I am starting a new sermon series this week entitled, SATURATION: What Our Nation and Lives Really Need. The subject matter will be on the subject of revival and the place of God's Presence. I recently picked up a book given to me several months ago from a minister friend entitled, REVIVAL, by Brian H. Edwards. I have read numerous books on this subject and my graduate degrees are all in the area of church history (which, of course, would include revivals), yet this was the first time in a long time my spiritual pulse had been quickened to our need for His Presence in an awesome way. Don't get me wrong, I have always desired His Presence; but it is different when you know you are getting "hungry and thirsty" for Him in a way that was not previously there. It is a scholarly read, but worth the effort if one desires to see how God has moved and may move again amongst His people.

I believe our nation is in a state where the proper cultural circumstances are manifesting that God could come and bring to us true revival. We are quickly exhausting ourselves with problems that are proving to be insurmountable in the wisdom of man. Our answers are going to have to come from another location. If the church understands this season and moves to implement His precepts for revival, then we very well could see an outpouring of His Presence.

Ah!!! But there lies the problem. Do we as believers really want God to move in our midst in revival? Do we really desire to see Him move in an unprecedented way? Are we up to the demands and commitments His Presence will press upon us? I guess I could say, are we ready for the potential "untidiness" of His Presence? The answers to those question will remain unanswered for the moment, but I can say that something needs to happen for our nation to survive...and it needs to happen quickly.

As a nation we have reached a very low ebb spiritually and therefore morally. The church has very little effect on people's lives anymore. The masses hardly know we even exist. To cover our ineffectiveness, we have tried many things and alternate routes to reach people. We try to provide excitement and activity in order to keep congregations focused on promises and our production. We go to conferences to learn about better and more efficient leadership. All of which has its place in context. The problem is that our minds have been taken off the reality of our one glaring shortcoming...where is the Presence of God?

You see, I believe the answer to our personal and national issues really can come from a "saturation" of the Presence of God. In His Presence we will find joy, peace, hope, revelation, solutions, direction, and every other need we may have to live life abundantly in Him. In the next weeks (perhaps the whole summer) I want to teach and talk about the concept of "revival". After all, if you don't know what it really is how can you effectively pray for it? How do you know if you really want it?

Years ago, I was a part of a group that was on the brink of an outpouring. We labored in prayer for years, but when the moment came we missed the moment God had for us. I don't plan on missing that moment again. I am convinced that if God's people really understood what was at stake and what was possible in Him, that they would gladly embrace the outpouring of His presence. These have been great days at the church, but the water-mark is not how great the worship or preaching might be, but rather was His Presence in our midst? I want a sense of His Presence more than anything.

You won't want to miss this summer at Legacy. It could be the summer you'll never forget. It could be the summer God comes back to His house in a powerful way!

Planting A Cross

Pastor