The Price of Revival

Do you want revival?

No – really, Do you want revival? There are many who do want it. There are prayer groups and individuals whose total prayer life is taken up praying for revival. I wonder – do they understand that for which they are asking? Have they any idea of the price of revival? I mean, look what happened at Pensacola and Lakeland. Pensacola ended up a split church – divided against itself. Half wanted more revival and half wanted to return to ‘church as we know it’. As for Lakeland, let me tell you a little something about what happened there. As soon as the prophets gathered, the truth started to come out and that truth ultimately destroyed the revival. Revival could cost you everything so let’s just have a look at the price to be paid for it.

There are so many churches looking for “revival”, but I think they truly don’t understand the import of their own question. I was in Texas last year, 2010, and I saw church after church after church advertising along the lines of “We are having Revival here next Sunday and for the next four weeks . . . . “ Really? And there was I thinking that revival is a sovereign gift and move of God among the unsaved and unchurched. I didn’t know you could plan it and organise your schedule around it.

Why do so many people want to serve God – but only as advisors or worse, as order givers? Such arrogance isn’t it? So many people, pastors especially, do want revival, but on their terms, in their church, and in their timing.

There is a cost – a Corporate cost for your church and a personal cost for you, both associated with revival. I believe the rules of these costs are fairly inflexible too.

· First and foremost, revival will fall whenever and wherever God sends it. If it lands here, you will be so blown away that you won’t care. Incidentally, with revival will come a certain amount of unity amongst the churches as they come along then bring along more and more people.. “Church” will never be the same again.

· Secondly, ALL your programs and activities go out the window. ALL you schedules are blown sky high. God will move in revival the way He wants to move and not in the way you want Him or ask Him to move.

· Thirdly, church will no longer be the safe place it is today. It has been said that, if you can leave your purse or handbag completely unattended for two hours then your church isn’t the place Jesus designed it to be.

· Fourthly, get ready for an expansion explosion that will blow your seating arrangements out of the window. It will not be your seat any longer. In fact, when you arrive, you’ll probably be fortunate to even find a seat.

· Fifth, your convenient two hour meeting may just last a fraction longer. Try 5-7 hours instead.

Finally, revival isn’t yours. It’s not for your church. It’s not for Sleaford or Lincolnshire. Revival is for the Bride of Christ – all round the world. Look what happened in Pensacola, Toronto, and Lakeland. Folk flew in from every corner of the globe and took some of it back with them to their own churches,

Then we come to the personal cost of revival.

· First thing that happens is that your personal schedule is wrecked. When revival touches you personally, you will not want to be anywhere else but in the tangible presence of God. You have still got to work. You have still got to be with your family and they have to do things too – like school work and household chores. A word of caution here, when revival comes, don’t be so heavenly minded that you’re no earthly use.

· Second, God will take each and every one of you way outside your present comfort zone, and each time you get comfortable with the new position, He will take you out again. You will become evangelists, healers, deliverers, and more. People will just walk up to you and ask what is so different about you – and God will give you words of knowledge with which to speak to complete strangers.

· Thirdly, as a corollary to the last point, the gifts of the Spirit will operate with total freedom and therefore total disregard of your feelings. You won’t want to stop or change anything.

· Fourthly, revival will cost your finances too, and you will want the work to go on and on and never stop. However, you probably won’t be going anywhere else much so you’ll save that which you now spend for the revival. Also, remember that God is our provider and He will not allow revival to blow out for lack of funds.

· Finally, you have it within your power to kill revival before it’s hardly got going. All you have to do is to ignore the Holy Spirit and what He is doing in your midst. He is a gentleman. If you ask Him to leave then He will leave. He will simply find another place where they are ready for revival and He will move there instead. I would rather He moved there as well as rather than instead of – wouldn’t you?

So there you have it. That’s just some of the costs of revival. Will you pay that price? Or will you ask the Holy Spirit to pass you by? Are you happy and complacent in your cosy sanctity or are you hungry for a move of God that will surpass all your expectations, dreams, and imaginings?

It’s up to you. It’s your choice. Same-old-same-old, or allow God to move in His timing and in His way?

It really is up to you.