Repentance.

     Every true revival is preceded by a deep repentance. Here is a post on repentance from the blog site Contending for the faith.
http://contendforfaith.blogspot.com/2011/03/repentance.html

I Sought a Man.

     Will it be God's judgement, or revival? God is looking for a man to stand in the gap. Someone to intercede for a backslidden church, a nation that has departed from God, and a lost world. watch this video by George Delo and allow God to challenge you to step up.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cTbfwjDL5ro

A Voice of Thunder.

     Few men have spoken for God with the power and conviction of Charles G. Finney. In an age where the church had grown cold and formal, he labored to bring them back to a life of holiness for the glory of God. He refused to compromise, calling sin sin. He understood many of the "refuges of lies" (excuses) that sinners hid behind. With a powerful voice, full of the Holy Spirit, he preached with conviction. Men would fall to their knees trembling before the holy God they had rebelled against. Thousands were saved from lives of sin, thousands were brought back from backsliding. God used him mightily to bring revival to the church of his day.
     He had no power in and of himself. What was his secret? He was yielded to God, full of the Holy Spirit. He walked in total obedience to God and His word. He was a man of prayer. He understood that without the power of the Holy Spirit in his life, he could do nothing.
     His writings exist today, and have been a source of growth and encouragement to many. Many individuals have read them and God has used them to bring revival as well.
     Why not let God use you? We need a voice of thunder today. Let God fill you and use you. Oh how the church needs revival today.

Longing for The Presence of God.

     One thing I have asked from the Lord. that shall I seek, that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, and behold the beauty of the Lord and to meditate in His temple.
                                                      Psalm 27:4 NASB

     David here has one consuming passion that swallows up all other desires. He is not longing to spend the rest of his days living in the temple, his one desire is to live in the presence of the Lord. I like how the Amplified Bible puts it.
     One thing I have asked of the Lord, that will I seek,inquire for, and {insistantly} require: That I may dwell in the house of the Lord {in His presence} all the days of my life, to behold and gaze upon the beauty {the sweet attractiveness and delightful loveliness} of the Lord and to meditate, consider, and inquire in His temple.
     It is God that he desired above all else. He longed for God's presence, he desired intimate fellowship with the one he loved and longed for above all else. He wanted to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord, and to meditate upon Him and His ways. It was all about The Lord.  
     This was the same passion that drove Paul to abandon all and to pursue Christ (Philippians 3:7-14). To be sure, these men had prayer requests and asked God for different things, but unlike most of us, they really sought God for Himself alone!
     May God ignite a like passion in our hearts as well!

Appalled At Sin.

     Then everyone who trembled at the words of the  God of Israel on account of the unfaithfulness of the exiles gathered to me, and I sat appalled until the evening offering.
                                                                 Ezra 9:4 NASB


     The Lord said to him, "Go through the midst of the city, even through the midst of Jerusalem, and put a mark on the foreheads of the men who sigh and groan over all the abominations that are being commited in its midst."
                                              Ezekiel 9:4 NASB

     Throughout the history of the people of God, there have been times of sin and backsliding. In the days of Ezra, the people who returned from the Babylonian exile were quick to intermarry with the foreign people inhabiting the land. The danger was great. This was a step that would lead to idolatry, as the religious practices of these foreigners would be adopted by God's chosen people. These exiles had spent seventy years in captivity due to God's judgement against the idolatry and sin that they allowed to exist in their midst. Now they were playing with fire once again.
     The priests and religious leaders in the day of Ezekiel were a corrupt and idolatrous people. They worshipped God as a pretense, but in reality the worshipped the false gods of the nations around them. They were even so bold as to set up idols in the temple itself, believing that what they did was done in secret. Judgement begins in the house of God, and judgement was coming.
     It seems that God always has a few individuals who know what it is to walk in the fear of the Lord. there are always those who grieve over the sin that they see in the house of God, those who mourn over the lukewarmness of God's chosen people, those who sit appalled at the sin and compromise found in the church in all generations.
     Ezra mourned over the intermarriages occuring among the Israelites. He was appalled at their blatant disregard for God's command to remain separated from the people of the land. As he sat in silence, others who feared God, and trembled at his word, gathered to him. Ezra offered a heartfelt prayer of confession, weeping before God. As he prayed, God began to move. The people broke down and wept. You could say a revival occured. The people repented of their sin to the point of putting their foreign wives away, thus avoiding God's judgement.
     There are those today as well who mourn over the sin and compromise among God's people. They understand that God is a holy God, and will judge sin among His people first. They, like Ezra, cry out to God for a fresh move of the Holy Spirit. A move bringing conviction and a heartfelt repentance. They desire to see God glorified in His people once again. They cry out for revival.
     Are you one of those who tremble at the words of God? Are you appalled at sin among the people of God, or do you give hearty approval to those who sin (Romans 1:32)? Will God use you to bring revival?
    

Awake Daughter of Zion.

This message on revival must be heard! Here is the link.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uaa1N13rwW8&feature=youtu.be

The Illumination of the Holy Spirit.

     It is the Holy Spirit who takes the word of God and illuminates it for us. It is the Spirit who quickens it giving it life. The Spirit uses it like a surgical tool to probe the inner depths of our hearts, laying all bare before us. The Spirit gives it the power to change lives.
     What will you do with the Holy Spirit? Will you allow Him to transform you into the image of Christ?