Karen: We thank so many of you who let us know that you pray for us. It’s deeply meaningful. We thank you.

Intro: Welcome to the Before We Go Podcast featuring Dr. David Mains and his wife, noted author Karen Mains. Here’s David and Karen Mains.

Karen: David, my husband, David Mains, has been at his desk diligently working on a new manuscript. And the working title is Prayer Vigilantes. Subtitle is A Self-Appointed But Critically Important Role. And I haven’t just yet heard this chapter. So along with you who are listening, it will be as new to me as it is to you.

David: As a young minister, I read a great deal about times of authentic revival. I don’t recall what prompted me to do this, but accounts of spiritual awakening on our land deeply interested me. I found it fascinating that these outbreaks of new spiritual life all seem to have their own distinct personalities. How did what is called the second great awakening, 1790s and the early 1800s, differ from the original great awakening, the 1730s and 40s? What could I learn about outstanding revival leaders such as Jonathan Edwards and George Whitfield? What was positive and what was negative about the accompanying revival movements on the nation’s frontiers? Was it true that many of today’s major colleges and universities had their beginnings in seasons of spiritual revival? Was it fair to always saddle revivals with emotionalism? And what was the difference between revival meetings of the past and today’s evangelistic crusades?

Certainly, I desired that revival would mark me personally. But if I could also experience a moving of the Holy Spirit as part of a larger group, say a congregation, that would be an answer to a long-time prayer. To be present in a setting like what took place in the States in 1857 and following was almost too much to request to the Lord. But it didn’t stop me from asking. I almost envied people like Dr. J. Edwin Orr, who could tell me and also right of times the Lord touched his ministry in a way that couldn’t be explained except as the supernatural hand of God at work. I considered myself fortunate that I was befriended by him.

And by other significant individuals who wrote and where spoke often on the subject. How blessed I was to personally know people like Bill Bright, David Bryant, Robert Coleman, V. Raymond Edmond, Layton Ford, Jerry Kirk, David McKenna, Festo Covindry, Erwin Lutzer, Bill McCartney, Andy Miller, Louis Palau, Leanne Payne, Leonard Ravenhill, Alan Redpath, Ted Rendell, Richard Owen Roberts, Tom Skinner, K.P. Yohanan. And others I’m sure my slowing memory has just been unable to quickly bring to mind. I have read and listened to their words time and again.

One year I was asked to speak for a week of special services at my alma mater Wheaton College. I was in my fifties and took the invitation seriously. Eventually I settled on the subject when life becomes a maze. Resaid, what do you do when you don’t know what to do? I mentioned this so you will understand that what I presented had nothing to do with what I will tell you about next. Early in the following semester, an authentic revival broke out at the school. I recall several friends phoning and asking, have you heard what’s going on at Wheaton? Because of my recent time of ministry there, of course, I was interested. I quickly rearranged my schedule so I could leave work and drive to the campus. There I sat and watched from the balcony of College Church and saw firsthand what was taking place. Even today, I vividly recall scenes like what I had only often read about in my books. For several days, two long rows of students would tearfully wait in line to confess sins.

Cheating, stealing, lying, jealousy, you name it. When finished with what the person had to say, the young man or woman would leave the elevated platform area and walk down the sidesteps to the open section on the main floor before the seating began. There they would be spontaneously embraced by six or eight fellow students, most of whom came out of the audience. And lovingly and quietly prayed over. It was beautiful to watch. There were many tears shed of both sorrow and joy, even while the disclosures continued from the podium area.

These meetings had not been advertised. There wasn’t a crowd of onlookers that responded in any way to the students’ comments. Pictures weren’t taken for newspaper articles. There was no preaching, at least not during any of the sessions I attended. The few times there was singing, it seemed to almost begin and end spontaneously. In fact, no human personality appeared to be in charge. If anything, the mood was somber, like this was carefully protected a holy place, but then it was also often joyous. I’m confident this was not something these students waiting to make their confessions wanted to do, but it was as if each one had personally and lovingly been informed by the Holy Spirit that, “You need to get in line.”

In spite of the fact that everything was orderly and without a hint of hysterics, would you believe it started to frighten me? Yes, I was drawn to what was happening, but I also had a sudden urge to leave and go back to work. Why? Because my office represented a safe place for me. I mean, what if the Lord made it clear to me, “David, you need to get up there in that line and wait your turn.” That day, I came to grips with the fact that for God to shine His spotlight on anyone would be a scary thing. No wonder that church splits so often accompany times of authentic revival. No Christian is perfect. What if the Lord clearly points out the sin in your life? Such a disclosure would make anyone most uncomfortable. The truth is that some yield to such promptings, while others stubbornly resist. I’m glad that despite that initial impulse to leave, I chose to stay and open myself to whatever the Holy Spirit might want me to hear.

Sharing an earlier experience might help explain my mixed feelings about sensing God’s presence. The following is what I call a short and silly tale. Subtitle, a prayer vigilante asked for favors usually reserved for those more experienced. In the decade of my 40s, I had known an occasion when God drew very close, but the encounter had been quite terrifying to me. Attempting to better understand the heart of Jesus, I had requested that He allow me to see my world through His eyes and or to hear what was going on through His ears. I had read about others making such petitions, so a prayer this kind was not original with me. In fact, I had repeated this request any number of times.

I don’t recall a specific moment when the Holy Spirit touched me in any recognizable fashion, but one Saturday afternoon I began to sense something strange. For example, my emotions seemed highly sensitized to what I was hearing. Someone’s negative comment made on a phone call about another believer almost brought tears to my eyes. A racist remark on television that I normally wouldn’t have thought that much about deeply upset me. A neighbor’s words seemed to reveal to me a great hurt in his soul. I shot a questioning prayer to heaven. “Are you doing it, Lord? Is this what I’ve been asking of you? Have you sensitized my ears in some way I’ve never experienced before?” There was no audible answer to my question.

The next morning I didn’t say anything to anyone as we got ready for church, but thank the Lord I’m not still pastoring, I thought. By that time I was full time with the Chapel of the Air Ministries. I’m not sure I would make it through a service, Lord. In the car I corrected two of the children regarding the way they were talking to each other. By this time, I was relatively sure I knew what was happening and it made me quite nervous. We arrived at church early, which was our normal practice, so there was time to talk with friends. There were the normal quick greetings, but one conversation I remember the people was a bit more extended. And this person also made a funny but negative comment about a mutual friend and it was like I almost burst into tears. I excused by itself and walked quickly to a washroom where I tried to get more control on my emotions. “This isn’t good,” I told the Lord. “I didn’t know what I was asking for. Please take away whatever has happened, I can’t handle it. It’s bad enough here in the church what’s it going to be like when Monday comes.” During the service I sat in the back of the congregation and when I asked if I was alright I said, “I wasn’t feeling well,” which was probably true I guess. The rest of the time I just tried to avoid.

That afternoon I told the Lord repeatedly that I was foolish to have solicited such a thing. Certainly, I wasn’t spiritually able to handle what had transpired and he would take away what I would give and I would be more careful in the future with my request. The extreme sensitivity gradually started to fade, but sensing the supernatural presence of the Lord was no longer something I would ever speak about just casually.

Would you believe that the outstanding characteristic of all times of authentic spiritual awakenings is an overwhelming sense of the presence of the Lord? To experience such time therefore is most wonderful but also incredibly intimidating. Awakenings are wonderful because we are exposed to how unbelievably loving God is, but revivals also remind us that God is, was, and always will be intolerant of sin. For me observing what was happening at Wheaton was initially an exciting answer to a long-time personal prayer. But the more I watched the more those earlier feelings of awe and fear returned. Like I hadn’t really understood what I was requesting of the Lord. Sitting with friends and watching what was happening was something beyond my ability to analyze. I was in the presence of a force beyond any of my previous experiences and I was no longer an expert on the topic. Instead, I was overwhelmed because of what I was witnessing and once again was beyond my pay grade.

I am certain this same awareness of God’s presence is what the soldiers of the Southern Army felt that was mentioned in my previous chapter. It was where something beyond the ability of human beings to conjure up was happening. The Lord was pulling back the curtain that normally and graciously hides himself and people found themselves on what could only be explained as holy ground.

In his book Fire in the Church Ted Rendell wrote, “During a spiritual awakening there is first and overwhelming awareness of the presence of God among his people.” I like Ted’s book title Fire in the Church. Fire can be beautiful and it can also be terrifying. In one of his many books Revival Praying Leonard Ravenhill wrote, “We are not seeking fame, success, full churches or financial deliverance. These may come but first and foremost we seek the Lord.”

In One Divine Moment edited by Robert Coleman about the 1970 revival Asbury you’ll find this sentence, “In a way impossible to describe God was in our midst.” In Revival The Reign From Heaven Arthur Wallace writes that “In the great American revival of 1858 referred to in my previous chapter ships as they drew near the American port seemed to come into a zone of the spirits influence. Ship after ship arrived with the same tale of sudden conviction and conversion. In one ship a captain and the entire crew of 30 men found Christ out at sea and entered the harbor rejoicing.”

You know what I was only initially frightened as I sat there observing the scene unfolding at my earlier college of choice but as time passed there came a great sense of being loved by God and allowed to witness something wholly unfolding and what was transpiring really had little to do with me. I was just an outside observer for whatever reason however God had granted me the opportunity to watch something sacred and I felt highly honored.

So, what if this brave son of Wheaton as President Edmund used to call us was not always as spiritual as others expected. In his gracious kindness God was highly honoring me by letting me be in the room where it happens. So, the Lord granted this hesitant follower another opportunity to experience his presence and I was not only grateful beyond words I felt overwhelmed by his compassion for me.

In the prayer groups of which I have been privileged to be a part I have sometimes sensed in others an awareness of who am I to be praying for revival in the land. I’m far from being a saint. Let me just write that prayer vigilantes are imperfect people often intimidated by the fact that revival is always marked by an overwhelming sense of the Lord’s presence. This picture of revival on a college campus is much smaller in scale than the previous chapters report about the national and even international revival that began in 1857. Be that as it may whatever the setting the same sense of the presence of the Lord will always be revivals outstanding defining factor.

There is a typical pattern that is followed when nations experience the refreshing presence of the Lord. The first step in the process is usually a deep-seated longing for something better in a day when the enemy is strutting around as Goliath did a great sense of unease unrest begins to mark a certain number of God’s people. Then women seldom aspire to something better if they’re already satisfied with what they have. That’s why those who are comfortable and in control of their lives often pay little attention to the subject of revival.

In the Old Testament Israel was rarely interested in the topic when the nation was enjoying prosperity. Instead it was the bad times that caused her to cry out to the Lord. “If we’re your chosen people shouldn’t things be better than they are.” Those experiencing this holy unrest over the religious status quo are far different from the church’s chronic complainers. Pastors need to be aware of and discerning about this. The complainers are a drain on any congregation but the restless ones can be the key to future revival like several godly women in scripture. They’re crying out, “don’t let me die barren Lord.” This is what the first revival prayer sound like when God begins to work among his people.

In a day when evil is blatant certain of God’s servants must carry the burden of an intense spiritual dissatisfaction. Has this been happening to you? You’re greatly troubled that our American society now influences this church far more than the church influences our American society. You bemoan the fact that so few believers’ lives are characterized by spiritual victory. Your concern for revival in your church, town or country have almost become compulsive. Yet sometimes when you get up to preach or teach you feel so ineffectual. It’s as though no matter what you say it’s not going to be enough. Of late you don’t know whether you’ll make it through the solo, the youth meeting, the sermon. All you really feel capable of doing is sobbing. “Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.” You almost wonder whether you’re having a breakdown. Maybe you’re working too hard. Are you overly sensitive to sin?

Well, consider the possibility that what you’re experiencing is this deep sense of dissatisfaction. All across the country there are believers having trouble holding back their tears. They identify strongly with Jeremiah’s feelings as he thought about the sins of his people. “Oh, that my head were a spring of water in my eyes of fountain of tears.” They find themselves waking in the middle of the night troubled about the future of their communities, their nation, and the world. They’re not confident that their skills are adequate to help turn things around.

This is where you are. If it’s any comfort you should know that you’re not alone. The Lord is burdening many believers in the same way. It’s in line with the pattern of how revival normally unfolds. The truth is that what you’re experiencing is not all that unusual. It’s where the process usually begins. Only an intense dissatisfaction will drive people to take the revival steps that follow. So welcome to the ranks of the discontent. It’s an honor to be divinely chosen. In the long run it can be very good for you, your church, your country, and the world.

Karen: That’s the end of part one of this chapter of David’s new manuscript. He’ll continue reading the rest of this chapter on the next podcast.

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