Thursday, 2020-02-06

Bible Reference: Psalm 85:4-7
Translation: New Living Translation (NLT)

Bible Text: ⁴ Now restore us again, O God of our salvation.
    Put aside your anger against us once more.
⁵ Will you be angry with us always?
    Will you prolong your wrath to all generations?
⁶ Won’t you revive us again,
    so your people can rejoice in you?
⁷ Show us your unfailing love, O Lord,
    and grant us your salvation.

OBSERVATION: Less we take the words of our theme today too lightly, I would like for us to consider what will be expected of us in order for God to consider reviving us again. Prayerfully read the Scripture again, and ask God to open your eyes to what needs changing in your own life. We want to rejoice in the God of our salvation, but we must seek an intimate relationship with Him.

APPLICATION: As a young man maturing in the Lord, I remember ‘revival’ services that would last between 3 and 5 days. These were special services dedicated to encouraging the believers to return to a closer relationship with the Lord, or to restore fellowship with God and His church. The active church body would generally petition God to speak to the hearts of His people and to achieve a great work among them so that His church might flourish. It seems like today, pastors are satisfied that they lead the charge for revival every Sunday, but more than that, I believe that we have become a society that has brought the ‘instant’ demands of the world into the church. What do I mean by that? Drive-Thru restaurants provide ‘instant’ food; Microwaves provide ‘instant’ warm-ups for food, coffee, etc.; Computers provide ‘instant’ results for very complex spreadsheets; etc, etc. So with all the ‘instant’ conveniences that we have, why do you suppose that we can’t attend church every so often, sing that hymn ‘Revive us Again’ about once a year, and receive ‘instant’ revival from the Creator of this universe? Friends, our God went to great lengths in the miraculous birth of His very own Son, and setting Him up for cruel punishment and an awful crucifixion, because He wanted to show us through His miraculous resurrection that His very life, death and resurrection was a vivid expression of His love for us. He loved us enough that He gave – He gave His very own Son, so that we might be forgiven of our sin, through faith in His Son, and that we may receive the gift of eternal life – that’s life eternally in heaven with the Father and the Son! So when we think of ‘Revival’, and/or asking God to ‘Revive us again’, please stop and be reminded of what God did for us. I believe that we must ask God to help us to get our lives in order, center our minds on Him, be prepared to rid ourselves of this ugly/dirty world, to draw us close to Him, and also make us more like Him in every aspect of our lives. This will mean turning away from many things that the world finds attractive, but that may totally distract us from looking like, or being like, Christ. I don’t believe that there is a need for us to seek revival, unless we are prepared to acknowledge the greater value in our relationship with Christ. Saying ‘no’ to this world, and ‘YES’ to Jesus Christ – this is what might bring revival in our lives, and a closer walk with our Master and Lord.

PRAYER: Oh dear Lord, may the love You expressed through Your precious Son, be something that we acknowledge, have a desire for, and strive towards imitating daily. Please strengthen us to have no desire for the things of this world, and instead be totally devoted to being more like You. Lord we want to be more like You in every way. The world needs You. May we not be a stumbling block that would prevent them from seeing You, desiring You and knowing You personally. Oh that You may be glorified in my readers and I today. AMEN!

FOOTNOTE: There are two more pages on my blog that will provide you with additional information, one of them being ‘To Know Jesus’. If you have been challenged to make a decision today after reading this devotional, please click on the above page, or speak with a local Bible Teaching Pastor, or contact me at NuggetsFromGodsWord@outlook.com. Please allow someone to pray with you and give you help and/or encouragement as you begin, or continue your walk with Jesus. Words underlined in my blog might indicate a link to a song that came to mind as I wrote the devotional. Feel free to click on the link and listen as you continue to read or pray. If this devotional was forwarded to you and you would like to see more, please go to Nuggets From God’s Word and read more, or you may freely subscribe for a daily email conveniently containing each day’s devotional. If you are anywhere near the Sebring, Florida area and do not have a church home, I would encourage you to attend my home church. Bible Fellowship Church, located at 3750 Hammock Rd, Sebring, FL 33872! Click the link to check out service times and/or other special activities. God is at work among us! Please consider coming to worship with us!