Rebuilding Our Broken WorldSample

Renewal and Revival

By Michael Youssef, Ph.D.

Do you want a blueprint for joy in your life? Do you want a formula for renewal and growth? Do you want to understand the secret of godly contentment and confidence?

Nehemiah reveals all of that and more to us in Nehemiah 7 and 8, giving us powerful life lessons as he leads his people to:

1. Assemble together with other believers. When believers assemble together and unite their hearts in prayer and praise, something mystical and even miraculous takes place, as Jesus said, “For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I with them” (Matthew 18:20). And when we gather together, we encourage one another, support one another, and challenge one another to a deeper faith experience.
2. Affirm the authority of God’s Word. In order for revival to take place in one life, or in the life of a church, or in the life of a nation, it must begin with a hunger and thirst for the Word of God. For the Bible is not just a collection of old stories and inspirational quotations, it is the guidebook to victorious living in Christ -- the key that unlocks the door to revival as the church boldly proclaims God’s Word and obeys it. Therefore, we must read His Word and hear God speak to us through it with obedient hearts.
3. Adore the God of grace. When the people stood in the square together at the completion of the walls and listened to the reading of the Book of the Law, they wept, rightly mourning their sin that had led to such shameful circumstances. But once they had repented, it was time to adore God, rejoice in His strength, and celebrate His goodness, mercy, and amazing grace.
4. Honor God by surrendering all to him. When Ezra read from the Book of the Law, the people of Israel heard the Word of God, they honored the Word of God, they heeded the Word of God, and they put God’s Word into action. The people consecrated themselves to God, surrendering completely.

God’s goal for your life and mine is that we would enjoy our faith and experience the joy of a vital relationship with Him. When we surrender everything we are, we gain everything God is.

If we truly grasp the practical power of these four principles, we will be renewed and reenergized to impact the world for God in the twenty-first century.

Prayer: Lord, thank You for these principles for revival found in Nehemiah. Help me to practice them in my own life that I would become more Christ-like for Your glory and the growth of Your Kingdom. I pray in the name of Jesus. Amen.

“The precepts of the Lord are right, giving joy to the heart. The commands of the Lord are radiant, giving light to the eyes” (Psalm 19:8).