America stands at a crossroads today. We face a spiritual and moral decline, a massive national debt, an out-of-control government that threatens our liberty, and a growing threat from Islamic jihad here and abroad. We need another Great Awakening like those in the past that produced our national independence and freedom for slaves, but who will lead it? What is the churches’ role in this? What is the Virginia Christian Alliance, and what can they do to help? Finally, what can “We the People” – what can I — do to rebuild the broken-down pillars of religion and morality on which America was built and has prospered?
Is it time for another Great Awakening in America? For example, the First Great Awakening stirred Americans to rise up against the tyranny of Great Britain in the mid-1700’s. It was spearheaded by evangelists like George Whitefield and by a Black-Robed Regiment of pastors like John Peter Muhlenberg in Woodstock who, in 1776, led his men into the great War for our Independence.
The Second Great Awakening in the 1800’s was also led by pastors like Charles Finney who stirred the people to fight for an end to slavery. Like the first, it too was a battle for national unity and for freedom.
VFIA #230 Stirring the Church for a Third Great Awakening from Dean Welty on Vimeo.
So do we need another Great Awakening today to turn back a new challenge to our freedom and our unity as a nation? Sadly, this one comes from our own government, because it has:
1. Plunged us into a massive and growing burden of national debt,
2. Attacked and overturned basic moral values that reflect our Christian beliefs,
3. Imposed crippling regulations on our free enterprise system,
4. Violated constitutional principles like the separation of powers and states’ rights,
5. Launched class warfare that promotes dependency over responsibility, and
6. Refused to confront the growing threat of Islamic jihad here and abroad.
We’ll find out more about this call for another Great Awakening from our guests as we talk about Stirring the Church for Another Great Awakening.
Don Blake (top right) is the Chairman and President of the Virginia Christian Alliance. After college and a stint in the Army, he went into business and has served on numerous professional and non-profit boards, including work with Virginia pastors to promote family values. He lives in Richmond.
Dean Nelson (bottom right) helps lead the Frederick Douglass Foundation, the Wellington Boone Ministries, and Care Net — a network of more than 1,000 pregnancy centers across America. He also serves on the Board of the Virginia Christian Alliance. He lives in Gaithersburg, Maryland.
Dean Welty (far right) of Valley Faith in Action airs five times on WAZT-TV, beginning at 8:00 p.m. Friday and Saturday, again at 7:00 a.m. and 8:30 p.m. Sunday, and finally at Wednesday midnight. That is on Comcast Cable Channel 13 in the Harrisonburg/Rockingham area but varies in other locations. However, if you miss the TV program, you can watch it and earlier programs online HERE anytime.
