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My Experience Of Revival, Cross Country Emmaus, 1990-1997 (Part 2)

Did God use the Cross Country Emmaus community and the Walk To Emmaus from 1990-1997 as a tool of revival and renewal in the church in West Central Texas? 

God used it to change my Walk with Him radically and, in turn, the trajectory of my life. I know dozens, if not hundreds, of people who faithfully follow Christ and make Him known today who would say the same. My last post gives details about the Walk itself. Let me tell you about what I saw, not what I heard God do in those years. 

I was baptized at 8, raised in the church, rebelled against God, became an agnostic, and spent at least 10 years increasing my alcohol intake to deal with the resentment and chaos in my heart and mind. I tried to stop drinking but could not until September 1, 1990, when I sobered up through AA. A year after that, I believed in Christ. 6 months after that, at my mother's and wife's insistence, I went on a Walk to Emmaus. Before the Walk, I was a believer but was scared to read the Bible (because of the questions it had raised when I was lost) and was scared to go to church because I felt so unworthy.

At my Walk, God's love broke through. The Monday after it, I prayed, "God, please help me understand Your Word. Please don't let me question it anymore. If I don't understand, I promise I'll study until You show me the truth of Your Word." I picked up the Bible and haven't put it down. My wife went on a Walk shortly after that, and the Sunday after her Walk, we were back in church for the first time in years, we served, I was asked to teach, and within three years, I had obeyed God's call to serve His people as a pastor.

Over the next 7 years, my wife and I were active in the Cross Country Community. We saw hundreds of lives changed - repentance, salvation, restoration, reconciliation, and all that comes with what I consider true revival. I saw hundreds of people serve sacrificially to make the Walks happen. I know at least 6 men and even more women in full-time ministry because of what God did through the Walk. 

The lives changed were not in one town. They were spread across 13 counties in that region of Texas. The people affected were not in one denomination. They were Baptist, Methodist, Presbyterian, Lutheran, Church Of Christ, Catholic, Charismatic, Foursquare, and more. 

Were there any downsides? Yes, the Walk brought division in more than a few churches. Many who came back from a Walk wanted everyone in their church to go, wanted their church to sing the same songs, want to work on Walks rather than work in their churches. In that way, it was like every revival I've seen. God's Word brings division, and so does His Spirit. Satan also works to bring division through human zeal, pride, and immaturity. 

I was a pastor in the middle of it all, and we had to work hard to keep Emmaus people from being overbearing and from developing a spiritually superior attitude. I had to work hard to help non-Emmaus people (those who hadn't gone on a Walk) from being resentful. God's primary tool in the world is the church and the local church in particular. It was a challenge to keep it all together, but I wouldn't trade it.

It was revival. The Bible was taught, Christ was worshiped, repentance was widespread, hearts were inflamed, and the fruit was long-lasting. 

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