Tag: revival

A desperate cry for revival

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BOB RICHMOND

The church today faces a crisis deeper than most people realize. Society constantly tells believers what is now acceptable, blurring the lines between right and wrong until basic truths are disputed. Those who hold to biblical standards are often labelled hateful. This presents a real problem for Christians who are called to love everyone genuinely while standing firm on God’s word.

God’s Word never changes. It remains the same as time passes.

The church will rally around someone struggling with alcohol or drugs, but when it comes to sexual sin, many act as if this area is off limits. The idea that personal choice automatically makes something right has taken hold. This is not biblical Christianity. God’s word remains clear and unchanging. One major reason revival has not come is that believers have adopted the notion that certain choices are beyond judgment. The issue is not about condemning people but about seeing Jesus clearly. When believers truly see the holy God of scripture, everything else becomes clear.

Revival begins with a desperate cry for God to tear open the heavens and come down. God is near, right beside his people, but they often fail to recognize his presence. A spiritual battle rages constantly, and believers should cry out for God to help them believe what they cannot see. Revival cannot be manufactured. It is the presence of God himself. Nothing is too powerful for God to overcome. Even someone who has lived in terrible sin for years can experience revival. God seeks broken people so he can heal them. Where there is honest dissatisfaction with one’s spiritual state, seeds of revival are being planted.

We praise Thee O God
For the Son of Thy love
For Jesus who have died
And now is gone above
Halleluiah, Thine the Glory
Halleluiah, Amen
Halleluiah, Thine the Glory
Revive us again

Revival requires a return to godly fear. This means more than caring about what God thinks. If God fully revealed himself, mountains would bow down before him. People today are too casual about God’s holiness and his awe-inspiring power. When a church loses its respect of God, it loses its power, because its power is God himself. True revival restores the understanding that God is holy, powerful and near.

Revival does not start with the world or with politics. It depends entirely on God’s people. If they humble themselves, pray, seek his face and turn from their wicked ways, then God will hear from heaven, forgive their sin and heal their land. The problem is not what others are doing but what believers themselves have done.

Revival is the reshaping of God’s people, remaking them into vessels fit for the treasure they carry, which is God himself. Revival starts with a kneeling saint. The time to respond is now.

Coming back to life so we may help others

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BOB RICHMOND

Revival means coming back to life, returning to health and vigor. It shows that believers have fallen into spiritual sleep and need restoration. Revival must be renewed repeatedly because humans are prone to sin and wandering. I personally don’t think there has never been spiritual revival that did not begin with a sharp sense of sin. Perhaps that’s because people get to the point they humble themselves and seek faith as a gift from God, not of their own works.

Ephesians 5:14 For this reason it says,
“Awake, sleeper,
And arise from the dead,
And Christ will shine on you.” – IRS Images, 2025

In Romans, the word sin appears 48 times, and 46 of those times it functions as a noun. Sin is anything that displeases God, but it also exists as an entity, almost like a person. To live a holy life and draw close to God, believers must defeat the person of sin by getting close to God Himself. A choice must be made about whom you will serve.

God’s promise is clear: if His people humble themselves, pray, seek His face, and turn from their wicked ways, He will hear from heaven, forgive their sin, and heal their land. There must be intense longing for God. History shows that when revival comes, remarkable things happen.

Our focus must be on the person in the mirror, the one God has already shown where sin exists and where focus is lacking. Revival is falling in love with Jesus all over again. There is a real need that must be felt.

When Elisha was surrounded by enemies and terrified, Elijah remained calm and prayed for God to let him see. Suddenly they were surrounded by a great army of angels who won the battle. If believers could see, if God would allow the heavens to be torn open in their hearts so they could glimpse Jesus Christ, they would instantly melt before Him. They would know they could trust Him, and the things they hold onto would melt away in the presence of God. If God would tear open the heavens and let people see just a glimpse of His holiness, power, and grace, all the things they hang onto that keep them from experiencing everything God offers would simply melt away.

God works through His people. Jesus lives in believers and the Holy Spirit lives in them. Believers are commanded to go and teach all nations. Until there is earnest desire for others to come to Jesus Christ, revival has not come. Believers must never forget there are multitudes all around without Christ. God has called believers to share the gospel.

How can we expect a revival in the church without a revival inside us first when we ARE the church?

Will You not revive us again,
So that Your people may rejoice in You?

Psalm 85:6


A New Movement of Faith Among the Young

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NELSON NOLAND

As I write this in 2025, something is stirring among young people. For many years, those who worked in youth ministry felt that faith was difficult to plant in the hearts of teenagers. The message of Jesus often fell on hard ground. When a young person chose to follow Christ, it was rare. The world offered many distractions that seemed more exciting than faith. But over the past few years, there has been a noticeable change. Since around 2020, after the global pandemic, a growing number of youth and young adults have begun to seek what is real and lasting. During that time, many lost things they deeply valued, graduations, sports seasons, friendships, and normal routines. When everything stopped, many started asking deeper questions: What is life about? What is true? What can I trust?

This search has opened hearts to God. In colleges and universities across the country, students are choosing to be baptized and to live according to the teachings of Jesus. Many now believe that the way of Jesus is better than any other path. Those who work with youth are witnessing lives being changed more often than ever before. Conversations that once felt heavy and fruitless are now bearing fruit, as young people respond with soft hearts and sincere faith.

The story in Acts chapter 3 offers a clear picture of how the message of Jesus changes lives. Two of Jesus’s first followers, Peter and John, were going to the temple to pray. At the gate, they met a man who had never walked. Each day, people carried him there to ask for help from those entering the temple. When the man asked Peter and John for money, Peter replied that he had no silver or gold, but he did have something greater. In the name of Jesus Christ, he told the man to stand and walk. At that moment, the man’s legs became strong. He stood, walked, and even began to jump and praise God. Everyone around recognized him as the same man who used to beg at the gate. His life had changed completely. He was no longer defined by his weakness but by his worship.

The people watching were filled with wonder. They saw with their own eyes that the name of Jesus brought healing and power. Peter used that moment to explain that the same Jesus who had been crucified had risen from the dead and was still at work changing lives. Because of that truth, many believed. In this we see that following Jesus brings both a new direction and a new purpose. When Jesus called Peter and John years earlier, He told them, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of people.” They left their fishing nets behind to follow Him, and in Acts 3, we see that calling fulfilled. They were no longer catching fish, they were helping others find life in God.

To follow Jesus means to change course. It requires turning from one way of living to another. It also gives clear meaning to life. Many young people today are drawn to causes that matter, and the cause of Christ gives the greatest reason to live. It is to help others find hope and reconciliation with God.

Parents have an important part in this movement. Churches and ministries can teach and encourage, but no one has more influence on a child’s faith than a parent. When parents live out their faith with sincerity and love, their children notice. A parent’s passion for Jesus often lights the same fire in the hearts of their sons and daughters.

I believe the book of Acts reminds believers that making disciples is not the job of a few but the mission of all. To do that well, followers of Jesus are called to four things. First, be with Jesus, a person cannot lead others where they have not gone. Second, be bold, faith grows when it is shared, not hidden. Third, be ready for opportunities, God often opens doors in everyday moments. And finally, be humble, it is not our power but God’s grace that changes lives.

Just as the man at the gate was lifted to his feet, many today are finding new life through faith in Jesus.

For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.

Ephesians 2:10

Understanding the Importance of Religious Revivals

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Based on a writing by Rev. CHARLES G. FINNEY (1792–1875)

Let’s talk about religious revivals – what they are and why they matter. It all started with an ancient prophet named Habakkuk who, facing troubled times, prayed for God to “revive” his people’s faith. This idea of revival has been important ever since.

At its core, religion is simply about people choosing to follow God willingly and sincerely. But here’s the challenge: we naturally drift away from this commitment. Think of it like a New Year’s resolution – we start with good intentions, but slowly slide back into old habits. This is why revivals become necessary.

Throughout history, most religious growth has happened through revivals – periods of intense spiritual awakening. Imagine a sleeping person needing an alarm clock. People get spiritually drowsy, distracted by life’s many demands and entertainments. These distractions are like a strong current pulling us away from shore. To swim back, we often need a powerful burst of energy.

Looking at history, we see a pattern: God creates a period of spiritual excitement, people turn to Him, then gradually drift away as daily life takes over. Think of it like a family that grows closer after a crisis, then slowly drifts apart until another event brings them together again.

Ideally, we wouldn’t need these spiritual wake-up calls. In a perfect world, faith would grow steadily, like a well-tended garden. But reality is different. Just as political campaigns and advertising bombard us with messages that shape our thoughts, these worldly influences need to be countered by equally powerful spiritual experiences.

Here’s what’s important to understand: a revival isn’t a miracle that suspends natural laws. It’s more like waking up and using abilities you already had but weren’t using. Think of a couch potato – they have the muscles to run, they just need the motivation to use them.

When a revival happens, it starts with Christians rediscovering their original enthusiasm for faith, like couples remembering why they fell in love. This renewal then spreads. Spiritual truths that seemed dull become vivid and real. People develop genuine concern for others’ spiritual well-being. Often, the change reaches even those considered “hopeless cases” – the most unlikely people can have complete changes of heart.

The whole process involves three key players: God, someone sharing spiritual truth, and the person being changed. Think of it like helping someone learn to swim: there’s the designer of the pool (God), the swimming instructor (the teacher), and the swimmer (the person changing). The truth itself is like the water – essential to the whole process.

Even small actions can have big effects. Sometimes just seeing someone’s genuine concern can start a chain reaction in a community. It’s like how one person’s smile can brighten a whole room. The key thing to remember is that revival involves both God’s work and human participation. While God provides the truth and power, people must choose to share and respond to it.

That’s what revival is about – a return to spiritual health through a combination of divine influence and human response. It’s as natural as waking up from sleep, as practical as farming, and as personal as falling in love. It happens when people are deeply moved to make real changes in their lives and turn back to God.