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Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.
–Luke 2:14

This is a good time to remember our Iranian brothers and sisters in Christ. Iranian authorities are threatening to arrest any Christians that outwardly celebrate Christmas this year. We have posted in the past about the continuing revival going on in Iran. Like China, it is a house church movement that is increasing through dreams, visions, and healings.

We should also remember Christians in Egypt. The recent election indicates that radical Islamists will soon be running the country. Over 60% of the vote went to Muslim Brotherhood and the more radical Nour Party. Last year during the Coptic Christmas (Celebrated in January) celebration there were several attacks on the Christian community. This year more attacks are expected since the central government no longer even tries to protect the Christians.

Again this year, we should remember Christians in Iraq. The last several years there have been incidences of Churches, Christian businesses, and homes being attacked by radical Muslims during the Christmas season.

Also, the violence continues to rage against Christian communities in northern Nigeria. There seems to be no end in sight as Muslim mullahs continually incite Muslim ‘worshippers’ to attack Christians following Friday services. Literally there is at least one violent incident a week in that country.

In America, we are still blessed and far more fortunate than most of the Christians around the world. We might have to put up with atheists kicking our Nativity scenes out of City Hall and our children no longer being allowed to sing Christmas carols in school but we can go to sleep at night secure in our homes.

What we consider as persecution here is just a minor inconvenience. We are not facing life or death situations for our faith like many around the world. May God continue to bless us all this Christmas season and may we not forget to pray for “Peace and Goodwill” for our brothers and sisters around the world who are not as fortunate.             *Top

Related Posts?:

1. -Putting Christ and Merry Back into the Christmas Season
2. -“5 Suggestions for Finding More Joy at Christmas”

Most of the time ‘bad news’ is coming out of Egypt, for once here’s a sovereign work of God.

The following report comes to us from long-time Christian blogger Andrew Jones (Tall Skinny Kiwi) who was visiting in Egypt at the time and attended the ‘Day of Prayer 11.11.11’:

- 71,000 attended the all-night prayer meeting in Cairo.

- It was the largest Christian event in Egypt for over a thousand years

- It was held at the cave church on Cairo’s largest garbage city, Mokattam. This church is called St Simeon the Tanner Coptic Orthodox Church.

- The gospel was proclaimed during the Prayer event and some people responded to the challenge call to follow Jesus.

- Prayers for healing were made at midnight and some people were healed of physical problems.

- It was an Egyptian event. Buses took people to this event from all over Egypt. …

One Egyptian Evangelical leader told Andrew following this event:

 "I saw signs of the beginning of revival that I have never seen before!"

<<Read the entire report and the instructive comments following>>

Also while you are at it, read some of the other stories of Andrew’s visit in Egypt. They are eye opening and heart warming to say the least.

Response: It was remarkable on a number of different levels. Folks being healed and coming to Christ plus a real unity displayed in the Christian community. Also read Andrew’s report of prophetic words coming to the Christian leaders there. Obviously the Holy Spirit is at work awakening all of the Christians in Egypt including the Coptic Church. Amazing.

Note how in the report the Evangelical pastor was seemingly slighted at the prayer event but continued anyway in support and unity with his fellow Coptic Christians. What a great example for all of us.

The Christians in Egypt have been constantly under pressure and attack from the radical Islamists since the storied beginning of the so-called ‘Arab Spring’ which the Western media has cast as a push towards Western-style democracy.

However, it is in reality an Islamist revival with undercurrents that have brought increased intolerance and persecution of the Christian community. We should remember to throw up a few prayers of our own in agreement and support for our Christian brothers and sisters in Egypt. Also let’s pray that real revival will spring up and bring a new kind of ‘Arab Spring’ starting with this event in Cairo.          *Top

Related Posts?:

1. -Israel: 500 New Jewish Believers Come to Christ
2. -8.9 a Sign of the Times?

Vic Eliason still remembers the exact spot on the floor where he stood with three students in 1961, praying for a miracle…

"We prayed on that spot on a Friday, believing that if God wanted us to have air time, He would have to provide it," Eliason recalled. "On Monday, the door slammed open and a man I had never seen before asked, ‘Could anybody here use some free air time?’"

That was just the beginning of a life of miracles. On another occasion Eliason was involved with trying to purchase their first radio station -a 100,000-watt station evaluated at $465,000 even though the ministry "didn’t have a dime":

"The bank said they’d look it over, to see if it would be wise for us to take on that size of an expansion. And not only did the bank suggest it was a good idea, but they also said, ‘The people you reach are your greatest resource. We urge you to do it. How much do you have to put down?’

"I went like this," Eliason said, holding his forefinger to his thumb in the shape of a zero. "’Well,’ the bank said, ‘I guess we’ll have to write your whole check.’"

Eliason could only shake his head, saying, "To God be the glory."

From there the ministry -VCY America, has grown to operate nearly 30 Christian radio stations across the mid-west and provide on-air content for dozens more.

Response: Just a good story to remind all of us in the middle of a major recession that God is still in the miracle business. Whether you are starting a ministry or a business in his name.

Thousands of ministries and churches across America got started with miracles of their own and in today’s recession keep on keeping on depending on God’s alternative kingdom economy.

This well could be the finest hour of the American church where everyone must turn to God in a new way just to pay the bills. But not only that, we are called to expand and take the Gospel to every nation. That is going to take a bunch of miracles, but Praise the Lord he is still in that business.            *Top

Related Posts?:

1. -Let’s Pray for Our ‘Dead Cows’
2. -National Day of Prayer 2011

He points out that the American church has not really turned to God in a disparate way, that the circumstances may call for more radical responses on our part.

Personally looking over the history of our land, there has never been a time when so many major natural disasters have stricken this country in so short a period of time. Then we are in the midst of 2 1/2 wars while our economy is at its worst point in last 70 years or an entire generation.

What does the future hold?

We are preparing for the worse both naturally and economically out here in California. Too many words have come our way to ignore the possibilities of major trouble. However we are also expecting and hoping for revival in the midst of it all.

How are we to respond? Radical prayer is in order. Read the suggestions for responses to differing situations in Goll’s article: “Responding to the Times”

Related Posts?:

1. -California: Everything That Can Be Shaken…
2. -8.9 a Sign of the Times?

(by hickory hardscrabble via Flickr)

According to Jamie Work, pastor of Candies Creek Baptist Church in Charleston, Tenn.:

God turned an “11-day summit into a six-week revival” at Candies Creek, and the revival is continuing.
“As a result of corporate prayer and repentance, God is birthing us into a brand-new church.”

In his testimony before the SBC Executive Committee, Pastor Work told how Candies Creek spent weeks in prayer before the initial April 10-20 revival meetings at the church. As a result, the Holy Spirit birthed a move of God that resulted in over 25 hours of public confession of sin:

“We are still dealing with what God has been saying to us. Our world has been turned upside down.”

Also the church itself ended up confessing its corporate sin.  The following were some of the sins covered:

prayerlessness; superficiality with God and one another; failure to practice biblical, redemptive church discipline; lukewarmness (a lack of commitment); preoccupation with mammon (money and stuff); and programmatic worship (non-Spirit led).

Though the revival meetings officially ended after six weeks, regular prayer meetings continue to be well attended by the members. Pastor Work says that as a result of the move:

Candies Creek will “push all ministries off the table and put prayer in the center. Then, we will rebuild our ministries around prayer.”

We need to take people deeper into their walk with the Lord in order to get them into a deeper relationship with each other.”

As a result of their experience, Pastor work put forth a resolution before the recent SBC conference in Phoenix,Arizona seeking revival across all of America beginning with prayer and repentance.

See the following resolution adopted by the Southern Baptist Convention:

WHEREAS, Both the Old and New Testaments, as well as church history, attest to the reality that God works powerfully and manifests His presence among His people through authentic God-seeking prayer and repentance; and

WHEREAS, Jesus expressed deep grief and righteous anger when He came to the temple and found it to be something other than a “house of prayer for all nations” (Mark 11:17); and

WHEREAS, The book of Acts teaches through the birth of the church that what is birthed in prayer is of necessity sustained by prayer (e.g., Acts 1:14; 2:1, 42; 4:31); and

WHEREAS, The common corporate sins of many churches include, but are not limited to, prayerlessness, lukewarmness, neglect of biblical church discipline, and shallow relationships with God and with one another; and

WHEREAS, In our preoccupation with Mammon, we have too often embraced unbiblical priorities in our spending, our giving, our response to the poor, and our allocation of resources, assuming by our actions, contrary to our Lord’s explicit teaching, that our lives consist in the abundance of our possessions (Luke 12:15); and

WHEREAS, For the past fifty years wickedness and family collapse have been increasing rapidly, and at the same time we have seen that programs and strategies alone cannot revive lagging baptism rates or anemic discipleship; and

WHEREAS, The Southern Baptist Convention adopted the Great Commission Resurgence Task Force report in 2010, a part of which called for pastors to lead their churches in Solemn Assemblies “for the purpose of calling Christ’s people to return to God, to repentance, and to humility in service to a renewed commitment to Christ and the Great Commission”; and

WHEREAS, The Southern Baptist Convention adopted the addition to the Convention Calendar of Activities a focused Day of Prayer for the SBC in 2011 and for the years to follow; and

WHEREAS, God has already promised that He will not despise a “broken and contrite heart” (Psalm 51:17); now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED, That the messengers to the Southern Baptist Convention meeting in Phoenix, Arizona, June 14-15, 2011, do hereby beseech all pastors, congregations, ministry leaders, and denominational workers to seek the Lord in the manner of 2 Chronicles 7:14 and Joel 2:12-17, and to repent corporately in their various churches of all sins which God’s Spirit reveals; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we call on all Southern Baptist churches to renew their first-love devotion to Jesus Christ through full confession of and repentance from all revealed sin, and that they humbly declare their utter dependence upon, and glad surrender to, His grace; and be it further

RESOLVED, That we encourage all Southern Baptists to pursue a life of genuine repentance, Kingdom-focused prayer times for sweeping revival and spiritual awakening, and consistent prayer for specific lost people, missions, and ministry; and be it finally

RESOLVED, That we urge Southern Baptist churches to embrace corporate prayer and repentance for revival in the hope that God would be merciful to our churches, the Southern Baptist Convention, the United States of America, and the peoples of the world for the glory of His great Name.

Related Posts?:

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<Here’s a link to the official website where you can watch the 2011 observance live.>

Today is the 60th annual observance of the National Day of Prayer (USA). This is a great time to remember to pray for America , our leaders, our military, our people, and to remember to pray for spiritual revival for this great country.

<<Here is a link to the proclamation by President Obama>>

2011 National Prayer

by Joni Eareckson Tada, Honorary Chairman

Almighty God, you are our Mighty Fortress, our refuge and the God in whom we place our trust.  As our nation faces great distress and uncertainty, we ask your Holy Spirit to fall afresh upon your people — convict us of sin and inflame within us a passion to pray for our land and its people.  Grant the leaders of our country an awareness of their desperate need of wisdom and salvation in You until sin becomes a reproach to all and righteousness exalts this nation.

Protect and defend us against our enemies and may the cause of Christ always prevail in our schools, courts, homes, and churches.  Lord God, send a spirit of revival and may it begin in our own hearts.

Remember America, we pray.  Remember the foundations on which this country was built.  Remember the prayers of our nation’s fathers and mothers, and do not forget us in our time of need.

In the name of our Savior, Jesus Christ, Amen.

          (National Prayer Breakfast via Wikipedia)

Here’s President Obama at the annual National Prayer Breakfast in Washington, D.C. this morning:

"These past two years they have deepened my faith." …

"My Christian faith then has been a sustaining force for me over these last few years, all the more so when Michelle and I hear our faith questioned from time to time. We are reminded that ultimately what matters is not what other people say about us, but whether we’re being true to our conscience and true to our God."

He then quoted Scripture: "Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you, as well.’"

Also according to the article by Elizabeth Tenety the President shared the following:

Shared that he prays "that I might walk closer with God and make that walk my first and most important task."

Called Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) "a brother in Christ."

Characterized his father as "nonreligious" and his mother as spiritual, but not religious.

"I came to know Jesus Christ for myself," while working with faith leaders as a community organizer.

Every morning and night, the president said, "I wait on the Lord," asking for strength and forgiveness.

On the prayers of a father: "As I travel across the country, folks often ask me, what is it that I pray for? And like most of you, my prayers sometimes are general: Lord, give me the strength to meet the challenges of my office. Sometimes they’re specific: Lord, give me patience as I watch Malia go to her first dance, where there will be boys. Lord, have that skirt get longer as she travels to that dance."

We also learn in this article that Florida Pastor Joel Hunter and Potter’s House T.D. Jakes have served as spiritual advisers to the President.

Response: We really need to be praying for this guy. After all Paul was inspired to tell the early Christians to pray for the Roman leaders how much more should we be praying for a fellow Christian even if we don’t agree with his politics- and I disagree personally with almost everything he has done and stood for in the last two years.

Nevertheless, as I have prayed for the President and his family I have become far more sympathetic for the position he is in and have strangely begun to like him personally even though I still disagree with him at nearly every turn.

We live in dangerous times and we really do need the Lord to bless our leaders considering all of the chaotic things that they are facing economically and in the World.

Here are two prophetical messages that include something about the President Obama and a coming governmental/Constitutional crisis in America. Both suggest that we need to be praying for our leaders and be careful about be too negative and uncharitable towards the President:

-2011 Prophetic Perspectives 

-A Prophetic Word for 2011

*Top

Today is the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church –sponsored by Open Doors. Please pray for Christians under persecution around the world.

Remember Iraqi Christians in particular and others in the Middle East. Also pray for the Christian community in China and Pakistan where they are supposed to have a little freedom but really don’t.

Remember also to pray for the hidden revivals going on in Iran and North Korea. Christian converts in those countries are under a sentence of death when discovered.

Servant’s Heart an Assemblies of God mission in Louisville, Ky., doesn’t hold a traditional Sunday service but takes their ministry to the streets instead.

Ministry teams regularly witness and pray for folks during prayer walks and visit stores sharing scriptures with customers on Sundays along with holding home Bible studies, clothing and food giveaways, and sponsoring free medical clinics.

Jared Miller, the 24-year-old leader estimates that over 100 people that they have prayed for have been blessed with healing over the last several years:

“…nothing matches God healing people and bringing the book of Acts to life.

"I had never experienced spontaneous prayer and repentance before," he said of one impromptu prayer circle last year that exceeded his expectations. "I was catching a glimpse of what revival will be like. For people in our neighborhood, we believe that stronger than Sunday morning worship time is a seven-day-a-week connection to the family of God."

<<Read the whole article>>

Response: The beauty of this ministry is that it can be done anywhere. Major components can be done by regular Sunday going churches. The church I attend sends out teams into the area malls and Wal-Marts all of the time to great affect. We also have a food and clothing warehouse for the poor that reaches out and touches thousands of people.

I am convinced that we are in the midst of a revival in America and the only thing that Christians and churches need to do to participate in it is take to the streets and follow the heart of the Father. Take Jesus into the stores, markets, workplaces, schools, and neighborhoods. Pray for everyone you come across who needs prayer and healings will follow.

If you want revival that is where you will find it.            *Top

Today is the Global Day of Prayer for the Peace of Jerusalem. Join with millions of Christians around the world today praying for the peace of Jerusalem.