The Lesson from Asbury College That Will Transform Your Life If You Let It!
Learn 3 Steps to Cultivate Personal Revival.
By Karla Hardin, MS LPC-S
As everyone is weighing in on what our takeaways should be from the historical happening at Asbury College, I want to share how it has gripped me both as a Christian and a therapist as to how and why our children are reaching for God in such a visible way.
Never has been a time in history when we have had such awareness, education, insight, and skills along with the ability through the internet to get this help to the masses. Yet, at the very same time, there is more hate, anxiety, self-harm, isolation, fear and devaluing of human life than ever before.
Why hasn’t this knowledge and education benefited us? Because our learning has been geared to make us stronger in the “Kingdom of Self”.
But as Paul Tripp reminds us in New Morning Mercies, we were never created to be autonomous or self-sufficient. We were created by God and for Him and to be dependent upon Him alone.
Yet, that is exactly opposite of what our schools, politicians and even some Christian circles teach us. We are taught that we are entitled, we can make our own rules, and we can even heal ourselves and we are accountable to only ourselves.
This strategy doesn’t work.
Gen Z, (born 1997-2012) who has supposedly been given all we have to offer, has been pronounced as the most anxious and exhausted generation on record. [61% report feeling nervous/anxious on a daily basis]
37% of Gen Zers report having received treatment or therapy as compared to 22% of Boomers
As a therapist, these statistics clearly show what we are offering is not working.
All this focus on making them “rulers of their own lives” has left them despairing. Suicide ideation is the norm in this generation and sadly has resulted in exponential desperate deaths.
We weren’t designed to be God.
And when we try to be God in our own lives, it destroys us.
So, what happened at Asbury College?
Gen Z came to the breaking point of knowing they can’t run their lives.
Revival broke out.
REVIVAL -when God’s Spirit opens your eyes to see your arrogance and defiance against putting Him as the rightful Ruler in your life and you come to the end of yourself and cry out for God to save you from your sins.
The students at Asbury renounced the Kingdom of Self as a false god —a false god that has failed them miserably. They acknowledged and confessed their tolerance and indulgence of sin –way beyond the obvious sins of drinking, drugs, and sex.
They poured out their hearts and confessed their subtle sins –the insignificant sins as Song of Solomon 2:15 refers to,
“Catch the foxes for us, the little foxes that are ruining the fruitful vineyards”.
These small sins can truly rob Christians of the fruit that should be seen in our lives daily.
What are your little sins that no one else really knows about, that you won’t let go of?
Is it things like, overeating, Netflix binging, watching sexualized shows and justifying it because there is nothing good on tv? Or maybe it’s being unwilling to forgive someone, emotionally checking out because it takes to much effort to be present, or saying Christian platitudes when you aren’t even actively in God’s word? Not sure? Just ask God to reveal!
These “little foxes” are sins that you haven’t confessed nor intended to let go of.
The consequence of these “foxes”: A LUKEWARM FAITH.
A lukewarm faith results in a joyless life, A hypocritical life. A life of quiet desperation. It also results in a dimly lit Body of Christ which is not able to lead the lost through the darkness. Sound familiar?
In Revelation 3, the Church at Laodicea was called out for their lukewarm living and the disgust that it is to God. …Are you there?
What is our answer?
Much like the Prodigal, we need to first come to our senses and see that the Kingdom of Self is idolatrous and own that we quit trusting our First Love and sought to run our own lives and grab for what we wanted.
Second, we must confess our sins to one another and pray for one another so we may be healed. (James 5:16) Thank you Gen Z at Asbury for reminding us how to do this!
Third, repent –which means change direction. Turn back to the Kingdom of God. This implies I turn my back on all the sins I have been justifying, minimizing, and holding on to – I stop. Then I start praying, reading my Bible to find guidance and strength, seek out friends who are serious about living God-honoring lives that won’t condone the cultural sins that are so easy to fall in to. Return home, Christian.
When we return to God, we find what we so desperately long for.
“Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.…” Matthew 11:28-30
Will you take your exhausted and overwhelmed self and quit trying to live like you should be your own god? Instead, Will you lean into trusting dependence upon Him and His strength to walk faithfully?
We must find rest so that life becomes not only bearable. It becomes “light”!
When our lives becomes light, our joy returns, our passion for right living returns, the Body of Christ unites, and our flame burns bright to lead others out of the Kingdom of Self straight to the throne of grace where our Savior, who has pardoned our sins, awaits to give us Life, Life, and more Life!
Three steps to a personal and lasting revival
1. Develop a confessional lifestyle.
Get honest about all your sins. First to yourself, then to God, then to others. It is not confessed until it is out loud.
2. Commit to real change through repentance.
Repentance is taking steps in a totally different direction. First, turn away and stop doing those things you know dishonor God. Get others to pray and support you as you do. Start doing what you know honors God. Remember, it’s only by His Spirit that lasting change occurs; so make Him central to the change you desire to see happen. "(Matthew 11:28)
3. Reach out to love others daily.
Commit to look beyond yourself every day. This keeps you looking away from the Kingdom of Self. It may be simply a kind smile and looking directly into someone’s eyes while sending the message you see them, and they matter. It may be giving of your time or money or energy to benefit another. It may be being bold and sharing how God has changed your life or that you are praying for them.
The Key: do all these things every day. It will change your life because when we are yoked with Him, we are yoked with the most abundant life and adventure we could ever imagine!
Karla Hardin is a Licensed Professional Counselor and Trauma Specialist for Hardin Life Resources and Workshop leader and developer for Business and Professional Outreach, Intl. (BPO).
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