Awakenings and Earthquakes!

"Get out of bed, Jerusalem! Wake up. Put your face in the Sunlight. God's bright Glory has risen for you. The whole earth is wrapped in darkness, all the people have sunk into deep darkness, But God has risen upon you, His sunrise glory breaks over you. Nations will come to your light, kings to your sunburst brightness. Look up! Look around! (Can you not see?)"

Such powerful words spoken by the prophet Isaiah in chapter 60 to the nation Israel awash in sin and shame, yet words very applicable to our generation today! It's time for an AWAKENING!!

We have just begun a series titled "Awakening," and our focus is very simple and direct: "Passionate Christianity should be the norm for every believer-not the exception." Furthermore, " awakening to the presence of God is not a one time event but a recurring experience every day of our lives!" "Passionate spiritual zeal is one of the most important signs of a fervent personal relationship with Jesus." I asked the question that how can we settle for anything less from the one who created us-the Maker of the whole universe?

Let me conclude this thought by asking you if you know , deep inside, there has to be more than you are experiencing with Christ? Keep in mind that Christianity is the only religion that invites us to experience an intimate relationship with God. Pastor Mary Kay challenged us last week to find that relationship in an "awakening" relationship with God's Word; This week, I want to speak on igniting that passion that every disciple can enjoy and experience!

In light of what is happening in our world today, I sense that there is a "spiritual awakening" that is about to shake our world like never before. We see it being lived out politically in such diverse places as Israel, Egypt, Yemen, Jordan, Turkey, and Bahrain but also physically in devastating floods, hurricanes, drought, and now earthquakes the sizes of which we have never seen before.
My dear friends, the God of all Glory is allowing us to experience the birth pangs of the coming of His Son Jesus to establish His rule and reign! The kingdom of God is wherever the rule and reign of Jesus Christ is established. And guess what? If that rule and reign is soon to come , shouldn't we be awakened to our role in bringing that about? I'm talking about being about the Father's business!

As I conclude, a friend gave me these statistics that I must share with you, because Jesus prophesied about such things in Matthew. Let me quote: "From 1 A.D. to 1800 there were 11 major earthquakes recorded in history, resulting in an average of one major quake approximately every 100 years.

From 1900 to 2000, there were 10 major quakes 7.0 or higher. This resulted in an average of one major earthquake every 10 years.

This brings us to today. One of the most notable quakes was in Bam, Iran, on Dec. 26th 2003. Exactly one year later, Dec.26th 2004, Sumatra, Indonesia, experienced another massive quake and a subsequent devastating tsunami. Between these two quakes, more than 330,000 lives were lost.

From 2003 to 2007 there were 29 major earthquakes 7.0 or higher. This resulted in an average of one major quake every 49 days.

In 2008, there were 12 major quakes 7'0 or higher. This resulted in an average of one major earth quake every 37 days.

In 2009 there were 16 major quakes 7.0 or higher. This resulted in an average of one quake every 22 days.

In 2010 there were 24 major quakes 7.0 or higher. This resulted in an average of one major earthquake every 15 days."

Now scoffers will laugh and say that these are just a coincidence and the church is just trying to scare people. But the facts speak for themselves.

Sunday, a gentleman asked to speak for a brief moment concerning the devastating quake this past week in Japan. His message was simple: "It's time to awake...It's harvest time!" Come Sunday and get that passion that can put you back on the front lines or get you there for the first time! Can we be so foolish as to not discern the "signs of the times?"