Wednesday, May 30, 2007

on revival


Dwight Moody was asked by a small town to come and preach a revival. He was not feeling led in that direction but kept being pestered by the city leaders and so eventually he relented and came to visit them to dialogue about it.

Once there he was disturbed by the leaders belief that "he" could bring revival to the city. They were meeting in the towns school house so Mr Moody gave all the city leaders a piece of chalk and made them spread out across the room. He then said.

"Take the piece of chalk in your hand good people, and draw a circle around where you are standing."

When they had all completed this he then said.


"God's desire to revive his people is always
unquestioned. But for you to expect me to bring revival is an abdicaton of your own personal responsability. Do you see that circle around your feet? Look hard at it...that is where revival must begin! In you right now! If you desire to see your town catch fire...catch fire yourself; if you want to see healing rains fall...pray for the rains for yourself; and if you desire to see others become true followers...become one yourself!"


he paused to let it sink in...then said:


"When the circle that surrounds you contains revival, and you begin to move through your city expanding that circle, you will find that you needed only Christ and not me...that you needed only to find yourself...not an outsider. So then gentlemen...what will it be?"


indeed

what will it be?

Every morning I think about this...I think about my own circle and ask if revival is happening in it. This post isn't about me likening myself to Moody, it is about all of us asking God to birth revival in us first, and then in those around us whom we touch. This is the 1st question I ask myself every day, this and a habit of Jonathan Edwards that I will tell you about later.

What's going on in your circle today?

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

mmm, thanks for sharing David. That is heavy.

david sherwood said...

it is in a way. But it is MUCH heavier living either in the flesh or in religious gamesmanship and fascade. When we are in revival we are so light on our feet, so alive, so quick to confess and have clean conscience. Personal revival is envigorating. Not that we stay on the mountain, but what happens on the mountain helps us survive the valley. Personally I have found apathy and sin to be way heavier a load to carry. The insanity is that sometimes I choose to stay in those.

 

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