The Asbury Revival. Everyone’s heard of it by now. People from all over the country have flocked to the small town of Wilmore, Kentucky, to see and experience it for themselves.
It all started on February 8th when a group of students at a Christian College, Asbury University, didn’t want to leave when chapel service was over. The students continued to pray and worship God and before long, more students joined them. And then more. And more. Students reported on social media that the presence of God was palpable at Asbury University and in a matter of just a few days, thousands of people were driving, even flying, hundreds of miles to experience it for themselves.
As a result, the little town of Wilmore, Kentucky, with a population of just over 6,000 people, has been swamped with over 50,000 visitors in the past 2 weeks. More specifically, they’ve flocked to the campus of Asbury University, a college with less than 2,000 students. (In comparison, the University of Tennessee has over 33,000 students.)
What could draw so many people to a small town? Jesus. A hunger for Jesus and a desire to be with other people who are hungry for Jesus. And according to the crowds that have shown up in Wilmore, there are a lot of hungry people.
Unfortunately, Wilmore, Kentucky is full. Literally. There are signs on the highway that read “revival over capacity” and “no further entry”. And now, the internet reports that the revival has “come to an end”. Is that true? It doesn’t have to be.
You see, the dictionary defines “revival” as:
-an improvement in the condition or strength of something
-an instance of something becoming popular, active, or important again.
So, you don’t have to go to Wilmore for revival. Revival starts right here. With you. All you have to do is make Jesus important again. How do you do that?
1. Repent.
“Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord.” Acts 3:19
He won’t pour into a dirty vessel. Times of refreshing- times of revival will come, but first, we must repent. Remove the clutter. Clear the path between you and God.
2. Pray.
Ask Him to revive you. Ask Him to renew your passion. To set you on fire.
3. Fan the flames.
It’s like when the flames of a campfire die down. With a little effort, you can stoke the fire to burn brightly again. So it is with faith. When the flames of your faith die down, you’ve got to stoke the fire to burn brightly again. How do you do that?
Seek Him with your whole heart. Read His Word. Sing His praises. Worship Him. Really worship Him. In private. In public. Unabashedly. Throw up your hands. Drop to your knees. Don’t worry about what others think. Worship Him with abandon.
4. Tell others.
Tell everyone. Shout it from the rooftops. JESUS IS LORD!
Remember the woman at the well? She couldn’t wait to tell anyone and everyone about her encounter with Jesus. “‘Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Messiah?’ They came out of the town and made their way toward Him.” John 4:29-30 (NIV)
I love that. “They made their way toward Him.” Oh how I pray that my life, my words would motivate others to “make their way toward Him”. I want that contagious kind of faith. Don’t you?
Holy Spirit come! Bring revival in ME!
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