but take your doubts to Jesus.)

If you are secure in your salvation, but you need revival, Bro. Andy Boles, a friend and local church planter, described it with this process:

Revival, renewal, redefining, repentance, restoration. (There is my word for the year: RESTORATION!)

Revival includes drawing near to God again. He never moved, but we sometimes drift away, leave our first love, or just get too distracted to listen for His voice.

We let God redefine who we are and how we live. His Word and His Holy Spirit show us what needs changing our lives.

When we realize what we are doing wrong, we repent or change our minds and hearts. Then God gladly restores our fellowship, joy, motivation, love, and more!

Do you need revival today? Revival doesn’t come in a series of worship services. An evangelist can’t bring it. The worship leader can’t manufacture it. Those experiences can help point us to our need for revival and give us a place to start, but revival happens in our hearts.

Ask God for personal revival in your life. Seek His heart. Repent of sin and apathy. Look to Him expectantly for restoration.

Summit therefore to God, resist the devil and He will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. James 4:7

Remember the RE. Let’s draw near to God and be “vived” once again.