We are heading into our planned Revival Weekend, and I have been praying about it, and praying for it. I have been praying it will be an impactful time for everyone who attends. I have been asking God to prepare my heart to receive what he has for me. I have been praying that Holy Spirit will show up in a powerful way to revive people’s hearts, minds, and spirits, so that we can have greater revelation of who we are in Him; and that we will draw closer to God and experience more of His fullness. I am excited!
Last Sunday at church I was worshiping, with my hands raised and my eyes closed. We were singing about Jesus, and I saw in the eyes of my heart that Jesus approached me and grasped my outstretched hands and leaned in and kissed my cheek. It was such a holy moment. I was completely undone and shed some joyful tears! In that moment of experiencing his touch, his holiness and his goodness were revived in me all over again. I gushed out thanksgiving to him over his love and mercy toward me. I want experiences like that routinely to keep me intimately aware of his nearness.
A simple definition of the word revival is: “an improvement in the condition or strength of something.” Another is: “an instance of something becoming active or important again.” Do I want my relationship with Jesus to improve? Yes. Do I want my relationship with Him to always be important? Of course! How well do I maintain that consistency? There is continual room for improvement. I am human and I fall short. I get distracted with the matters of life, so my intentionality in my relationship can ebb and flow. However, the benefit of being planted in a great church that I attend faithfully is that every week I get the opportunity to direct my feet back onto the path of pursuit. I get to experience the revival of my spirit week after week, and to choose to strengthen my relationship and to show Him he’s the most important.
This weekend is the perfect opportunity to prioritize our relationship with Jesus and to really pursue Him. Let’s all pray with expectation that He will show us life-changing truths that catapult us into greater freedom! Let’s take advantage of this opportunity for him to activate something fresh in our lives. Just one word from him can change everything. Just one picture of him can open the floodgates (like the experience I had Sunday). I’m praying this prayer from Ephesians chapter one over all of you:I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come.