Never Give Up!

 In Luke 18:1-8, there is a parable about a persistent widow who shows not only her persistence but the heart of God and His willingness to grant our requests. The need for persistence in prayer is a must when it comes to a continuous revival in this world we live in. Jesus taught that we should always pray and not give up. It is significant that He used a widow to underscore his point. You don’t have to be a superstar to exercise this discipline. The late Martin Lloyd-Jones captured this remarkable truth when he wrote these words in his book Revival: “Now you will find that in all these instances, the movement began with just one man. Take the man who began the prayer meetings in Fulton Street in New York City in 1857, a most ordinary man, but he felt this burden, and did something about it. The revival in Northern Ireland, started with just that one man, James McQuilken . . . I dare not pass lightly over a point like this because somebody reading this book, whom I do not know, may be the person that God is going to use.”

There are numerous accounts of women assuming the role of the persistent prayer. Two sisters, Peggy and Christine Smith, were instrumental as prayer warriors in the powerful awakening in the New Hebrides islands off the west coast of Scotland in 1949-1952. Peggy was 84 and blind; Christine, 82, was bent almost double with arthritis. But these two women knew how to connect with the Lord in prayer. History records their praying alongside the preaching of Duncan Campbell in Edinburgh.

It encourages me to know that God can use me to stir the revival fires here in Findlay, Ohio. He can use you as well. I have often said that our community needs to see a church rise up because of the Spirit of God moving in the hearts of the people. Would you pray with me during the week for God to pour out His Spirit on all people? Join us at church for a corporate time of prayer on Wednesday at 6:00 – 7:00 a.m. and on Sunday at 8:00 – 8:30 a.m. Yes, God still hears and answers prayers.

It is exciting to see what God is doing in the lives of our people. From stirring the hearts of our international students and their families to celebrating baptism this past Sunday and hearing how God is on the move, my heart is overwhelmed in a good way. To think that God is not done here…

Sunday is International Day of Prayer for the persecuted church. We will have a special time of prayer designated at the end of our service. Come anticipating a move of the Holy Spirit.

Joy in Jesus!

Pastor Mike

Revival Fires

 During the great revivals of 1857-1858, people began to gather daily for prayer in theatres, tents, YMCAs, civic auditoriums, fire stations, and of course, churches. It spread from New York to Philadelphia, Cleveland, Chicago, and continued to move westward. At its peak, 50,000 people per week were being converted throughout the nation. It was all over the news. Can you imagine that being the most noteworthy news on TV today? The impact of a national revival went way beyond what most people could even imagine. But on the heels of this powerful revival, Civil War broke out. It diverted the attention from God’s transforming work. That didn’t stop God from moving. Revival fires continued to burn with 150,000 converts reported among the Confederate troops alone.

In Revival Times in America, Fred Hoffman tells the remarkable story of the battleship North Carolinaanchored in New York harbor. The narrative reveals how the Lord continued to work in spite of the bloody conflict that had divided the nation: “More than a thousand young men were on board. Among these were four Christian boys who agreed to meet together for prayer. They were granted the use of a small room far below the water line. As they knelt in prayer, the Spirit of God so filled their hearts with joy that they broke into song. The sounds so strange to a battleship arose to the deck s above, and the ungodly men on board came running to mock and jeer. But the convicting power of God so gripped them that many remained to pray and to cry for mercy. Strong men who were deep in sin were literally broken down and knelt humbly in repentance and in faith. Night after night the prayer meeting was held, and hundreds were converted. When men completed their training on that particular ship, they transferred to other ships throughout the Navy, and so the revival fires were kindled everywhere that American naval vessels sailed.”

I love reading stories of God’s Spirit moving freely in the midst of upheaval. It reminds me of Paul and Silas praying and singing to God among all the prisoners (Acts 16:25). They were not in the best of places. They should have been discouraged and worried about what was going to happen next. Instead, they were singing praises to God and many were coming to know this personal God as their Savior.

Revival begins somewhere. I want to go on record and say that it has begun here in our church. Pray for God to be glorified and the message of Jesus Christ to be multiplied throughout our community. Even in the midst of national dysfunction, God still moves. My prayer is that the Lord will move within every family in our congregation. Then I pray that He goes beyond our borders.

This Sunday will be a great day with a few baptisms to celebrate. Come, and expect God to move in a powerful way. I hope to see you tonight during our last “scheduled” revival service with Stephen Manley this week.

Joy in Jesus!

Pastor Mike
www.findlayfirstnaz.org

As If It Depended on Me

Charles Finney was a New England lawyer who became a widely-known and highly-sought-out revivalist. He lived during the years of 1792-1875. He became the president of Oberlin College in Ohio in 1850 where he continued to write extensively on the subject of revival. Let me show you an example of what he would write.

Suppose you were to go to a farmer and tell him that God is sovereign. He is so sovereign that He will give them a crop only when it pleases Him. So don’t waste your time plowing, planting, or even working the field because that would be taking the work out of God’s hands and it would interfere with His sovereignty. Suppose the farmer believed every word you told him. Let me tell you what would happen. The farmer would yield no crop. If all farmers would stop toiling their land, the world would eventually starve.

The results would be the same if the Church was persuaded to stop spreading the Good News of Jesus Christ. If the Church was convinced to stop praying for revival, then we would send the message that we are satisfied without the move of the Holy Spirit. If we just got caught up in the routine of life, then we would be supporting the thought that there is no connection between the means and the end. If the Church lived like it didn’t matter if we prayed for revival to come, then we would see generation after generation without hope or any thought of being changed by God. The means has a major impact on the end. The devil’s most successful means of destroying the soul is to get the Church to think the means does not impact the end. The connection is as clear in the spirit realm as it is when a farmer sows his grain.

What if revival depended on you? Don’t get me wrong. We don’t determine if revival is going to happen. God is the one who brings revival. But, God has chosen to use us as themeans of revival. It is when we pray and believe and show God we are serious about seeing Him move in our church, that He is willing to answer our prayer by manifesting Himself in our lives, our families, and our church. “If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” 2 Chronicles 7:14

Would you pray with me as if it depended on your prayers for revival to break out in our church? I want to invite you to come every morning or evening from 6:00 – 7:00 to the church for prayer. There are plenty of resources to help you know what to pray as you arrive in the sanctuary.

Remember that revival services begin this Sunday morning during our regularly scheduled worship celebration. There will be services on Sunday at 6:00 p.m. in the sanctuary andMonday at 6:00 p.m. in the Family Life Center with a chili and potato bar for the whole family. Tuesday and Wednesday services will be in the sanctuary at 6:30 p.m. Child care is being provided for nursery and toddlers age four and under each service. Elementary age children will enjoy a special speaker on Sunday night for a “Superhero Sundae Sunday,” and Wednesday night for “Wacky Pizza Wednesday,” then they will be in the service with us on Monday and Tuesday. The teens will share each service with us as we plan to grow together.

Put it on the calendar and pray for God to take us on a Holy Spirit driven ride of our life. There is something for the whole family for you to make this a priority.

Joy in Jesus!

Pastor Mike

The Solid Rock

 

²⁴ “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. ²⁵ The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. ²⁶ But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. ²⁷ The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”
Matthew 7:24-27

When revival is experienced in the home, we live each day as though Jesus were our houseguest. We do whatever we can to please Him. One of the benefits of Jesus’ presence is that it gives us stability during life’s storms. Jesus promised that when we build our lives on the foundation of obedience to His Word, it would not be forgotten during difficult times. He doesn’t say that His Word would become our strong foundation, He says that obeying His Word would be our strong foundation. As we go about this journey we call life, there will be times of testing. The foolish man is not the only one tested, Jesus says that the wise man will be tested as well. So now let me bring this home.

We are not to prepare ourselves, our homes, or even our church for a fair-weather storm. We are to prepare for a 100-year flood. We who live in Findlay know a little about that don’t we? The building of the foolish man and the wise man will go through the same testing. Sometimes it seems like our testing is different. Maybe it has to do with the amount of preparation, the obedience factor, or the foundation in which we build upon.

Fathers, are you preparing your family for the next trial? You prepare for it by opening up your life for more of God. Are you building on a strong foundation only found in the Word of God? Are you seeking more of God and then putting it into practice? Mothers, how about you? We are called to lead the way in our families. Maybe you are a single parent. God will provide others to influence your family for His purpose. God does not see you as a challenging case nor is He shocked at the events that led up to your family structure. It is an opportunity for God to show how powerful He is in spite of the challenges.

Starting this Sunday, we will be gathering in the Sanctuary for prayer for 7 days. Pray and ask the Lord what kind of fast He wants you to do. This Sunday we have changed the time to 7 - 8 a.m. for prayer. Prayer will also take place from 6 - 7 p.m. on Sunday night. The rest of the week will be 6 - 7 a.m., 6 - 7 p.m., or both. Come and hear what the Lord wants to say and plan to obey. Even if you have never spent an hour in prayer, we will have things there to help you. If we step up to this call to prayer, then I guarantee our lives, our homes, and our church will be changed for the better. Can I say that you will get as much out of the revival as you put into it?

I’m looking forward to a great day on Sunday. Join me for prayer at 7:00 a.m.

Joy in Jesus!

Pastor Mike

Fasting and Praying

 
Revival is scheduled for Sunday, October 19, through Wednesday, October 22. But as we all know, revival doesn’t happen by attending a set of services. It does aid you in seeking for revival. It is when we humble ourselves and yield our will to the Lord and invite the Holy Spirit to reveal areas we need to submit to Him. In preparation for revival, we will gather in the sanctuary for 7 days (October 12-18), and pray for God to prepare the soil for revival in our church and in our lives. We will meet from 6-7 a.m. and 6-7 p.m.each day. You can choose to attend one or both. This will be a time of directed prayer, personal prayer, and 20 minutes of teaching from our evangelist as he focuses on the book of Ephesians. It will be an enriching experience. I want to encourage everyone to consider blocking this time out.

I am also asking that you consider fasting. I grew up with it being taught not to talk about it or let others know you are doing it. I think that has made it a practice that is not exercised. In Matthew 6:16-18, it says to not look somber as the hypocrites do. They do it to be seen as spiritual. They want the applause of men. Fasting is a private discipline between you and the Lord but it is alright to talk about it and look at how you go about it. There are times in the Bible where it is a public fast. Isaiah 58 is a public fast we are going to look at later. The early church often committed to corporate prayer and fasting. Many have said that our generation prefers pot-luck dinners instead. I want to prove them wrong when it comes to our church. So let’s learn what it is to fast together.

Fasting is an act of sacrifice, humbling yourself before God. It opens your mind up to hear the voice of the Lord. A lot of times eating food can make your mind foggy, preventing you from hearing clearly. It is taking control of your physical appetite and developing strength to take control of your emotional appetite.

Fasting can be done in many different ways. Some say that they fast from television or particular activities. While I think that is a good thing to do from time to time, especially if you feel it has a hold on your life or is causing you to neglect much needed disciplines or activities. The fasting I want to talk about is a Biblical fast. There are four kinds of fasting:
 

1. The normal fast – going without food for a definite period during which you only drink liquids (water and/or juice). The duration can be 1 day, 3 days, 1 week, 1 month, or 40 days. Extreme care should be taken with longer fasts, which should only be attempted after medical advice from your physician.
2. The absolute fast – this allows no food or water at all and should be short. Moses fasted for 40 days like this but it is not recommended today.
3. The partial fast – it omits certain foods or is on a schedule that includes limited eating. It may consist of omitting on meal a day. You could also choose to eat vegetables only for several days. People who have hypoglycemia or other diseases might consider this kind of fast.
4. A rotational fast – this consists of eating or omitting certain families of foods for a designated period of time. Some choose to eat grains only every fourth day. Various food families are rotated so that some food is available each day. This would have to be an outside directed fast in order to properly eat the right food groups.
    

The important thing to remember when you fast is to prayerfully consider when and how. This has to be of God. Being a corporate fast, the when is set. Now how will you go about it? I would not recommend fasting for the purpose of losing weight only. It needs to be a spiritually driven purpose. When you begin fasting, it is good to start in the morning and break your fast at breakfast. The word in itself is break-fast.

The Bible has plenty to say about fasting and how it can help us to go deeper in our relationship with the Lord. The Bible records many different ways of fasting. God honors any sincere committed effort in the area of fasting. When we fast Biblically, Isaiah 58 says that we can expect many results. It is not just to humble ourselves before the Lord, it is to loosen the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke. It also says that when we call upon the Lord that He will answer. Read Isaiah 58 in its entirety and consider participating in a fast with your church family. This is truly a counter-culture event we will be doing together. It might even be referred to as radical. Don’t wait for others to commit, commit today.

Joy in Jesus!

Pastor Mike

www.findlayfirstnaz.org