Revival: Something is Missing

I started a new Bible study that focuses on John Wesley’s life and the idea of Wesley’s revival applied to modern day. In graduate school,  I had a class on spiritual awakening and revivals. It was probably my favorite class in my studies. When you read about wildfire passion for God spread across the United States and England, it makes you hunger for that passion to spread again.

An idea from the study has stuck with me. The author of the book said revival happens when you realize something is missing from your life or your faith.  During the previous times of revival people found there was something missing in their lives that could not, would not be filled by anything else. John Wesley, while at school, found himself slipping from his faith as temptations of college were so great. As a result, Wesley and a group of friends started a group that their other classmates would refer to as the “Holy Club” or the “Methodist.” In the group, Wesley and his friends would study the classics, study the Bible, pray, hold each other accountable, and do charity work. The group had strict methods they followed in order to keep each other accountable hence the name Methodists. From just this small group of men at college a revolution of faith started across England and would spread to America. Wesley felt his life was missing accountability and as some scholars attribute to Wesley, and the Methodists, the modern day concept of small groups.  

My friends from New Zealand would refer to this hunger in your spirit like the Donut Man’s famous song states, “Life without Jesus is like a donut.” Until we have Jesus in our life we will hunger and search for something to fill the hole in our life. When we fill the hole in our life with God a fire begins to burn in us. We have an enthusiasm that cannot be contained. The fire for Jesus takes you from being just a regular cake doughnut to a scrumptious Bismark that cannot contain it's jelly and sticks to everyone else. As the church we need to help people find the only thing that will ever satisfy them.

Back when I first accepted Jesus as my Savior I had that need to share this life changing event. Some neighbors were over to play, but I decided to sit them down with my new Bible. I began to tell them about Jesus. After reading some passages we prayed the prayer of salvation.  My enthusiasm could not be contained.  Likewise, Wesley and his friends’ methods began an enthusiasm in them to study and share God in new ways. They experienced something new and wanted others to be able to experience the same fire as they did. 

However, a revival does not last for long. The fire in our hearts wanes as the trials of life test us, but as the writer of Revelation states, “To the angel of the church in Ephesus write:... ‘I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance… But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first.  Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first” (Revelation 2:1a, 2a, 4-5a). For the church of Ephesus they had lost the love they first had. Similarly, we can quite easily become lukewarm in faith as the first century church of Ephesus did. 

How do we combat lukewarm feelings in our faith?  Simply put, find new ways to connect to God. For example, try new spiritual disciplines like breath prayers or journaling or fasting. John Wesley and the other early Methodists fasted at least twice a week from when they got up until early afternoon. One of the beautiful things about Christian faith is the variety and spin offs of spiritual disciplines. Not every idea works for everyone as we are all created uniquely.  Who knows, maybe you will discover the next firestarter that spreads a revival across the nations?