The Apostle Paul said to his protege Timothy..."I remind you to kindle afresh the gift of God which is in you..." 2 Timothy 1:6.
The embers of God's life (let alone any special giftedness) lie within every truly born again believer. They can never be fully extinguished but can dim almost to invisibility. This happens when we neglect the Lord and walk in the flesh. Sin starves the embers of the heavenly oxygen needed to burn brightly. When we leave off our sinning and stop quenching the Holy Spirit, the very wind of heaven once again will blow through the soul and stir up what God put within at regeneration.
John Bonar remarked, "Revival is the exchange of the form of godliness for its living power." Another preacher said, "Revival is not going down the street with a big drum; it is going back to Calvary with a big sob." And, Billy Graham said, "Every revival that ever came in the history of the world, or in the history of the church, laid great emphasis on the holiness of God." And I would add, this is true in the history of any one believer's experience. And so, Stephen Olford remarked, "Waiting for general revival is no excuse for not enjoying personal revival."
The linguist Mounce defines "to kindle afresh" as "to kindle up a dormant fire; met. to revive, excite; to stir up, quicken one's powers.")
ALL THIS REQUIRES A CHRISTIAN'S HOLY AND DAILY ATTENTION.
-dick christen
