More Tozer

I got this one today and I think that it speaks volumes about where things are in the church today:

Revival: Don't Substitute Praying for Obeying

So Samuel said: "Has the Lord as great delight in burnt offerings and
sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is
better than sacrifice, and to heed than the fat of rams."
--1 Samuel 15:22

Have you noticed how much praying for revival has been going on of
late-and how little revival has resulted?

Considering the volume of prayer that is ascending these days, rivers
of revival should be flowing in  blessing throughout the land. That
no such results are in evidence should not discourage us; rather it
should stir us to find out why our prayers are not answered....

I believe our problem is that we have been trying to substitute
praying for obeying; and it simply will not work....

Prayer is never an acceptable substitute for obedience. The sovereign
Lord accepts no offering from His creatures that is not accompanied
by obedience. To pray for revival while ignoring or actually flouting
the plain precept laid down in the Scriptures is to waste a lot of
words and get nothing for our trouble.  Of God and Men, 55-57.

"Search me, O God, and know my heart; show me any wicked way that
needs to be corrected in my own life before revival can come. I'm
praying for revival; help me to also be obeying. Amen."

I think about some of the blogs I read that are very strong on orthodoxy, but I wonder how much practice there is? I recall all the "amens" about John MacArthur's stance on using the Word of God to relieve stress and the scoffing at Doug Pagitt's scoffing. But how many of those people are going to pornography to relieve stress? Or maybe even more telling, how many are going to food to relieve stress?

I certainly don't think I have the market cornered on personal holiness. I've been down that road and have realized the futility of it. I have my stumbles that remind me of the battle that wages in me. However, I also know that despite all my counseling, teaching, and learning I do not rely on the Word of God as much as I'd like. I certainly preach better than I live.

In other words, I think that a lot of us in the Reformed blogosphere talk a good talk and make sure that none of our Reformed brethren would accuse us of heresy, but are we walking the walk?

1Co 4:19-20 ESV
(19) But I will come to you soon, if the Lord wills, and I will find out not the talk of these arrogant people but their power.
(20) For the kingdom of God does not consist in talk but in power.