Unending Persecution of Christians in Pakistan

The following is a report sent to us from a young woman who is doing the on-line Urdu (Pakistani) version of The Forerunner.

http://forerunner.com/urdu/urdu.html

You may also view some videos here. Although these are not in English, you can see what is going on and know exactly what to pray about.





Report by: Nosheet Gloria, Toba Tek Singh, Pakistan
Affected Areas: Korian and Gojra, District Toba Tek Singh

30 July 2009

A mob of Muslim Extremists burnt about 75 houses of the Christian People over the alleged desecration of the Holy Quran in Azafi Abadi at Chak 95-JB on Gojra-District Toba Tek Singh, later on Thursday, Christian leaders said.

It was a routine happy morning of 30th July 2009. In the wake of this economically depressed situation the peasants were heading towards their fields to seed therein with the hope of harvesting the fruit of their day to day struggle. The children went to the school to accomplish many of their forefathers’ dreams which had not yet been realized for generations, and the women were busy in their household activities, wishing to complete their household tasks before their children come back from the schools and before their men come back from the fields for their lunch. Nobody knew until then what that day was going to bring to them.

Everything seemed to be happy till the noon time, and still nobody had any idea of the great danger coming upon their heads. It was when Mukhtar Masih, Talib Masih and his son Imran Masih were allegedly reported to desecrate the papers inscribed with the Holy Quran verses at a wedding ceremony of their relatives.

An official newspaper “Dawn” said that 50 houses were damaged when the mob in a frenzy of rage held a jury where the alleged convicted of desecrating the Holy Quran Talib Masih was asked to offer apology over the incident.

Talib denied the incident and refused to apologize. Resultantly hundreds of people mobbed together and attacked the Azafi Basti.

Before the arrival of the mob, the residents had fled which gave a walkover to the mob which put on fire 75 houses. The ablaze also burnt many a cattle.

District Police Officer (DPO) Inkisar Khan fielded MPA Bilal Asghar Warraich and Maulana Noor Ahmad to calm down the mob. The DPO also suspended the Gojra Sadar station house officer at the demand of the mob.

The mob blocked the road to block the entrance of fire brigades to the village. Federal Minister for Minorities Shahbaz Bhatti and Punjab Minorities and Human Rights Minister Kamran Michael visited the locality on Friday and urged both sides to remain peaceful.

They said the Christians would be compensated for their loss. Minority MPAs Rafiq Pervaiz and Khalil Tahir Sandhu also visited the village.

DPO Inkisar Khan said a case has been registered under section 295-B of the Pakistan Penal Code against Mukhtar Masih, Talib Masih and Imran Masih without any arrest.

Local ulema and traders demanded the arrest of the accused and announced a complete strike on Saturday (1st of August 2009). Former MNA M Hamza condemned the violence against Christians as well as the alleged desecration act. In a press statement, he demanded a judicial probe into the incident..

Labour Party leader Tariq Mahmood, National Workers’ Party Punjab Secretary Rana Azam, Labour Qaumi Movement’s Shabbir Ahmad and Kissan Committee President Chaudhry Fateh Muhammad and other remarkable officials condemned the violence.

1st of August 2009

A mob of Muslim Extremists burnt about 100 houses of the Christian People over the alleged desecration of the Holy Quran in Gojra City-District Toba Tek Singh, later on Saturday.

When the incidence in in Azafi Abadi at Chak 95-JB was being condemned from right and left and by the officials of the government and by the TV channels, no rescue measurements were taken to avoid any other possible sad incidents. Almost everyone was talking in every corner of the region that the mob of the Muslim Extremists is very likely to attack again. The extremists were reported to have inquired from the people walking on the streets and roads if they were not Christian. They even were present in bus stops, taxi stands and other public places to take the Christian people to task. Some people were beaten just because they appeared to be Christian. In Pakistan normally black colored people are considered to be Christians. But there are some Muslim people as well who are of black skin, and they had to pay the penalty for their black color in spite of the fact that they were Muslims.

In spite of these facts no security was provided by the government, the result of which was that another sad incident was given a chance to take place. A mob of 1500 to 2000 people has been reported to have gathered for a peaceful political procession. They purposefully chose the place from where they could have accessed the Christian Locality easily.

The procession started moving dramatically, giving all indications of being attackers and incited their prey to concern about their security. It was blamed that Christians opened fire upon the mob first and the mob, in response, put the 100 houses on fire, killing 10 people including 4 women and 2 children with the fire, blaze and suffocation.

Chief Minister’s delegation consisting Dost Mohammad Khosa and Minority’s Minister Shahbaz Bhati visited the locations for sharing their concern and condolence over the great loss and promised the Christian Communities and steps will be taken to ensure that the lives and the belongings of the Christian Families shall be given all possible security. The Christian leaders and people shared their concern in their loud voices that such incidences are taking places in spite of all the vows and promises of the Government. Each new coming government does not care about things, and that the governments wait till the things are destroyed and then the officials only come for sharing their condolence.

Legal cases against the DPO (District Police Officer) and other concerned authorities have been filed who showed their all negligence which ended towards this sad incidence.

Mixed reports are coming from right and left. Some people say that it was Political Procession who got furious, while others believe that it was planned attack by the Taliban of Afghanistan.

We request you to pray for us all. We know and keep our faith in the fact that we are persecuted in His name. I believe that God is in control of everything, and He gives power to His people to fight against the Satanic powers.

I would like to request you to keep us in your daily prayers, and also please pray for the leaders of the Christian Community so that they may play their positive role to ensure the lives and belongings of the Christian People.

May God richly bless you and keep. May He smile for you and shine His face upon you. May His light keep burning in your heart!

Lord's Blessings,

Nosheet Gloria

Dr. Peter Hammond and Frontline Fellowship

I had a couple of dynamic spiritual experiences this week. The first was meeting Dr. Peter Hammond of Frontline Fellowship, South Africa. Dr. Hammond is a personal “hero” of mine and is doing more to promote true Revival than anyone I can think of. He spoke of his mission’s work in Africa – the vision is no less than “All of Africa for Christ.” Hammond understands that Revival isn’t simply life-changing on a personal and pietistic level, but nation-changing and world-changing as well.

I highly encourage people to visit their website: http://www.frontline.org.za/

Other resources are available here: http://www.reformationsa.org/

Not only are there numerous messages available for download, but sermons have also been prepared as power point presentations that you yourself can present and teach to your small group or church meeting. When presented under the anointing of the Holy Spirit, these presentations are truly life-changing, nation-changing and world-changing.

Dr. Hammond emphasized the following points:

1. John Calvin, although he is not primarily known as a social reformer and an evangelist, was more full-orbed in his theology and social theory than most people realize. Calvin’s view on justification by faith and a resulting sanctification translated into the increase of Christian efforts to reform the society of his own day and in succeeding generations.

2. John Knox and the Scottish Covenanters are primarily known as the founders of the Presbyterian movement. Yet this revival was not just a reformation of doctrine in the Scottish church, but also a spiritual awakening that affected the entire country of Scotland. This was the first nation in modern history that was literally converted en masse to Christ. According to Iain Murray, author of The Puritan Hope, there was not a household in Scotland in which one of the members experienced a profound conversion to Christ. The nation itself was born-again and the people of 16th and 17th century Scotland covenanted with God.

3. The English version of the Presbyterians, the Puritans, were responsible for bringing this vision to England and America. Men such as Oliver Cromwell, William Bradford and John Winthrop changed not only the politics of the west, but their lives resulted in a greater evangelistic thrust for the fulfillment of the Great Commission.

4. In the 18th century we can say much the same about the lives of George Whitefield and Jonathan Edwards. Their preaching of the Gospel, far from being a “salvation-only” message, affected all aspects of society.

5. By comparison, today’s Calvinists (and we evangelicals in general) are frozen in our devotion to God. We tend to neglect fervent prayer, emotional expression in worship and evangelism. If they were alive today, the Calvinists of the past would hardly recognize today’s Calvinists as being representative of their lives’ work.

6. We are currently undergoing a paradigm shift in the evangelical church from pervasive and being an ardent dispensational premillennialism to a postmillennial activism. This shift in eschatological outlook will be vital to the future of Christian cultural transformation.

7. The greatest century of missions was the 19th century. The world missions movement was initially fueled by the postmillennial hope. The eschatology of the founders of modern Protestant missions was almost universally optimistic. The result of this postmillennial worldview was claiming the nations for Christ.

8. The prospects faced by William Carey, George Mueller, David Livingstone and others in plowing the rocky soil in Africa, Asia and other “dark continents” was thought to be “dismal.” The immediate result of their efforts was a handful of converts. If these men had the eschatology and vision of today’s Christians, they would not have had the long term outlook that enabled them to persevere. The great irony is that by the end of the 20th century, hundreds of millions of Christian converts have streamed into the kingdom of God. These men didn’t live to see the fulfillment of the promise, but believed. Yet most Christians today are seeing the fulfillment, but don’t have their hope.

9. Frontline Fellowship’s vision is the transformation of all of Africa and the world. Neo-Puritanism is having an impact in these nations from children in home schools and church schools to the highest levels of government where presidents and high ranking officials are being impacted with world changing Gospel teaching.

10. In Sudan and other places, Christians are being martyred for their faith. What should be our response to this? We need to elect politicians with the backbone of Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan who stood up to communism, not to appease anti-Christian tyranny, but to defeat it. Our attitude toward militant Islam should not be a “turn-the-other-cheek-pacifism.” Military action by African Christians in defense against Islam is not only permissible from a New Testament perspective, but mandated to defend the faith. There could even come a time in America when Christians may have to take up arms against invasive regimes, false religions and an oppressive government in our own land.

Puritan Storm Rising!

Here is an experimental bumper for a video documentary on how the Reformed theology of the Puritans has influenced culture and politics. It's loosely related to the online publication, The Puritan Storm.

A Muslim Turk converts to faith in Jesus Christ

In this series, Yuce Kabakci tells of his conversion to faith in Jesus Christ as well as his vision for planting churches and ministries in Turkey. He explains that even in a "secular" Muslim country, such as Turkey, there is a cost for discipleship.

I'll be posting some more information on Yuce and his vision in the next few days.

The Party Is Over

Rusty Thomas is one of the few people I trust who has true prophetic insight into what is happening in America. A while back I posted his imprecatory prayer proclamation to the state of California. I post this as well. It is not a predictive prophecy in the biblical sense, but it applies scripture to the current situation America is facing. I endorse it fully.

- Jay Rogers

A Message from Elijah Ministries

"To make ready a people prepared for the Lord." (Luke 1:17)

Dear Champion of the Lord and the Preborn,

The Lord richly bless you! Based upon our earlier message, I decided to send out a national press statement called "THE PARTY IS OVER." Please keep this in prayer. It is scheduled to be released tomorrow morning. If you find any merit, please pass it on.

- Rusty Thomas

THE PARTY IS OVER

"The wicked shall be turned into hell, and all the nations that forget God (Psalm 9:17) ."

For the last twenty years, courageous men of God have warned our nation of these days. Our nation has sowed to the wind and we are reaping the whirlwind. America stands on the verge of possible economic collapse, where the bail out cure may be worse than the financial disease. Meanwhile Russia, China, and the Islamic nations smell our vulnerabilities. Added to these dangers is the increase of natural disasters. What can our beleaguered country do in such a time as this? Repent and bring forth fruit meet for repentance.

Legalized evil has flourished under our watch and stands as God's indictment against America. We can run, but not hide. America will never escape God's accountability for shedding innocent blood through the crime of abortion and parading our sin like Sodom through the godless, homosexual agenda.

The message and mandate are clear, either abortion and the homosexual agenda ends or America as we know it will end. Until now, America has refused to connect the dots between our spiritual and moral condition and the litany of woe challenging our nation. We pretend this party with death and perversion will continue with our homes, churches, institutions, and economic security remaining intact. Thomas Jefferson stated, "If a nation expects to be ignorant and free, in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be."

Due to the seriousness of the hour, the call is twofold. First, every Church needs to immediately form a pro-life and pro-family missions program to address and defeat the abortion industry and the homosexual agenda, while at the same time opening our hearts to those enslaved by Satan's lies to see them liberated by the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. If, however, the Church continues to turn a blind eye and deaf ear to these sins that have reached heaven, our survival as a nation will continue down the primrose path to destruction. The Church's silence and inaction is partially responsible for the corruption of our nation to continue unabated.

Secondly, we call upon all branches of government to recant of calling good, evil and evil, good by codifying the abominable practices of abortion and homosexuality into law. For far too long, they have defended the indefensible. They cannot make straight what Almighty God has called crooked and expect America to thrive as a nation.

If we summon the moral will to do these necessary changes, we may avert going the way of every other nation that shook its puny fist in the face of a Holy God. Otherwise, America prepare to reap what you have sown!

Why I support Chuck Baldwin for President

"Always vote for principle, though you may vote alone, and you may cherish the sweetest reflection that your vote is never lost."

- John Quincy Adams

Have you considered voting for the Constitution Party candidate in the last few election cycles, Howard Phillips or Mike Peroutka or Chuck Baldwin, but were discouraged by the following argument?

“A vote for Chuck Baldwin is a vote for Barack Obama!”

or …

“You are throwing away your vote on a candidate that can’t win!”

There is a fundamental problem with this statement in that it assumes that the Republican choice is acceptable. I had this argument with Ron Paul supporters in the Republican primaries. I argued that Mike Huckabee was an acceptable candidate and actually had a chance of winning. If only the Romney and Paul supporters would unite behind the frontrunner we could have beaten McCain.

The problem with my thinking was that the Paul supporters – even though they could not win – thought Huckabee was an unacceptable choice. While I disagree with them, I respect them for their uncompromising stance.

Likewise, I would vote for Sarah Palin without any hesitation she were running for president. She's not perfect, but acceptable. I am willing to make a mistake on a relative unknown who has done all the right things so far and stands for all the right things (at least in word). However, Sarah Palin isn't running for president, John McCain is. It is the "known" quantity of McCain that I can't support. I simply can't bring myself in good conscience to support a liberal Republican.

The Constitution Party is by far a better choice. I am supporting Chuck Baldwin because he's the best man running. If you doubt this, I ask you to visit his website and make your decision based on his positions.

http://www.baldwin08.com/

The Constitution Party is the only political party that recognizes Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior of humanity in its platform. Up and down, every issue that Christians care about is advocated – not without flaws – but in a far better way than what I have seen in any other political party.

http://www.constitutionparty.com/party_platform.php

Now some will object:

“What if millions of Christians support Baldwin, but we get only 10 percent of the vote and throw the election to the Democrats?”

It’s possible.

Many people blame Ross Perot for Clinton’s election to office with 43 percent of the vote in 1992 and then 49 percent of the vote in 1996. But there is a flip side to the argument.

First, the Republican Party needs Christian conservatives in order to win. If we “throw” an election or two, the damage is short term. Then we may get the candidate we want in the next cycle, or else the Constitution Party is an option again. It’s the age-old political strategy of purposefully taking one step backwards in order to take two steps forward. If we continue the way we are going now with the Republican Party, we are surely going backwards. Bill Clinton’s election in 1992 spawned the “Contract with America” – a conservative movement that didn’t go far enough and yet brought the greatest era of economic growth our nation has ever seen. A loss is not a loss when the better of the two frontrunners is a disaster.

Second, there are probably just as many disaffected leftists who would vote Green Party, Libertarian Party or some other third party instead of voting for a Democrat from a congressional session that has a 17 percent approval rating. When they see many of us leaving the Republican Party, fewer of them will be afraid to leave the Democrats.

Third, we will win eventually. I believe strongly in the “Puritan Hope” – that one day the whole earth will be filled with the glory of God. Supporting the Constitution Party is supporting the winning side. It is the only self-consciously Christian party. It can be our vehicle until something even better comes along. America will be a Christian nation, or another Christian nation will take its place. If we succeed in restoring America to the vision of our Puritan and Christian Patriot forefathers, our support of the Constitution Party in the darkest days before the fall of western humanism will be a source of joy and pride for our children and grandchildren.

On the other hand, I am afraid that future generations might look back and see that I supported “the lesser of two evils” – and hid my talents in the ground, while our country’s destiny weighed in the balance.

I realize an Obama presidency would be a disaster. I hope and pray that if it is truly a choice between Obama and McCain that somehow McCain wins and he either repents of his weak views on the sanctity of life, marriage and big government – or that he dies soon after his election and Palin gets the executive office.

And yet God holds us accountable for our actions as individuals. If we have the choice between two sinful actions and a morally correct decision, and yet the morally correct decision would cause us to suffer a personal setback, then it is still wrong to pick the lesser of two evils. We only win when we obey God.

Is Baldwin God’s Candidate?

I am not claiming that Baldwin is “God’s candidate.” Every Christian needs to follow his own conscience on this matter. If you can vote for McCain with a clear conscience, then by all means do it, but remember, “whatever does not proceed from faith is sin” (Romans 14:23).

But if you think your only option is a vote for McCain, consider this. Twenty years ago it would have been unthinkable for evangelical Christian to support a candidate who said in 2005:

The constitutional amendment [banning gay marriage] strikes me as antithetical in every way to the core philosophy of Republicans.... It usurps from the states a fundamental authority they have always possessed and imposes a federal remedy for a problem that most states do not believe confronts them.
http://www.cnn.com/2004/ALLPOLITICS/07/14/mccain.marriage/

Since that statement McCain has equivocated all over the place on the issue of gay marriage vs. civil unions – he's for fetal tissue research, but he's "pro-life" – and so on.

If McCain was acceptable or even near the threshold of acceptability I'd vote for him. However, a vote for a lesser evil is still a vote for evil.

Now most of my friends are supporting this man simply because he suddenly talks the right talk. We are no longer governed by the rule of law and we Christians need to do what our conscience tells us to do in order to resist lawlessness.

If we support this candidate, how far will we be willing to compromise 20 years down the road?

God does miracles and it's possible that some weird national crisis could catapult a third party candidate into national prominence. It has happened a few times in our history, Abraham Lincoln’s election in 1860 being the most notable example. However, God does not usually perform "miracles" without a human agent acting according to natural means. God sets up providential circumstances and then requires His people to act in the right way to receive the blessing.

Most people don't want to admit it, but we are living in the first stages of a tyrannical state. I don't think it is as bad as some conspiracy theorists would have us think, but it is headed in that direction. What was unthinkable 20 years ago is reality today and God only knows what lies down the road if the slide is not reversed.

Can the slide be reversed? Can we restore our nation as a beacon of righteousness? Will God do such a miracle and bring a spiritual awakening to our land?

Yes, under one condition.

If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. – 2 Chronicles 7:14

Samuel Adams said referring to the overthrow of George III’s tyranny in America:

He who sets up and pulls down, confines or extends empires at his pleasure, generally, if not always, carries on his work with instruments apparently unfit for the great purpose, but which in his hands are always effectual ... God does the work, but not without instruments, and they who are employed are denominated as his servants; no king, nor kingdom was ever destroyed by a miracle which effectually excluded the agency of second causes ... We may affect humility in refusing to be made the instruments of Divine vengeance, but the good servant will execute the will of his master. Samuel will slay Agag; Moses, Aaron, and Hur will pray in the mountain, and Joshua will defeat the Canaanites.

Yes, God does the work, if His people are willing to obey His commandments. I pray that enough would be willing.

The Todd Bentley "revival" fall-out

"I insisted much on the necessity of a new birth, as also on the necessity of a minister's being converted before he could preach aright. Unconverted ministers are the bane of the Christian Church. I think that great and good man, Mr. Stoddard, is much to be blamed for endeavoring to prove that unconverted men might be admitted to the ministry. A sermon lately published by Gilbert Tennent, entitled 'The Danger of an Unconverted Ministry' I think unanswerable."

- George Whitefield, Journal, 1741

If you are a person who was affected by the "revival" meetings conducted by Todd Bentley in Lakeland, Florida this past year, you might be confused or asking questions in regard to the fallout surrounding his ministry.

I hope you will read what I have to say here and consider it.

Prior to August 3rd, I had an internet conversation with a friend whose church is experiencing a similar "revival" movement. I had heard a message on CD from the pastor of this church and I thought it was very sound. At the time, I spoke my mind that what I had seen of Bentley on GodTV looked "vacuous" in comparison. A few days later, Bentley was forced to step down from public ministry. I wrote to tell my friend that I blame those people responsible for endorsing this as much as Todd Bentley.

How can it be a "revival" if the leader is preaching heresy and engaging in immoral behavior?

My friend wrote back to say that it is really too bad that people have shut out Bentley's message just because he faltered.

I then explained that I shut out Bentley's message even before I knew about his moral failings. It was the message that made me shut out the message! And in the end, we know a tree by its fruit.

My friend then suggested that to be consistent I should not receive the message of God's grace carried through prophets such as King David, King Solomon or the Apostle Paul, since they too sinned. Yet they were used of God to write scripture. I might as well in effect "shut out" what they have to say about God too.

So the reasoning goes.

I've heard the "David" argument many times before.

I have one word for that idea: antinomianism.

This is the heresy that faith is divorced from works or that faith does not produce obedience to the law of God. If these men are preaching the Gospel yet living in gross unrepentant sin, then they may not even be converted.

Here is what I believe God is leading me to say about all of this.

There are revivals all over the world today. They aren't in the spotlight or on GodTV every night. But they are genuine. I am not saying we should not seek God or that there isn't something wonderful going on in churches who are promoting "revival." I am just against the idea of treating these men differently when they sin and preach heresy because they supposedly have the "anointing."

The Emperor's New Clothes

The strategy of preachers in these revival meetings -- Lakeland, Toronto, Pensacola, etc. -- is to tell people who see their nakedness, that they just aren't "spiritual" enough to receive all the wonderful things God is doing, that they are "blocking" the anointing, and so on. It's a heresy in and of itself -- elitist Gnosticism.

Beyond the issue of personal character, I don't believe that meetings emphasizing gifts, miracles and the "presence" of God are necessarily "revivals" at all. Salvation is by grace alone through faith alone. Once we are saved, we do not become sanctified through spiritual experiences. We become sanctified by obeying God day by day as we are enabled by grace. In other words, there is no "fast track" to sanctification.

Therefore, we cannot "miss the anointing" simply because our hearts are not "open to receive" an experience. There are no higher levels of anointing you can attain in a revival meeting. It's complete nonsense. It's manipulative and it's totally contrary to the message of historic revival -- the message of the Gospel.

In 1994, I decided that experiences with God are a good thing, but you can have them in your living room -- or anywhere God chooses to move. Four years ago, God healed me of a ten day bout with atrial fibrillation in a hospital room. I was simply praying by myself. I rebuked the enemy and my heart converted to a normal rhythm. A coincidence? Maybe. I believe it was a providential healing through prayer. But this experience didn't bring me any closer to God than I was a minute before. Even though I certainly felt closer to God due to that experience, it didn't change my standing in God. Our position with God is a judicial standing, not an experience.

People feel the rush they get in a room of thousands of people worshiping God, and they assume this is the "presence" of God. It's not a bad thing to feel this, but it's totally contrary to scripture to claim that our standing with God is gained through a good feeling or an experience.

My Eyewitness Account

1. I was living in Orlando during Rodney Howard Browne's "laughing revival" in Lakeland, Florida in 1993. I visited several times and wasn't overly impressed. There was not any "supernatural presence" of God there that I could not find through personal devotion or in any church service or prayer group.
   
2. I moved to Melbourne, Florida soon after that and was disturbed by the worldly carnality of Michael W. Thompson and the antinomian teachings of Randy Clark. I wrote a position paper on that in 1994 called Revival: It's No Laughing Matter. I won't repeat the content of it here, but I tried to explain what historic revival is and why this was not it. This was several years before the leaders of that renewal movement were exposed in sin.
3. I lived in Pensacola during the Brownsville Revival. I had a friend who came all the way from Russia to sit in those meetings. He claimed it was the strongest anointing he had ever experienced. I sat there with an open mind and an open heart. I just couldn't bring myself to fake being slain in the spirit or to lie and say I experienced something amazing when all I saw was a religious meeting with a lot people seeking an experience.
4. Todd Bentley was more vacuous than all the others, but I expected the usual crowd to go along with it and claim, "This was the greatest revival since The Great Awakening!" as they always say. Even though I live in nearby Kissimmee, I did not visit the Bentley meetings.
   

How many times can people be fooled by the Emperor's new clothes?

I am nothing special. I don't have a "super-anointing" or a special gift of discernment. If it were not for the grace of God, I could be fooled too.

In fact, you may think I am fooled by a "hard heart."

So I will leave you with this.

George Whitefield preached that one of the signs of God beginning to judge a nation is that He will give the church over to unconverted ministers -- even those who do not behave as sinners -- and God will turn the people over to blindness so that they will receive them as angels of light.

A Revival Account: Asbury College 1970

Order the video at: http://forerunner.com/asbury/asbury.html

"The 1970 revival at Asbury College will go down n history as one of the greatest supernatural events of the last half of the 20th century. Millions of people across the United States and the world were impacted by it. This simple video odes a wonderful job of conveying something of the outpouring's heart and power. Everyone we have ever shown this to have an immediate impartation of faith for revival and the power of prayer. What God did once at this campus, we believe He will do again on every campus where a group of students will open their hearts to Him."

- Bob and Rose Weiner, Weiner Ministries International

What is true Revival and Spiritual Awakening?

Discover the answer in this eyewitness account by Dennis Kinlaw, President of Asbury College, Wilmore, Kentucky, who recounts the story of a visitation of the Holy Spirit in 1970. If you are a student who longs to see a spiritual awakening at your school, you must see this video!

This is the presentation that has continued to spark the flames of Revival in the hearts of people around the world. Contains eyewitness footage from the Revival at Asbury College in 1970 in Wilmore, Kentucky. Certain to challenge you to greater holiness and a deeper commitment to full-scale revival. Original news and private footage has been included.

WILMORE, Kentucky -- One morning in 1970, without warning, all heaven broke loose during Asbury College's 10 a.m. chapel service.

"When you walked into the back of Hughes Auditorium ... there was a kind of an aura, kind of a glow about the chapel," said Dr. David Hunt, a Louisville physician who was then a student.

"I always have been reminded of the verse 'Take off your shoes, for you are standing on holy ground.' You just walked in and sensed that God had indeed sent His Spirit."

The service, a routine meeting, was scheduled for 50 minutes. Instead, it lasted 185 hours non-stop, 24 hours a day. Intermittently, it continued for weeks. Ultimately, it spread across the United States and into foreign countries. Some say it is being felt even today.

This year marks the 21st anniversary of the landmark 1970 Asbury College revival, an unplanned, unled display of fervor that has been compared to the Great Awakenings of 1740 and 1800. This year is also the 41st anniversary of a strikingly similar revival Asbury experienced in 1950.

A bigger outbreak -- a global revival, in fact -- will begin soon, says David McKenna, president of adjacent Asbury Theological Seminary, in his new book, The Coming Great Awakening.

The revival might not start at Asbury, but it probably will begin on campuses, says McKenna, a noted author. He travels to many colleges and says, "I see the signs wherever I go."

Those signs include a generation of students wounded by family breakdowns and searching for spiritual fulfillment. Much of the coming revival will be a delayed reaction, McKenna thinks, to what happened at Asbury College 20 years ago.

Read the rest at:

http://forerunner.com/forerunner/X0585_Asbury_Revival_1970.html

Harvard faculty recomends required "Reason and Faith" courses

The full report is available in PDF format at:

http://www.fas.harvard.edu/%7Esecfas/Gen_Ed_Prelim_Report.htm

Here is an excerpt:

4. Reason and Faith

Religion is a fact of twenty-first-century life—around the world and right at home. Ninety-four percent of Harvard’s incoming students report that they discuss religion “frequently” or “occasionally,” and seventy-one percent say that they attend religious services. When they get to college, students often struggle—sometimes for the first time in their lives—to sort out the relationship between their own beliefs and practices, the different beliefs and practices of fellow students, and the profoundly secular and intellectual world of the academy itself.

Beyond these private struggles, religion is realpolitik, both nationally and internationally. Wars are fought around the world in the name of religion. Increasingly, policy makers understand that success in international affairs depends on appreciating the role that religion plays in many societies. Here at home, the United States is experiencing a cultural and political tension over religious issues that erupts in debates about the constitutionality of the Pledge of Allegiance, the display of the Ten Commandments on government property, school prayer, and same-sex marriage. Religious beliefs are also shaping vigorous debates concerning issues in science and medicine, such as evolutionary theory, stem-cell research, and abortion. These debates are not simply debates about morality or public policy. They also purport to be debates about the facts. A recent Science article reports that one third of American adults firmly reject the idea of human evolution (a number significantly higher than in European countries and Japan), and the rejection appears to b tied to religious conservatism. The boundary between the secular and non-secular today is confusing and highly fraught.

Harvard is no longer an institution with a religious mission, but religion is a fact that Harvard’s graduates will confront in their lives both in and after college. We therefore require students to take one course in a category entitled Reason and Faith. Let us be clear.

Courses in Reason and Faith are not religious apologetics. They are courses that examine the interplay between religion and various aspects of national and/or international culture and society. Moreover, these courses do not center on ethics per se. At the conclusion of taking a course in The Ethical Life area, students will appreciate the nature of moral dilemmas and understand principled ways to grapple with them. In contrast, at the conclusion of taking a course in the Reason and Faith area, students will appreciate the role of religion in contemporary, historical, or future events – personal, cultural, national, or international.

Courses in Reason and Faith can vary widely. They may take up the relationships between politics and religion, science and religion, culture and religion, epistemology and religious faith, and more. They engage with a wide range of topics, from evolutionary theory and intelligent design to comparative religious cultures.

These courses are not prescriptive: their aim is to help students understand the interplay between religious and secular institutions, practices, and ideas. They also encourage students to become more selfconscious about their own beliefs and values. By providing them with a fuller understanding of both local and global issues involving religious faith, the courses are intended to help students become more informed and reflective citizens. Newly developed courses might include:

Religion in Closed Societies. In what ways do religious movements inform personal, ethnic, and political identities in closed and secular political societies? How does that contrast to religious movements that form the basis of closed political societies? Examples include: the Falun Gong movement in Communist China, Judaism in the former Soviet Union, Catholic liberation theology in El Salvador, and the Islamic Revolution in Iran. Religion and Democracy. How does religion function in open and democratic societies? What role does religion play in the contemporary American political landscape, and how does it compare to the role religion plays in other Western industrial democracies. The history of immigration, assimilation, secularization, and religious freedom are examined in the context of the United States post-September 11, the “Muslim” riots in Paris in 2005, the changing role of the Catholic Church, and the increasing influence of religious political parties in Middle Eastern democracies.

Religion and Science. Since the late nineteenth-century, science and religion in the West have been viewed as unlikely bedfellows and incommensurable epistemologies. At the same time, much natural knowledge has been developed in the service of religious beliefs or institutions, and many scientists profess a belief in God in one form or another. Using contemporary and historical examples (“intelligent design” vs. evolution by natural selection, the origins of life on earth, the Scopes Monkey trial, Einstein’s critique of quantum physics, Galileo’s condemnation, etc.), this course will examine the intellectual and philosophical conflicts between science and religion as a form of a shifting culture war between the spiritual and the secular.

The Wars of Religion. From the Hundred-Years War to the contemporary conflicts between militant forms of Islam and the industrialized West, warfare waged on religious grounds has formed the basis of much of world history. This course will examine the modern history of religious warfare, from the end of World War II to the present. Examples include conflicts between Muslims and Jews in the Middle East, Hindu-Muslim tensions in India and Pakistan, the Chinese annexation of Tibet, and the violence in Northern Ireland between Protestants and Catholics.

Medicine, Spirituality, and Religion in Modern America. This course examines the intersections and clashes between medicine and spirituality in the contemporary United States. As Western scientific medicine has become more effective, more expensive, and more reductionist, the rise of “alternative” healing practices has grown dramatically. From Christian Science healing, to the scientific study of the efficacy of prayer, to mind-body practices such as yoga and tai chi, spiritual, non-western, and religious healing modalities have flourished in the last two decades. The course examines the philosophical, social, and cultural bases of beliefs about the body, health, and illness in contemporary America in order to understand the apparent contradiction between the parallel growth of scientific medicine and spiritual healing practices.

Reason and Faith is a category unlike any that Harvard has included in its general education curriculum, but even a casual review of the current course catalogue shows that courses in this area already proliferate. To give just a small sample of courses currently on offer that could be, or be modified to become, a general education course in Reason and Faith: History 1491: Religion and Popular Culture in 19th-Century Europe; Religion 1560: Religion and Society in 20th-Century America; Religion 1550: Religion and American Public Life; Government 90jm: Comparative Constitutionalism: Religion and State; African and Afro-American Studies 192x: Religion and Society in Nigeria; Social Studies 98ic: Why Americans Love God and Europeans Don’t; Human Evolutionary Biology 1355: Darwin Seminar: Evolution and Religion; Ancient Near East 138: The Bible and Politics; Religion 1820: Islam in South Asia: Religion, Culture, and Identity in South Asian Muslim Societies; Historical Studies A-27: Reason and Faith in the West. Other topics for courses in this area might include: church and state; history of religion in the United States; the politics of religion in medieval Christendom; religion and the academy; philosophical attempt to reconcile faith and reason; gender and religious practices; global Christianity; the Vatican as a religious and secular institution.

Harvard to reinstate religion in required courses

Seen on FOX NEWS ticker tape Oct. 4, 2006 – "Harvard committee recommends returning religion to the curriculum. The committee said the university founded 370 years ago to train Puritans ministers should require all undergraduates to study religion along side ethics and U.S. History."

For over a year, a group of community students, community people and ministers have been meeting twice a week at Harvard. The group has also been “seeding” the campus with flyers and tracts. A proposed magazine is ready to be printed: The Boston Awakening.

Consider this scripture: Luke 10:1,2: “After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of Him to every town and place where He Himself would go. He told them, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into His harvest field.’”

Pray about what you can do to help. Contact me for more details: jrogers@forerunner.com

The following flyer was distributed by Christian students at Harvard prior to the announcement. Is it possible that the committee saw the flyer?

September 26, 1642

On this date, 364 years ago, the board of Harvard College declared the purpose of the college was "To train a literate clergy." Prior to the American Revolution, 10 of the 12 presidents of Harvard were ministers, and according to reliable calculations, over 50% of the 17th Century Harvard graduates became ministers. The Rules and Precepts that were observed at Harvard, declared 8 statements. Among these:

“Let every Student be plainly instructed, and earnestly pressed to consider well, the maine end of his life and studies is, to know God and Jesus Christ which is eternal life (John 17:3) and therefore to lay Christ in the bottome, as the only foundation of all sound knowledge and learning. And seeing the Lord only giveth wisedome, Let every one seriously set himself by prayer in secret to seeke it of Him (Prov. 2:3).

“Every one shall so exercise himselfe in reading the Scriptures twice a day, that he shall be ready to give such an account of his proficiency therein, both in Theoreticall observations of Language and Logick, and in practical and spiritual truths, as his Tutor shall require, according to his ability; seeing the entrance of the Word giveth light, it giveth understanding to the simple (Psalm 119:130).

“That they eschewing all profanation of God's name, Attributes, Word, Ordinances, and times of Worship, do study with good conscience carefully to retain God, and the love of His truth in their minds, else let them know, that God may give them up to strong delusions, and in the end to a reprobate mind, 2 Thes. 2:11, Romans 1:28."

Source: Pierce, Benjamin (1833), A History of Harvard University, from its foundation, in the year 1636, to the period of the American Revolution (Cambridge, MA: Brown, Shattuck, & Co.), 5. <http://education.byu.edu/edlf/archives/prophets/founding_fathers.html>

How do Great Awakenings get started?

The following article is what was cut from my introduction to the Boston Awakening magazine.

How do Great Awakenings get started?

The traditional view is that Great Awakenings are sovereign moves of the Holy Spirit in specific regions at set times. First Great Awakening leaders such as Jonathan Edwards called these phenomena “surprising” and “supernatural.” They often quoted the words of Jesus regarding personal regeneration, “The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.” (John 3:8).

Although leaders of the First Great Awakening, such as Edwards, John Wesley, George Whitefield and Gilbert Tennant, did not claim to have originated the move of God known as the First Great Awakening, their names are so associated with the event that historians often imply that they were the cause of it.

In the 19th century, Christian leaders leaned away from a Calvinistic perspective and took a stronger “free will” approach claiming that under the right circumstances mass conversions could be produced by revival preaching and “new measures.” Revivalist Charles G. Finney once preached that “Revival is no more a miracle than a crop of wheat.” In his opinion, revival was simply the “natural” and expected outcome when the right “measures” were used. Non-religious historians and sociologists explain that Great Awakenings are the product of various convergent conditions that produce a mass religious phenomenon. Religious movements appear to occur in waves, not because of “surprising” or “supernatural” causes, but because of the cyclical flux of historical trends. If this were the case, then we ought to be able to predict when revival and spiritual awakening will occur by simply observing the trends.

Another problem is that the definition of “revival” has changed over the years. We tend to apply “revival” to individuals rather than to the Church. Individuals are not revived; they are regenerated. Being born-again is a sovereign act of God given by grace to people who were spiritually dead in their sins. A Christian who has lapsed into serious sin needs repentance.

Sometimes this is called “personal revival.” However, from a sovereign grace perspective, “regeneration” is for unconverted sinners, “repentance” is for Christians, but “revival” is for the Church. Revival is needed in the Church whenever there is a large number of unconverted church members and Christians who have fallen into habitual sin. In the 1700s, “revival” was associated with mass conversions that led to a complete transformation of society.

Toward the end of the 1800s, “revival” began to become associated with the evangelistic meetings held by men such as D.L. Moody and Billy Sunday. Some critics have pointed out that although these “revivals” have met the criteria of mass conversions and remarkable church growth, these could be considered normal activities of any generation of Christianity. Further, none of the so-called “revivals” of the late 19th and 20th centuries have affected the cultural landscape to the same degree as did the 18th century Great Awakening.

One thing is certain: if a Spiritual Awakening can be produced by human beings, no one has been able to produce one for at least 100 years. In light of this, why would a movement call itself: “The Boston Awakening”?

There are several possibilities from a biblical perspective:

1. There is nothing unusual going on in Boston.

2. The growing number of committed Christians is explainable by comparing it to the religious demographic of the rest of the country. As more students and immigrants move to Boston, they bring with them their normal spiritual experience. Boston is simply “catching up” with what is happening elsewhere.

3. The growing interest in spirituality is actually the beginning stages of an Awakening. Only time will tell if this movement will grow to the impact of the 18th century Great Awakening

4. A type of an Awakening is already here. It is the responsibility of existing Church ministers and leaders to transform the current pietistic “revival” into a Great Awakening – a cultural reformation that will impact the entire region and the world.

I believe that the fourth possibility is the current situation. There is never any shortage of opportunity. How do Great Awakenings get started? As the Apostle Paul preached, “From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us" (Acts 17:26,27). If God chose the places and times we should live, then each one of us is responsible for recovering His testimony in our own life, church, city and generation.

The Spirit of Massachusetts

About 20 years ago, the state of Massachusetts launched a campaign to compete with "I Love New York" and "Virginia is for Lovers." Since then, I haven't seen too many "The Spirit of Massachusetts is the Spirit of America" bumper stickers and t-shirts. Nevertheless, that statement is a profound truth. For good or evil, the spiritual trends that have taken place in Massachusetts since 1620 have influenced the rest of the nation and even the world. While Massachusetts is thought of as one of the most liberal and therefore Godless states in the union, there are several signs that a Christian Awakening is under way.

A few years ago, Christianity Today published an article on Boston's "Quiet Revival" -- a growing church movement has doubled the number of evangelicals in Massachusetts even while the population of the state has remained the same. The article notes that it is a "quiet revival" mainly because it is occurring among Hatian, Brazilian, Korean and other Asian churches in inner city Boston and Cambridge -- ethnic churches that few in the white mainstream are aware of.

http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2006/104/32.0.html

Soon after that the liberal Boston Globe published an article called "The God Squad" about the growing number of evangelical students at Harvard and MIT. One observer noted that there is a higher percentage of evangelical students at Harvard than at any time since the 17th century. While I think that is an exaggeration (the Great Awakenings of the 18th and 19th century had a great influence too)even my native Bostonian skepticism is forced to take leave and I admit that God is up to something in Boston.

God On The Quad

The Harvard Crimson has been running a lot of articles on the topic in the past few years. Understand that with a student population of only a few thousand, just a few hundred evangelicals at Harvard is a phenomenon. Contrast this with ten years ago, when the total number of professing conservative Christians was less than one hundred and you see what some have called an "Awakening" of evangelical Christianity. Some say it is a precursor to something major akin to the Awakenings of past centuries.

http://www.thecrimson.com/article.aspx?ref=357109

In order to really shake the nation, any type of student led revival will have to deviate from the pietistic movements that have characterized "revivals" in the past 100 years. In fact, every revival that has led to a Great Awakening (The Puritan movement, the First and Second Great Awakenings) have been Puritan or "Neo-Puritan" in character. It was when the majority of American churches rejected Calvinism in the mid-1800s that "revival" began to focus more on individual blessings rather than how the revived saints can be salt and light in the society. But even that is changing. Christianity Today this month ran an article about how more and more Christian youth are getting interested in theology and are rejecting the "seeker sensitive" and "emergent" models of church growth. They are looking for something of more substance and are finding it in Calvinism. After all, America was founded not just on Christianity, but on a Protestant model influenced more by the theology and social theory of John Knox and Oliver Cromwell than any other figures.

The Christianity Today article is not on-line yet, but check back at their site to see it eventually -- or pick up a copy at your local Christian book store. I'll be reviewing the article in a few days.

See a review of : Young, Restless and Reformed

Last month also marked the 200th anniversary of the "Haystack Revival" -- a prayer awakening at Williams College in Western Massachusetts led by three students helped to launch the World Missions Movement in America. Students around the world are being asked to fast and pray for a revival of missionary vision among college students. What is strange about the anniversary is not that Christian groups such as InterVarsity are promoting it, but that it is getting favorable mention even from many liberal groups. That secularists would celebrate the positive influence of Christian Missions inthe world needs some explanation that I cannot explain other than a sovereign act of God.

http://haystack.williams.edu/

Haystack Awakening '06

Of course, I've written about these phenomena since 1989 in The Forerunner, so it is actually exciting to see these movements gain a beach head and get noticed by the national press. It's happening at a time when I had almost despaired of ever seeing an Awakeing in the northeast in my lifetime. In 1989, I started a project called The Northeast Invasion. The plan was calculated to flood the Norteast College campuses and especially the Ivy League where future leaders are studying, with Christian literature.

This month we plan to continue this strategy with The Boston Awakening magazine. I was initially hesitant to take on the project, my skeptical nature rising to the forefront, but then I realized a simple truth. When one aims for great things, we only fail when we do not try.

The Boston Awakening magazine -- Personal thoughts

See: http://forerunner.com/boston/

In the past, The Forerunner was geared toward Christians who understood biblical worldview, revival and reformation. But we also included apologetics and distributed it to college students. Christians supported the publication and it was also used in evangelism. The website has given a lot of the older articles a life of their own. Several popular articles now have more page accesses per month than we printed copies of The Forerunner in an entire year.

While I am happy with the way my publications have turned out, I know that I could have done a lot better if there were a larger team of people who could have contributed something in their own area of excellence -- such as other writers, graphics and design, distribution and so on. My area of expertise is mainly content.

With The Boston Awakening magazine, I now have the vision to produce a seamless media ministry that would begin with a magazine that has an anointed prophetic word combined with smart graphics and attractive photography. And then make this available on the Internet through PDF and HTML. From there I would produce a news magazine DVD that would also be available on the Internet through podcasting, streaming video, and new video technologies just around the corner.

For instance, in doing the magazine, my vision has expanded and I am full of ideas. I see a larger multi-faceted media concept unfolding from this -- print publishing, DVDs, on-line video, web sites, and so on.

1. The Boston Awakening Magazine (print version)
2. The on-line PDF version
3. The web site
4. The Boston Awakening DVD
5. The on-line streaming video clips from the DVD
6. The live multi-media teaching seminar

The list goes on. The optimal plan involves starting several "Media Houses" in various parts of the U.S. and the world, which would be college students who would work part-time on one of the components and freely share their work with the Media House network. My role in this would be traveling and teaching students to preach the Gospel through media.

I don't see it as my project, but something that will grow out naturally of the youth revival -- which will spread world-wide as media technologies become more and more seamless -- one medium being easily converted to another -- language translation becoming easier through technology -- and so on.

I don't have the time here to explain it all and my vision is growing each day anyway. Hopefully, God will give me the energy and inspiration to keep it up.

What you are doing through music is an important part of this and you ought to seek as much as possible to integrate what you are doing with other types of media, in other languages, through many different channels.

More to come ...

- Jay

New Website -- The Boston Awakening

http://forerunner.com/boston/

The Boston Awakening website is now on-line.

The site features .html versions of the articles as well as a screen resolution and a print resolution PDF file of the magazine. A print version is slated to be distribued to Boston university and college students in September.

Email us if you want a print copy or if you are interested in being a part of this project.

- Jay Rogers

The Boston Awakening magazine

The Boston Awakening magazine is now on-line for preview prior to the print date.

http://forerunner.com/boston/bostonlow.pdf (3 MB file)

The publication is also available in a high resolution version:

http://forerunner.com/boston/boston.pdf (28 MB file)

But I recommend downloading the first one unless you plan on printing out a 300 dpi hard copy. I will be making changes and corrections daily so if you would like to review it, feel free. I ask people to take a look and be brutally and honestly critical of anything that you think. This can include anything from copy errors, content, writing style, layout design and theological issues. You can post your comments here or directly to me at:

jrogers@forerunner.com

- Jay Rogers

Revival? – Or Spiritual Revolution? – Part 2

The problem with some Christians is that they see “revival” as a mystical or highly personal spiritual experience. Revival has this element to it, but it cannot stop there. It must be carried out into all the world around us. Jesus did not call us simply to be “in the world but not of it.” He called us to be transformers of the world system. The sad fact is that most adult Christians have already missed their call to spiritual awakening. The vast majority of church-going America is too culturally irrelevant to be used of God to transform our society. In the meantime, our nation’s young people are ready to receive their marching orders. Can we move beyond our own pietistic foolishness to see the need and act as Joshua and Caleb who led a generation of revived youth into the land of promise?

Most adults do not believe that America can be transformed into a Christian nation. We see the reality of evil and lose heart. We have become as “grasshoppers in the eyes of giants.” This was the attitude that Joshua and Caleb confronted in the wilderness. God told Joshua and Caleb that they and the younger generation under 20 years of age would be the ones to go into the Promised Land because they had wholeheartedly followed God. They had full faith and belief in God that He could defeat all of their enemies once they went into the Promised Land to conquer and possess it.

Do you have the faith of Joshua and Caleb? Are you able to stand with the youth of the current generation? Are you ready to be used to lead an army of young people? Do you want to know what the plan of God is? Do you feel an urging to do something that can be used of God even though most Christians around you are fearful to upset the world system? The only effective plan of action is from God’s Word itself. God will begin to unfold His plan if you will simply covenant yourself with God’s purposes revealed in scripture.

Covenant Prayer: A plan to reclaim the promises of God for our generation

Covenant prayer is a method of praying whole passages from the Bible that contain God’s promises to His people. As you begin to read the scriptures, look for prophecies concerning Israel that are applicable to what you see around you today. As you begin to pray these scriptures, they will come alive and you will be inspired to believe great things for your nation. Every book of the Bible contains covenantal promises, but there are two places that are paticularly rich.

If you will spend just a few minutes each day not just reading but praying and meditating on the following passages, see if God does not give you a vision for revival in our time.

1. Isaiah chapters 52 - 66
2. Deuteronomy chapters 28,29

Revival? – Or Spiritual Revolution? – Part 1

Let me share my greatest hope about “revival.”

I have been a student of revival and spiritual awakening since 1985 when I was converted to Christ as a college student in Boston, Massachusetts. I know that revival and spiritual awakening are cyclical in human history. God is taking us toward a time "when the plowman shall overtake the reaper, and the treader of grapes him that soweth seed; and the mountains shall drop sweet wine, and all the hills shall melt" (Amos 9:13). In other words, there will one day be a time of universal revival. I don't know if this will be in my lifetime, but the Bible predicts that it will happen. So I believe it.

Since I have been a Christian, I have been in the middle of several movements that were called "revivals" by their promoters. I believe that the Holy Spirit was in it, but there was also something lacking. The Great Awakenings of the 18th and 19th century transformed America’s social landscape. Recent “revivals” are seriously deficient in this vision.

Here is a statement that would surprise most Christians. Today in America, we are in the midst of a spiritual awakening among young people. Looking at social trends, some would doubt this. But here is the irony of our Godless post-Christian nation: I could speak in almost any public school classroom in America and talk about God. Ninety percent of the students would be open to what I had to say. There would be no reprisal because it would seem normal to these young people to hear about God. No one would complain. In fact, this generation thinks about spiritual reality far more than any generation in America’s recent history. What they lack is leadership. Every youth evangelist I have talked to agrees that this is the most spiritually open generation of young people that they have ever seen. There is already an awakening among youth. Every revival starts like this. The youth are the kindling that set fire to the old logs.

The problem is that every time there has been a "revival" in the past century, we find a lot of adults wanting to receive an emotionally fulfilling experience that will help them with their worldly needs. Mature Christians don't need to feel “comfort in Zion” (Amos 6:1). We who received salvation when we were young already know about the excitement of being newly saved. Now God wants us to lead the next generation so that they can go beyond what we experienced.

What we need are adults who can lead youth to go to the next level. What we need in the next few years are older leaders who can hold “Second American Revolution” seminars for young people. There is no doubt that there is always a new crop of young people who are consumed by a zeal for God. But we need to be faithful to reap the harvest. Soon, as Amos predicted, “the plowman shall overtake the reaper.” In other words, once we begin to be faithful to the young disciples whom God has given us, we will receive many more than we know what to do with.

What do we need to do? The answer is simple. Young people are only looking for leadership to encourage them in what they have been called of God to do. It has been in their hearts all along. New converts need to be trained how to take the revival, not only to the mission field through evangelism, but also into the business world, politics, the media, education and all the power bases of the society. Then we will have something more than a revival. We will have spiritual awakening. We will have army of young people who will take back America for God.