By Todd Kaunitz, Lead Pastor, New Beginnings Baptist Church, Longview, TX.
It is an understatement to say, “When God shows up, everything changes.” When the infinite power and presence of God enters the equation, it is impossible for things to stay the same. Just as a person could not stand directly in the hot summer sun for a length of time without it causing significant physical change, a person cannot be in the manifest presence of the God who made the sun and remain spiritually unchanged. This should bring us to the sad reality that God’s manifest presence is absent in most of the churches across our nation. How can we see hundreds of thousands of people gathering weekly in our churches and see so little life change? I believe the root problem in the church today is not declining attendance, declining baptisms, or the absence of biblical preaching. These could only be symptoms. No, I believe the root problem is that the absence of desperate prayer has led to the absence of God’s manifest power and presence. The question we should be asking is not where are our people and how do we get them to return to church? Rather, the question is, where is the presence of the Holy Spirit and how do we get Him to return?
So, what is the answer? It’s not more manpower, better methods, or innovative ministries. The answer is a return to desperate prayer that is fueled by a deep desire for the presence of God. And here’s the encouraging news: we are actually seeing this happen! In recent days, God has been doing some incredible things across the country in an increasing number of our churches. There is a wave of revival that is happening! Stories are being shared of miraculous healings, repentance from sin, restored marriages, freedom from addictions, and an exponential number of salvations and baptisms. What is the catalyst for this powerful move of God? The one common denominator in each of the churches experiencing this move of the Holy Spirit is a return to desperate prayer. In most places, these prayer movements are motivated by a recognition of the absence of God’s manifest presence. In different ways, these churches are coming to the end of their earthly solutions to Kingdom problems. They were honest about their true spiritual condition and made seeking the face of God in prayer their highest priority.
God promises that when we seek Him in desperation, He will be found! In Jeremiah 29:13, He tells His people who are deep in spiritual darkness, “You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.” Prayer is the path we take to seek Him with all of our heart. Without a return to both personal and corporate prayer, we will not see revival. Jonathan Edwards wrote, “The prophets, in their prophecies of the restoration and advancement of the church, very often speak of it as what shall be done in answer to the prayers of God’s people…The Scriptures give us great reason to think, that when once there comes to appear much of a spirit of prayer in the church of God for this mercy, then it will soon be accomplished…it will be fulfilled something after this manner; first, that there shall be given much of a spirit of prayer to God’s people, in many places disposing them to come into an express agreement, unitedly to pray to God in an extraordinary manner…It is God’s will, through his wonderful grace, that the prayers of his saints should be one great and principal means of carrying on the designs of Christ’s kingdom in the world. When God has something very great to accomplish for his church, ‘tis his will that there should precede it the extraordinary prayers of his people.”
When God’s people pray together, there is a supernatural outpouring that happens in the church! There is also a supernatural favor or grace that He bestows upon us. Doors will open, resources will be provided, and divine opportunity will be given to God’s people! But most importantly, God’s presence will be encountered, enjoyed, and experienced. Remember, “When God shows up, everything changes!” My prayer for Arkansas Baptists and our nation is to witness the largest prayer movement among our churches we have ever seen. In turn, I pray that it will usher in the greatest revival this generation has ever experienced.