For several years I have been declaring that the church is on the verge of another great move of God. Personally, I believe now is the time. I actually think it is so close, one can almost see the water receding away from the beach back into the ocean in preparation for the tsunami wave. Here is my question, “Do we believe this deeply enough to get ready for the wave to crash on shore?”
Some of you may remember hearing me share how I heard the Lord say, “Prepare yourself to catch the next wave.” When I heard that word, I got really excited because that meant another revival was coming, and I was going to be a part of it. If we really believe it, we will prepare for its arrival. Let me explain it this way. If Randy Clark said, “Tom and I are coming to your house next Friday night for dinner,” what would you do? If you really believed it was going to happen, you would make sure the lawn is mowed, the shrubbery is neatly trimmed, everything in the house is picked up, dusted off and in perfect order, and the children’s toys are put away in their proper place. It would even be possible to smell the steaks as soon as we stepped into the house. But, these preparations would only occur if you believed you were going to receive a visit. If you didn’t believe we were coming, you would not go to the effort to prepare for a special visit from Randy. Whether we realize it or not, the same is true of revival. If we truly believe revival is just around the corner, we will make every effort to prepare for a Holy Spirit visitation. I continue to sound the trumpet of “expectation and preparation.”
One way every one of us can prepare is to get the house of God ready for an expansion in the family. A major need for sustaining revival is to raise up spiritual fathers and mothers. Without this step, it is possible to see at least part of the harvest slip through the church’s fingers. This level of investment into other’s lives is called mentoring, and provides a deeper level of commitment to people than mere teaching and coaching. Paul pointed to this difference in 1 Corinthians 4:15, “Even though you have ten thousand guardians in Christ, you do not have many fathers.” While teachers and coaches may impart life-changing wisdom, it is a temporary, task-based relationship. Mentors are invested in a long-term, personal relationship. They earn the right to speak into the lives of their spiritual children and provide more directive and specific advice when appropriate.
I encourage you to keep your eyes open for those the Lord brings into your life to “father” or “mother.” I can already hear the voices of protestation. “I’m not gifted enough; I’m not mature enough; I don’t know what to do” and the protests go on and on. You may not ever feel totally adequate. But remember that He can make you adequate. One of the reasons for this blog is to encourage you to think through what you can do to get ready to help father and mother the next generation of believers.
Lord, thank you for the joyful expectation of an expansion in the family. I pray you would call the fathers and mothers into place, ready to receive the gift of spiritual children and prepared to raise them up into mature followers of Christ.
“He will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of children to their fathers” (Malachi 4:6).