Are We on the Brink of Revival?

Article 22 of 37 from the Ponder This - 2004 series

May 2004 - ARE WE ON THE BRINK OF REVIVAL? by Dr. Ray Pritchard Is America poised for a great spiritual awakening? Many factors argue against it. Several years ago Chuck Colson issued a solemn warning about the decline of our culture. He spotlighted three ominous trends: partial-birth abortion, euthanasia, and the movement to legalize gay marriage. It may be that we are headed for another “dark age”� as America slips into the moral abyss and we face the raw edge of paganism in a situation reminiscent of the one faced by Christians in the first century. But at the same time, respected Christian leaders predict that we as a nation may be on the brink of a great spiritual awakening. Are we or are we not on the brink of a supernatural movement of God in America? I put the question directly to Dr. Mark Bubeck. There is no one I respect more for his spiritual insight and godly wisdom. His ministry takes him across America so he has a good sense of the big picture. Dr. Bubeck said that he believes there must be a new brokenness among the people of God before true revival can come. As long as we blame “someone else”� for the spiritual condition of America, nothing will change. God is using the moral disintegration of this nation as a means of calling his people to prayer and repentance. Whenever I hear someone bemoaning how bad these times are, I remember the comment of Richard John Neuhaus, “The times may be bad, but they are the only times we are given. And despair is a mortal sin.”� He is absolutely right. Despair means that we have given up, that we no longer believe in God and his power to change things. Like Nathan of old, the Holy Spirit is speaking this message to our hearts: “Thou art the man!”� We need not look at anyone else. Look in the mirror and you will see the truth. My good friend Robert Odom of Love INC told me that he begins every day by praying for personal transformation based on Romans 12:2, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind”� (NKJV). After Robert told me he prayed that for himself every day, I've started praying it for myself as well. Revival first begins inside the heart”“and then it spreads to your family, your friends, your church, your town, your city, your state, your nation, and ultimately to the world. I am reminded of a prayer that goes like this: “O Lord, change the world. Begin, I pray thee, with me.”� If you would see America changed, the place to begin is in your own heart. Let revival begin there and there is no telling where it will end.