I have heard people say that doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result is madness. The people who say so seem like they miss the point of repeating actions. The first point; madness is not always a bad thing. Sometimes madness gives us opportunities to get better at what we’re repeating.
Revival requires repeating actions so we can learn and exercise our faith. Think about school and how many times we had to repeat the alphabet before we knew them. We may have learned our ABCs a lot faster if we knew what insanity was in our younger days – who wants to be sane all the time anyway? Plus, even science changes theories and invalidates results sometimes (yeah, I said it :p).
When we get opportunities to have a do-over we gain a chance to renew. Any time we can get the chance to repeat the steps in a process we should take it. Repeating steps allows us to become efficient with effort, assuming we learn from our attempts. Learning is key to almost everything in this life. Learning is how we pave the way for personal revivals. These are the renewals we want.
When it’s personal we learn to ignore the people who call our efforts insanity, or at least thank them for the attempted insults. What happens if we can ignore naysayers is, we can mind our business and learn. You would be surprised how much we learn when people’s opinions remain their own business. If you can, the lessons we take from paying attention to the details rather than meaningless banter help us develop.
It is in that space of solitude our spirits speak because we insist on getting stuff done. We don’t mind spending the time it takes to practice. That space is also where the Holiest Spirit comes to guide our footsteps in the right direction and set us up to succeed where others write us off. When we move out of our own way, the Holy Spirit can get our attention and help us transform. Solitude is also the best space to learn to navigate the school of opinion.
Spiritually, renewals take place when we begin to ask God questions, we need answers to. This is especially true for people who know that God really does establish our thoughts for the purpose we have in front of us. If you’re doing something and people can’t see your vision, it is good to leave them with their opinions and get your stuff done. Revivals are as personal as prayers and worth our efforts a hundred times for one swing. Repeating actions also builds perseverance and patience because of what we know we must do.
What most of us do when we listen to others is rush ahead or abandon tasks. If we continue to do what it is we’re doing, we will see the results. When we learn to be patient, we become consistent. Repeating our actions refines us and allows us to see the work of the Lord in our lives. These acts can build on faith because our trust in the Lord is allowed to flourish. We gain patience to wait on the Lord as well because we’re not expecting immediate results. God works in His own time and is never late, so we can grow in faith and confidence as we work. God is the one who blesses the work of our hands and allows us to mature in our actions. Sometimes the action is to be still and wait. Just stop and wait. Do nothing! Wait. Yeah, I get impatient myself. But I have learned that sometimes it is better to just stop.
No, when you see your revival take shape – give thanks to God because God seems to enjoy the work of art that he is refining in us. I have read somewhere that He digs when we trust him too. God provides for us what we need, to do the things we do, and invites us to do our part in the revival process.
Our renewal is what God hopes for, daily. That is why He made this great plan of salvation and sent Jesus to take our place. That is a good enough reason to press forward in our madness in search of revival because the Lord will bring it about. Madness, then, is very good. It is why we should ignore opinions, even smart-sounding chatter, and do the things we’re given to do. The Lord provides for us and wants us to enjoy the fruit of our labor. We bring him glory by maturing in our repeated madness. So, go crazy and repeat some actions in faith until you are renewed in mind, body, and spirit. I for one never thought I would hear myself say, do the same thing again and again, but that is what is necessary for revival. The trick is to do the word of God until it becomes ingrained.
Welp, enough blubbering. What are your thoughts on revivals now?
