WHEN REVIVAL COMES: OPEN HEAVENS DAILY DEVOTIONAL 7TH MAY 2018

MEMORISE:

As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God.My soul thirsteth for God, for the living God: when shall I come and appear before God? Psalm 42:1-2

READ: Jonah 3:1-10 

1And the word of the LORD came unto Jonah the second time, saying,

2 Arise, go unto Nineveh, that great city, and preach unto it the preaching that I bid thee.

3 So Jonah arose, and went unto Nineveh, according to the word of the LORD. Now Nineveh was an exceeding great city of three days' journey.

4 And Jonah began to enter into the city a day's journey, and he cried, and said, Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown.

5 So the people of Nineveh believed God, and proclaimed a fast, and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them even to the least of them.

6 For word came unto the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, and he laid his robe from him, and covered him with sackcloth, and sat in ashes.

7 And he caused it to be proclaimed and published through Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles, saying, Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste any thing: let them not feed, nor drink water:

8 But let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and cry mightily unto God: yea, let them turn every one from his evil way, and from the violence that is in their hands.

9 Who can tell if God will turn and repent, and turn away from his fierce anger, that we perish not?

10 And God saw their works, that they turned from their evil way; and God repented of the evil, that he had said that he would do unto them; and he did it not.

MESSAGE:
Today, we will be concluding our reflection on revival by considering the multiple blessings that it brings. After a people have sincerely repented of their sins, turned from their evil ways to the way of righteousness and humbled themselves in prayer, God always responds by showing mercy and sending revival to them. 

Revival does not only mean the salvation of souls; there are certain other blessings that always accompany it also. When revival comes, not only will people be converted to Christ, the whole quality of life in the immediate community, surrounding environment or even the nation at large will be improved. 

As a result of revival, ungodly and unfriendly cultural practices are abandoned and idolatrous cultural practices are forsaken. I have often shared this testimony that before the revival of our church at the site of the Redemption Camp on the Lagos-Ibadan expressway, it used to be thee den of armed robbers, members of the occult and dangerous animals. 

The neighboring communities were largely traditionalist and exposed to little or no Christian influence. The revival that started when we arrived at this site immediately turned the Redemption Camp to a place of refuge for our immediate neighbors and travelers on the expressway. 

By the grace of God, the Redemption Camp has now gained worldwide recognition as a place of refuge to all nations of the world. When revival comes, heaven comes down to earth and supernatural things begin to happen among men. 

Brethren, the anger of the Lord pending against unrepentant sinners is not endurable (Psalm 85:4-6, Hebrew 10:31). Only a fool will challenge God to a fight or wait for Him to execute His judgment (Isaiah 45:9). Only revival can restore genuine joy of salvation that material things of life cannot produce (Revelation 3:17-18). 

Revival also causes recognition of the need to effect character change for good, a rejection of one’s sinful lifestyle, and a renewed sense of responsibility. A revived soul immediately feels the need to share his or her testimony with others who are still living in sin and are desperately in need of the saving power of the gospel, a truly revived person begins to hunger and thirst for the increased knowledge of God’s word and for fellowship with God in holiness and righteousness (Psalm 42:1-2). 

True revival is contagious. The new nature of holiness, peace and joy that revival brings spreads from individuals to family, the Church of God, the community and the nation at large. This automatically leads to a great increase in soul-winning, reduced criminal activities, a peaceful society, abolition of ungodly laws, promotion of ideas that lead to real growth and sustained development. 

True revival turns the average human society to a model of heaven on earth.

PRAYER POINT:
Father, please pour out Your revival on every society that has turned its back on You.

BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: 1 Samuel 18-19;

Hebrew 13

AUTHOR: PASTOR E. A. ADEBOYE 

HYMN 6: A NEW THING
(Tune: There shall be showers of Blessing)
1. We will soon shout Halleluyah
Because GOD will do new things
Sinners will soon be forgiven
Prodigals will come home soon. 

Chorus:
Shout Halleluyah
Because God will do new things
Rivers in desert now flowing
Halleluyah  to our king.

2. We will soon shout Halleluyah
Because God will do new things
Sickness and sorrow will be gone
Bondage will be forgotten. 

3. We will soon shout Halleluyah
Because God will do new things
The barren will be fruitful soon
Failure will be forgotten

4. We will soon shout Halleluyah
Because God will do new things
Poverty will be forgotten
Stagnancy will soon be gone.

5. We will soon shout Hallelujah
Because God will do new things
To all miracles are given
There shall be celebrations

6. We will soon shout Halleluyah
Because God will do new things
Many will have testimonies
Of prayers answered fully

7. We will soon shout Halleluyah
Because God will do new things
One of us will chase a thousand
Two will conquer ten thousands.

8. We will soon shout Halleluyah
Because God will do new things
Songs of praises we will sing
Halleluyah to our King.