Revival is one of the most spoken (and misunderstood) terms in Christianity today. Churches organize prayer meetings and conferences in its name, yet Sunday attendance continues to fall. It seems that the louder we speak of revival, the less we truly live it.
If you are a passionate Christian who has consciously experienced blessings of the LORD Jesus, or the guidance of God – chances are you want to witness revival in the Church. However, you just can’t seem to figure out what you must do to play your part.
Let’s understand how a revival truly starts...
The Revival Must Start Within
The most important point of the revival is that it must start within ourselves. Jesus asked His disciples to wait till the Day of Pentecost before they spread out to share the gospel. This is because they were to await the arrival of the Holy Spirit to guide them.
As people living in this world, we do not possess much power over our flesh. Unless we let the Holy Spirit guide all that we do, we will keep returning to our sinful ways. And unless we live a life free of sins, we have no light to provide guidance to the ones in darkness.
For example, if you are addicted to smoking or drinking alcohol, then you will find it difficult or impossible to guide others out of this bad habit. Similarly, if you engage in gossip and petty politics, it will be challenging for you to guide others towards being kind and non-judgemental.
A popular saying goes… ‘Us sinners, judge other sinners, for sinning differently.’
As a bearer of the torch of revival, you must first transform your faith into living faith.
Christianity is a difficult religion to practice because much of the time we battle against our own flesh. As we live out our faith, theories clash with practicality, and we are forced to contextualise our faith to fit our lives.
Christian principles can only be attained through reading and meditating on the Scripture. Some of my favourite readings from the Holy Bible to reground myself in Christianity are:
- Matthew 5 – 7: Jesus explains how a Christian should live and why he should live that way.
- Romans 12: 9 – 21: Paul explains how to practice Christian teachings to overcome evil.
- Psalm 1: King David’s notion of a blessed, righteous person.
I have experienced phases where I felt distant from God. These were the times when things were predictable and I was more focused on fulfilling my desires in my own way.
During these periods, we usually tend to brush off God’s will as a mere ritual. When we read and meditate on the Scriptures, we regain our spiritual footing. It’s time to light the torch of revival!
Define Your Ministry
We are often tempted to start our ministries by violently spreading our perspectives, while mocking and attacking opposing views. This method is seldom acceptable in Christianity – where we are expected to bring about the kingdom of God built on love for His creation.
We should ideally start our ministry by working on contributing to our mission. It is a good idea to identify the talents God has given you, and then to utilise them in service to His kingdom.
My Testimony: Applied Christianity and Prophetic Ministry
I was born into the household of a Methodist pastor. For a long time I leaned on secular studies, gaining some success, but always getting lost in the way of life. A life of sin.
Jesus comforted me in my most helpless states, when I had nobody to rely on. I realised how my loving God was guiding me towards a better path in those times when I previously felt that God was opposing me.
The gentleness of God, even with someone insignificant as myself – deeply moved me. I submitted my life to Him, and I always pray that I may live for His glory.
Because of this experience with God, I always revere Him in the highest. I know that God can work beyond our wildest imaginations. I don’t question Him as often now, because I know that His will is the best.
His divine will is incomprehensible to my human limitations.
Knowing that it offers a life better than what we can even imagine, I always try to live by the Scripture as guidance, even if my flesh wants something else.
My ministry was based on applied Christianity. However, I also started coming across people from Christianity who are spreading a wrong message. They justify gratifying the desires of our flesh! I was in shock.
Even though I was born a Christian, in a conservative Christian family – it took me twenty-five years to have an experience that brought me to Christ. I was chained in a sinful life, but now I was free.
When I was in sin, my parents or church never affirmed my errant ways. But now, if the church itself teaches you errant ways, will not future generations stay lost?
At this point I knew that I must uphold the true doctrine of Christianity. With the truth removed, it was becoming a vague religion of ethical teachings. My ministry turned into guiding people to live their faith each day, and fearlessly calling out blasphemy and false teachings even when it cost me.
Let God Work Through You
You are a part of the kingdom of God. He has called you to His service through your own life. As a practicing Christian, you are bound to come across many types of suffering and corruption in the world. This is where you must shine your light.
Reach out to the neglected and the weak, pray for people, and watch the world transform.
If people speak hatefully, inquire kindly why they feel that way. This will turn conversations into respectful exchanges, and more often than not you will walk away having made a friend.
We all have something to agree on. As you keep working for your cause, you will begin to come across other bearers of light, rejuvenating your spirit. Find your commonalities and always support the good cause. Even liking a good post on Instagram counts.
Bring Revival in Your Church
Start the revival in your church by meeting everyone in your own congregation. Shake everyone’s hand, or at least, as many people as you can meet. When talking to people with even opposing opinions, you must be kind and respectful to them. Their opinion may be wrong, but their feelings matter the same. Even one soul comforted and brought back to Christ is indefinitely better than none!
Talk to the pastor of your church and try to attend house visits and prayer meetings whenever possible. Spreading the word of God also leads you to people who are in need of prayer and support. When you uplift people in service to God, you bring closer the realised kingdom of God. When you successfully encourage fellow believers to join you, that’s revival.
Always remember: our ministry isn’t merely social service, but the systematic elimination of sin from the kingdom of God.
But still, we are bound to feel hopeless as we keep witnessing the unending evil and suffering in this world. This story will comfort your hopes.
The Starfish Story
Walking along the beach, the narrator of the story comes across a young boy busy collecting something. On closer inspection, he realises that the boy is picking up the starfish lying across the beach and throwing them back into the water.
The starfish were scattered all over the place during the last storm. The narrator says, “Oh! But you will never be able to save all of them.”, the boy pauses for a second with a starfish in his hand. Looking at it, the boy says “but it will make all the difference to this one!”, throwing the starfish into the ocean.
“Just consider me another thrower…”, said the boy. This left the narrator in contemplation as he realised that there were many others like him who were already, or about to join the work.
In Conclusion
Attempts to bring revival in the Church often leads to failure, as revival itself shouldn’t be the end goal. As we live our faith and become bearers of light and guidance to people, we become the agents of revival in the Church.
“The Truth Will Set You Free”
Our work is to undo the evil in the world and help others break the shackles of sinful lives.
When we understand, support, and guide others – we not only fulfil God’s heavenly will on earth, but also consequently start to live in a realised kingdom of God.
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