by Daniel Bramlett
Where have we gone wrong? Where did we lose the fervor and passion our parents and grandparents had for the Lord? Why do we struggle to read a few Scriptures every morning when the generations before us were memorizing chunks of Scripture daily? Why do we struggle with a few hours of community worship a week when our ancestors would meet multiple times a week? Where have we gone wrong?
We can blame the media (cell phones, Facebook…) but I’m not sure that really accomplishes anything. We can blame our jobs, but that really doesn’t get anywhere. The generations before us certainly worked much harder and longer hours than we do. Can we even blame inflation? I don’t think so. Just because things cost more does not mean our faith should waver. It should make it stronger. The list gets long from here. We can blame society, the easy availability of drugs, the schools, the business community . . . but these accusations are empty. The source of our failure is our very own heart.
In America, we pride ourselves on being able to figure things out; to solve impossible problems with efficient solutions. But we can’t seem to solve this problem. Why do we keep spiraling down morally? Why do our kids face more problems today than a generation ago? Why does the world feel darker today than it did even 20 years ago? The only answer that is available is the heart of man is wicked. If left to its own devices it will run us further away from God every single time. The culture that lies to itself, saying “I can balance my relationship with God along with everything else” takes a flying leap into a black hole. We can look back and see this never works.
It seems a culture or nation becomes the darkest just before the dawn. The evil and rebellion that works itself into a group of people can take your breath away. As the 18th century drew to a close, the spiritual forces of darkness were at a fever pitch in their work around the world. But in the midst of that toilet bowl of sin and madness God began to work. He started revivals in Wales and England. These led to new believers who poured back into failing Churches. These new believers began to question the way things were always done and this led to what we call the Modern Missions Movement. Men like John and Charles Wesley, George Whitfield, William Carey and William Wilberforce literally spent every waking minute of their lives breathing out the Gospel. And as the 19th century began to dawn, a whole new world was being born. Stories abound of changed lives and changed culture. The abolition of slavery is near the top of the list, but the stories do not stop there. Millions of accounts can be heard of the men and women who ‘woke up’ to the reality of God’s love and new life for them. As a result, the 1800’s became a century of revivals.
This is just one example; one story among many of what we call awakenings. They look just like the word sounds: bright, new, different and quick. They come all of a sudden and leave a dramatic wake. It is for an awakening that I long and pray for.
This reality will not come until the Church of today humbles itself and begs for mercy. But we are far too proud and busy to do that. Romans chapter two nails us to the wall. “If you are convinced that you are a guide for the blind, a light for those who are in the dark, an instructor of the foolish, a teacher of little children, because you have in the law the embodiment of knowledge and truth— you, then, who teach others, do you not teach yourself? You who preach against stealing, do you steal? You who say that people should not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? You who boast in the law, do you dishonor God by breaking the law?” These words should cut our hearts as deeply as they cut the hearts of Roman Jews some 2,000 years ago.
There is not a group in the world I love more than the Church today. But that does not keep me from longing for her awakening. In fact, it enflames it! If just the American Church would wake up, we could end so much of the darkness that causes us to grieve today. I can lament our smugness in the same breath I can lament the way the media is leading our children away, but neither bit of grief will accomplish what we are after. Our hearts must change if we are ever going to see an awakening. And heart change is something that only God can do.
Do you long for something new; something better than what we see on a daily basis right now? Do you want to leave the world a better place for your children and grandchildren? There is no amount of legislation, economic upswings or political leverage that can accomplish these goals. “Oh God, won’t you bring an awakening to our land! Put us on our faces just like you did the people of Wales and Britain 200 years ago! Draw the masses to the truth of your Word and fill us with Your Spirit! We are helpless without you! We need you today more than any of us have needed you in our lifetimes! Please Lord, wake us up!”
Bramlett is Pastor at First Baptist Church Hope.