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We want a prayer for revival, but are we willing to do the steps it takes to create revival?
That question has been sitting heavy in my heart lately as I study more about revivals.
While studying revivals, God beautifully orchestrated me meeting Dr. Debbie Daley-Salinger, the author of God’s Match: How to Light a Fire In Your Church. She received her doctorate studying revivals, and wrote a book on her findings and how the church can be part of this incredible movement.
Dr. Daley-Salinger said something that stuck with me: the two things that seemed to bring revival were one person saying yes to God, and prayer.
How easily we could be that one person if we open our hearts and minds to saying “yes” to whatever God calls of us!
However, are we willing to do the steps that it takes?
Here’s the thing: many Christians are excited about the opportunity to create a revival, or the idea of bringing many to Christ through coming together in worship and prayer. But sometimes we do not understand what it takes to be part of that movement.
Like many Christians, I pray to see revival happen once in my lifetime. It is a burning desire deep in my heart.
However, I did not realize for many years that I was not willing to take steps to lead to revival. It took me truly asking God to remove blinders to understand what is needed for revival.
What is needed for a revival?
In order to have a spiritual awakening, in order to have true revival, there must be a clean and repentant heart.
How do we know that repentance is so important?
When I was at the Whisper Gathering, a women’s retreat all about hearing the still, small voice of God and learning about repentance, Dr. Leanna Hollis stated something that I had never realized before.
Repentance was Jesus’ first message he brought to the world.
Think about that for a moment.
In Mark 1, Jesus is baptized by John, who previously called for people to confess their sins and be baptized. After that, Jesus is led into the wilderness and tempted for 40 days. When he is done, Jesus went to Galilee, proclaiming the Good news. In Mark 1:15 it says: “The kingdom of God has come near. Repent and believe the good news!”
The first thing Jesus did was ask people to repent, and then to believe the Good News. That is just how important repentance is; Jesus called us to repent before we even fully believed.
It was at that moment that I realized I would sometimes ask God to forgive my sins, but I wasn’t fully turning away from sin. To repent is more than to say “I’m sorry,” it is to say that we will try our absolute best not to do something again.
Before we can pray for revival, we must have a repentant heart.
Psalm 51:10 says “Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit in me.”
If we fully repent to God, we can be renewed, as His mercies are new every morning (Lamentations 3:23). How amazing is that?!
We must examine our own life before moving forward.
There is nothing better than seeing someone come to God with a broken spirit, and wanting a new heart. It is amazing to see how someone changes when they give their lives to God.
If we can fully give our lives to God, we can see others do the same. That is the type of revival I want to see.
Who can we look to for examples of revival?
My favorite example of revival was The Businessmen’s Revival, also known as the Joseph Lanphier revival as it was led by Joseph Lanphier. Like Dr. Daley-Salinger said above, this was one man who created a revival through prayer. He invited everyone he could encounter to a prayer meeting.
The first meeting, no one showed up until forty minutes in. By the end, there were only six people in that first meeting. However, Lanphier knew God was doing a new thing and so he did not let the size of the prayer meeting stop him.
That was September 23, 1857. By October 7, there were 40 people at these prayer meetings. Before long, it created revival, taking up a whole community of New York.
See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland. (Isaiah 43:19)
If you go farther back, Jonathan Edwards helped lead revival in the 1730s and 1740s. He always believed that revival was the work of God, never the work of man. Learn more about Jonathan Edwards here.
When you think about revival, there are three types of revival that should be considered. It is only fair to consider all three of them: personal revival, community revival, and worldwide revival.
Here are three examples prayers you can pray for revival:
Personal Revival
A Prayer For Personal Revival
O God, your great love is overwhelming. Oh, how often I am like an Israelite and forget all the miracles that you have done for me! Create in me a pure heart, O Lord, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Give me a heart for revival, and to see every heart come to You. But it needs to start with me, Lord. Remove any blinders I have about how I act day-to-day, and help me work on sanctification, or becoming more holy and more like You every day. Make this desire more overwhelming than anything else in my life. Amen.
Community Revival
A Prayer for Community Revival
Dear Heavenly Father, My community is in deep need of spiritual healing. Create in me a heart to examine my community as a mission field, and everywhere I travel within the community as a prayer walk. Help me to constantly prayer walk this beautiful community of mine. Allow connections that have never been made before to connect and create deep, personal relationships that help lead people to You, Lord. May everything that be done be done for your glory, and may we see revival here. Amen.
How to have your own revival in your community
Want ideas on how to have revival in your community? Go to International Day of Repentance to see how you can use September 23 as a day of repentance in your community.
Remember: repentance is the first step to revival!
Worldwide Revival
Dear God, we know that your unfailing love is available to all who seek You. We pray that worldwide revival happens in our lifetime, if it is in Your will. Thy will be done. Open our hearts and minds, as well as the hearts and minds of those in our communities, to come together to do everything You lead us to do to make worldwide revival happen. In Your Holy Name, Amen.
Other things to consider for praying for revival
Beyond knowing that prayer and repentance are required for revival, there is also another thing to consider: Just how important the word of God is in this movement.
This may seem obvious, but stay with me.
We are in desperate need of revival, but that does not mean that we get to do things on our time. We must be in the word more than in the world. God’s people must have a thriving prayer life. If the word of God is alive and active, how could we know the right time for revival without being in the Bible daily?
We know that great works cannot happen by humans, but by God. We don’t want to shorten or cheapen an opportunity by doing it on any other timeline than God’s.
Other prayers for revival
Father God, Please allow me, and those around me, to a renewed passion for sharing Your good news. Let us never tire from it, but feed off your strength and energy each and every day. Just as Your mercies are new every morning, help our renewed passion for sharing Your love be new every morning as well. In the name of Jesus, Amen.
Dear Lord, We seek You and You only. We only want your tools to help create revival, not any human ways or human measurements. Give us a sound mind and Your wisdom so we can be ever-turning to You. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Dear Almighty God,, We need a turning point. A point in which we realize that time is running out and we only have so much of life to turn people to You. We ask for whatever that turning point may be to show itself and radiate to our bones, knowing that if you can bring dry bones to life you can bring a broken world to life too. We cannot wait to see what You, as a creative God, do to bring revival worldwide. Amen.
Those are some example prayers for revival. That being said, the most powerful prayer is one that comes from deep inside, where only God can see, so do not be afraid to pray whatever is on your heart and mind and then give it to God completely.
Final Thoughts
May God leave a lasting impact on every attempt for revival that you do, as an individual or as part of the community.
Remember- when we come together each Sunday, or any other day, there are people all over the world coming together too. We all share the same table. If we pray for revival together, we can watch the world change. Nothing will be more exciting than that.
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