Calling the Church to Revival and America to Awakening (Part 1)

An Interview with Dr. Ronnie Floyd

In June of this year, Ronnie Floyd was elected as the sixtieth president of the largest Protestant denomination in America, the Southern Baptist Convention. He also continues to serve as Senior Pastor of Cross Church in Springdale, Arkansas, a ministry he began in 1986.Under Dr. Floyd’s leadership, Cross Church has grown into a five-campus ministry that reaches thousands weekly. Additionally, his blog, podcast, and television ministries reach around the globe. Dr. Floyd is a prolific author and highly sought-after speaker.After reading about Dr. Floyd’s urgent call for another Great Awakening, OneCry’s National Director Randy Hekman recently spoke with Dr. Floyd. Here is a transcript of the first of four excerpts from their conversation, focused on the compelling need for another Great Awakening in America.Randy: Welcome to our OneCry family, Dr. Floyd!Dr. Floyd: Thank you. It’s wonderful to be with you, and I believe in what God is doing through your ministry.Randy: Tell us, Dr. Floyd, where and when did your passion for a Great Awakening begin?Dr. Floyd: I found that the passion for revival came into my life when I was a college student. I was saved in the Jesus Movement, even though I didn’t know that’s what it was. I went to college in 1974 and was around some people who talked about revival and awakening.But through the years, I have continued to develop a passion for revival with fasting and prayer and many other areas of commitment. It seems like over the last eighteen months to two years, I’ve had a growing intensity and desperation that we really need to call America to awakening ... call the church to revival.Everyone doesn’t separate those terms, but I choose to separate them. I categorize revival as being the manifest presence of God that comes on a person’s life in a special way, or on a church in a special way. Great things begin to happen, the touch of God is there, and a mighty movement of the Lord happens.But when the church becomes alive and revived, we pray that God will wake up sections of this country and bring elements of a true Great Awakening (something our nation experienced years ago), where God-consciousness hits a section or region of the nation and all of a sudden, supernaturally, thousands or even millions of people come to Christ. That is what I’m asking God for.Randy: Many of our readers may be unfamiliar with what a Great Awakening could do for our nation. You’ve covered that a bit, but again, why is it that we so desperately need such an awakening? What could it do to our nation, and to our world?Dr. Floyd: I think every one of us needs to understand the day we are living in, a day where we can’t even keep up with the crises of the world. Granted, much of that has to do with living in the Information Age, but beyond that, even in the last 90 days, there has been unprecedented movement in rapid succession, with crisis after crisis after crisis.This has obviously gotten people’s attention. I think ears are opening. We need to come together as God’s people, to cry out to Him together and trust Him to do something mighty through His church, with His people, in this country.As we look at awakenings historically, it literally means that great, great numbers of people come to Jesus Christ. Cultures are affected, sub-cultures to some degree can be changed, and all of that because of the mighty work of God.I tell people all the time, “God can do more in a moment than we can do in a lifetime.” Many of us commit our lives to various ways to try change the culture a little bit, but the bottom line is, God can change it in a moment.But our goal is not to change culture; it’s to change people. And if God changes people, then obviously in time, the culture will change.Be sure to come back and read Part 2 next week!