Our theme for 2000 is "Revive Us Again !" Revival is a worthy idea that deserves our deepest consideration. It is my prayer, that God will work in us and through us so that the congregation will experience the greatest revival in its history. May we shine like stars in the universe as we hold out the word of life !
Revival brings to mind the need for change. That can be a problem if it is not properly handled. We must decide what it is that needs changing. We must search for the the proper procedures to effect these needed improvements.
If we don't proceed with caution, the process of revival will break down into complaining and fault finding. Such actions do not produce revival. They only drag the body down. Complaining and arguing will destroy any chance we might have had for true revival. If we spend our time complaining over petty things, we cannot shine like stars in the universe ! God, our Heavenly Father, is never pleased with faultfinding based on our "pet peeves". We need to understand that fault finding is not revival !
I remember the story of a man who was away for a week-end business trip. While he was gone, his wife diligently cleaned up and re-arranged their living room. Upon his return, the husband was livid with anger. "Why did you change this room?" he cried. "Put it back the way it was – and do it right now !" he demanded. He was not ready for change. As a result, he could not appreciate his wife's diligent efforts. All of her work was in vain because of his complaining and anger.
Far too many Christians act the very same way. Rather than rejoicing at the efforts being made to produce revival, they display a pre-disposed attitude of finding fault. "Put everything back the way it was !" they cry. "I like things the way they were !"
These complainers do not take into consideration that the "room" still has the same "stuff" in it. All that happened was a little "re-arranging". Such an attitude will not allow us to shine like stars in the universe. It will have the opposite effect. No wonder God is not pleased when His people complain and argue. To do so is to destroy the spirit of revival.
We do NEED a revival in this church ! Where should we begin? Perhaps the best place to start is in the heart of each and every individual member. What do YOU think? I think I'll start by attempting to produce a revival in my own heart. Will you join me? If we proceed properly, and cautiously, we will truly shine like stars in the universe as we hold out the word of life. God will be pleased with our efforts and He, Himself, will help us to be victorious !
-- George Carman
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