Scripture
13When they arrived, they went to the upstairs room of the house where they were staying…14They all met together and were constantly united in prayer, along with Mary the mother of Jesus, several other women, and the brothers of Jesus. 15During this time, when about 120 believers were together in one place, Peter stood up and addressed them. Acts 1:13-15
Observation
Delayed obedience is still disobedience. Notice, that as soon as the disciples arrived in Jerusalem they didn’t go shopping, they didn’t do chores around the house, they didn’t check their emails. They went immediately to the upper room as Jesus had instructed and they began to pray. Partial obedience is still disobedience. Notice too, they did exactly what God asked them to do… wait. Their generation was in a crisis. It was time to set the world on fire. First, they needed to be set on fire. What does He ask them to do? Wait and pray? Jesus didn’t give them a lot of details. We know in hindsight that it would be 10 days of waiting, praying, worshipping, but they didn’t know that. I wonder if it was around day 3 or 4 when Peter began to roll the dice to figure out the 12th man. The 120 did their part and Jesus came through with His part as The Holy Spirit came upon each of them and birthed the church out of that prayer meeting.
Application
Speaking of birth, my twins Justice and Jaxon are celebrating 15 years today. They were born in the midst of a crisis situation as they decided to make their arrival 3 months early. An emergency C-section was required and the first couple of days were touch and go to see if either or both of them were going to make it. We called everyone we knew to pray, because that was all we could do and that was enough. We did our part and God performed miracle after miracle in their little bodies. I now stand in awe as I see Justice and Jaxon pursuing Jesus with all they’ve got. There’s a hunger in their generation that I haven’t seen before. In fact, they are heading to winter camp tomorrow and I’m praying that God sparks the next Awakening in them and the 500 others gathering at Big Bear. They want more than a Christian party. They want the power of the Holy Spirit to move in their generation. It’s time! Jesus doesn’t give us a lot of details when He calls us to wait on Him, but there are patterns that can be observed in History. Every 50 years or so there has been a spiritual awakening in the world and the last one was 50 years ago with The Jesus Movement. All of them have had a bunch of young people at the center of them. Every 80 years there’s a crisis that happens. According to some recent studies History repeats itself in 80-year blocks called saculum, as explained in the book "The Fourth Turning." Within 80-year history blocks, there are four turnings or generations, each lasting around 20 years, with the current era being a crisis and era of upheaval known as the fourth turning. America's history has gone through different periods, and the current crisis is part of a cycle called the "fourth turning," which refers to a time of prosperity and cultural milestones followed by a significant event, such as the assassination of John F. Kennedy. The book predicts that the current fourth turning, which includes events like the financial crisis of 2008, is following a pattern that has occurred every 80 years in American history, such as the Great Depression and World War II.” Can you see what God is up to? At the point of a great crisis God is raising up a generation contending for a great awakening. Gabe Lyons says he believes God is going to turn the crisis generation into The Cross generation!
Prayer
Lord, we pray that You would meet the 500 on the mountain in the same way You met the 120 in the upper room. We pray that You would redefine the crisis. The problems arising right now would be an opportunity for You to show Yourself in a new way to new generation. Help me be to obedient to wait and pray no matter how long it takes. I will do my part and You will do Yours! You are going to birth a new move in the middle of this cultural crisis!
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