Have you ever been to a Methodist camp meeting? Last week, I had the privilege of being the guest evangelist for the New Prospect Camp Meeting in Vancleave, Mississippi. This camp meeting has been sharing the good news of Jesus to Jackson County since 1880. Camp meetings have been a Methodist tradition since the early 1800’s as circuit riders would travel to rural areas of America, preaching holiness of heart and life. These camp meetings often broke out into revivals that transformed generations that followed and remain a historic part of the Methodist story.

You and I are called to be a spark of revival where we live and serve. The early circuit riders left all the comforts of home and dedicated themselves to sharing the story of transformation that comes as a follower of Jesus. Jesus said these words in Matthew 10:41-42

“41 If you receive a prophet as one who speaks for God, you will be given the same reward as a prophet. And if you receive righteous people because of their righteousness, you will be given a reward like theirs. 42 And if you give even a cup of cold water to one of the least of my followers, you will surely be rewarded.”

Those early Methodist pioneers could have only hoped that the camp meetings would survive into the centuries to pass. Their hope was not in vain because the power of the message of Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow. Let us continue to create our legacy of generosity and be the spark of revival.