USA
(MNN) — Life Action Revival Ministries' Red team co-leader Laine Johnson says
a fourth Great Awakening could be coming, if the church can deal with apathy
and challenge sin head-on.
The Great Awakening has come to be known as a watershed
event in the American church. The first sparks of revival began in New England in 1679. By the time it had grown, it was the 1730s – 1740s. A second revival period was documented
between the 1820s – 1830s, and the third in the 1880s – 1900s.
Before it was over, it had swept the colonies of the Eastern
seaboard, transforming the social and religious life of the land.
That's what Johnson is getting at when he references the
hope of a fourth Great Awakening. He's preaching the first revival summit of
the year this week at First Baptist Church of Spring Lake, Michigan. Johnson says they're trying to
encourage churches not to be satisfied with nominal Christianity.
The teams will spend this next
revival cycle (one year) traveling at the request of churches and helping them focus on
improving the spiritual health by calling believers to a deeper walk with Jesus
Christ, introducing revival principles to the whole family.
So what? Martyn Lloyd-Jones, a well known
revivalist, defined revival as "an experience in the life of the church
when the Holy Spirit does an unusual work." Transformation reflecting Christ more
accurately comes to one person, one family, one church, one community at a
time.
Within Life Action, team leaders are setting the example: "We
determined for the next 30 days, that at twelve o'clock, we would just stop
wherever we are, whatever we're doing, and just cry out to God 'Revival!' If thousands, or if hundreds of thousands or
if millions of people would be committed to small things like that, that's the
need. It's going to take more than one just here or there. It's going to take a
united effort of God's people being desperate for Him."
Pray for the teams during this season. Please intercede for
power and effectiveness as Laine Johnson and Ryan Loveing minister together. Their
mission: Calling God's people to God's presence resulting in permanent release
and lifelong commitment to change. It
begins with one.
