Revival! (4)

Now when He had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each having a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. Revelation 5.8

Ministers of Scotland: Lectures on Revival VI
The Rev. Alexander Cumming, Minister of Dunbarney Parish
“Never do we honour God so much as when our faith towers to such a heroic pitch of trust in him as prompts a boldness which will not be satisfied with any thing short of the boon that is implored, for we believe there is so much love in the yearnings of his paternal bosom that he will not continue to repel our requests.”

Boldness in prayer means praying to the Lord on His terms, not ours. He calls us to such boldness, to “give Him no rest” in our prayers, until He makes His Church a blessing in the earth once again (Is. 62.6, 7). He has promised us more than we ever known or seen. He is able to do exceeding abundantly more than we have ever dared to ask or think. Why not try Him on this? Why not pray boldly, persistently, fervently, and in a united manner, that the Lord will revive His churches throughout your community and use them to bring awakening to the surrounding counties and towns? Why not believe Him for what He can do, rather than for what we think we might be able to sustain? God is honored in our prayers when we treat Him as God, according to His Word, not our needs. Let our prayers rise like incense before Him, brethren, and we will soon find Him reviving us once again (Ps. 141.1, 2).

Do your pastoral prayers reflect this kind of praying?

Preparing for Revival
Maybe the place to begin in seeking the Lord for revival is to admit that we just don’t believe it can happen. The tares of worldliness are flourishing all around, and they don’t seem much interested in spiritual things. Meanwhile, it’s all we can do to keep up with the weekly work load. But while may lack the faith to believe the Lord for revival, He can help that unbelief if we cry fervently to Him in prayer: “Help my unbelief?”

Join us online once a month to pray for revival. Surely you can spare 30 minutes, once a month, to join with other pastors and church leaders to seek the Lord for revival, according to His Word? We’re looking for men who will commit to seeking the Lord for revival together. If you’re interested, write to me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., and I’ll give you a list of available times. Or we can discuss beginning a new group to pray for revival at a more suitable time.

To help you in preparing for revival, we have two brief books that won’t take you more than an hour to read. Preparing Your Church for Revival tells you what to expect as the Lord begins to move, and shows you how to get ready even now (click here). Restore Us! provides the rationale and means for praying together for revival. It includes 12 psalms to guide your times of praying together (click here).

All quotations in this series are taken from Ministers of Scotland,Lectures on Revival, Richard Owen Roberts, ed. (Wheaton: Richard Owen Roberts, Publishers, 1980). Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.