Envision 1790 is a project the Lord birth in my heart back in January of 2009. Birth because this Envision has yet to be fully revealed. It is as though the Lord opens small portals and allows me to see only small glimpses of what this total Envision will be one day. With each glimpse the excitement grows, but my difficulty has been in sharing the deeper messages of Envision 1790 to others.
On the surface, Envision 1790 Rural Life Museum will be a replica of a town as it would have looked in the early days of our great nation. It will be open to the public and will cater to area school groups out on class fieldtrips. The theme is “remembering our Christian Heritage” and will display important facts about our Founding Fathers and the influence of our Christian Faith in developing America’s unique form of government.
But this Envision is so much more; more deeper messages revealed within Envision’s unique attempt to recreate this rustic atmosphere in which visitors begin to feel as though they are a part of living history, back again in the 1790’s. A period of time in Americas’ history in which our Founding Fathers showed great devotion to the Lord God, and His blessings poured out in abundance. This comparison of our own personal walk with Christ to that of our Forefathers will create an atmosphere in which the Holy Spirit can move in our own personal lives.
Envision has been difficult to explain, especially these deeper messages. But just as before, the Lord opens another portal; this time giving great insight into just how this Envision will be used to stir Christian’s hearts again. While visiting with Pastor Waylon Bailey, this idea of a 1790’s style Brush Arbor Revival was birth. Pastor Waylon had proposed the question in his newsletter “where do we go from here?” in response to the horrible school shooting in Connecticut. In our conversation that followed, I asked him how hard it would be to preach on each and every social factor that contributed to this horrible tragedy. Pastor Waylon said that it would be very difficult. Today’s society has accepted too many things as normal; right and wrong has become “gray” areas. I asked what if he could get his congregation to look at our society but from the 1790’s point of view. It would be as though they are on the outside looking at today’s society and seeing our deterioration and our falling away from God.
To preach a message as though we are all still in the 1790’s would allow the Pastor to point out differences in these two time periods. For instance how sex outside marriage was wrong; homosexuality was not seen in public; a man must work or he didn’t eat; the total collapse of our morals in the entertainment industry; and that God was the ultimate decider of right from wrong. So with these and many other assumptions a Pastor could preach a message that encompasses so many of today’s social issues. The congregation not feeling as threatened would see the ramifications of us today not living by those Godly principles. The Pastor’s message would be almost prophetic in the sense that he would be predicting the future. Then the Holy Spirit would use this atmosphere to speak a personal message to each one of us, and true Revival would break out.
The first Revival was held May of 2013 in Holden, Louisiana. if anyone is interested in helping, please contact me, Stephen Davidson, at 2 2 5-4 1 3-9 2 2 0
Covered Wagon Ministry
Covered wagon dormitories like these will be built and put into service for the Lord. Funds have already been dedicated to begin building several of these uniquely equipped wagons to be used at Shiloh Baptist Church’s retreat facilities in Pine Grover, La. Our ministry and our Envision is for today’s youth to experience the Lord in the great outdoors while out on Christian Retreats. Today’s youth are all caught up in modern electronics; it would be a true blessing if they could sleep in a covered wagon and envision how their walk with Christ compared to the youth of the 1790’s.
History Crusade Ministry
What began on May 8, 2013 will become a full History Crusade Ministry These unique afternoon Brush Arbor Revivals, will also play host to daytime events for area school children to view famous speeches and plays about our Forefathers. Details and facts about our Christian Heritage that do not appear in today’s history books anymore. This same information one day will be on display at Envision 1790 Rural Life Museum.
Unfortunately
‘Boxed Church’ is currently the description of most
modern churches. It’s something most
people pass by several times a day, maybe taking it out on Sundays, or really
looking to open it at a funeral to try to cope with death, but for most part
church just sits there day after day, year after year, just a remnant of what
Christ meant it to be. How do Christians
take church out of its box? Church must
be redefined to be as Christ intended – a part of your everyday life. It must go to work with you, it must eat with
you, it must sleep and sing with you, it must be part of every decision you
make, it must be how you raise your children, speak to your spouse or
co-worker. Each time you bring Christ
into your everyday life, you lay a stone under your Christian faith. This foundation begins to take shape outside
the box of church and before long church has no more walls; your life is the
same both inside and outside church. Church
goers that don’t practice laying foundations outside the church walls do not
have the strongest foundation possible. Christ wants Christians to have a wide
foundation, ready to withstand life’s challenges.
In
describing how church was put in a box, let’s first examine an era when church
was the center of a community. The
concept of Envision 1790is to create a Rural Life Museum with a spiritual message. This would allow visitors a glimpse at an era
when our Founding Fathers laid the foundation to build the greatest nation on earth
in God’s name. What was church in the
1790’s? Remember America was settled by the Pilgrims
wanting to serve Christ. They overcame
many hardships and all along the way giving Thanks to the Lord as we still
celebrate Thanksgiving today. Church
buildings housed the school; it offered Church Socials for entertainment. The bible was read in school; much of our
current laws are founded on biblical doctrine; most of the original signers of
the Declaration of Independence were ordained Ministers. Pastors were important people and the Church
was the center of the community in our Founding Fathers’ day. A walk back in time while visiting Envision 1790 will give
visitors a glimpse at early American life.
To explain what happened to our society in relation to
Church’s importance, it is easier to look at what is different from then to
now. We have already established church dominated
early American culture, so to ‘Boxed Church’ in, you must take it
out of school, take it out of common law, you must offer competing events on
Sunday such as the hype of sports.
Reading time with the Bible is offset by TV time. Church socials are reduced to dinner on the
ground a few times a year; never again offer a church dance, it would seem worldly,
unlike the past when church was the center of most all social events.
What should be the new definition of Church? Church must be redefined to have no walls; Church
is anything done in Christ’s name or Christ like. Therefore find ways to honor Christ in your
everyday life - talk about Christian things at work, bless your food before
eating, say a pray before going to sleep, listen to Christian music, make all
decisions Christ like, view T V as if Christ is sitting next to you. Each time a Christian consciously stands for
Christ, he humbly gains confidence in himself, which leads to bolder Christian
stands and a wider Christian foundation.
Christ clearly said not to be Lukewarm. In
every thing you do make decisions based upon your Christian faith and know that
these strong foundations of putting Christ first will make the walls that “Boxed Church”
in disappear. Visitors to Envision 1790will be contemplating these questions. It is clear that America is different, all Envision 1790 wishes is
for Christians to re-evaluate their Christian walk to include Christ fully in
their lives.
The Great Commission calls for all of us
Christians to be “Fishers of Men”. Christ uses several parables in
describing
ways to reach the lost, but today’s “Nets” are full of holes and not
reaching
many important areas. Envision 1790 is a
‘Net’ to be cast; one guided by the Holy Spirit that can reach places
and touch
men’s hearts like no other spiritual message.
The rustic setting of the 1790’s help create an atmosphere for the Holy
Spirit to speak directly into the hearts of visitors. This Rural Life
Preservation recreates a period of great dependence on Christ, while our
fellow
countrymen laid the Christian foundations that help create the greatest
country
in history, all in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Visitors to the
site will feel a sense of awe
as they see, hear, and read examples of Christ influence on the Founding
Father's
lives. An example and also a confirmation
of this “Net Casting” came from Brother Iran
Smith, as he retold of a trip into a rustic part of Tennessee several
years ago. During a Revival meeting, his host Pastor
took him out sightseeing and stop at an old 1800’s church. He retold the
story
of the atmosphere in the building and how the Holy Spirit began moving
about
while he and the other pastor began singing and praying aloud. Other
tourists soon joined in, showing how
Christ can use rustic settings to open people’s hearts for a message.
Camp
Singing Waters has a long
history of being used as a Christian Retreat; what is needed is the
right message. Envision 1790’s message is right for the time
we are living today. A great falling away has taking place and what
better
message is to look at our Christian Heritage for spiritual guidance. The
Lord
only knows how many lives can be touched with this message; join this
Envision of
casting this unique message to the lost; join Envision 1790’s efforts in
bringing the gospel to the hurting; join and become a Fishers of Men and
casting this net.
