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The Book of Ecclesiastes is a sketch of King Solomon’s quest for wisdom and significance. His journey took him on the painful path of sin and rebellion. Tragically, it left him staggering from the emptiness of a life without God. After the king effectively set forth the arguments that all of life’s pursuits are “meaningless” and a “chasing after the wind” he boldly confessed, “Now all has been heard; here is the end of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man” (Ecc. 12:13). The experiences of life and the wisdom of the Holy Sprit brought Solomon to the prudent conclusion that there is only one meaningful purpose for mankind—the pursuit of God and His glory. Like Solomon, most American Christians have aggressively pursued lifestyles that are meaningless in the scheme of eternity. When all is said and done, we may be as guilty as Solomon of chasing after the wind. So what is the end of the matter after all the arguments of this book have been presented? That revival is not an option, but an absolute necessity. There is no other hope for the six billion people on this planet. Life and death, heaven and hell are at stake—eternity hangs in the balance. “Without a revival,” stated Finney, “sinners will grow harder and harder despite preaching. Your children and your friends will remain unsaved if there are no revivals to convert them. It would be better for them if there were no means of grace, no sanctuary, no Bible, and no preaching, than to live and die where there is no revival” (Finney, How, 11). If we ignore the importance and potential of genuine revival how will the mass of humanity rushing toward eternal torments be brought to Christ? What remedy are we offering the hordes of people who are bound by sin and the devil? What hope are we presenting to those who suffer every day under the meaninglessness of life without Christ? Are we ready to pray without ceasing until revival comes? As Andrew Murray admonished, “What is to be done? There is only one thing: We must wait upon God. And what for? We must cry, with a cry that never rests, ‘Oh that thou wouldst rend the heavens . . . [and] come down, that the mountains might flow down at thy presence’ (Isa. 64:1). We must desire and believe, we must ask and expect that God will do the [unexpected]. . . . Let us band ourselves together as His elect who cry day and night to Him for things men have not seen” (Andrew Murray, 289). The 1857 Prayer Meeting Revival burst forth from New York City and spread across America like a wild fire. Almost to the day, a prayer meeting revival began in Northern Ireland. Before long, news of revival in America and Ireland had created an intense hunger for it among the Scotts. Within two years the Aberdeenshire Revival broke out in Scotland. James Turner was the simple man God used to continue the work begun by Reginald Radcliffe. James Turner “was devoid of learning, and had no gift of utterance. He was a consumptive (which means he had tuberculosis) when his great task commenced, a dying consumptive whose days were nigh numbered. He was little in stature, his voice was feeble, his eye deformed by a squint. But this frail, broken, disfigured vessel was filled with a passionate love to Jesus Christ, an intense hungering compassion for souls, and an invincible faith in God. He could pray! Therefore God was able to lift him up, out of weakness made him strong, and in two crowded years of glorious life, He used the dying consumptive to win for Him eight thousand souls! “On December 6th, in the little fishing village of St. Combs, he began his memorable mission. From village to village he went, and everywhere along the seacoast his course was marked by a trail of divine fire. As he went on the blessing increased, and his coming was awaited with intense eagerness, and then, as happens when Revival reaches flood tide, a wave of great joy passed over the people. They thronged around him and marched in a body from town to town, singing as only those can sing who have drunk ‘the royal wine of Heaven,’ the joy unspeakable and full of glory. “In this way he at last reached Banff. . . It was found impossible to dismiss the people, and through the whole night a great reaping went on. Many of the most notorious sinners in the town were saved, and many who first saw the Lord that night went forth to declare His Glory in all parts of the earth. Turner had much of the spirit of McCheyne, and his end was like his. The matchless love of Christ filled his vision, and his last words were, ‘Christ is all’” (Shearer, 87-88). The Savior used a dying man to win to Himself eight thousand souls because Turner lived a surrendered life. How many healthy men did the Lord pass by before He found one yielded vessel that He could pour His power through? Though James Turner would not have fulfilled our modern criteria of a successful evangelist, he did fulfill the Lord’s criterion. God used this frail, sickly man in a way that few have ever been used, because he abandoned himself to the Lover of his soul. Throughout human history the Lord has raised up average individuals to change the course of history. In the Scriptures it was saints like Joseph, David, Elijah, Josiah, Daniel, Esther, John the Baptist, Peter and Paul. In church history they were believers like Luther, Wycliffe, Huss, Wesley, Finney, Woodworth-Etter, Roberts, Seymour, Lake and Wigglesworth. These are only a fraction of the men and women who turned their world upside down through the power of the Holy Spirit for the glory of a risen Savior. It takes only one person—just one person—who will stand in the gap to see the mercy of God poured out to a people deserving judgment. The Lord asked Jeremiah, “Go up and down the streets of Jerusalem, look around and consider, search through her squares. If you can find but one person who deals honestly and seeks the truth, I will forgive this city” (Jer. 5:1). However, the city was destroyed. The Lord said He would spare Sodom and Gomorrah if there were ten righteous people. Tragically, the cities were destroyed. Yet at other times the Lord found the righteous and so spared cities and nations. It took just one Luther to spark the fires of the Great Reformation, one Edwards to see the Great Awakening break forth, one Turner to help spread revival through Scotland, one Lamphier to put in motion the Prayer Meeting Revival, one Roberts to set Wales ablaze and one Seymour to open the floodgates of heaven for the birthing of the Pentecostal movement. Every person reading this book has the potential to be used by God like the precious saints mentioned above. The Lord is not holding back revival until the rich and famous get right with Him, nor is He waiting for those who have great talent or profound knowledge. No! He is looking for those believers who will humbly, and wholeheartedly, yield themselves to Christ and the building of His kingdom. We were born to see His glory flood the land. Yes, for “such a time as this” (Est. 4:14). EPILOGUE My prayer is that this little book has begun the work the Lord intended—to awaken your soul to the wonder of our great God and Savior—Jesus Christ, to the awesome power of the Spirit manifested through revival, to the necessity of reckless abandonment and to the desperate need to rescue the perishing. The only hope for your family, city and nation is for the Sovereign Lord to rend the heavens. Jesus desires to use average men and women to turn the world upside down. May we passionately cry out to the God of all mercies until His awesome deeds of old are renewed in our day. It is time we move heaven to shake earth. LORD, I have heard of your fame; I stand in awe of your deeds, O LORD. Renew them in our day, in our time make them known; in wrath remember mercy (Hab. 3:2).

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