CHAPTER 1 - PART 3
“Everybody seems to want “revival,” thinking it is a pleasant and enjoyable experience. But to be revived is to be shaken out of a state of slumber, to be jolted out of apathetic complacency, to be alarmed, awakened, and startled.”– Daniel Kolenda
WHAT IS REVIVAL
In Amos 6:1 (amp) the prophet declares, “Woe to those who are at ease in Zion, and to those on the mountain of Samaria who are careless and feel secure.” The children of Israel had grown apathetic in their prosperity and comfort. They had lost their sense of urgency and were not concerned about the things of God. But their perceived security was a myth. The mercy of God that held back disaster was stretched to the limit, and in verse 7 (NASB) God says the party is over! “Therefore, they will now go into exile at the head of the exiles, and the sprawlers’ banqueting will pass away.” Only after disaster had struck and the nation found itself in the chains of captivity did it turn to the Lord again.
God forbid that we should have to be shaken out of our complacency by tragedy or disaster. How much better it would be if we would remain vigilant in prayer, recognising that even in the good times, “your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour” (1 Peter 5:8).
