Biblically speaking revival is when something that is dying experiences the Spirit’s reviving to reverse its course. This happens in scripture repeatedly for God’s people. They receive God’s covenant promises, then fail to make good on their end of the covenant with idol worship and unrighteousness. They are heading toward self-destruction. Prophets call out to them. They do not listen. But, eventually, some remnant of faithful folks remain and there is covenant renewal. In Ezekiel this is depicted by dry, dead bones receiving the breath of God.

Nothing has changed. God’s Bride, the Church, is in the same cycle. Sometimes we call it reform. Sometimes we call it revival. The only reason the Church is still here is because the Spirit is inside and beyond the Church bringing cycles of renewal. Right now, in the U.S., we are close to the extinction of Christianity as we’ve known it. Yes, there is still growing Christianity in Latin America, Asia, and Africa and the immigrant churches here are a remnant. But, the western church is a dusty old institution.

When I was a kid, my parents who were Catholic converts to a Jesus Movement-style hippy church spoke to me about growing up in Religion becoming hallow. Years later, I told my dad that I saw the same trends emerging among Evangelical youth while I served in decades of young adult ministry. Evangelical kids today often feel just as much indifference about their faith upbringing as my mom did when she declared as a child heading into mass, “I want to be whatever Dad is!” (Her dad was not a church goer). For many, we are well past indifference to disdain.

But you cannot “do” revival. You cannot create a plan to revive a church in the traditional sense of planning. Do you have the Spirit’s breath available to your dispenseing that you can infuse into your church or Christian institution? Your strategic plan won’t do it. Your perfect program or tools won’t do it.

The Spirit’s reviving breath comes of its own accord and infuses that which is dry and dead. If you are moving around, running around, trying to fix the crisis of the American church through your strategic ideas then you are part of the problem, not the revival. The very nature of revival contradicts all that striving and busy work.

Deals made in desperation are never godly.

Human efforts for God-sized problems will prove pointless.

Hunger for resources directed at human providers corrupts.

The one and only way to seek revival for your church or institution is prostrate on the floor. Worship. Prayer. Repentance. Confession. If you want a strategy, that’s the one singular strategy. This is not one of those times that a both/and approach will pan out.

We cannot help but be realigned to who we truly are when we come under our Maker. And our Maker is pleased to pour out the Spirit to do new things, renewing all of us. I’ve been to some gatherings that were halfway there…and I’m waiting for them to fully embrace the total release that has to come to be ready for revival.