Are You Normal?

“I am the Lord, and I do not change. That is why you descendants of Jacob are not already destroyed. Ever since the days of your ancestors, you have scorned my decrees and failed to obey them. Now return to me, and I will return to you,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.

“But you ask, ‘How can we return when we have never gone away?’ (Malachi 3:6-7 NLT)

Were they serious?! How could God’s people be so blind? Could they not see how far they had wandered from God?

The truth is that we are in the same boat as Israel in these verses and don't know it. We don’t realize how far we’ve drifted away from God. Could it be that what we think is “normal” Christianity is “normal” at all?

Vance Havner once said, “The church is so subnormal that if it ever got back to the New Testament normal it would seem to people to be abnormal.”

Let’s take a look at where we are.

The Normal Christian Life:

1.       Intimate fellowship with God. – Are you as close to God as you’ve ever been? Are you as close to God as you want to be? When our fellowship with God is broken it’s because of our choices.

2.       Joy in God’s presence. – Psalm 16:11 says, “In His presence there is fullness of joy.” Do you have a quiet time with God out of duty or pure joy. Are you aware of God’s presence? In church? When you get alone with Him? Do you long for His presence?

3.       Sense of Peace. – Are you worried all the time? Complaining? The normal Christian lives his/her life with an unexplainable peace. Does peace “rule your heart?”

4.       Holy Life. – The normal Christian life is a life of holiness, purity. Do you strive to be clean before God? Are you selective about what you listen to, watch, wear, say, how you act? Would you say that you’re becoming more and more like Jesus every day?

5.       Spirit-Filled Life. – A normal Christian is being filled with the Holy Spirit all day every day. Is the Holy Spirit having more and more control of you? Are you living in complete victory over sin?

6.       Recognizing God’s Voice. – Do you know when God is speaking to you? Give one example today when God spoke to you and you obeyed. Is your prayer life one-way?

7.       Fruit of the Spirit. – Is your life characterized by “Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control?”

8.       Experiencing God’s Power. - Would you say that the word “powerful” accurately describes your walk with God? Do impossible things happen when you pray? Do you live in constant defeat?

To put it simply, Revival is returning to God. But first we have to see that we have turned. When God begins to work in revival, His people begin to have a sense of their own need. God, by His grace, begins to shine the light on our hearts. We can’t detect our own sin without God’s grace at work in our lives.

So, do you find yourself drifting from the “normal” that God desires for your life? Or would you say, “I’m ok. I’m doing just fine.” (See Revelation 3:14-21.)

I’m waking up to the reality that I’m not really that “normal.” Are you?

List adapted from “Fresh Encounter” by Henry and Richard Blackaby and Claude King.

I Want More

I have a consuming passion in my life right now. It is a passion that God has placed there. I am desperate for revival. I’m not talking about another planned week of meetings with great music and preaching (cds available in the back). I’m not talking about church growth. With all my heart I want to see a heaven-sent, God-glorifying awakening sweep across this nation. This is not just a hope. It is a burden. A fire that will not be quenched. It is eating me alive!

When I share this tremendous burden with people I meet, I get the strangest reactions. I’ve found that this sort of talk elicits 3 different reactions:

1.       Blank stare (maybe with a slight head nod)

2.       “Amen!” (These people acknowledge that “the world’s in a mess” and that “revival” or at least something similar might help.)

3.       Those who actually get it. There is a remnant in which God has implanted a burden for His glory. These people live in a state of brokenness and even discontent because they aren’t living in revival. God is being deprived of the glory that He deserves, and therefore, they cannot be satisfied with the way things are.

Del Fehsenfeld, founder of Life Action Ministries (an awesome organization committed to being a catalyst for genuine revival) defined revival this way…

“Revival is when God bursts on the scene and displays His glory.”

Now, doesn’t that sound more enticing than just another tent meeting, concert, or church service?! Think of it! What if God really did “burst on the scene and display His glory”? What would that look like? Would it look like “church as usual”? I don’t think so.

Genuine revival and awakening cannot be planned, produced, or manipulated. It is a sovereign act of God. It is evidence of His mercy. It is God coming to visit His people and making His glory known.

Do we deserve it? Nope.

Do we need it? Yep.

Will God actually do it? We don’t have to wonder. He’s already promised us…

“If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” (1 Chronicles 7:14)

Let’s believe God will do what He said He would do.
Let’s do what’s required of us.