Mindsets that hinder Revival

What does Revival look like? Many are seeking revival; they pray for it, they go to conferences to hear about it, many have gone into places where revival has broken out to receive an impartation. They have been in revival, but the revival has not been in them. Why? Because we have mindsets that prevent us seeing what the Lord sees! From the sayings of the Desert Fathers: There were two men who had become very rich and were always seeking wisdom that they might become even more powerful. They came across one of the Desert fathers in a cave, and seeking wisdom went into the cave. They sat for some time then finally said. “We have come here to hear some wisdom and yet you don’t speak with us” to which the monk replied. “You spend your money to learn how to speak: I left the world to learn how to keep silent, in this way I have seen the Lord, with all your learning, what do you see?” Our mindsets keep us locked into a pattern so that even when the Lord turns up we cannot recognise that it is Him because it doesn’t fit our mindset. The Pharisees and Sadducees in their blindness didn’t see the Messiah the very one they were looking for when he turned up, because he came in a way that was outside their mindset. He didn’t come outside of what the Torah and the Prophets had taught, but in their mindsets they had seen something totally different. Can we sit in judgement of the Pharisees? Like Elijah we hear the Earthquakes, we see the lightings and thunders, but we miss the small still voice that says, “This is the way, walk ye in it” Revival in my heart and yours is allowing our mindsets to be challenged by the creator of the universe, but not just challenged its allowing ourselves to act in obedience to the still small voice. At our denominations conference a number of years ago, there was some very good teaching on reaching the lost. To go out of our way to proclaim the gospel as He directs us. Every one flooded out of the Auditorium in Christchurch, happy to have heard such good teaching. My wife and I came out and sitting at the gate of the Church was a dirty tramp that was clutching a dirty material bag full of holes. Everyone filed past him hardly noticing him. The Lord spoke to me and said, “talk to him.” My wife stood and I sat on the footpath next to him, I asked if he knew of Jesus, He replied “Oh yes I know Him well” we talked for a while and it became increasingly obvious there was something very unusual about this man, we offered him food and he said no thanks I don’t eat. I asked if I could pray for him he willingly agreed, I just prayed the blessing of the Lord on him, He looked at me with flashing blue eyes pointed his finger at me and said “That’s the Holy Spirit, never forget what you have learnt!” After saying our goodbyes, I got up and we started to walk off, we turned to wish him a final goodbye and he had disappeared. Wow just imagine if our mindsets had stopped us from speaking to this man, we would have missed out on a lesson straight from heaven. As Jesus said to those who judged him for healing on the Sabbath Stop judging by mere appearances, and make a right judgment.” (John7:24) Ignatius Loyola was heading for a certain place early on in his walk with the Lord, he had been a military man and used to being obedient. On the way to the place he needed to be, he was hit by the presence of the Lord. He stayed in a nearby cave for several months and received heavenly visitations and instructions from the Lord. His obedient nature could have taken two courses. 1) He could have reasoned that he was on a very busy errand and he could not stop to seek the Lord, even though the Lords presence was obvious. 2) What he did do was come aside in abandonment to the Lords call. So what does revival look like? I can’t answer that for you, it may look like the inside of a cave, or it may look like a 5 star hotel. But what I can say is this. Revival for you will look like abandoned obedience. The Lord is speaking very clearly today, “Don’t allow your mindset of what the purpose of God for your life looks like, stop you from walking in it” Today revival in your life looks like a yielded heart and bent will to the purpose of God, nothing more, nothing less. No use running around looking to “Do” in order to “Be”. Because your revival is in the still small voice saying, This is the way, Walk ye in it” and the words, “by grace you are saved, not of works least you should boast” Enjoy the journey. Ian Johnson. www.papelim.org.nz ianjohn@xtra.co.nz