Azusa Street Revival and Consecration

Their only agenda at the Bonnie Brae Street house was to have an all-consuming encounter with the Holy Spirit. Eyewitness and historian of the revival, Frank Bartleman, said that in the meetings:
“There was no closing at 9 o’clock sharp, as the preachers must do today in order to keep the people. We wanted God in those days. We did not have a thousand other things we wanted before Him.”
In our generation, we have so many more distractions and options to choose from than they had over 100 years ago. In our day, we have to say “no” to a million other things in order to say “yes” to the One Thing, Jesus. I wonder what it looks like to “not have a thousand other things” we want before God?
When everything is stripped away, it’s easy to see all we have is Jesus. But what do we do when the excess of life surrounds us and competes for first place? What do we do when we have so many other options and images competing for our attention, repetitively calling out to us, “Choose me, pick me!”? Where, what, and to whom do we run to when the distractions of the world infiltrate our minds, hearts, and lives? Is Jesus still all we have when we have a million other options we can also run to?
Leonard Ravenhill once said, “Christ has not conquered my affections if He has to compete for my attention.”
What might a generation look like today who says “no” to a million things, to say “yes” to the One Thing? Today, the price is higher. The cost is greater. And because of this, I believe the passion will be intensified and the fire will be even brighter.
What does it look like to not have a thousand other things before Jesus? What is competing for your attention? Do you spend more time in front of a screen than in front of a Bible? Does Jesus have to compete for your attention? What are you giving your time, heart, emotions to?
Except taken from new book Feasting on God’s Presence: 40 Days of Encountering the Holy Spirit through Fasting. Learn more at
Jenmiskov.com/feastingongodspresence to pick up your copy, receive a free sneak peek of the book or access the Audio version in Jen’s voice also available!
#feastingongodspresence #fastingforfire #igniteazusa #definingmoments #welshrevival #evanroberts #florrieevans #walkingonwater #oil