Do You Need a Personal Revival?
(August 11, 2025)
I couldn’t write this article without first examining my own life, and I confess to
you that I wasn’t pleased with what I found. Now most folks who saw me from
the outside may have thought that I was in good shape with my God, but a closer
examination revealed to me a different story. You’ve heard the old saying, “You
never know until you ask,” right? Well, I asked, and God told me!
I won’t expose all my sins here; that’s not the point. Let’s just say they were
there, and “The Word of God is alive and active, sharper than any double-edged
sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow, it judges
the thoughts and attitudes of the heart” (Heb. 4:12). The question I feel the Lord
wants us to address here is: Do YOU need a personal revival?
May I say, you never know until you ask! It takes courage to ask that
question because God WILL answer, and chances are good it will hurt…to the
bone. But if you are willing to take that step, here are some thoughts to consider.
Don’t think that because you are busy with the Lord’s work your spiritual life is
what God wants it to be. Jesus told the church at Ephesus in Revelation 2 that
even though they were doing all the “right things,” they lacked the most
important thing…love for Jesus. He urged them to repent and do the first things.
Another factor to keep in mind is that seeking to know the Lord’s heart takes
fasting AND prayer. You must not do one without the other. Arthur Wallis said
that “Fasting without praying is merely dieting.” Isaiah 58 tells us that when
fasting, right motives and living are essential (see Matthew 6 as well).
It takes courage to ask the Lord to revive us, because when we do, we are really
asking for His Holy Spirit to examine us and reveal our sin. This is not pleasant but
so necessary. It is a humbling experience to be shown what God sees in us.
However, there isn’t any other way to be revived in our hearts and spirit and be
made fit for His Kingdom’s work. May God grant us that courage!