Revival in early America was a spiritual awakening to God. Men and women were drawn together to hear a message of salvation. This message was delivered by men who had a burden concerning the people’s souls. There were two awakenings in America that I will address in this blog. the Great Awaking in the 18th century, and the Second Great Awakening 19th century.
As time passed, the religious zeal in America had waned. Hearts had grown cold to God and as men and women embraced the Age of Reason. This countered a Great Awakening. https://www.history.com/articles/great-awakening
In 1735, a preacher by the name of Johnathan Edwards prayed and witnessed a spiritual awakening in North Hampton Massachusetts. Edwards was a philosophical theologian. He was effective as he shared the importance of the scriptures and the grace of God. His congregation experienced a move of God that opened the hearts of almost one-third of the town. Word spread of this outpouring and moved into the neighboring towns.
Another minister from Britain, George Whitefield, was an itinerate preacher who traveled from town to town covering the Atlantic coast in America. He preached in the squares with a resounding voice that reached many and led to the conversion of thousands of people. https://www.history.com/articles/great-awakening
1781 to 1787 the spirit of prayer poured out in the daily meetings within the Presbyterian congregations of Pennsylvania. As a result, men and women opened their hearts to Christ. An atmosphere was developed that exuded the presence of God touching hearts which kept people in the church for hours. This expanded to neighboring congregations all in the posture of sincerity opening hearts to Christ.
In a publication by Reverend William Speer, The Great Revival of 1800, the history of the Presbyterian church was preserved through the Presbyterian Board of Publication. https://go.gale.com/ps/retrieve.do?tabID=Monographs&resultListType=RESULT_LIST&searchResultsType=SingleTab&retrievalId=8049ce81-68f2-44aa-9a18-7e7ecf061673&hitCount=38&searchType=BasicSearchForm¤tPosition=1&docId=GALE%7CCY0102612090&docType=Monograph&sort=Relevance&contentSegment=SBN-2013&prodId=SABN&pageNum=1&contentSet=GALE%7CCY0102612090&searchId=R2&userGroupName=vic_liberty&inPS=true
Reverend Speer wrote The Second Great Awakening covered an area that stretched from the Allegheny Mountains to the Southern parts in early America. The churches in Western Pennsylvania were ripe for the rain of divine grace. The Presbyterian inhabitants were originally from the northern part of Ireland and Scotland.
1800 to 1840 yielded The Second Great Awakening. The Presbyterian minister, James McGready was born in Western Pennsylvania and ignited camp meetings from Logan Country Kentucky over to Ohio. People traveled in wagons from all around to hear the gospel preached. James McGready
In 1824, Charles Finney was a lawyer who experienced a conversion in his heart and decided to become a preacher. Charles Grandison Finney: Father of American Revivalism | Christian History Magazine
His theology differed from Calvinism that taught a person would only come to know Christ as God’s elect. Being a lawyer, he would build his case for salvation before the congregations. The meetings were less formal and met weekly. He presided over thousands of men and women giving their hearts to Christ in Rochester New York. The spirit of revival then spread to 1,500 towns.
The Great Awakening and the Second Great Awakening, along with men called by God, spread his grace to plant a seed for a document that is the law of the land today. The Constitution of the United States preserves America as a place of religious freedom protected for all.