A Vision for Reformation in Arizona

“Spiritual awakening in our day – Reformation in our lifetime!” This is the rallying cry coming from Dutch Sheets and many others, that we cannot sit back and allow America to become a “post-Christian” nation – as some claim it already is – but that we must extend the influence of the Kingdom of God into every arena of society.

Spiritual awakening must result in a transformed society or it is nothing more than flash in the pan. The great revivals of the past shaped their nations, impacted their cultures and shifted the prevailing world view.

What would true awakening and true reformation in Arizona look like?

How would our public schools, our legal system, our businesses, our churches be different?

These aren’t just rhetorical questions or irrelevant spiritual fantasies… they should be a clear and burning vision within us for revival reformation in Arizona, so that we can pray with faith and take action!

I want to invite you to explore what true revival in Arizona would look like, on this blog.

Talk about your city. Tell us about your child’s middle school. Share the vision in your heart for state government. Please feel free to leave your comments below and let’s ask the Lord to give us His vision for our state!

I’ll go first. Arizona spends billions of dollars each year responding to child abuse and neglect. But the cost in shattered young lives is something you can’t put a price on. When true reformation is birthed in Arizona, we’ll see parents whose hearts have been healed and hopeless kids in foster care will be taken into loving Christian homes. A young generation will be rescued.

This video starts out with worship, followed by a very moving call from Dutch to give ourselves to reformation.

Dutch Sheets – Call to Reformation and Revival

Please be sure to join us at our special conference, Awake Arizona (June 25 – 27, City of Grace, Mesa) to hear Dutch speak on revival and reformation in our state.

Go here for more information.

I want to share something that has really been on my heart for a long time – and that’s the power of the Church to transform society. Many see this as hopeless, a lost cause. Others believe we should focus solely on preaching the gospel and things will take care of themselves.

But I believe that our mandate as the Church extends beyond merely “saving souls” to discipling nations and being “the salt of the earth” and “the light of the world.” We’ve heard these phrases from scriptures so often, but do we really understand what they mean?

What we believe about these scriptures is going to affect how we pray as intercessors and how we strategize and allocate resources as leaders.

Salt is essential for life and every cell in our bodies contains it. Without salt an animal or human will die and the importance of salt to any civilization cannot be underestimated.

The power to monopolize and control a population’s salt supply, was power over life and death in ancient times. Access to salt supplies started wars! Nations rose and fell based on salt. Historians say that Rome didn’t really fall – it slowly moved – to Byzantium in Turkey, to be closer to the salt supply.

Romans concentrated their military infrastructure near salt sources, or on salt routes. In South American, when the Spanish took over the salt resources, in a fell swoop, they took control of that part of the continent.

Did you know that salt was so important that the words for ‘war’ and ‘peace’ originate from the word for salt & bread in Ancient Hebrew and Arabic?

Salt was a very valuable commodity and was sometimes used as currency. The word “salary” comes from the Roman times, when soldiers were paid in salt.

The buying and selling of salt became one of the most important trading activities in the world. In ancient Greece slaves could be exchanged for salt, which is where the saying comes from, “not worth his salt.”

Matthew 5:13-16

13 You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled by men.

14 You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden.

15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.

16 In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven

We often act as if we’re called to be the “salt and light of the Church” instead of the “salt of the EARTH and the light of the WORLD!”

Jesus gives a very sober warning to us about what happens if we lose our “saltiness,” our effectiveness and impact in the world around us – we are trampled underfoot.

Verse 16 makes it clear that the way to maintain our light and our saltiness is to do good deeds, out there, in the real world – in our neighborhoods, our school boards, our city councils, our businesses, our hospitals and universities.

Jesus doesn’t say that we’re to try and be “like” salt. He says that we ARE salt!

This makes a huge difference in our thinking. Instead of timidly hoping that we can impact our world, we need to embrace what has already been deposited within us!

Jesus has already granted us the very attributes, powers and qualities of salt.

 1.For thousands of years, salt was the most important disinfectant. It can prevent infections in wounds and stop food from rotting. Jesus is saying that we have both the power and the responsibility to prevent the spread of moral decay and wickedness in our world. It is in our nature to do so!

 2.Salt is one of the most useful substances on earth. In fact, it was over 14,000 documented uses! Joseph was sent to Pharaoh to solve an agricultural and economic crisis in very practical ways. Like we can get answers from heaven for the practical problems facing every aspect of society. If we fail to be useful, if we fail to be bring answers to the world, we surely risk losing our saltiness!

 3.Salt is found in blood, sweat and tears. We need to roll up our sleeves and get to work with a servant’s heart in our communities …and we need to fall on our knees like Jesus in Gethsemane and do that which only the Church can: the hidden, but critical work of the intercessor.

When was the last time we wept in intercession and sweated in prayer for our cities and families and governmental leaders?

It seems to me that being “salty” comes down to a PROPHETIC mandate to preach righteousness, a PRACTICAL mandate of service and a PRAYER mandate.