by Vladimir Zhiroy
Since 2002 I have been honored to call the Holiness Movement my big family. I believe it is God’s desire for every Christian to be fully consecrated to Him and filled with His Spirit for fruitful service. I am trying to live what I believe. God’s plan for me, as far as I understand, is to serve Him both in Russia and America. Recently I was asked to share my thoughts on challenges which the Holiness Movement is facing. Here are three of the most visible challenges.
1. The Fading Flame of Prayer
The first row of foundation of every church is prayer. Who would argue with this? Prayer was always one of the strongest pillars of the Holiness Movement. Our brothers and sisters from earlier generations used to spend nights in intercession, seeking a fresh outpouring of the Spirit. Constant and passionate cries for saving and sanctifying souls were heard in private devotion, camp meetings and revival services. I heard many names of saints of the past, those prayer warriors, who gave us an example of what it means “to knock in order for the door to be opened.”
Nowadays that fire has dimmed significantly. In general, we don’t have many reasons to brag about big attendance in prayer meetings. Without a consistent prayer life, our movement is at risk to continue to speak the right words but gradually to become empty inside. Would you like to become a part of such an organization? If not, then why would we expect somebody else to like it?
I took part in a number of prayer meetings in churches of different groups and almost everywhere those midweek prayer meetings were not much about prayer! They resembled another Sunday worship just with a smaller audience. At best, they had more singing and could be called “praise and prayer” meetings.
Why is it such a hard job to pray? We can listen to sermons, sing hymns and this is good and right. But what is the enemy most afraid of? Yes, demons can manifest themselves when they hear preaching and singing, yet Jesus told us what really can cast them out – prayer (and fasting). Every time the Church expands its boundaries, it happens because the resistance of hell is defeated in a certain place.
I remember one time in our Yoshkar-Ola (Russia) church we gathered to pray and spent 50 minutes talking about prayer. Talking about it. Guess how much time we prayed that evening? Five minutes. Does that sound familiar to you? And yes, one fervent sentence said in faith can move a mountain, but is it not usually built on a persistent prayer life before?
What about fasting? Is it a way of life? Is it a regular practice any more? Do we call skipping one meal a fasting? Do not take me wrong, God sees every sincere movement of spirit, every good intention, even a small one. But He also sees when we neglect and keep our sleeves down when we could sweat in work.
Can it be helped? Or is this weakening of prayer an irrevocable sign of the time we live in? I have found that only preaching about prayer by itself does not have much effect no matter how good you do the job. People listen, nod their heads and… no change happens. It seems that the best way to raise the temperature in the fire is to burn in prayer yourself.
2. The Decline of Aggressive Evangelism
Historically, evangelistic zeal of holiness people was not an optional accessory, it was the heartbeat of the movement. Today, however, evangelism seems to be in decline. Many churches are more focused on maintenance than mission.
We live in a world which values tolerance and self-expression. It is so easy to become extra cautious trying to explain why modern society would not accept the Gospel. It demands boldness to declare the need for repentance and holy living. But the message of holiness is not a matter of choice—it is a divine mandate. The world desperately needs those who are not ashamed to call sin by its name and to proclaim the possibility of deliverance through Christ. We need to make more efforts to restore evangelistic fervor and address people not with anger or cultural arrogance, but with Spirit-inspired compassion, perseverance, and clarity.
As humans we have a tendency to look back and almost get stuck in the glorious past instead of concentrating on the future. We may say that our future is bright but do we believe it, do we build plans and act for the great harvest? Do we go outside, do we teach our people how to win souls for Christ, how to be really hospitable and accepting of any incoming sinner or do we struggle to keep our numbers and/or are afraid to lose some comfort?
Also, focusing on the mere growing of quantity, inviting or sheltering persons from another church may distract us from going to the world and labor for saving dying sinners. We can be proud and boast that our church is growing, but for the Lord it may look just like fishing in a bucket, and, God forbid, somebody else’s bucket.
3. The Struggle to Win and Keep Young People
Another pressing challenge is the difficulty in reaching and retaining younger generations. It won’t be news to hear that in many churches the average age continues to rise.
Kids are growing up in a digital world filled with countless entertainments and moral confusion.
Rather than engaging this generation with bold, Spirit-filled truth presented in love, some churches resist any changes in methods—confusing immovable doctrine with outdated delivery. Others swing the opposite direction, compromising doctrinal clarity in an attempt to become more “relevant.” Both extremes fail to address the core spiritual hunger of young people for authenticity, purpose, and real transformation.
May God give us wisdom on how to use modern technology. A heart ablaze for Jesus plus knowledge of how to use contemporary methods of communication is a nuclear mixture in reaching souls.
Many times I have heard people speaking with emphasis on the threat of losing their own children with seemingly little concern for dying sinners in the world. Again, defensive tactics would not protect us from losing youth. Only passion for saving souls perishing in the world can expand the Kingdom of God on earth and thus draw our children to the light of the Gospel when they see true Christianity.
Thankfully there is a growing hunger for genuine closeness to God among young people these days. Do we possess that genuine truth which can satisfy them?
And, perhaps there should be mentioned one more challenge:
Ask your fellow Christians about holiness doctrine. What can one tell you? There are people who would correctly describe experience and doctrine of holiness according to theory but look at them in a moment of trial and you’ll doubt their testimony is true. It is so tempting to hide behind outward standards: the way we look, use spiritual vocabulary, etc. Killing self-will, this old man, in your heart is very painful; keeping it dead is quite a task.
I know that there are also many people who live holy lives even without knowing all the doctrinal teaching, but how much firmer is a believer who knows what he or she believes! Therefore, simple, clear and understandable preaching is needed, aimed at purity of heart, leading to pure standard and life testimony, and not vice versa.
We may think that we are different people just because of being a part of the holiness church. But do not be deceived, we are humans and are in danger of being tempted by all human delusions. A carnal mind is the same everywhere, in all denominations, including our church. We can’t be safe just by name, we need to BE and not just name ourselves.
When I say that I rebuke and exhort myself. If I do not perfect this guy inside I’ll become a tinkling cymbal.
Oh Lord, save us from resting on laurels, from being satisfied with all the good we have in our movement. Lead us to the better, lead us to the best.
