50 Years Ago – Then
I went to see the movie The Jesus Revolution recently. Amazing.
I remember when the Jesus Freaks were in the parks and in the old houses where rangy looking kids gathered. I remember sitting in circles and spouting language that only our peers understood.
Groovy, man.
I remember when revival broke out. When Calvary Chapel was the talk of the country. I never went there, but I felt the ripples.
The Holy Spirit dropped on us at a youth retreat, called The Search. I’m pretty sure the name was apropos. I was changed. For the first time, I understood what overwhelming love and oneness was all about. I could see how the Biblical Acts could happen and how the world could be turned upside down because of Jesus.
The generation of the 1960s and 1970s was a lost bunch. Pretty hopeless, with the Vietnam War taking so much away from ideals of what life should be like.
Protests and riots were everywhere. Sound familiar?
Yet, God chose that time to drop in on a youthful generation that was dropping out.
And He rescued them. From a drug culture. From war. From disillusionment.
And—if you saw the movie—you saw how the youth came in droves to be baptized and surrender their lives to the God who came for them.
Where are those kids now?
Fifty Years Later – Now
I think it was no accident that The Jesus Revolution just happened to release when the Asbury Revival broke out. It’s just like God to prove His points to us. Especially when we are dull.
We are hearing about days and days of worship, togetherness and how young lives are being changed. God is calling another fledgling generation to go out and share His Good News with the world.
This generation, too, is rootless and hopeless. If they ever had ideals to believe in, they’ve been so trampled in the mud, they are unrecognizable. This generation seeks identity. A place to belong. A place where love reigns.
It sounds familiar.
God has chosen to break in and change them.
Now What?
Remember the question—where are the 60s & 70s kids now?
Perhaps God has a new plan for the former generation. Maybe the Holy Spirit has been anointing the previous generation to teach and disciple the new one. Not as exciting, perhaps, as full on revival, but it is seasoning that brings success. And slow cooking brings out the flavor.
It seems God drops in between eras with revival just in time.
It is time to pass the Good News Baton. And now there is a generation to pass it to.
Watch how they change the world.
“And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God.’” (Revelation 21:3-4 NKJV).
Leave a Reply