Revive Our Hearts

For King and Country is one of the most popular modern Christian contemporary bands. Do you ever wonder where their name comes from? According to the duo:

“For King and Country” was the battle cry of English soldiers willing to lay down their lives for their king and their country. And now it has become our mission, to lay down our lives for our King and our country

What are we willing to do ‘For The Kingdom’?

In 2020 the blog addressed the idea of revival and a revolution related to pursuing purpose. Recently in media we have heard of several occurrences of revivals such as the Asbury Revival taking place in Kentucky, US. It seems like a revival is taking place right now in our day and time. The Nigerian gospel minister Dunsin Oyekan has also initiated a revival known as ‘The Outpouring’ all around the world, so far he has had services in various cities in Nigeria as well as London, UK and even more loading. Similarly, Nathaniel Bassey has been conducting The Hallelujah Challenge since 2017 and it has only grown more with several testimonies and people coming to encounter the love and power of Jesus Christ.

We have heard of the previous revivals but now, we have one taking place in our generation. The truth though is that revival is an everyday occurrence if we allow it to be.

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Luke 17:20-21

One day the Pharisees asked Jesus, “When will the Kingdom of God come?” Jesus replied, “The Kingdom of God can’t be detected by visible signs. 21 You won’t be able to say, ‘Here it is!’ or ‘It’s over there!’ For the Kingdom of God is already among you.”

But that raises a question.

What is a Revival?

It usually refers to the refreshing of our souls and a reviving of our soul’s mission as we are reinvigorated and reminded of the reason why we are present in the areas we are. As we look forward to celebrating Easter (the greatest display of God’s love for humanity), revival can mean a reminder of the work of salvation and coming back to the heart of Jesus Christ.

We might have read this Old Testament verse in Joel 2:28 – 30, where God promises restoration and to pour out His Spirit upon His people.

““And afterward,
    I will pour out my Spirit on all people.
Your sons and daughters will prophesy,
    your old men will dream dreams,
    your young men will see visions.
²⁹Even on my servants, both men and women,
    I will pour out my Spirit in those days.
³⁰I will show wonders in the heavens
    and on the earth,
    blood and fire and billows of smoke.”

This is a promise of God to His people. We are God’s people. So perhaps this is a time of restoration, to come back to the heart of the Father and to receive rest and revival for our souls.

So, why do we need a Revival?

#musings

The truth is that nothing else really matters except that which we do for the Kingdom.

Let His Kingdom come. May His will be done.

Excerpt from the lord’s prayer

A Kingdom Perspective

An analogy to orient our minds is to consider that we have a King that left his citizens in charge and in doing that a coup has taken place where the citizens did all sorts and caused major damages to the country. Another ruler came that was more abrasive to the citizens and arrested them requesting for the damages to be resolved. But the King sent his son to pay the debt and cover all offences of the country’s citizens. So, they are able to technically live in the country but aren’t subject under the authority of this other ruler. The ruler just rules the land but the citizens are not subject to his authority.

Jesus Christ gave himself up as a ransom for our sake. In John 17:13-19, Jesus in prayer to God the Father (aka the King) informs us that we are in this world but not of this world (verse 16). Let His sacrifice not go in vain over us. Rather, it is our duty to work to recruit other citizens that are yet to understand this to join our army of Christian soldiers.

And in doing this we are aware of 2 Timothy 2:4

“Soldiers don’t get tied up in the affairs of civilian life, for then they cannot please the officer who enlisted them.”

We do not entangle ourselves in the civilian lifestyle, rather we train ourselves for what is ahead (#ForTheKingdom).

One of my favorite verses to this day is Matthew 6:33

“Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these other things will be added to you.”

God’s kingdom is our first and foremost pursuit. In reviving ourselves, we are reminding our soul and bringing others to the awakening that ‘Christ is King‘. Those involved in the Asbury revival are students with responsibilities. You might say surely it’s not compared to having a family, people depending on you or a job that requires your full attention. Yet, there will always be something calling our attention away. The truth is what do we choose to give our attention to.

Ezekiel the prophet spoke of a vision in Ezekiel 37:1-6

“The hand of the Lord was on me, and he brought me out by the Spirit of the Lord and set me in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. ²He led me back and forth among them, and I saw a great many bones on the floor of the valley, bones that were very dry. ³He asked me, “Son of man, can these bones live?”

I said, “Sovereign Lord, you alone know.”

⁴Then he said to me, “Prophesy to these bones and say to them, ‘Dry bones, hear the word of the Lord! ⁵This is what the Sovereign Lord says to these bones: I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life. ⁶I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come upon you and cover you with skin; I will put breath in you, and you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the Lord.”

We call those things that be not as if they are. There is power in the Word of God. When we read it and meditate on it. We can understand the authority behind it and speak these things into our lives and situations.

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To engage in spiritual discipline is not a theoretical practice but is practical and should be practicalized so that we can engage in the battle of life.

Do not be fooled we are in a struggle daily over light and darkness. Good over evil. We have to ensure we equip ourselves correctly, so our souls do not become lackluster and lose the essence and hope we hold unto. That hope is Jesus Christ.

May God help us.

Recommendations for Pursuit

To seek means to search out, to desire something and attempt to obtain that thing.

Jesus used parables used in New Testament teachings and particularly in Matthew to showcase the treasure that is the Kingdom of God. It’s not made accessible to everybody, just those that truly seek after it and pursue understanding of the word of God. Are we among them? True pursuit requires brokenness to some extent and desperation. How desperate are we for Jesus? Does our soul totally and completely yearn for Him like a dry and parched land? We cannot come to Him in a lax manner or thinking about the refreshing or encounters we have had in the past.

Behold, He is doing a new thing, therefore we must forget the things that have happened in the past and look with eager anticipation for the encounter to come. We must prepare our hearts and have a contrite spirit to fully receive His Spirit. As he pours, are we ready and primed to be poured into?

#musings

It’s in the Small Things

We do not have to wait to do something grand to count it as revival. In fact just loving on those in our sphere of influence with the right intent of heart is powerful enough. How are we stewarding our relationships and contributing positively to our community?

Do you see someone struggling in an area, are you offering them your support, expertise and advice? Do we turn a blind eye to the struggle of our brother and sister and feign ignorance because we are too wrapped up in our own struggles? I know sometimes, we all have things we worry about but by leaning on God, he offers supernatural strength to help us in our times of need such that we will be shocked at how we can support others going through a similar or totally different situation.

We cannot operate like people of this world, they do not have access to the same strength and wisdom of God that we have. It’s not boasting or being prideful. Rather, it is a divine understanding of our identity in Christ. Imagine you had a child that never acknowledged or celebrated you as their parent?

It is our duty to recognise the supremacy and majesty of our God. To keep beholding Him in the beauty of His holiness and to strive to display the excellencies He has bestowed upon us.

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For the Kingdom.

In all our pursuit of the good things of this world, we must neglect to keep Christ at the center and His kingdom should be our top most priority.

1 Corinthians 4:20 says

“For the Kingdom of God is not just a lot of talk; it is living by God’s power.”

May the power of God be made evident in our lives and in our situations. May we not be people that deny the power of God at work in our lives to truly transform us.

Are you confused about a decision or overwhelmed with which direction to go?

When we seek God’s kingdom first, He provides us with divine vision and direction.

Here are a few recommendations of online media to help revive our hearts:

Motion pictures like: ‘The Train‘, ‘Enoch‘ by Mount Zion Films, The Chosen tv series

Podcasts like: TED (Tolu, Ella and Dara), The Table with AO (Anthony O’Neal), Whoa! That’s Good podcast, to my sisters & the Bible, Babes and Banter podcast.

YouTube channels like Beleaf in Fatherhood, The Winlos, Minister GUC and Nene, Maze Lee & family and so much more.

Musings with Mo hopes to be fulfill a mandate to gain the airwaves and media for the propagation of the Gospel. The goal is to build a platform where people can grow and be edified in their walk with Christ as well as encouraged to be the best version of themselves in their various spheres of influence.

Something to ponder, What does Matthew 16:28 mean?

“And I tell you the truth, some standing here right now will not die before they see the Son of Man coming in his Kingdom.”