CHARISMATICA

Please bear with me while I rebuild this blog. We recently experienced a serious hacking/spam attack that made it necessary to flush our data base and start over in order to get control once more.

In the process I decided to move this blog to a new host. That has complicated matters and will somewhat delay everything being put back together.

If you are running on a WordPress program, I would strongly suggest that you upgrade to the 2.5.1 program as soon as possible. Supposedly they have closed all the gaps that hackers used to gain access to this blog and database.

Blessings Michael

‘Preparing for revival’  is the major theme of the SBC Pastors’ Conference in Indianapolis June 8-9. Under the title, "Prepare for Rain," the conference will focus upon the role of prayer and brokenness in spiritual renewal. According to Pastors’ Conference President Michael Catt:

"…but the reality is we don’t have praying churches that are longing for revival. If there’s not prayer and brokenness in revival, our churches are not going to do a better job of evangelism because carnal people don’t have a burden for lost people."  …

"The Pastors’ Conference needs to be for guys who are rolling into town on four flat tires, ready to resign. I’m praying that God so moves in that room that it’s no longer about where are we going to eat but it really stirs the hearts of every man and woman in that room toward doing something different for God. What would happen if 5,000 pastors — who influence between 2.5 and 3 million people each week — got desperate before God and walked into their pulpits different men the next Sunday?"

Response: Pray for the SBC Baptist pastors. I really do believe that God wants to bring revival to that denomination and touch the millions in their churches in a fresh way.            *Top

Christians across the U.S. are being summoned to a time of prayer and repentance to be held on Saturday April 26 at the National Mall in Washington, D.C.  Also, the services will be shown at satellite venues in 31 states. Participants will worship, pray, and be encouraged to repent of their own sins. Organizers hope that this will lead to a national revival.              *Top

J. Lee Grady writes about the Lakeland revival in his Fire In My Bones article this week (Wed. 4-23-08).  A must read! 

Also over at the Revival Blog , Carl has a documented  account of a girl with a broken arm healed at the meetings.          

Can’t help but wonder if this is the beginning of the ‘big one’ or only a ‘foreshock’. I live in earthquake country and every time a large earthquake hits (5.0 or above) we wonder if it is the main event or only a large foreshock of the ‘big one’ to come latter. What ever it is it is God and it is good. Lord, let it spread across the whole country from shore to shore. Amen.             *Top

Update: Beauregard Revival- David Copeland reports:

"We ended our fourth week of revival services last night at Beauregard Revival Center in Opelika Alabama. The Holy Spirit did not disappoint us!

From the outset the Holy Spirit was pulling people closer to Him even again! When there is such a strong pull of the Spirit for people to come closer to Jesus, it makes me wonder if that is what Enoch felt as he walked with God; and then God took him!"

Lakeland, Fl @ Ignited Church: Carl Thomas writes about this ‘Move of God’, which began on April 2,  on the Revival Blog.

Response: Keep it coming Lord, let the flame spread across the entire country and into every wineskin and denomination.            *Top

Friday’s devotional from Charisma Online has several thoughts that I would like to share. Is it even possible for Revival to come to your city? I have even read a number of articles lately (I refuse to link) which claim that America is past saving. I believe that Francis Frangipane puts that idea to rest with an affirmative perspective that really includes us all:

Your City Is Ripe for Revival

Today’s message is from Francis Frangipane.

Today many cities are ripe for revival. What hinders the turning of the people’s hearts? The answer lies with the church, with our sins of self-righteousness, apathy and unbelief.

The Lord said, “If My people humble themselves and pray . . . I will heal their land.” Whether or not we actually attain Christ’s level of faith, God “desires all men to be saved” (1 Tim. 2:4, NAS).

With this in mind, Paul taught that entreaties and prayers should be made on behalf of all men, “for kings and all who are in authority” (1 Tim. 2:2, NAS). The sacrifice of Christ provides for the salvation of all men, and since the Father Himself desires all men to be saved, heaven waits only for the church to act.

One may say, “But that was then. Our cities are worse now. They are beyond redemption.” Not so. Jesus continued His rebuke of cities by saying, “If the miracles had occurred in Sodom which occurred in you, it would have remained to this day” (Matt. 11:23, NAS). Amazingly, Jesus said even Sodom could find repentance!

I have heard many ministers compare Los Angeles or New York to Sodom. Fine, but these cities have seen hell, so now let the church show them heaven. They need to see Jesus revealed in His church.

The promise of Christ is that even Sodom could repent in the atmosphere and revelation of Christ’s power. If there is hope for Sodom, there is hope for your city as well.

TODAY’S PRAYER:
Lord, I ask You to extend Your mercy and compassion to my city today. Bring revival to our churches and demonstrate Your love and power to the lost.

*Top

Now in the 3rd week at Beauregard Revival Center in Opelika, Alabama. It is starting to get exciting! Read David Copeland’s Monday April 7th report.

David started preaching a revival series on Easter Sunday and it was originally scheduled to last through Wednesday March 26.

It is my hope that soon every church across the nation will begin to experience God in a real and tangible way–that is what I am looking for. I have become convinced lately that ‘Revival’ will probably look somewhat different at every church and place that the Spirit sovereignly descends upon.            *Top

The 2nd Anniversary of this blog went unnoticed while I was flat on my back nursing some kind of bug.   Charismatica Blog started two years ago on April 2, 2006.

 This actually makes me a ‘tweener’ in the blogosphere. The ‘ancient sages’ came before 2003, the ‘mature’ webloggers started in 2004-5, then came the popular deluge of blogs starting in 2005-6 -’the adults’. The path was already well worn when I started in 2006, yet so much has happened since in the blogosphere it will be interesting to see what comes next–we are really still at the beginning of this web genre.   

This was actually my 2nd blog. I started blogging at ANSWERS For The Faith a month earlier on March 5, 2006.  My original idea for CHARISMATICA was to make a website with referral links (See: “Referral Pages: Revival Ministries-links”) to all the different ministries that had come through my home church at one time or another. Ministries that I wanted to keep up on.

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This is not an April fool’s day joke! There is a new Internet ministry, Adopt a Terrorist for Prayer (ATFP), which is urging Christians to adopt a terrorist and pray for them. Just as Jesus Christ instructed his disciples to love and pray for their enemies.

The ministry has pictures of all the major known terrorists and suggests that you select one (adopt) to pray for. As ATFP founder Dr. Thomas Bruce states:

“People can go to www.myatfp.org to learn about nearly a hundred prominent at-large and captured individuals identified by the FBI and State Department as either terrorists or terrorism sponsors,” the ministry founder said.

He added, “Visitors can then find a terrorist to pray for, as well as see how many others are praying for them. It’s all about connecting these prayer warriors to each other to see how others are praying, to encourage each other, to spread the word, and fight this War on Terrorism in a powerful and spiritual way.”

Response: The on-going battle and clash against Islamic terror is more of a spiritual battle against principalities and powers than most people realize. I believe that prayer could be a more powerful weapon in the War on Terror than thousands of armed forces and could actually bring about changes that can’t necessarily be accomplished through natural means.  Here’s a link to their website.             *Top

Here’s an update on the Jena revival began on Feb. 17 in a Jena, Louisiana Baptist church which didn’t even have a pastor at the time. Now it has spread across racial lines and is bring healing to a community that was severely divided by a racial incident at the Jena Highschool. 

(Photo: Karen L. Willoughby -Baptist Press)

Last year, Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton led a rally in this town of 3,000 that saw some 20,000 people descend upon Jena in support of "Jena Six". Now in the same field, a tent holding 1,000 has been set up for the continuing revival.

L&A Baptist Church pastor Jimmy Young said concerning the revival:

"In the Bible, seven is the number of completeness. God is doing a complete restoration and unification work here in Jena, so it is only fitting that the seventh week finds us at the same location where thousands gathered on Sept. 20 of last year."

*Top