(7/8) Europe Ablaze With Revival

In a fallen world, where brokenness abounds and the needs are great, we know a Savior who has come to heal our broken hearts, to heal the relationship with Almighty God broken by sin, and to bring us salvation. In Luke 5, we read this setup to the narrative of an instance in which a man was lowered by friends into a house where Jesus was ministering, a man whom Jesus healed - the Scriptures say:
15 However, the report went around concerning Him all the more; and great multitudes came together to hear, and to be healed by Him of their infirmities.
16 So He Himself often withdrew into the wilderness and prayed.
17 Now it happened on a certain day, as He was teaching, that there were Pharisees and teachers of the law sitting by, who had come out of every town of Galilee, Judea, and Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was present to heal them.

Just a few weeks ago, the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association presented its second stop in two weeks in its God Loves You Tour UK.  According to a press release from the Association on June 22nd: "Franklin Graham preached in Glasgow...where a crowd of 7,560 people filled the OVO Hydro for the God Loves You Tour UK."

The press release stated:

More than 320 churches throughout the region partnered with the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, and over 115 buses brought people from communities throughout Glasgow and beyond.

This came just a week after the tour visited Birmingham on June 15, where 8,300 people attended.  The Association noted on June 22:

Franklin Graham was originally scheduled to preach in the UK in 2020, but the events were canceled by the venues when the tour faced opposition. BGEA brought legal challenges to those cancelations based on religious discrimination, with the goal of preserving the opportunity for all Christians to preach the Gospel in the public square. As of this week, all of the legal disputes with the originally-scheduled tour venues have been resolved in ways BGEA considers favorable.

That same day, Franklin Graham declared that the ministry would begin the new Billy Graham Defense Fund. He said, “We took a stand for the Gospel and for freedom of religion in the UK. Now we’re going to use these funds that came from this battle against cancel culture to help other Christians who may be threatened into silence..."

He added, “There are so many problems in our society and people are looking for hope. We know that true hope can only be found in Jesus Christ, so we need to support one another in getting the Good News of Jesus Christ out, whatever it takes. It is my prayer that this will encourage Christians across the UK to keep living out and sharing their faith freely and boldly.”

The gospel of Jesus Christ brings hope - and the proclamation of the gospel brings the power of God.  That is being seen in other European locations, as well. As the CBN website related back on June 3: "... more than a thousand people made decisions to follow Jesus Christ – this time in Hungary and Italy."

These events featured evangelist Jean-Luc Trachsel, who noted that "the power of the Lord" was evident. On social media, he wrote: "Fire of revival is spreading everywhere in Europe to hungry and thirsty people," adding, "Stop to watch and dare why it's not coming to your place. Go to your knees and cry out to The Lord of the harvest to save your region." That article also stated:

As CBN News reported, Trachsel delivered a message in Paris, France for the "March For Jesus in France" a little less than two weeks ago where 25,000 people praised Jesus in front of the Eiffel Tower and heard an encouraging word from God.

It also stated:

Trachsel shared that a "fire of revival" also occurred at the "This Is the Day!" worship event at DVTK Stadium in Miskolc, Hungary. That stadium can hold more than 15,000 people, and it was filled with souls hungry for God. Trachsel reports 1,300 people gave their lives to Christ...

Chris Tomlin was one of the worship leaders for the event in Hungary.

It's very easy to be consumed with negative reports out of Christianity.  With very real reports of moral failures and religious freedom challenges, we can, of course, recognize that the enemy wants to mute the message of the Church.  But...we also know that God is filling a spiritual hunger that is evident from college campuses in America to large-scale revival meetings in Europe. We live in a world in crisis, but we know that where people are in trouble, Jesus has come to rescue and save. 

When we hear or see reports of God moving in a miraculous way, we can think about the words of Luke 5:17, that "the power of the Lord was present to heal them."  If we want to see the power of God move in and around us, we have to put ourselves in a position to see such a move - we have to be humble, to be hungry, and to honor the presence of the Lord. We cannot be flippant or cavalier in our attitude toward the Lord or the things of God, but we should allow Him to ignite a fire in our hearts.  Yieldedness - the willingness to surrender to God - is a catalyst for revival.