About reviveWISCONSIN

Local businessman Steve Busse and his wife Kristi first encountered Time to Revive (TTR) in the neighboring state of Minnesota. Steve's brother Rob pastors a church that partnered with TTR for reviveTWIN CITIES in the summer of 2014. After experiencing how God was moving in the Twin Cities, Steve and his wife Kristi took a new passion back to Wausau, Wisconsin. There they shared their dream of bringing the same revival to their own community with local pastors Aaron Winowiski and Kim Swenson. Steve, Aaron, and Kim began working with the existing pastor's prayer groups to continue building unity and share their vision for pursuing revival through reviveWISCONSIN. As the unity has built, so has the hunger for revival. The collective group of local pastors began talks with Time to Revive about coming to invest in the community of Wausau, launching reviveWISCONSIN.

Our Method

As Jesus interacted with people throughout His earthly ministry, we see this pattern emerge in His life: Jesus LOVED, He LISTENED, He DISCERNED, and then He RESPONDED as He was led by the Holy Spirit. As we equip believers to share the Gospel, we follow this pattern modeled by Jesus.

Believers are trained first to LOVE the individual, then to LISTEN to him or her, to DISCERN how the Holy Spirit is working and leading, and then to RESPOND accordingly, whether that’s to pray with the person, encourage them with Scripture, serve them in a tangible way, share the Gospel, or all of the above. Believers are trained to understand and articulate the Gospel in a clear and concise manner that makes them ready to give a reason for the hope they have whenever the Holy Spirit prompts them.

Love

"And may the Lord cause you to increase and overflow with love for one another and for everyone, just as we also do for you." 1 Thessalonians 3:12

Listen

"A fool does not delight in understanding, but only wants to show off his opinions... The one who gives an answer before he listens -- this is foolishness and disgrace for him." Proverbs 18:2, 13

Discern

"Counsel in a man's heart is deep water; but a man of understanding draws it out." - Proverbs 20:5

Respond

"Act wisely toward outsiders, making the most of the time. Your speech should always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you should answer each person." Colossians 4:5-6

GO and MAKE DISCIPLES

In Matthew 28:19-20, Jesus commands His followers to "go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit and teaching them to observe all that I commanded you." Both evangelism and discipleship are at the heart of reviveWISCONSIN, and both must accompany each other in order to see true revival.

Evangelism

In Ephesians 4:11-12, Paul writes, "And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ."

For too long in the American church, we've assumed that evangelism is a specialized gifting or skill, and if you don't have it, you're off the hook. Both the enemy and our culture fuels this apathy with lies like "You don't know enough," or "You're going to offend people if you push your beliefs on them."

reviveWISCONSIN models a different approach so that you will feel equipped to share God’s love in a way that brings life into every conversation.

Discipleship

Discipleship is key to the sustenance of reviveWISCONSIN. As people encounter Christ through the reviveWISCONSIN outreaches, they need someone to walk with them, showing them what it looks like to follow Jesus. They may be brand new believers or existing believers who desire to deepen their relationship with Christ. Following the model of 1 Thessalonians 2:8, it’s our desire to not only share the Gospel with our neighbors, but also our lives, as they learn and grow in their faith.

Every person who requests follow up during a reviveWISCONSIN outreach is matched with a local “disciple-maker.” As a disciple-maker, you will be trained, given resources, and connected with a mentor who can help you navigate the discipleship process with your newfound brother or sister in Christ. Are you ready for God to use you to make a lasting impact in His Kingdom?