PRAYERS OF REPENTANCE LEADS TO REVIVAL

TEXT: Ezra 9:6-15 6 saying: “O my God, I am ashamed and blush to lift my face to you, my God, for our iniquities have risen higher than our heads, and our guilt has mounted up to the heavens. 7 From the days of our fathers to this day we have been in great guilt. And for our iniquities we, our kings, and our priests have been given into the hand of the kings of the lands, to the sword, to captivity, to plundering, and to utter shame, as it is today.  8 But now for a brief moment favor has been shown by the Lord our God, to leave us a remnant and to give us a secure hold[a] within his holy place, that our God may brighten our eyes and grant us a little reviving in our slavery. 9 For we are slaves. Yet our God has not forsaken us in our slavery, but has extended to us his steadfast love before the kings of Persia, to grant us some reviving to set up the house of our God, to repair its ruins, and to give us protection[b] in Judea and Jerusalem. 10 “And now, O our God, what shall we say after this? For we have forsaken your commandments, 11 which you commanded by your servants the prophets, saying, ‘The land that you are entering, to take possession of it, is a land impure with the impurity of the peoples of the lands, with their abominations that have filled it from end to end with their uncleanness. 12 Therefore do not give your daughters to their sons, neither take their daughters for your sons, and never seek their peace or prosperity, that you may be strong and eat the good of the land and leave it for an inheritance to your children forever.’ 13 And after all that has come upon us for our evil deeds and for our great guilt, seeing that you, our God, have punished us less than our iniquities deserved and have given us such a remnant as this, 14 shall we break your commandments again and intermarry with the peoples who practice these abominations? Would you not be angry with us until you consumed us, so that there should be no remnant, nor any to escape? 15 O Lord, the God of Israel, you are just, for we are left a remnant that has escaped, as it is today. Behold, we are before you in our guilt, for none can stand before you because of this. English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

WORD OF LIFE, PART 16: 'HOW MUCH LONGER?"

 When things go wrong, as they most certainly do on a regular basis, we are always tempted to ask "Where is (was) God?". The unsaved ask this question all the time. When a tidal wave hits and hundreds or thousands lose their lives? "Where was God". When a massive earthquake devastates Haiti and over 100,000 poor Haitians perish in this natural disaster, some ask "Where was God?"....and so on.

Even the most godly and observant and biblically sound Christians can ask that same question. Is it the right thing to do when we question God like this? It is. Christianity is the only thinking man's Faith system. We do know He controls everything as He is sovereign and we do not. In Luke 13:3-5, we see that the Tower of Siloam had collapsed and 18 people tragically dies in this accident. This is similar to a major construction accident today, anywhere in the world, of tragic proportions. This tragedy was reported to Jesus as reported in this Gospel passage.

The response of Jesus must have stunned a lot of people. Here is the brief account and Jesus' unexpected answer: "No, I tell you. But unless you repent, you too will all perish. Or those eighteen who were killed when the tower of Siloam collapsed on them: Do you think that they were more sinful than all the others living in Jerusalem? No, I tell you. But unless you repent, you too will all perish.” (Luke 13:3-5)

There is a sobering and scary message from the Keeper of the Gates of Heaven here who said twice in three verses "unless you repent, YOU TOO WILL PERISH"! The key to understanding tragedy is this - we have to be ready to leave this life at a moment's notice. We must life a repentant lifestyle, always at peace with God. We must ask God to forgive ALL our sins (and He will, if we are really seeking forgiveness). We must have the peace and knowledge of His presence in our lives, which leads to salvation and being born again.
Psalm 119:121-128
Ayin.
121   I have done justice and righteousness;  do not leave me to my oppressors.
122   Be surety for Your servant for good; do not let the arrogant oppress me.
123   My eyes fail with longing for Your salvation and for Your righteous word.
124   Deal with Your servant according to Your lovingkindness and teach me Your statutes.
125   I am Your servant; give me understanding, that I may know Your testimonies.
126   It is time for the Lord to act, for they have broken Your law.
127   Therefore I love Your commandments above gold, yes, above fine gold.
128   Therefore I esteem right all Your precepts concerning everything, I hate every false way.
Psalm 119:121 is about the believer who has followed Christ and Micah 6:8, which tells us to do justice and walk righteously before our God. This is a person who is ready to stand before God once he/she passes from this life. However, this believer also seeks natural (or earthly) justice from those who relentlessly persecute.

This is absolutely in order. To ask for angelic protection is sound as each believer does have a guardian angel. This is what the author is praying for in this portion of Psalm 119.  During the many Israeli/Arab wars of the late 1960's-early 1970's, some former Arab soldiers reported on the Trinity Broadcasting Network that they had several Israeli soldiers cornered and outnumbered about twenty to one, on the side of a mountain. There was no natural way for the Israeli soldiers to come out alive from this strategic box. EXCEPT THIS - the now Christian Arab former enemies reported that when they got closer to where they thought they would capture their Jewish enemies, they saw huge 12-20 foot tall beings dressed in white with swords drawn....causing them to turn and run in the other direction!

Watch this video clip from a message I gave where we know from Scripture that "the angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear Him and He delivers them (Psalm 34:7). God does answer our pleas for help. He is our "surety" in these times of oppression and persecution (Psalm 119:122). But the key is to stay grounded in His Holy Word and constantly stay at the Feet of the Master seeking knowledge and wisdom from Him (Verse 123).

There are times when the tribulation is drawn out. In the recent past, several western pastors and missionaries have been captured and tortured in several Middle Eastern countries and even North Korea.  These are righteous people who risked everything for the Gospel of Jesus Christ, yet their payment was prison, torture and even death. Is God dealing with them (Verse 124) in His Mercy? When you look at the bigger picture, He most certainly is! 

Is it easier for us in the comfortable west to speak like this? Yes it is, but we also have our challenges.  In the increasing number of persecuted lands – from atheist China to the major Islamic and Buddhist countries, what is being done to the people of God is obvious. In western Countries from Europe to the UK to North America, the persecution is more subtle but just as deadly to the spread of the Gospel. In order for the persecuted anywhere, to keep the fire and passion going, we do need to rely more on the Word of God and His Promises. In the Middle East and Asia, God has been showing Himself in increasingly tangible ways to encourage His people, and not just in His Word. Most Christians on the run have no copy of the Bible and no way to get one. When this is the case, cry out to Him as in Verse 125.

Revelation 6:9-10 shows what is coming down the pike with those who are killed during the Great Tribulation (after the Rapture of the Church, when those killed for converting to Christianity during the worldwide reign of anti-Christ are under the Altar of God, asking "how much longer"). Persecuted Christians from various times in the last 2000 years, from the Roman persecution have been asking the same question many ask today- "How Much Longer"?  The answer is this- when all the world has heard the Gospel. Each day is one day closer. Our responsibility is to hate, despise and stay far from every shack or mansion which contains heresy, apostasy and misdirection. Conversely, we hold on to the Truth found in ALL 66 books of Scripture and every word of every verse of every chapter on every page of the Good Book (verses 127-128). Amen. How much longer? It could be, until we first see Him Face to face! As for those in Verse 126- leave that up to The King!

ZACHARIAS' SONG: JOHN THE BAPTIST IS BORN, PART 1

Over the centuries, much has been made of the great praise song of Jesus’ earthly mother – Mary (or the Magnificat).  However another song/Poem or praise Psalm which is relevant to not just the Christmas story, but the entire prophetic plan of God is not as “famous” (for lack of a better word).

It is Zacharias' Prophesy or Song from Luke chapter 1, verses 67-79.  To recap Zacharias the Priest’s background, he was the great father of John the Baptist and the husband of Elizabeth. Elizabeth was Mary much older relative, who was past her time of natural child bearing. The Angel Gabriel was sent by God to inform Zacharias that Elizabeth would have a son named John, while he was attending to his priestly duties in the Temple. Because  Zacharias did not believe Gabriel’s words of John the Baptist’s birth, as spoken directly from the Throne of God,  Gabriel rendered him literally speechless. Zacharias remained unable to speak until the appointed time of the birth of John the Baptist, the forerunner of Christ.

Can you imagine the thoughts going through the priest’s mind, after he was disciplined by God for unbelief, not being able to minister in the Temple?! Here is a man who is supposed to not just do the daily temple duties, but to proclaim Torah, read the prophets and speak of the Messiah, yet when God sent His main angel Gabriel, Zacharias doubted! Before we get too high and mighty and look down on this great man, we should look in the mirror. We should be very careful because we can  not only be doubters like Zacharias when he got the good news, but we have also done the same thing literally dozens and dozens of times.

Zacharias' voice only returned to him after Elizabeth gave birth and he repeated the words of Gabriel, by writing on the tablet “His name is John” (Luke 1:63). This simple action underscored his belief in the words of Gabriel, who was sent directly by God to give him these instructions. Zacharias' ability to speak immediately returned when he showed his obedience to God’s commands. He promptly broke out in effusive praise and worship of the one True God of Heaven.

He said here in part, in Luke 1:67-79:
67             And his father Zacharias' was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied, saying,

68 “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
    for he has visited and redeemed his people
69 and has raised up a horn of salvation for us
    in the house of his servant David,
70 as he spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets from of old,
71 that we should be saved from our enemies
    and from the hand of all who hate us;
72 to show the mercy promised to our fathers
    and to remember his holy covenant,
73 the oath that he swore to our father Abraham, to grant us
74     that we, being delivered from the hand of our enemies,
might serve him without fear,
75     in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.
76 And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High;
    for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways,
77 to give knowledge of salvation to his people
    in the forgiveness of their sins,
78 because of the tender mercy of our God,
    whereby the sunrise shall visit us from on high
79 to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,
    to guide our feet into the way of peace.”

Footnotes:

PART 2: WHAT ZACHARIAS' PROPHESY MEANS

SHOULD WE PRAY FOR.....REVIVAL?

Revival has become a buzzword in the prayers and lexicon of many Christians in certain churches, on Christian TV programs or various forms of media.  You can’t go to a conference or church seminar without someone talking about revival. This is great, but what does Revival really look? What is Revival anyway? Websters, in its many definitions of Revival, describe it as "the growth of something or an increase in the activity of something after a long period of no growth or activity".

I have seen a real Revival up close in 2002 and went back night after night for a while to study how it came about, as a student of revival. What it did, was end up changing me and setting me on a course of a repentant lifestyle, where humility and prayer became more important than just doing church work, for its own sake. There is nothing wrong with service in the Kingdom of God. However it is more meaningful if we are truly repentant, seeking the grace and forgiveness of God. This will lead to personal revival which leads to corporate when we seek to get right as the Body of Christ. This kind of "revival" is actually more beneficial to the individual soul than sitting there praying and hoping for a huge spiritual awakening in the West - which may or may never happen!

However, I have not only been permanent touched and affected during the 20 day Life Action ministries revival in Illinois in 2002, but have preached "revival" services and conducted two separate week long open air, summer tent meetings in the state. Each speaker I invited to share, including myself, had to talk about repentance, forgiveness and commitment before Grace, so folks can understand their need for a Savior. There is precedent in the Bible a process which the Lord uses to actually bring revival to a city.

FREE RESOURCE FOR PERSONAL REVIVAL. CLICK HERE FOR ENRICHING BIBLE-BASED PODCASTS AND MORE, FROM LIFE ACTION MINISTRIES.

God sent the Prophet Jonah to preach to the violent extremist heathens ofNineveh as an example to us that even the most vile sinner can be forgiven,through the washing of the Word and repentance. When Jonah preached to the Kingof Nineveh and his people, every one of them repented and was saved. These over 120,000 souls represent  the biggest revival every in history before we got to the First and Second Great Awakening in the United States in both the 17^th and 18^th century.  But if you study how it came about, it was obedience. It was not wishful thinking. It was not “the next big thing”. It was an entire people hearing the Word from the prophet sent by God….and “OBEYING”! Jonah proclaimed the Word from God that the city will be destroyed in 40 days. The people of this awful violent and pagan city, who knew there was a God in Israel. But they saw and heard a man telling the Truth of their coming doom and how to avoid it. They obeyed, repented, fasted and God let them live again.

There is another example in Scripture with King Asa, where the Book of the Law (first five books of our Bible) was found hidden. When Asa commanded the reading of it, hearts and souls were cut to the quick and Judah turned around for that season. Revival in Judah was so country wide, deep and personal that it affected entire families. The king himself - Asa - had his own unsaved grandmother Maacah completely removed because she made detestable obscene pagan rites idols and committed obscenities and evil against the Lord. Today, walking with the Lord as a Christian COULD lead to divisions within families, but while this is not a nice thing, it is more important to follow Christ than even your own parents. God takes precedence at this point in time.

We can continue with various and sundry examples of revival and the moves of God in the lives of mankind, throughout the ages. However the bottom line is this, it is better to get right with God on a deeply personal level. Then inspire others in small groups to do the same and move on to groups and finally your own church and community. This is how God moves - one person at a time.  But if God's people are only into playing church once a week, mouthing words, and then going back into the world to play their worthless games, you and I are wasting our breaths and trivializing the true meaning of revival, if we just become like just about everyone in modern weak evangelicalism. We pray: 

Heavenly Father, You have said (1 Samuel 15:22) that to obey You is better than sacrifice and to pay attention and listen to You is better than the fat of many things used for sacrifice. Lord, help us in our unbelief. Help us to follow Your instructions for life, as laid out in Your Holy Word that we pray first, then receive a revival in our own souls our own lives before we even consider praying for revival in our churches, communities and nations. Forgive us our sins. We repent, as if in sackcloth and ashes and rebuke all our transgressions and the iniquities where we have fallen short of Your expectations in our lives.  

We pray that our own church and ministry leaders will sense this and lead in corporate repentance which leads to obedience to You. We pray for Revival to begin with us, so that it will come to our own churches before it spreads into the community. Help us as a people to realize in our own soul-searching, how far we have strayed from You and restore us in standing before You, holy and righteous as a people, that we may serve You as You have commanded, in Jesus’ Holy and Mighty Name amen.

THIRTY ONE DAYS OF BIBLE TRUTHS - DAY 27 (REJECT IDOLATRY)

BIBLE VERSE: "Son of man, these men have set up their idols in their hearts and have put right before their faces the stumbling block of their iniquity. Should I be consulted by them at all?"(Ezekiel 14:3).

TRUTH: Idolatry is worse to day than even when the Lord Himself was speaking to the great prophet Ezekiel here about 2600 years ago. What God said to Him then, or to Moses 3500 years ago applies even more so to humans alive at this present time. Everything written in God's Word is for all people of all time. There are people today whose lives are lived entirely in the now, with a line of sight no further than the nose they have buried in their smartphones and electronics. Their spiritual eyes, minds and hearts are so distracted by the lure of their possessions that their natural eyes sometimes forgets to inform them they've stepped off the curb into on-coming traffic. But Idolatry is not just the love of the gods of material things or the corruption of this modern world. Many equate the false gods of the pagan religions, even in Christian colleges and churches, to the God of the Bible and Creation. Many including religious leaders say demonic cults and religions worship the same God Whose Son gave His Life on the Cross so the world may be saved. Many even talk strange oaths to secret societies, with strange looking hats and toys, while claiming to do good works that they claim will get them into Heaven. This is ALL Idolatry.

All of this aforementioned Idolatry will lead untold billions to destruction unless there is a change of heart and they look through their hardened sin, to the One Who forgives - Jesus. There is a line of thought that a person should only "trust" their sins are forgiven but the word "repent" is one which requires action on behalf of the person who has never met the Savior Face to face. The idols of the heart are the worse to get rid of in this paradigm, since the natural man or woman loves being deluded by sin, or it would not be committed. In fact, anyone whose hearts are set on ANYTHING else on God, even if it is another person to love, is committing Idolatry. And that replacement love is called Iniquity, which is a much stronger word that it's first grade cousin "sin"! Iniquity guarantees guilty judgment and punishment unless there is repentance. There are those who walk in this condition, call themselves Christians, go to church on Sunday or four times a year or never, who never have the Ear of God. They never will until their final breath until they too reject idolatry, renounce any ungodly oaths they've taken and cry out to Jesus for His Forgiveness. If this describes the condition of someone we know, let's reach out to them, as soon as possible.

(Image Credit Here)

777 - SEVEN DAYS OF PRAYER (JULY 1-7, 2014)

DAY 7 - RESTORATION

Come, and let us return to the Lord;
For He has torn, but He will heal us;
He has stricken, but He will bind us up.
2 After two days He will revive us;
On the third day He will raise us up,
That we may live in His sight.
3 Let us know,
Let us pursue the knowledge of the Lord.
His going forth is established as the morning;
He will come to us like the rain,Like the latter and former rain to the earth....(Hosea 6:1-3)

Our rebellion against God is breathtaking. As a people we are more broken, more corrupt and more in desperation than anyone can imagine. The people meet in high places and bow down to strange gods. They dance around every green tree and burn incense to foreign gods, then come before the Holy One of Israel and think He will be there for them. We take His changing the weather patterns, because He can, and call it "climate change" or "global warming", when all we are doing is what Lucifer did when he tried to mount a mutiny with 1/3 of the angels in heaven and got tossed out - as recorded in Isaiah 14.

Decades and decades of turning away from the God of the Bible is now coming home to roost.  America and the world are facing a future and a judgment of horror while they - we - bury our heads in our respective sand castles. We pretend this is not happening and it will all go away. We pretend God is okay with all our sin. We are people broken by sin and torn apart at the seams. But there is hope!

God showed His Prophet Hosea how he should pray as an example for us, on a day of fasting and prayer, how we should go about doing what 2 Chronicles 7:14 says "if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land".

So Come Let us return to the Lord - Father God, most Holy One in Heaven, we repent in the middle of our sin for all we have done to cause You pain. We cry out as individuals and a people and plea that as we repent, You will accept our confession and bring us back from the precipice of hell as a people. Though we in the remnant may be personally saved, too many of our brethren and our entire country are being led off the cliff by those who should know better. So we pray that as we cry out, many will hear this call and want to turn back to you at this very hour in Jesus Holy Name, amen

He has torn us, but He will heal us - Father God, I believe that with all my heart as we approach you in the spirit of Brokenness. Break us now, bend us now that we may be remade, remolded and restored in Your Image, for Your Glory, forever and ever, amen.

He has stricken, but He will bind us up - Lord we are a people under the Judgment of Heaven and are too blind to see it. Open the eyes of our heart Lord, that we may see You the One True God of the Universe, and surrender to YOUR Will for our Lives, in Jesus Holy Name.

On the third day He will raise us up, That we may live in His sight - Holy Father, just as You raised the King from the grave, three days after He was crucified,  You will revive, resurrect and restore if we seek you NOW...if we see Your Restoration NOW and as we do that Lord, may You accept our sacrifice of praise and let us live in Your Sight once more. We beg and beseech You, oh Most Glorious God in Heaven to the Praise and Glory of Your Name, oh God Who revives and restores, amen and amen.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH TO ANNE GRAHAM LOTZ FOR HER LEADERSHIP IN THIS POWERFUL AND INSPIRATION PRAYER MOVEMENT ACROSS THE FRUITED PLAIN!

HOW WE REGAIN FAVOR WITH GOD, PART 2

1. Come, and let us return to the Lord;

For He has torn, but He will heal us;

He has stricken, but He will bind us up.

2. After two days He will revive us;

On the third day He will raise us up,

That we may live in His sight.

3. Let us know,

Let us pursue the knowledge of the Lord.

His going forth is established as the morning;

He will come to us like the rain,

Like the latter and former rain to the earth 

                                            HOSEA 6:1-3

Come let us return to the Lord – this acknowledges how far we have moved from Him, that we have to make a solidly sincere effort to come to our senses (just like the Prodigal Son); relent and repent (change directions from destruction to restoration) and seek reconciliation. This is the first step to genuine and permanent reunion with the Holy One of Heaven.

He has torn, but He will heal us; He has stricken but He will bind up – we are a wounded people, with 100% self-inflicted wounds. God had nothing do with the poverty, evil, cultural sleaze and church corruption. God had nothing to do with perverting justice, 55 million abortions and same-sex “marriage” and whatever else. It was all unsaved men and women who sought to satisfy the flesh because their spiritual eyes are not open. 

So if God had nothing to do with any of this sin, how are we “torn” and “stricken” by Him? Simple -  our sin violated His statues and we are torn apart and AWAY from Him in Spirit. The corporate soul of the people is terminal unless miraculous divine intervention takes places. God is the Repairer of souls; the Healer of broken hearts and spirits and the Restorer of the Nations. But He will only be all of that to a people whose heart is repentant and are seeking Him on His terms.

After two days He will revive us and on the third day He will raise us up – This is a prophetic reference not just to the Resurrection on the Third Day after Passover of 30AD but the coming Resurrection of the saints at the Rapture. This is the event that we, who are called by His Name, look forward to!

The Father has given all of this in His Word to show us the Way back to Him. He has given us His Son and His Grace.  Those who are not born again reject  and refuse any or all of it their own eternal peril. 

Therefore, as Verse 3 instructs, do the following: 

Pursue the Knowledge of the Lord: do this by not just reading the Word of God (the Bible) with intention and passion. 

Key into a real small group Bible study or better yet, meeting with a more mature believer. 

Develop relationships with some person(s) who can assist in discipleship and mentoring so the man or woman of God can before more acquainted with the Greatness of our God, through His Love Letter to Mankind- The Bible!

This is the ONLY way we can know Him.

This is the only way we can recognize His work in our lives.

This is the only way we can learn of His goings-forth into the Kingdom realm

This is the only way we can receive healing and living water which He offers to those who repent and seek Him with longing and thirsty hearts.

This is the only way we regain favor with God.

Amen. 

MAKING IT RIGHT, PART 3

 

We have all gone to these amazing Classic Car shows each summer or Fall to marvel at these ancient, beat up or rusted out old wrecks restored to seemingly better than original condition. To the aficionados and collectors, this is not just a hobby but a passion...even an obsession which most times exceeds these people's passion for God Himself.

Job was not a modern day Classic car collector but he WAS a man for whom God Himself had a tremendous amount of esteem. We see the growth and maturity of a man who yes, had definitely more faith in God, than those around him, including his wife. But when the time came for testing, he did what a lot of us would do today - rationalize and question. 

As we examined in the previous two segments of this short series on Job,  The Lord Himself took the occasion of Job and his friends' insidious reasoning to, basically, explain God to them and ALL mankind specifically. THEN the Lord anointed Job with a new mission - Prayer Warrior! Yes, He did! 

Read from Chapter 42: "7 And so it was, after the Lord had spoken these words to Job, that the Lord said to Eliphaz the Temanite, “My wrath is aroused against you and your two friends, for you have not spoken of Me what is right, as My servant Job has. 8 Now therefore, take for yourselves seven bulls and seven rams, go to My servant Job, and offer up for yourselves a burnt offering; and My servant Job shall pray for you. For I will accept him, lest I deal with you according to your folly; because you have not spoken of Me what is right, as My servant Job has.”

Three times God used the words "My servant Job". When God called His top generals all through Scripture, He did so twice (Moses, Moses....Samuel, Samuel....). When He says something three times, He is deadly serious and one had better pay attention!

Now the record does not go into any detail or mention of Job actually praying. However, we know, in the Spirit, that he did! God does not call a man "My servant" three times and then predict that His "servant" WILL do something in order for Him to forgive those three bloviating friends who escaped punishment because of God Himself granting Grace....if He did not mean it!

Two things here - Job obviously threw himself headlong into maturing his new-found relationship with the Almighty, Whom he understood fully for the first time and secondly, the mercy of God extends to us even when we deserve nothing but death. That mercy is Grace powered and only available by prayer and the sacrifice of self. The sacrifice of self is a repentant heart and a love for the Lord above all else.

Hence the result of all of this is - RESTORATION. The end of the actual first book of the Bible (in Chronological time) says (from Job Chapter 42): "12 Now the Lord blessed the latter days of Job more than his beginning; for he had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, one thousand yoke of oxen, and one thousand female donkeys. 13 He also had seven sons and three daughters. 

14 And he called the name of the first Jemimah, the name of the second Keziah, and the name of the third Keren-Happuch. 15 In all the land were found no women so beautiful as the daughters of Job; and their father gave them an inheritance among their brothers.16 After this Job lived one hundred and forty years, and saw his children and grandchildren for four generations. 17 So Job died, old and full of days".

Are you in need of  Restoration? Is your internal spiritual GPS as completed wrong in its coordinates as those three friends of Job, who thought they spoke for the God Who disciplined their folly? Or, are you like Job, with some Faith, who sought Truth and found a calling? If the answer is both - a category into which most of all fell into, at some point in our lives - then there is so much Hope. All we need to do is go to Job 42:1-6 and acknowledge our error and make it right, with the Great God of Heaven.

The key thing to remember in "making it right" - as Job set out to do in this entire process, is that God is still in the Restoration business. He can take our entire broken down wills, spirits, souls and bodies and make something new and beautiful that can shine just like those exquisite priceless classic cars, which are becoming just as rare now, just as true followers of Christ are.
"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come....2 Corinthians 5:17 

GOD BELONGS IN SPRINGFIELD IL PRAYER WALK 2013....A Roaring Success!

The Boanerges Chapter, CMA, get ready to lead the GBIMC Prayer Walk

When we were first approached by a young Christian mom with a vision in early April with the possibility of bringing the national prayer movement - God Belongs in My City (GBIMC), we were rightly inspired and gung-ho about the opportunity to participate in a growing national/worldwide movement which had its roots in a New York City subway! GBIMC sprung from the hearts of a youth group who happened to see a poster in the NYC subway system from

American Atheists which said “A Million New Yorkers Are Good without God. Are You?" They went back and reported this to their senior church leadership and were so moved that an idea was birthed. This was in October 2009. One month later, youth from all five NYC boroughs began what is now the God Belongs in My City prayer walk through Manhattan. It has since spread like wildfire to Canada, Switzerland, Africa, Puerto Rico and last year over 30 cities in America alone! 

This past Saturday August 24, GBIMC came to the capitol city of

Sarah, Sam, Vicki Lutchman

Illinois - Springfield and had a solid impact on the Spiritual life of this wheeling-dealing political and business oriented city of 115,000! It was not easy getting this through a closed and tightly religious system where every major church and denomination holds on firmly to its territory...all except one - Calvary Temple Christian Center. Senior Pastor there Mark Johnson caught the vision and empowered his outreach pastor Stacy Barnett and contacted me and together with Ezella Mills who brought the idea in from New York, we set forth on a course which really made this take off. 

Jessica McGee and Gigi

This was solidified after the National Day of Prayer in May, which I hosted for the eighth year in a row and we were joined by former Channel 20 Morning TV host Jessica McGee who now works as the Marketing Director for the wonderful Staab Family. She represented them magnificently and our final planning meetings were attended by PJ Staab himself, without whom we would not have had the major business involvement necessary to underwrite the upfront costs and police permits and street closure permits necessary to make this happen in the natural. PJ is a super joy to work with. He is well loved by the regions military veterans for his involvement in a huge memorial outside the city of New Berlin as well as his sense of humor.

Calvary Temple Pastor Mark Johnson

Through all of this, we were covered in some major prayer, as there was one obstacle after another or one spiritual attack after another. We had tireless and faithful leadership from Stacy Barnett and her church support - not just from the pastoral offices and administration, but from the core of Calvary Temple. They believed in this. We have many people to thank and they will be mentioned in no particular order at the end of this post.

The Day of the Prayer Walk, which we called GOD BELONGS IN SPRINGFIELD and had hundreds and hundreds of t-shirts made up at cost by Edgar Williams of Ambitious Designs. We met at the Comer Cox Park at the corner of 18th Street and Capitol for the 1 1/2 mile walk down Capitol Avenue to the State Capitol Steps. The love and camaderie and Christian fellowship across deep racial lines was a beautiful thing to behold. Even though almost every church officially turned down this movement to re-establish Jesus as the LORD of this City, many of their members turned out anyway!

One thing I will not forget is our tireless leader Stacy working so hard to get 1500 bottles

PJ Staab

Senator Sam McCann

of water iced down and ready for the anticipated crowd at the end of the walk; the volunteers there; the worship band already praying on the ground of the End of Walk service. My fond memories is the excitement of all different Christians in the same event T shirt all ready to work for Jesus. Stacy and I edited some ten or so prayer points which I read out all over the part to different groups of people with my bullhorn. The awesome sight of the Christian Motorcyclists Association led by brother Nick Courtney and the three Crosses behind them as almost 1000 people of all ages and backgrounds took off in a brisk walk down Capitol, was a sight to behold.

The subsequent hour long service on the Capitol Steps by the Lincoln Statue was so 

powerfully moving that worship, constant worship was breaking out all over the place!! Pastor Jerry Doss of Abundant Faith Christian Center, assisted by his magnificent choir set

BMIC President Bernie Lutchman

the mood for Prayer and the Word as they led off they service. I was next with the spirit-led Praise-Repent-Yield call to the Assembly. We went through 7 minutes of that and they pressed in!!! We were followed by the Bishop of Springfield - Thomas Paprocki on Religious Liberty after he was introduced by PJ and then some powerful praying by our State Senator Sam McCann. The powerful and timely message by Pastor Mark Johnson topped off an amazing and life altering (for this city) day.  The clarion call Pastor Mark proclaimed was to stand together, united, under the Banner of Jesus, or fall. This is the underlying theme of GBIMC - not unity at any cost where we toss aside the Basics of the Christian Faith, but unity in the Essentials to get right with God, through Repentance and then lead others to Jesus. This is the only way we can make any kind of difference and thus, show the world that God really DOES belong in our city!

Thank you to Springfield First Baptist led by Pastor Mike Henderson, for being the only other church, apart from Calvary Temple and Abundant Faith, to step up and support us from early. Over 30% of their church walked with us. Thank you to Todd Green and the Green Family Stores for underwriting the costs from the City of Springfield. Thank you to PJP Autos, The Staab Family and so many more who gave selflessly to this cause. Finally thank you - and in no small measure, to our wonderful MC - Calvary Temple Outreach Pastor Stacy Barnett! We are already planning next year's event and learned several things we can improve from this our first endeavor. Our primary purpose, my friends - to Lift up the Name of Jesus and proclaim Him as King over Springfield! Mission? ACCOMPLISHED!