Arts Engagement Calendar

BY CAMRYN MANNING Staff Writer

Asbury University was a place of revival in the 1970s and once again made headlines as a chapel service extended over 400 hours of worship. After 16 days, authorities and campus staff were forced to step in due to an influx of 15,000 people overwhelming the small town’s resources and infrastructure.

The movement at Asbury University has sparked prayer and worship across college campuses. Here at Ouachita and Henderson State, students have gathered in prayer and worship for hours on end.

Noah Ambrose, a freshman at Asbury University, experienced the movement firsthand. “This was not something instantaneous or planned,” Ambrose said. “It was the act of countless answered prayers. When chapel stopped, some people kept worshiping, and word spread; those in the room that day described the presence of God as so heavy and peaceful that they completely lost the concept of time.”

Having left for a swim meet, Ambrose noticed a marked difference in the campus when he returned.

“The campus was flooded with believers of all ages, backgrounds and cultures just coming together to worship God,” Ambrose said. “There was such a hunger present, and I knew it was genuine. I saw chains broken, relationships restored and guilt lifted. People who hated chapel before now didn’t want to leave. The whole thing was led with such humility by our staff and students and is the start of something special God is doing here.”

Dr. Adam Jones, a graduate of Asbury Theological Seminary, heard much from his colleagues at the university during the time of revival. “They didn’t really call it revival,” Jones said. “It was termed an ‘outpouring of God’s love.’ We can watch videos online of people singing for hours, but what’s not shown on the videos is the true work of the Spirit going on: forgiveness of sins, confessing sins to other people and true spiritual growth.”

Thomas McCall, professor of theology at Asbury Seminary and a colleague of Jones, wrote about the events happening on campus in an article published by Christianity Today. “As an analytic theologian,

I am weary of hype and very wary of manipulation,” McCall wrote. “I come from a background (in a particularly revivalist segment of the Methodist-holiness tradition) where I’ve seen efforts to manufacture ‘revivals’ and ‘movements of the Spirit’ that were sometimes not only hollow but also harmful. I do not want anything to do with that. And truth be told, this is nothing like that. There is no pressure or hype. There is no manipulation. There is no high-pitched emotional fervor. To the contrary, it has so far been mostly calm and serene. The mix of hope and joy and peace is indescribably strong and indeed almost palpable—a vivid and incredibly powerful sense of shalom. The ministry of the Holy Spirit is undeniably powerful but also so gentle.”

As believers, our mission remains true as ever. First, to praise God: if even one soul has come to Christ through this movement at Asbury, we are to give all the glory to God. We must pray continually that God’s will be done “on earth as it is in heaven,” whether His will here at Ouachita looks like what has happened at Asbury or not. Second, we must remember that prayer and worship are a way of life, not just a temporary emotional high. The Christian faith is rooted primarily in the Gospel, not feelings. Ultimately, it is only through the Gospel that we can worship God in both the highs and lows of life. True revival starts in the heart with one’s decision to live a life submitted to Christ, willing to take up one’s cross and follow Him.