REVIVAL

?

This morning I read a piece by Olivia Reingold, staff writer for the Free Press, “Why Students in Kentucky Have Been Praying for 250 Hours”. It is a very good piece that paints a bigger picture of what I saw on that same Saturday in Wilmore.

Then there is this article by Michael Gryboski in The Christian Post which describes what is happening at Cedarville University in rural Ohio just east of Dayton. Gryboski interviewed Cedarville President, Thomas White who described what was happening at Cedarville as “a special outpouring and sensing of the presence of the Lord,” adding that “it will be left to the historians” to determine if it was truly a revival.’ And it is here where I have a quibble with President White which begins with this question: What is a revival?

I learned years ago that a good dictionary was essential when there was a question about what a thing is or is not. And so I resorted to Merriam-Webster where I found this: “the act or an instance of bringing something back to life, public attention, or vigorous activity”. But in the case of what is happening across the nation at different colleges and universities I found this definition to be decidedly unhelpful bringing no clarity to President White’s assertion that history will dictate whether a “revival” is in progress at Asbury or Cedarville or Lee or any other place now or in the future or the past.

So I turned to another source and found this:

”Revival refers to a spiritual reawakening from a state of dormancy or stagnation in the life of a believer. It encompasses the resurfacing of a love for God, an appreciation of God’s holiness, a passion for His Word and His church, a convicting awareness of personal and corporate sin, a spirit of humility, and a desire for repentance and growth in righteousness. Revival invigorates and sometimes deepens a believer’s faith, opening his or her eyes to the truth in a fresh, new way. It generally involves the connotation of a fresh start with a clean slate, marking a new beginning of a life lived in obedience to God. Revival breaks the charm and power of the world, which blinds the eyes of men, and generates both the will and power to live in the world but not of the world.” (emphasis added).

And there we have it; Christian revival is an individual experience. It is what transforms a single person, strengthening his or her faith through repentance and spiritual growth.

What makes what we are witnessing now unique is that there is a simultaneous revival of many people in the same place over the same period of time. How long this en masse revival will last is known only to God. But what is known is that sins are being repented, grace is being delivered, lives are being changed.

The questioning or disparaging commentary offered by those who have not been to Wilmore, KY or Cedarville, OH or any of the other locations where there is en masse revival occurring right now is of no particular import shedding no useful light on God’s hand at work.


Union, Kentucky

20 February 2023