Coming down from the mountain

By Sammy Tippit

The Heart-Cry for Revival conference has concluded, and God met with us. We had a “mountain top” experience in a literal and spiritual sense. Now that we’ve all left the mountains of North Carolina, we face the realities of life in the valley - ministry difficulties, church responsibilities, and a ton of work waiting for us.

God did so much in our lives during these past several days. The burning question now rises, “What changes do we make as we return back to a “normal” life and workload? How do we implement those things that God spoke to our hearts? How do we take the revival we experienced in the mountains of North Carolina back to our churches and communities?”

God spoke to my heart during the 2006 Heart-Cry conference and wrought a mighty revival in my life. It was the beginning of the work of God about which I spoke on Wednesday evening of this conference. Perhaps the greatest part of God’s work in my heart came when He spoke to me about what to do after the conference. I sensed that He wanted me to take three hours per day for seven days and spend that time in prayer. I knew it would be a challenge, but I felt that it was imperative that I take that time to be alone with God and seek Him about the things spoken to my heart.

I did what He told me to do. That decision made the conference much more than a good conference. It produced lasting fruit in my life and fresh vision for my ministry. It enabled me to “run the race” more effectively and became the catalyst to a deeper and more thorough work of God.

I believe that it would be helpful to every person who attended this conference and felt God speaking to their hearts about issues in their lives and ministries to set aside some time for the next seven days to seek God about those heart matters. You may not need three hours per day. Maybe you need 30 minutes or one hour. But it is important that you take what you heard on the mountain top and make it a reality in the valley. That’s when revival begins to take root and grow.

There are two major questions upon which you need to reflect. First, what did God say to your heart at The Cove? Second, how will you implement the necessary changes needed to fulfill the word spoken to your heart? Spend time in prayer asking God for wisdom in these areas. Read the Scriptures devotionally. He will speak and give clear direction. Then, be willing to establish priorities and make these critical changes.

The last thing Jesus did on this planet before ascending to heaven was to meet with the disciples on the mountain top. He then commissioned them to go into all the world and make disciples of all the nations. Yet, we learn in the Book of Acts that the first thing they did after leaving the mountain was spend time in prayer over what Jesus said to them. Out of that prayer time came a mighty revival that resulted in the most incredible spiritual movement in human history. Those humble followers of Jesus changed the world.

Perhaps the secret of the first century Christians was that they learned to seek God in the valley about the things they heard on the mountain top. What could happen in America if we do the same?