Checklist for Revival

When I think of all the things that the Lord has given us to do, I wonder how we manage to find so much time to do other things that are not important to him.  Just think of all the things that Christians fill their weeks with, and you will see what I mean.  If you have time to sit and watch TV, news, sports, movies, play on Facebook, do video games, sit in online chat rooms, read non-Christian literature, listen to non-Christian music, talk radio, and generally waste time, then maybe you need to remind yourself of the things you should be doing.  If that's you, here is a list to get started.

As you read through the list, check off the ones that you are doing and circle the ones you are not.  Make special note of the words "every," "all," "always," "everything," and "continually," which all mean exactly what they say.

1. Love God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength…  (1 Jn 5:3; 2 Jn 6)
2. Love your neighbor as yourself  (Mt 22:39; Mk 12:31; Lk 10:27; 1 Pe 4:8; 1 John 4:7, 11, 20:21; He 13:1)
3. Love your enemies (Mt 5:44)
4. Believe in the name of Jesus Christ  (1 Jn 3:23) 
5. Set apart Christ as Lord in your hearts  (1 Pet 3:15)
6. Keep yourself in God’s love  (Jude 21)
7. Receive the Holy Spirit (John 20:22; Acts 1:8; 2:38; 7:59; 8:15,19; 19:2; Mat. 3:11; Mark 1:8; Luke 3:16; John 1:33)
8. Be baptized with fire (Mat. 3:11; Lk 3:16; Mal 3:1-3).
9. Pursue love  (1 Tim 6:11)
10. Husbands love your wives  (Col 3:19)
11. Seek first the kingdom of God and all His righteousness  (Mt 6:33)
12. Enter through the narrow gate (Mat 7:13)
13. Make every effort to be holy (He 12:14; 2 Pet 3:11)
14. Make every effort to be found spotless, blameless, and at peace with the Lord  (2 Pet 3:18)
15. Be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect (Mt 5:48)
16. Pursue righteousness  (1 Tim 6:11)
17. Pursue godliness  (1 Tim 6:11)
18. Pursue faith  (1 Tim 6:11)
19. Pursue endurance   (1 Tim 6:11)
20. Pursue gentleness   (1 Tim 6:11)
21. Make disciples as you go (Matt 28:19)
22. Respect those who work hard, who rule  (1 The 5:12)
23. Try to be kind to each other always  (1 The 5:15)
24. In everything, treat people the same way you want them to treat you (Mat 7:12)
25. Give thanks in all circumstances  (Col 3:15; 1 The 5:18; Eph 5:20)
26. Be joyful always; rejoice in the Lord  (1 The 5:16; Phil 3:1; 4:4)
27. Continually offer the sacrifice of praise (He 13:15)
28. Be subject to rulers and authorities, including spiritual authorities  (1 Pet 2:13; Tit 3:1; Heb 13:17)
29. Share all good things with the one who teaches you (Gal 6:6)
30. Obey your leaders  (He 13:17)
31. Imitate the faith of your leaders  (He 12:7)
32. Imitate what is good  (3 Jn 11)
33. Imitate Christ  (Phil 2:1; 1 Jn 2:6)
34. Do good  (1 Tim 6:18)
35. Devote yourself to doing what is good  (Tit 3:14)
36. Keep yourself from idols  (1 Jn 5:21)
37. Keep your life free from love of money  (He 13:5)
38. Be continually filled with the Holy Spirit (Eph 5:18)
39. Eagerly desire the spiritual gifts  (1 Col 14:1)
40. Excel in gifts that build up the church  (1 Col 14:12)
41. Be merciful to those who doubt  (Jude 22)
42. Repent and do the things you did at first  (Rev 2:5)
43. Grieve, mourn, and wail, turn your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom  (Jas 5:9)
44. Wash your hands; purify your hearts  (Js 5:8)
45. Confess your sins to each other  (Js 5:16)
46. If your right eye makes you stumble, tear it out and throw it from you (Mat 5:29)
47. If your right hand makes you stumble, cut it off and throw it from you (Mat 5:30)
48. Confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord (Rom 10:9)
49. Submit yourselves to God  (Js 5:7)
50. Come near to God  (Js 5:8)
51. Be baptized (Ac 2:38)
52. Do everything without complaining or arguing  (Phil 2:14)
53. When you fast, anoint your head and wash your face (Mat 6:17)
54. When you pray, go into your inner room, close your door and pray to your Father who is in secret (Mat 6:6)
55. Pray continually  (1 The 5:17)
56. Build yourselves up and pray at all times in the Spirit  (1 Cor 4:14; Jude 20; Eph 6:18)
57. Always keep on praying for all the saints (Eph 6:18)
58. Pray for those who persecute you (Mt 5:44)
59. Ask, seek, and knock (Mt 7:7)
60. Devote yourself to prayer  (Col 4:2)
61. Pray for each other (Js 5:16)
62. In everything, by prayer, present your requests to God  (Phil 4:6)
63. Cast your anxiety on the Lord  (1 Pet 5:7)
64. Think about things that are excellent, praiseworthy  (Phil 14:8)
65. Work out your salvation with fear and trembling (Phil 2:12) 
66. Be all the more diligent to make certain about His calling and choosing you (2 Pe 1:10)
67. Put to death whatever belongs to your earthly nature  (Col 3:5)
68. Rid yourselves of such things as anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language  (Col 3:7)
69. Clothe yourself with kindness, compassion, humility, gentleness, and patience  (Col 3:12)
70. Be completely humble, show true humility toward all men  (Eph 4:2; 1 Pe 3:8; 5:5,6)
71. Bear with each other  (Col 3:13  )
72. First take the log out of your own eye (Mat 7:5)
73. Forgive whatever grievances you have against each other  (Col 3:13)
74. Teach and admonish one another  (Col 3:16)
75. Wives submit to your husbands in everything (Eph 5:24; Col 3:18)
76. Wives respect your husbands (Eph 5:33)
77. Parents bring up your children in the discipline and instruction of the Lord (Eph 6:4)
78. Children obey your parents in everything  (Col 3:20)
79. Do everything in the name of the Lord  (Col 3:17)
80. Do everything with all your heart for the Lord  (Col 3:23)
81. Pastors, preach the Word  (2 Tim 4:2)
82. Pastors, correct (2 Tim 4:2)
83. Pastors, rebuke (2 Tim 4:2)
84. Encourage one another  (Heb 3:13)
85. Speak to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord (Eph 5:19)
86. Be peaceable  (Tit 3:2)
87. Be considerate  (Tit 3:2)
88. Remember those believers in prison as if you were their fellow inmates  (He 13:3)
89. Consider it pure joy when you face trials  (Js 1:2)
90. Be quick to listen  (Js 1:19)
91. Be slow to speak  (Js 1:19)
92. Be slow to get angry  (Js 1:19)
93. Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom  (Js 2:12)
94. Let your Yes be Yes and your No, No  (Mt 5:37; Js 5:12)
95. Husbands treat your wives with respect  (1 Pet 3:7)
96. Husbands be considerate as you live with your wives  (1 Pet 3:7)
97. Live in harmony with one another  (1 Pet 3:8)
98. Be sympathetic  (1 Pet 3:8)
99. Be compassionate  (1 Pet 3:8)
100. Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven. (Mat 5:16)
101. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have (1 Pet 3:15)
102. Be clear-minded and self controlled  (1 Pet 4:7)
103. Speak as though speaking the very words of God  (1 Pet 4:11)
104. Resist the devil  (Js 5:7)  (1 Pet 5:9)
105. Endure hardship like a good soldier of Christ Jesus  (2 Tim 2:3)
106. Put on the full armor of God (Eph 6:11)
107. Fight the good fight of the faith  (1 Tim 6:12)
108. Be alert  (1 Pet 5:8)
109. Be watchful  (Col 4:2)
110. Be on your guard, so that you may not be carried away by the error of lawless men  (2 Pet 3:17)
111. Beware of the false prophets (Mat 7:15)
112. Watch your life and doctrine closely  (1 Tim 4:16)
113. Guard the good deposit that was entrusted to you  (2 Tim 1:14)
114. Grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ  (2 Pet 3:18)
115. Give proper recognition to those widows who are really in need  (1 Tim 5:3)
116. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called  (1 Tim 6:12)
117. Turn away from godless chatter  (1 Tim 6:20)
118. Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit (Phil 2:3
119. Regard one another as more important than yourself (Phil 2:3)
120. Make friends quickly with your opponent at law while you are with him on the way (Mat 5:25)
121. If anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, let him have your coat also (Mt 5:40)
122. Give to him who asks of you, and do not turn away from him who wants to borrow from you. (Mat 5:42)
123. Store up for yourselves treasures in heaven (Mat 6:20) 
124. Test the spirits to see whether they are from God (1Jo 4:1) 

While you are at it, it would be helpful to review the following list of things you should avoid:

1. Do not worry about what you will eat, drink, wear, or about tomorrow (Mt 6:31,34)
2. Do not be surprised if the world hates you  (1 Jn 3:13)
3. Do not love the world or anything in the world  (1 Jn 2:15)
4. Do not get drunk with wine (Eph 5:18)
5. Do not be partners with immoral, impure persons, covetous men, who are idolaters, or any of the sons of disobedience  (Eph 5:5-7)
6. Do not be like Cain  (1 Jn 3:12)
7. Do not be deceived  (1Co 6:9; 1Co 15:33; Gal 6:7; Jam 1:16)
8. Do not imitate what is evil  (3 Jn 11)
9. Do not be anxious about anything  (Phil 4:6)
10. Do not lie to each other  (Phil 3:9)
11. Do not be harsh with your wife  (Col 3:19)
12. Do not embitter your children  (Col 3:21)
13. Do not find fault  (Jude 16)
14. Do not harden your heart  (Heb 3:15)
15. Do not forget to entertain strangers  (Heb 13:2)
16. Do not forget to share with others  (1Ti 6:18)
17. Do not merely listen to the Word  (Js 1:22)
18. Do not show favoritism  (Js 2:1)
19. Do not slander one another  (Js 5:11)
20. Do not swear by heaven, earth, or anything else  (Js 5:12)
21. Do not use your freedom as a cover up for evil  (1 Pet 2:16)
22. Do not rebuke an older man  (1 Tim 5:1)
23. Do not be hasty in laying on of hands  (1 Tim 5:22)
24. Do not neglect your gift  (1 Tim 4:14)
25. Do not seek your own good, but the good of others  (1 Co 10:24; Phil 2:4)
26. Do not think that Jesus came to abolish the Law or the Prophets (Mt 5:17)
27. Do not resist an evil person (Mt 5:39)
28. Do not sound a trumpet before you when you give to the poor (Mt 6:2)
29. Do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, when you give to the poor (Mat 6:3)
30. Do not use meaningless repetition when you are praying (Mat 6:7)
31. Do not put on a gloomy face, whenever you fast, as the hypocrites do (Mat 6:16)
32. Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth (Mat 6:19)
33. Do not judge so that you will not be judged. (Mat 7:1)
34. Do not give what is holy to dogs, and do not throw your pearls before swine (Mat 7:6) 
35. Do not believe every spirit (1Jo 4:1)

It's amazing that it can all be summed up in these two commands: "Love God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength." and "Love your neighbor as yourself."  But the Scriptural admonitions above are written to help us to put some feet to those two commands and begin to take action.

I'm sure there is much more that we could add to these lists, but this is enough to show us what is important to God, and how we should be spending our time.  I encourage you to meditate upon these lists and let them be a sort of checklist for spiritual revival in your life.  Let them be a reality check to see where you are missing the mark or falling short of what God expects. If you circled any, indicating you are not practicing them, then repent sincerely with all your heart and cry out to God for change.  Don't stop until you see the change. He will be faithful to do it and revive you once again.

Author's note: You may also access my complete blog directory at "Writing for the Master."  

Do You Want to Know Him?
If you want to know Jesus personally, you can. It all begins when you repent and believe in Jesus.  Do you know what God's Word, the Bible says?

“Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’” (Mar 1:14b-15).  He preached that we must repent and believe.

Please see my explanation of this in my post called "Do You Want to Know Jesus?"

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Len Lacroix is the founder of Doulos Missions International.  He was based in Eastern Europe for four years, making disciples, as well as helping leaders to be more effective at making disciples who multiply, developing leaders who multiply, with the ultimate goal of planting churches that multiply. His ministry is now based in the United States with the same goal of helping fulfill the Great Commission. www.dmiworld.org.