Reawakening awaits

Now restore us again, O God of our salvation. Put aside your anger against us once more. Will you be angry with us always? Will you prolong your wrath to all generations? Won’t you revive us again, so your people can rejoice in you? Show us your unfailing love, O Lord, and grant us your salvation. (Psalm 85:4-7)

Is revival more than an awakening? It begins with an awakening of our spirit and then it continues with a new sense of purpose and an 'inner fervor' that we have somehow lost along the way. Most of us need a bit of 'revival' at times, all because we allow that 'inner fervor' we once had to become 'dulled' by the details of life as they creep in. We soon lose sight of our purpose, finding ourselves a bit too inactive in our faith - what some may call being a little 'too stagnant' in our faith. In truth, what has happened is that we have lost our 'clear direction', leading us to a slower and slower 'faith progress', until one day, we find we aren't moving at all.

Truth be told, God isn't calling someone else - he is calling you, right now, requiring immediate action to 'return' and be made 'whole'. Faith is a growing thing, but if it is neglected too long, it will wither and be extremely 'non-productive'. There is a level of commitment required for revival - for the reawakening to occur, we have to desire it. That desire may come at the end of a rope, at the bottom of a bottle, or with the last pill popped. Regardless of the thing that took us into our slumber, when we begin to reawaken, we will want to shake that thing off and be free of its 'dulling' influence.

Remember what Jesus taught when he told us about baptism - it is the outward evidence of an inward change. That inward change begins when we begin to respond to his movement within our lives. What will that movement look like? It varies by the individual who experiences it, but you will recognize it as a desire for something different or more than what you have been experiencing. At first, it may just be an 'uneasiness' with where you are at right now in either your actions or your 'feelings'. Little by little, he will make it clear that we need to choose a different course of action. 

Notice - it is a course of 'action' - not one of inaction. Revival always begins with ACTION. There is no room for inaction when we want to experience the resurrection power of Jesus in our lives. Just sayin!