Pentecost

Is next Sunday. The birth of the church. The time when the mighty wind of the Holy Spirit descended upon the upper room where the disciples were meeting. Tongues of fire appeared over their heads, and they went out into the streets of Jerusalem declaring the Word of the Lord.

And the first "revival service" in history happened.

My question for the church today is this: Where are the Holy Spirit great revivals happening today?
Surely not in Europe, the birthplace of the Reformation. Nor for that matter in the USA, where people refer to themselves as being "spiritual" but not really having any root in the belief of Jesus as Savior for the world. So, where are they?

In Africa, where orthodoxy is embraced and the Holy Spirit is sweeping the land.
In Korea, where literally thousands will attend worship services and then go into the world declaring that Christ is Lord.
In China, where the believers are imprisoned for just meeting together but still the church grows in numbers.
We, the church in America, have had it too good for too long. We've grown fat, dumb, and happy. We'd rather fight over what type of worship style is used or how the offering is to be spent than do what we've been called by Christ to do- make disciples.

Methodism was once the largest non-Catholic body in America. What has happened to us over the last 150 years to make this no longer true?
For one thing, we stopped going into the world. We decided that buildings and bureaucracy were the ways to spread the Gospel with the result that we ceased making an impact on the culture of this country and have, over the last few decades, come to be known among religious circles as an apostate church. We do have a "big tent," but it is filled with a lot of non-orthodox beliefs.

Question 2: How do we solve this morass we've gotten ourselves into?
I truly think we should close down a lot of worship spaces that are no longer fulfilling the mission of the church, merge those congregations with other UMC's in their community which are, and use the funds from the sell off of these properties for mission works INSIDE the USA. It's time for us to become the body of believers that John Wesley created. Going into the places where the lost and hurting are located. Being the face, feet, and hands of Jesus to the world once more.

Offering them Christ.

Wesley once said something along the lines of 'if you set yourself on fire people will come from miles around to watch you burn.'

This Pentecost may we all set ourselves on fire once more, as the Church of the Book of Acts did, and make a difference in our world.

Maranatha.