Why Revival Tarries Paperback – August 1, 2004

This book is excellent! The author does a great job saying why we need revival in our lives. Convicting and challenging!

Leonard truly knows what to say to us, still 'fresh' in 2025. And he didn't keep from saying what everyone needs to hear.

Ravenhill had a passion for prayer and revival as evidenced in this book. In chapter six "Revival Tarries - Because", he gets down to the nitty-gritty listing several "becauses", such as the cheapening of the gospel and the lack of urgency and travail in prayer. Some folks think it's too late for revival but Ravenhill would disagree. If nothing else, most professing Christians are in need of personal revival and who knows where that could lead if enough of us followed the advice in this book. I plan on reading it again and answering the study questions at the end.In spite of the serious subject matter, this book was a joy to read due to the author's writing style. I loved his frequent use of alliteration. He also used another literary device that I haven't been able to identify yet. One example is: "The secret of praying is praying in secret. A sinning man will stop praying, and a praying man will stop sinning." [Addendum - Turns out this literary device is an antimetabole.]

A phrase kept coming to me early in 2008 - "Why Revival Tarries", "Why Revival Tarries". I actually thought that was a book by Charles G. Finney, and that the Holy Spirit was prompting me to order it. I was surprised, and yet not surprised when I saw that Leonard Ravenhill was the author. Approximately twenty years prior I had received some material from Last Days Ministries in East Texas (The ministry Keith Green started); and it was from them that I first heard the name Leonard Ravenhill.Sadly, it wasn't until 2008 that I actually ordered the book from Amazon and read it.I inhaled it! It was a breath of fresh, holy air.I consider it a modern day classic.Somewhere along the way, I discovered that the books available in our modern day christian bookstores are not necessarily acollection of "The Greatest Hits" of all time. Just as you have to dig for precious metals and jewels, you have to dig for truth and the anointing. It doesn't just fall on you like rain from the clouds. Though very thankful for the lighthouses christian bookstores are in a dark world, sometimes you have to hunt for hidden treasures that are no longer seen on the shelves.I began watching video segments of Ravenhill on youtube and ordered the interview of him that was taped shortly before his death. Since then I've been hoping that a biography would turn up, and now it finally has. "In Light of Eternity", the life of Leonard Ravenhill is a book that you might like to get. It's on my list of books to acquire.In the meantime, "Why Revival Tarries" is the definitive book that expresses the ministry of Leonard Ravenhill. Please get it, and get ON FIRE FOR GOD!

It had me on my knees presenting my heart more and more to the Lord. Tears flowed from time to time. It will capture your heart if you truly want God to work through you

This book can be reviewed in light of a few different perspectives. One of those ways is the quality of writing. Before I get to the good news I want to start with the bad. Leonard Ravenhill is without a doubt a man called to awaken the sleeping church. That is a fact, but not through his writing. His style of writing is not clear, jumping from one thought to the next and he does not follow any structure of writing that I am familiar with. Metaphorically speaking this book is as confusing as throwing 5 jig-saw puzzle out on the ground and trying to guess what the picture is.However, Leonard Ravenhill writes with an amazing ability that captures the consuming fire of a servant who is passionately in love with his Savior. Despite the books failure to deliver a cohesive thesis it really highlights what it means to be a Christian and perhaps that is because of the way he wrote the book. It is as if when Leonard Ravenhill was writing this book that he was so over joyed and excited about Christ that his thoughts just could not contain themselves so they came out in these beautiful constructed one liners and eye openers.Everyone should read this book because today we have lost what it really means to be a Christian in the United States. Superman's alter ego was Clark Kent. Batman's alter ego was Bruce Wayne and many people in America's alter ego is being a Christian. To many phonies in the Church use their alter ego to hide themselves from who they really are. People who are not really born again and people with no care in the world for Christ and his sheep. Leonard Ravenhill calls a spade a spade. You are in or you are out. If you call yourself a Christian then be a Christian.

Buy it!

I chose this reading after I read the biography of Keith Green - No Compromise which I will also recommend here. Their lives were intertwined at the highest point of Keith Green’s ministry and Leonard Ravenhill was a dramatic influence and spoke wisdom into Keith’s energetic heart filled presence. In reading Keith’s biography written by his wife Melody, I saw that Leonard was clearly a strong mentoring father figure to Keith and I wanted to know more about him. Both of these books exhibit the power of prayer in one’s life - don’t make revival tarry for you, devote your life to prayer.