Today is Good Friday. Today is the day we remember the gift Jesus gave to us on the cross. We remember the torture he endured because he loves us. Many of us will attend a Good Friday church service. There we will sing songs about Jesus, we will hear a message about Jesus dying on the cross for our redemption, and then we will go home and prepare for Easter Sunday. When Easter morning arrives, we will go back to celebrate the fact that Jesus is no longer in the grave. What happens after that? We go home, eat a meal with our friends and family, maybe do an Easter egg hunt with the kids, and then go home, go to bed, and start the next work week. 

While all of those things are good things, my question to you is: where is the change in your life? Are you changed because of sitting in a room with other believers hearing a message about the pain and suffering Jesus endured for you? Does your Monday look different because you sang a few songs about how Jesus conquered sin and death? 

For many years I did the same thing. My answer to those questions would honestly be, “Nothing is different on Monday morning after Easter than it was the Monday before Easter.” This year I want it to be different. I want this upcoming Monday to be different because I want to be different. 

Constant Revival

There has been a ton of talk about different pockets of revivals popping up all over the United States. I am thrilled for all these refreshing moves of God. It’s exciting to see God move in powerful ways. The sad part is that every revival in history has a starting and an ending. I feel like God is wanting more for this time of revival. I believe he wants us to learn how to live a life of continual revival. Yes, a revival that never ends. Is this possible? I believe it is. 

I am praying that God shows me how to live my life in a way that continually shows everyone around me the amazing God I serve. I want to be so filled with the glory of God that it shows in my physical body everywhere I go. Do you remember when Moses went up the mountain and spent time with God? When he came down, he had to put a veil on his face because the glory of the Lord that shone on his face was too much for the other people. (See Exodus 34:24-35.) I want to be just like that. 

It’s my desire to be so in tune with Jesus that I am able to see like Jesus sees, hear like Jesus hears, and think like Jesus thinks. 

I want to live everyday like it is Easter Sunday. I want to celebrate the good gifts Jesus gives me everyday just like I do on Easter Sunday. The question is: how do we do this? How do we live in continual revival? How do we live a life of celebration even when things are chaotic and even going wrong all around us? 

Pray

First we pray. We do just what it says in 1 Thessalonians 5:17 (ESV), “pray without ceasing.” But how do we pray all day everyday? This is a great question. After all, we do have to do other things throughout the day. We all have jobs to do and people to talk to. We need to eat and sleep, and the list goes on and on and on. 

Why would we be commanded to pray without ceasing if this is impossible? Did God mean something else? Did he mean pray when you have time and think about it? Perhaps he meant pray when you wake up, before every meal, and right before you go to sleep. No, I don’t believe he meant either of those things. God is really good at using the perfect words to mean exactly what he means to say. So when he said to pray without ceasing, that is exactly what he meant to say. 

Something I have learned over the past several years is that prayer doesn’t necessarily mean to list off all the prayer requests we have. Though coming to God with our problems and asking for him to intervene is a really, really good thing to do. There is so much more to prayer than just listing off needs. 

What Is Prayer

Prayer, simply put, is having a conversation with God. Prayer is telling God about the awesome new pair of jeans you found for sale at the store. (And thanking him for this blessing.) 

Prayer is telling God about your hopes and dreams. You can even ask him what his hopes and dreams for your life are. Then you will want to ask him to make your hopes and dreams align with his. This alignment of you with God will look a lot like a life of continual revival!  

Prayer is asking what God thinks about something and then pausing to hear his response. Have you ever asked God what he thinks about you, for instance? If you haven’t, I encourage you to do so. I promise his answer will blow your mind! 

Can you now see how it is possible to pray without ceasing? As long as you are in constant communion with God, you are praying. I dare you to spend a day talking to God all day long like you would your best friend and see what happens!

Check out these three posts on prayer: Part 1, Part 2, & Part 3.

Declare Truth

As part of your constant praying, you can include declaring the truth over your circumstances. Don’t know if you will have enough money to pay rent? Declare, “And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus” ‭‭Philippians‬ ‭4‬:‭19‬ ‭(ESV).‬‬ Are you sick and the doctors tell you there is no hope for a cure? Try telling that disease, “O Lord my God, I cried to you for help, and you have healed me” ‭‭Psalm‬ ‭30‬:‭2‬ (‭ESV).‬‬

Whatever your physical problem is, the answer is always the same. You declare the truth of what the Word of God says regarding your situation. 

Declaring truth over your circumstances builds your faith that what God says in his word is true and will happen. It builds your faith. It allows God to be God in your life and do the miracles you need in this physical world. 

Stand Firm

Next you stand firm in those promises. You recognize that sometimes it takes time for the physical to catch up to the spiritual. Although your healing and provision are already done in the spiritual realm, it may take time for your physical body or circumstances to experience the results already experienced in the spirit. Don’t give up. Be persistent. Keep declaring the truth. You will see the fruit of this, and the fruit will be sweet and beautiful. 

Put On Your Armor

As you start talking to God throughout your day, declare the truth over yourself, and stand firm in the promises of God, you will face opposition. You see, you have a real enemy who hates it when you start living this kind of life. He wants you to stay in his chains of unbelief, pain, and distance from God. He knows that when you walk closely with God every minute of every day, you will be forever changed, and his schemes will be powerless in your life. You will be much less likely to believe his lies that God doesn’t care, is far away from you, or doesn’t even listen to you when you pray. 

This is why you MUST put on your spiritual armor. Your armor will protect you from the flaming arrows of the enemy. Want to learn more of why this armor is essential to your spiritual life? We wrote all about that in The Importance of Wearing God’s Armor Everyday. 

Just know if you want protection from an enemy who hates you and whose only desire is for you to be constantly attacked and beaten down, you must wear the protection God gives you. 

Recall The Endgame

Lastly, you recall the endgame. Remember that your enemy is already a defeated foe. He only has as much power over your life as you allow. You are already declared victorious because Jesus said so. “But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.” ‭‭1 Corinthians‬ ‭15‬:‭57‬ ‭(ESV)‬‬ 

So this Good Friday I encourage you to spend the day talking to God. Tell him what you are thankful for. Tell him what you are excited about in the future. Talk to him about what you are afraid of. Ask him how to overcome those fears. Tell him about your dreams for your family. Ask him what his dreams are for your family and for yourself. This is how you begin to live a life of constant revival!