Revival:
2Ch 7:14,’If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.’

Many times we hear preachers and evangelists pronouncing blessings on the congregation, ‘the LORD will make you the head, and not the tail; he LORD will make you plenteous in goods; he LORD will open to you his good treasure; he LORD will make you plenteous in goods’,  and the congregation shouts in agreement. The congregation goes home empty handed and the preacher goes home with his pockets full. Many of us do not realize that all the blessings mentioned in Deut.28:1-13 will be fulfilled in our lives when we observe and do his commandments! (Deut.28:2) ‘And all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God.’

We must humble ourselves. To humble ones’ self means to ‘bend the knee’. It means to place ourselves under another. Christians are called to be humble. “He must increase, but I must decrease.”  (John.3.30)
Unfortunately we are puffed up with pride and self importance. Pride means thinking our abilities and knowledge is sufficient for us and we don’t need the guidance of Elohim. This is quite evident in our churches. We have gone the way of the Laodicea (Rev.3:17). We have increased in material goods, we enjoy all worldly comforts and we have no time for Elohim.
Prov.6:16-17 tells us that Elohim hates pride. A proud man always wants to be prominent. He refuses to listens to others and loves to talk about himself. He is never thankful and always thinks about himself. He does not follow instructions and refuses to be corrected. Elohim wants us to humble ourselves. We should put ourselves under his control and let the Holy Spirit guide us in our lives. When Jonah entered Nineveh and preached his message of Elohim’s judgment, the king proclaimed a fast and all the people humbled themselves under Elohim’s mighty hand (Jon.3:1-8). This is what we should realize. We should realize that without Elohim we are nothing, and we can do nothing without his guidance and blessings.

We should pray.  If we want Elohim’s blessings, we need to pray. Tennyson, the great poet said, ‘More things are wrought by prayer than this world dreams of’. Prayer is the ultimate statement of inability.  Prayer looks to Elohim and says, “I can’t, but you can!”  Prayer acknowledges complete dependence upon the Elohim. Prayer is not putting out shopping list before Elohim. It is not closing our eyes for a few minutes and thinking about our problems and assuming Elohim has heard us.  Prayer is a time when we lay aside our self and pride and ego and praise Yahweh for all his blessings. It is a time when we declare our helplessness before Him and surrender all to Him. The people of Nineveh cried ‘mightily to Elohim’ and Elohim saw that the people turned away from their evil ways and did not destroy them. Leonard Ravenhill, an English Christian evangelist and author who focused on the subjects of prayer and revival, said, “The church is dying on its feet because it is not living on its knees!”

Seek His face:  The word ‘seek’ means to search out, by any method; specifically in worship or prayer (Strong’s # H1245). It means that we should make every effort to seek him by studying the word of Yahweh, and knowing his will in our lives. Amos. 5:4,”For thus saith the LORD unto the house of Israel, Seek ye me, and ye shall live:” Isa. 55:6,”Seek ye the LORD while he may be found, call ye upon him while he is near:” He wants us to love Him for who He is!  Seeking His face means that we hunger for Him more than for what He can do. Elohim should be the first priority in our lives. What is your priority in life? Job? Family?  Possessions? Where does Elohim fit in your life’s plans?  If anything takes priority in your lives before Elohim, then your live is not perfect. The church in Laodicea claimed to be rich and successful and to have everything they needed. But they don't know how badly off they were. (Rev 3:17). The people of Nineveh were immersed in trade and forgot Elohim. Their priorities were wrong. Jonah’s words opened their eyes and they set about trying to mend their ways. Remember, misplaced priorities are an obstacle to Elohim’s blessings.

Turn from wicked ways: The people of Israel believed that as Abraham was their father and they were Yahweh’s chosen people, they had a continual supply of Elohim’s grace. So they continued in sin, thinking Elohim would always forgive them and bless them. Isa.59:2,”But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear.” The church today lives in the same misconception. There is hypocrisy and sin in the church. We make compromises in our beliefs, in our moral standards, we drink, we steal, we lie, we cheat; we commit adultery; we carry hate in their heart; we walk in pride; we walk in hypocrisy. We believe that  we are saved by grace, but grace is never a license to sin!
Jas 5:16,”The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.” We need to come before Elohim with a repentant heart. Yes, Yahweh’s blessings will come upon us only when we obey his word and live lives that are pleasing to Him.

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Maranatha Prayer Fellowship. # 311, Agarwal Chambers, King Koti, Hyderabad-500 001, A.P.India.
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