You can watch the original video on YouTube (here) ~ which I strongly recommend (due to the poor quality of the above video images). Thanks, to Terry B., for sending this to me.
Without a doubt, this is one of the very best 3-minute videos I have ever seen in my life. I want to give lots and lots of credit to "Channel 4" (in the U.K), for this wonderful video trailer for the "2016 Paralympics." I had to share this with everyone I know. Oh! what could the Church do, if only we would believe that "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me" (Philippians 4:13)?!
Jonathan Goforth was a missionary to China in the late 1800s to the early 1900s. He was mightily used of God in Revival, for many years. I said, "mightily used." Here's what Goforth wrote in the closing pages of his book, "By My Spirit," which is filled with testimonies of what God did, in China around the turn of the 20th century, in Revivals:
Leonard Ravenhill often said that the ONLY reason the Church is not right now experiencing Revival is because that "we are willing to live without it!" If that doesn't make you want to weep, then, that is a sign either that you care nothing for the kingdom of God or, else, you have no real concept of Revival. Yet, the full weight of blame (for both of those conditions) must be laid upon the leaders of the Church, whose duty before God it is to teach and preach the whole counsel of God.
But the churches, for the most part, have ceased to teach and preach about the Rapture of the Church or the Second Coming of Christ. Universalism (everyone will be saved) is the new gospel, and Dominionism (the Church must convert and take over the world, before Christ can then return to rule over it) is the new theology. There is no such thing as a Rapture ~ say the apostates. The leader of the Brownsville Revival (1995) ~ who was then an Assembly of God preacher named John Kilpatrick ~ and who is now the leader of the so-called "Bay Revival" or "Bay of the Holy Ghost Revival," recently (in 2012) and very publicly prophesied that Christians, from that moment forward, were going to experience a seven-year period of Jubilee. Never minding what else he said he meant by that; the fact remains, that Kilpatrick thus made God out to be a liar. For, Kilpatrick's prophecy means at least two things, namely: 1) those who heard that prophecy were going to live for at least seven more years; and, 2) Christ was not coming back for at least another seven years from that time.
But I don't give a hoot about what Kilpatrick says. I want to shout it from the housetops: "Yes, we can!" We can have Revival ~ when we will! We can have Revival ~ where we will! But do not misunderstand me: there is a real cost to those who want Revival. We can have it, if we are willing to receive it ~ on God's terms.
Ah, and right there is the kicker. Who is willing to pay the price for Revival? For, Revival is the greatest treasure which God can bestow upon any people. "But I thought that Christ, or the Holy Ghost, is God's greatest treasure!" Yes! that's what I said: Revival is the greatest treasure which God has to give! What am I saying? What is Revival? It is nothing else but God pouring out His Spirit (the Holy Ghost) through His Son (Christ) to and through His sanctified and seeking saints.
We can have Revival "when we will." How do I know that? Because, Revival is God's will for His people.
But God is not going to lower the bar regarding the qualifications for receiving a powerful move of God's Spirit. Oh, no. If we aren't hungry enough for the things of God, then, why should God nevertheless give us the greatest treasure of all? If we aren't willing to put away from ourselves worldly distractions (inasmuch as that may be possible), in order that we can then give ourselves to seek God with our whole heart; then, why should God go ahead and give us the prize which is reserved to those who will do that?
I can hardly keep from weeping and rejoicing at the same time, when I watch the above video. "Yes, I can!" is overwhelmingly evidenced in the lives of each of those courageous though handicapped persons. And I ask myself: HEADJANITOR, what's your excuse?
Friend, what's your excuse? What are you doing, really, to put yourself in the position such that God can use you as an instrument of heaven-sent Revival? Don't cheapen Revival, by supposing that the Holy Ghost will flow in "rivers of living water" from your spirit, even though you only pray a few minutes or so in any given day; or even though you may pray for an hour or so, once a week in prayer meeting. That's not the kind of hunger and thirst that God is looking to answer with a flood of Holy Ghost outpouring.
"Rivers" (plural) flowing out, requires an Ocean pouring in. That requires, in turn, not an open window in my spirit, but great floodgates swung open wide! There is a certain kind of window which opens by a crank-handle. It's not very big, and it takes very little effort to turn it. But I can imagine that huge, steel floodgates must have a very large wheel as a crank-handle. And I reckon that it would take a lot of effort to turn that wheel and open the floodgates ~ which are under tremendous pressure. I believe that is not an inappropriate metaphor for the kind of prayer effort that ought to be given to open the floodgates of Revival.
"Yes, I can!" Any Christian can pray. "Yes, I can!" Any Christian can obey God. "Yes, I can!" Any Christian can turn his or her face to God and say, "Let it begin with me, God, even though I am but one person: show me what I must do."
"Yes, I can." Because, God is willing ~ if I am.
Without a doubt, this is one of the very best 3-minute videos I have ever seen in my life. I want to give lots and lots of credit to "Channel 4" (in the U.K), for this wonderful video trailer for the "2016 Paralympics." I had to share this with everyone I know. Oh! what could the Church do, if only we would believe that "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me" (Philippians 4:13)?!
Jonathan Goforth was a missionary to China in the late 1800s to the early 1900s. He was mightily used of God in Revival, for many years. I said, "mightily used." Here's what Goforth wrote in the closing pages of his book, "By My Spirit," which is filled with testimonies of what God did, in China around the turn of the 20th century, in Revivals:
"We wish to state most emphatically as our conviction that God's revival may be had when we will and where we will.... Our reading of the Word of God makes it inconceivable to us that the Holy Spirit should be willing, even for a day, to delay his work."That statement is at the same time one of the most hopeful ~ and one of the most reproachful ~ things that could be said to any Christian. Hopeful, because, it tells me ~ by the testimony of a man whose whole life's work and experience was involved with Revival ~ that we can have Revival "when we will, and where we will." But, oh, how full of reproach we should then be! because, we have NEVER had real Revival, such as Goforth described.
Leonard Ravenhill often said that the ONLY reason the Church is not right now experiencing Revival is because that "we are willing to live without it!" If that doesn't make you want to weep, then, that is a sign either that you care nothing for the kingdom of God or, else, you have no real concept of Revival. Yet, the full weight of blame (for both of those conditions) must be laid upon the leaders of the Church, whose duty before God it is to teach and preach the whole counsel of God.
But the churches, for the most part, have ceased to teach and preach about the Rapture of the Church or the Second Coming of Christ. Universalism (everyone will be saved) is the new gospel, and Dominionism (the Church must convert and take over the world, before Christ can then return to rule over it) is the new theology. There is no such thing as a Rapture ~ say the apostates. The leader of the Brownsville Revival (1995) ~ who was then an Assembly of God preacher named John Kilpatrick ~ and who is now the leader of the so-called "Bay Revival" or "Bay of the Holy Ghost Revival," recently (in 2012) and very publicly prophesied that Christians, from that moment forward, were going to experience a seven-year period of Jubilee. Never minding what else he said he meant by that; the fact remains, that Kilpatrick thus made God out to be a liar. For, Kilpatrick's prophecy means at least two things, namely: 1) those who heard that prophecy were going to live for at least seven more years; and, 2) Christ was not coming back for at least another seven years from that time.
But I don't give a hoot about what Kilpatrick says. I want to shout it from the housetops: "Yes, we can!" We can have Revival ~ when we will! We can have Revival ~ where we will! But do not misunderstand me: there is a real cost to those who want Revival. We can have it, if we are willing to receive it ~ on God's terms.
Ah, and right there is the kicker. Who is willing to pay the price for Revival? For, Revival is the greatest treasure which God can bestow upon any people. "But I thought that Christ, or the Holy Ghost, is God's greatest treasure!" Yes! that's what I said: Revival is the greatest treasure which God has to give! What am I saying? What is Revival? It is nothing else but God pouring out His Spirit (the Holy Ghost) through His Son (Christ) to and through His sanctified and seeking saints.
We can have Revival "when we will." How do I know that? Because, Revival is God's will for His people.
But God is not going to lower the bar regarding the qualifications for receiving a powerful move of God's Spirit. Oh, no. If we aren't hungry enough for the things of God, then, why should God nevertheless give us the greatest treasure of all? If we aren't willing to put away from ourselves worldly distractions (inasmuch as that may be possible), in order that we can then give ourselves to seek God with our whole heart; then, why should God go ahead and give us the prize which is reserved to those who will do that?
I can hardly keep from weeping and rejoicing at the same time, when I watch the above video. "Yes, I can!" is overwhelmingly evidenced in the lives of each of those courageous though handicapped persons. And I ask myself: HEADJANITOR, what's your excuse?
Friend, what's your excuse? What are you doing, really, to put yourself in the position such that God can use you as an instrument of heaven-sent Revival? Don't cheapen Revival, by supposing that the Holy Ghost will flow in "rivers of living water" from your spirit, even though you only pray a few minutes or so in any given day; or even though you may pray for an hour or so, once a week in prayer meeting. That's not the kind of hunger and thirst that God is looking to answer with a flood of Holy Ghost outpouring.
"Rivers" (plural) flowing out, requires an Ocean pouring in. That requires, in turn, not an open window in my spirit, but great floodgates swung open wide! There is a certain kind of window which opens by a crank-handle. It's not very big, and it takes very little effort to turn it. But I can imagine that huge, steel floodgates must have a very large wheel as a crank-handle. And I reckon that it would take a lot of effort to turn that wheel and open the floodgates ~ which are under tremendous pressure. I believe that is not an inappropriate metaphor for the kind of prayer effort that ought to be given to open the floodgates of Revival.
"Yes, I can!" Any Christian can pray. "Yes, I can!" Any Christian can obey God. "Yes, I can!" Any Christian can turn his or her face to God and say, "Let it begin with me, God, even though I am but one person: show me what I must do."
"Yes, I can." Because, God is willing ~ if I am.
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