Point-of-View

I recently urged our Florida Baptist churches to participate in a revival during the 2004 year. Revivals are an effective means for reaching the lost and encouraging your church. The spiritual blessings and benefits that are experienced through revival are immeasurable for a church family. The unity that revival yields to a church is the result of prayer, planning, preparation, and participation in a focused ministry effort.

Our church completed a revival weekend March 12-14. The theme of our revival was "Redeem ... Renew ... Refresh ... 2004" Planning for the revival started in 2003 with specific details being designed for all areas of ministry within our church. I believe that revival is a total church commitment, and from our children through senior adults, all were involved.

I preached a series of messages on Sunday mornings that related to revival preparation for our church family. We engaged our congregation in Purpose Driven Life for the 40 days leading to the revival weekend. The goals of the revival were shared with our church family and became the focus of our prayers. The sense of expectation surrounded every aspect of the revival.

The Sunday prior to the revival our church hosted a Consumed with Hope Conference led by Jeff Hessinger of the Evangelism Department of the Florida Baptist Convention. This one-day soul-winning training and emphasis was blessed by the Lord. We purchased 3,000 E-Cube blocks for our church family. Our weekly outreach model is FAITH and the mobilization of our church for this afternoon of outreach was powerful.

Our church went door to door in our area. Each visit consisted of gathering family information, discovering specific prayer needs, and sharing Christ with the E-cube. The Lord blessed this effort as people trusted in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. The Sunday evening worship service included reading these prayer requests and praying for our area. This emphasis opened the heart of our church in a greater way to the spiritual needs of our area.

The weekend of the revival was anointed by the Lord. We created a celebrative atmosphere surrounding the revival services. The church provided a complimentary meal prior to each service. Events and games were planned for children, students, singles and adults. The worship services were filled to capacity and the glory of the Lord filled the sanctuary.

The first eleven weeks of 2004 were geared toward the revival weekend. During this time we experienced 86 professions of faith. Our Sunday School attendance increased by 5 percent over the previous year. Our offerings exceeded our needed budget requirement by $1,000 per Sunday. We received over 105 new members during this time frame. Our church made a major commitment to "Kingdom Business", a debt elimination campaign. God has laid the foundation and prepared the way for the rest of the year for our church.

I believe in revival in the local church. Revival is not old fashioned but a viable tool for evangelism for the church of the 21st century. Revival requires prayer, planning, preparation, and participation. Revival is hard work but the results far outweigh the labor. God has elevated our church to a new and different place of ministry through "Redeem ... Renew ... Refresh ... 2004".

I strongly encourage you to plan a revival emphasis for the fall of 2004 within your church. The Lord will bless your efforts and lives will be eternally changed to the glory of the Lord.

J. Thomas Green is pastor, First Baptist Church, Brandon.