Developing Kingdom Leaders – Tom Yeakley

Taking the Mystery out of Leadership

Archive for the month “February, 2023”

27 Feb 2023

Revivals in America

Below is a brief overview of the history of Spirit led revivals in the history of America. Of note, four of these six (now seven?) began with college students and moved to all levels of American society. It seems that perhaps we are seeing once again the beginnings of a spiritual awakening. May it be so!

6 Revivals in American History

#1      1730-40 Revival    The Great Awakening

  • Cotton Mather

#2      1805-06 Revival    The 2nd Great Awakening

Hampden-Sydney College in Virginia

  • 3 students met in dorm room for prayer and Scripture reading
  • Mob gathered outside the door swearing and shouting threats to stop
  • President John Blair came to investigate
  • Next week the mtg. met in the President’s parlor with ½ the students present
  • Revival swept the college and the country

Haystack Prayer Meeting  –  August 1806

  • Samuel Mills and 4 other Williams College students caught in a Sat afternoon rain, stopped to pray at a haystack for foreign missions; committed themselves for service unless God stopped them; American mission movement began with these
  • Motto  –  “We can do it if we will!”

#3      1857-58 Revival    The Prayer Revival

NYC noon prayer meeting started by a local pastor burdened to pray for NYC

  • began with a noon prayer meeting in his church on Sept. 23, 1857
  • Pastor Jeremiah Lanphier and 6 people gathered to pray for the city
  • within 6 months 10,000 gathered daily for noonday prayer in NYC
  • Horace Greeley sent a reporter on horseback across NYC at noon looking for anyone who was not praying; could find none!

The revival moved from NYC to campuses across America

YMCA expanded into the collegiate ministry in 1858 to 180 campuses in 1884

  • YMCA staffed with student leadership dedicated to evangelism
  • Carleton College (MN) – 1878 every student in all 4 classes professed Christ!

#4      1905-06 Revival   

  • “Never in the history of universities have there been so many genuine spiritual awakenings among students.”
  • Seeds for this revival were planted at the July 1886 Mt. Hermon student conference for 250 students from 89 campuses with D.L. Moody
  • ‘The Princeton Covenant’  –  100 signed at the conference to go to mission field unless God stopped them
  • Teams  of students went to the campuses that fall encouraging others to sign the covenant
  • Over 100,000 signed and over 20,000 made it overseas!
  • This was the greatest era of missions sending in the history of the USA —  The Student Volunteer Movement
  • Motto  –  “The evangelization of the world in this generation”
  • 90% of the students at U of Florida came to evangelistic meetings and every fraternity organized bible studies
  • 900 men came to Penn State meetings with hundreds of decisions for Christ
  • 2400 of 3600 in one dorm at U of Michigan came to hear the Gospel
  • 500 of the graduating class at Yale were converted
  • Kansas St. YMCA had 29 Bible studies for 380 men

#5      1949-50 Revival

  • 2 students from Los Angeles drove 2,300 miles to Minneapolis to pray with Dr. J. Edwin Orr and Dr. Billy Graham for campus revival
  • Orr preached at Bethel College chapel, “there was much prayer in the dormitories, followed by intense conviction of sin among the students in chapel and in classroom…Conviction was relieved only by outright confession, restitution, restoration or conversion to God”
  • Oct. 1955 NY Times, “More than 1,200 of the nation’s 1,900 colleges and universities how have a ‘religious emphasis week of some sort.”

#6      1970’s Jesus Movement

  • Asbury College in Kentucky
  • Revival quickly moved to many state and private campuses
  • U.C.- Berkeley (1968)     
  • Chuck Smith (founder of Calvary Chapel) was witnessing to the hippies and radical students and began to see many converted! 
  • As many as 250,000 students came to Christ during the next 8-10 years

#7      Today?

  • February 8, 2023 chapel service at Asbury College
  • Seems to be spreading to other campuses – both to Christian colleges and state colleges
  • Gen Z (iGen) students leading this movement of the Spirit of God
  • Pray for a movement of repentance from sin!
  • Pray that believers will be bold in proclaiming Christ!
  • Pray for a reaping of many souls into the Kingdom of God!

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20 Feb 2023

God’s Favor on a Leader

After receiving the tabernacle, our ancestors under Joshua brought it with them when they took the land from the nations God drove out before them. It remained in the land until the time of David, who enjoyed God’s favor and asked that he might provide a dwelling place for the God of Jacob. But it was Solomon who built a house for him. Acts 7:45-47 NIV

We note from Stephen’s testimony above that David, the leader of Israel, that David “enjoyed God’s favor.” That is, God’s hand of blessing was upon David and his leadership. God prospered David’s kingdom and blessed his endeavors. He was a “man after God’s own heart” (see Paul’s testimony about David in Acts 13:22). Yes, David was blessed and favored by God, yet there were limitations.

David had in mind to build a permanent structure for the ark of the covenant. Since the time of Moses and the 40 years of desert wanderings, the Tabernacle containing the ark had moved from place to place. David thought it a good idea to build a temple to house the ark – a means of remembering God’s faithfulness and blessing. But it was not to be David who built the temple. It was Solomon, his son, who would have the privilege of completing what his father, David, had dreamed of doing.

Just because you experience God’s blessing on your leadership does not mean that His blessing rests upon every idea or initiative you take in your leadership. David’s plans to build the temple were rebuked by God. “When your days are over and you rest with your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring to succeed you, your own flesh and blood, and I will establish his kingdom. He is the one who will build a house for my Name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.” 2 Samuel 7:12-13 NIV

David submitted to God’s plan for the temple. He did not demand God’s favor on this dream. Rather, he humbled himself, made preparations for the build, and entrusted the task to Solomon as he transitioned his leadership to his son.

This is what made David a man after God’s heart. Yes, he made mistakes – major mistakes! Yet, when confronted with his sin or rebuked by God, he repented, humbled himself, and obeyed the Lord’s commands.

Are you ‘a leader after God’s own heart’? How’s your attitude when God does not bless your efforts or prosper you endeavors?

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13 Feb 2023

Making Tough Calls

Paul and Barnabas are at Pisidian Antioch in the midst of their first missionary tour to the Gentiles. As was their custom when entering a new city, they would go first to the synagogue to present the gospel of Jesus to the Jews. Once that obligation was fulfilled they would then turn to the Gentiles. Their ministry to the local Gentiles would continue as long as open doors presented themselves. But once opposition formed, they would move on to the next town. This ministry pattern was repeated as they moved from town to town. Note this process as described in Acts 13 below.

From Perga they went on to Pisidian Antioch. On the Sabbath they entered the synagogue and sat down. After the reading from the Law and the Prophets, the leaders of the synagogue sent word to them, saying, “Brothers, if you have a word of exhortation for the people, please speak.” … 26 “Fellow children of Abraham and you God-fearing Gentiles, it is to us that this message of salvation has been sent. … 42 As Paul and Barnabas were leaving the synagogue, the people invited them to speak further about these things on the next Sabbath. When the congregation was dismissed, many of the Jews and devout converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas, who talked with them and urged them to continue in the grace of God. On the next Sabbath almost the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord. When the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy. They began to contradict what Paul was saying and heaped abuse on him. Then Paul and Barnabas answered them boldly: “We had to speak the word of God to you first. Since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles. … 48 When the Gentiles heard this, they were glad d honored the word of the Lord; and all who were appointed for eternal life believed. The word of the Lord spread through the whole region. But the Jewish leaders incited the God-fearing women of high standing and the leading men of the city. They stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and expelled them from their region. So they shook the dust off their feet as a warning to them and went to Iconium. Acts 13:14-15; 26; 42-46; 48-51 NIV

We can’t do everything all the time. Making strategic Kingdom leadership decisions are influenced by multiple factors such as: resources available, opportunity alignment compared to our God-given mission, timing, and the confirmation of the Holy Spirit. Good leadership considers all of these factors in the decision making process. We will have to say ‘no’ to some options in order to say ‘yes’ to the best choice. Some will question our decisions and perhaps disagree.

Ultimately, ‘wisdom will be known by her children.’ (see Luke 7:35). Note that the Word of the Lord spread beyond Antioch to the entire region (v. 49).

Be courageous and make the tough calls! God has your back!

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06 Feb 2023

Changing Your Plans

When they asked him to spend more time with them, he declined. But as he left, he promised, “I will come back if it is God’s will.” Then he set sail from Ephesus. Acts 18:20-21 NIV

Paul was at the end of his three-year second missionary tour. He had added a new couple to the team in Corinth, Aquila and Priscilla, and now he sailed with them to Ephesus. Paul, as was his custom, went to the synagogue to proclaim the Messiah to the Jews in Ephesus. There seems to have been an open opportunity for Paul the share the gospel among this Jewish audience indicated by their asking Paul to “spend more time with them.” But Paul declined. Why would Paul say ‘no’ to this open door?

Note that Ephesus (main city in the province of Asia) was the target audience for Paul and team two years earlier when they were at the beginning of the second tour (see Acts 16:6ff). The Holy Spirit prevented them from entering the province at that time, and now two years later there was an opportunity. Paul left Aquila and Priscilla in Ephesus (remember, they were Jewish converts) and sailed back to Jerusalem and eventually to Antioch of Syria.

Paul’s parting comment upon leaving was, “I will come back if it is God’s will.” We know he did return to Ephesus on his third tour and remained there for over two years (see Acts 19). Ephesus was still a strategic ministry audience, yet Paul’s future was dependent upon the Lord’s plans for him. He had learned to make his plans, but know that their execution was dependent upon the Lord’s guidance.

Some might say, “Well, what’s the use in planning if we don’t know whether they will be implemented? It seems like such a waste of time and effort. Why not just ‘wing it – let the Holy Spirit guide us as we go?” The Lord is an intentional God who acts according to His purposes. Jesus acknowledged the completion of the work (plans) the Father gave Him the night before His crucifixion. So, put aside this ‘wing it’ idea thinking that somehow this is more aligned with God’s leading us.

But… and this is big…. as we act out our carefully thought-through plans, we must also listen very carefully to the Holy Spirit and be willing to change our plans as He directs. He is God and we are not! He has the right to do as He sees fit and do it at anytime and in anyway He chooses. Our job is to follow His lead not expect Him to ‘rubber stamp’ our plans.

You may think that changing your leadership plans will cause a lack of trust from those you lead, but the opposite can be true. A leader who acknowledges God’s guidance, who has the humility to change plans because God has given a new direction, actually gains trust. Who doesn’t want to be led by someone who in humility says, “I had planned on this, but God over-ruled and directed us this new way?” At the beginning of his second tour, Paul changed his plans three different times before finally understanding that God wanted he and his team to go into Macedonia (northern Greece), not western Turkey.

Listen carefully to the Spirit as you execute your plans and be willing to change them. Study and apply His Word to your ministry efforts and expect Him to use the Word and others to confirm His leading (see Acts 16:1-10).

Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.” James 4:13-15 NIV

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