[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"\u002Farticles\u002Fwake-up-call":3,"\u002Farticles\u002Fwake-up-call-surround":68},{"id":4,"title":5,"author":6,"bibleBooks":8,"body":12,"columnName":50,"date":51,"description":18,"extension":52,"image":53,"meta":54,"minRead":55,"navigation":56,"path":57,"postType":58,"publication":59,"publicationUrl":53,"seo":60,"stem":61,"topics":62,"__hash__":67},"blog\u002Farticles\u002Fwake-up-call.md","Wake-Up Call",{"name":7},"Dave Faust",[9,10,11],"Romans","Ephesians","Revelation",{"type":13,"value":14,"toc":46},"minimark",[15,19,22,25,28,31,34,37,40,43],[16,17,18],"p",{},"We're a nation of sleepyheads! According to a recent poll taken by the National Sleep Foundation, two-thirds of American adults get fewer than the recommended eight hours of sleep every night. Forty-three percent of adults say they're so sleepy during the day that it interferes with daily activities at least a few days each month. Sixty-five percent of 10- to 18-year-olds say they get up before 6:00 a.m.—a claim many parents might dispute! Furthermore, a University of Chicago study reveals that 41 percent of American workers say they often or always come home from work exhausted.",[16,20,21],{},"A lot of us could use a good night's sleep.",[16,23,24],{},"When it comes to spiritual things, though, a lot of us need to wake up.",[16,26,27],{},"Have you ever fallen asleep in church? The Bible tells about a young fellow named Eutychus who drifted off to dreamland while the apostle Paul preached a lengthy sermon. Warning to pew-snoozers: sleeping during sermons can be hazardous to your health! Eutychus happened to be sitting in a third-story window at the time. He literally \"fell asleep\" and dropped three stories to the ground below—and though he ultimately survived the experience, no doubt Eutychus left church that day with a memorable bruise on his pride.",[16,29,30],{},"What will it take to wake us up? In the military, a bugler plays reveille to wake up the troops. People in Arab countries wake at the crack of dawn to the sound of a Muslim call to prayer. If you stay in a hotel, you can request a wake-up call from the front desk to rouse you from slumber.",[16,32,33],{},"The Bible is God's reveille to rouse his sleeping church. \"The hour has come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed\" (Romans 13:11). \"Wake up, O sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you\" (Ephesians 5:14). The Lord's words to his sleepy church in Sardis are especially direct. \"Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your deeds complete in the sight of my God\" (Revelation 3:2).",[16,35,36],{},"When I was in college, I traveled with a group of Christian men who sang and spoke at youth events. One congregation put up a tent next to their church building to accommodate the crowds. After the Friday night program I stayed overnight at the preacher's home next door. When I awoke on Saturday morning, my friends told me, \"You missed all the excitement! The tent caught fire during the night, and the fire department came and put it out.\" Somehow I had slept through the whole thing.",[16,38,39],{},"It's time for a great spiritual awakening—time for the church to \"catch fire\" again. I don't want to sleep through it. I want to be wide awake to see the church reach the darkest corners of the earth with the gospel. I want to see the church capture the hearts and imaginations of the up and coming millennial generation. I want to see older people who haven't lost their zeal for the Lord, middle-aged people who aren't too busy making a living to offer their lives in service, and young people who are willing to give their best talents and their best years to the Master. I want to see God's people rise up and storm the gates of Hell.",[16,41,42],{},"We can achieve great things for God's glory in the twenty-first century. We have tools for travel and communication previous generations of Christians could scarcely dream about. It's time to translate our dreams into action.",[16,44,45],{},"Will we wake up and seize the moment . . . or sleep through it?",{"title":47,"searchDepth":48,"depth":48,"links":49},"",2,[],"From the Editor's Desk","2000-10-01","md",null,{},4,true,"\u002Farticles\u002Fwake-up-call","column","The Lookout",{"title":5,"description":18},"articles\u002Fwake-up-call",[63,64,65,66],"Church Leadership","Biblical Theology","Intergenerational Ministry","Spiritual Formation","NGiaxNMvAAGD2iCCdf1e7fDq9pXWQPYtvtx-nA62_ko",[69,74],{"title":70,"path":71,"stem":72,"description":73,"children":-1},"Up and Doing","\u002Farticles\u002Fup-and-doing","articles\u002Fup-and-doing","Longfellow wrote:",{"title":75,"path":76,"stem":77,"description":78,"children":-1},"Wake Up!","\u002Farticles\u002Fwake-up-sardis","articles\u002Fwake-up-sardis","A mom went to church with her young children, and as they took their seats, she told them, “Remember, we need to be quiet in church.” Her daughter whispered, “Yes, because people are sleeping!”"]