10 Days of Unity!

The 10 Days of Prayer are over for another season. These 10 day shows of unity have grown from a once a year, in the spring leading to Pentecost, to a two a year round of 10 days. The second one we just finished, in the fall lands in the Jewish calendar between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.

I have been involved with this for a few years now and this one seemed to have the sweetest unity to it.  Each night there were between 30 and 60 in attendance from 8 to 15 churches. What I found encouraging was the consistent presence of Pastors. At least six to eight pastors each night! And I am talking about different denominations. We all came to worship our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, to “Lift High the Cross” as the hymn goes. We came together to celebrate what we agree on!

Where were the flocks? With that many pastors you might think there would be more lay people. I’m not too concerned about that right now. The feel and flavor of unity was genuine and palpable. I believe the word will spread and the numbers will grow as the leadership grows in relationship with each other. As we all come together to worship and share communion we demonstrate the Church is healing. Besides, at this point it is much more about quality than quantity. The quality is here.

I am blessed to be in a position to be in many different church buildings and even more gatherings for prayer than most believers get to participate in. That gives me a unique vantage point to see what is going on in the larger spiritual picture. I am encouraged. God is doing a new thing. Hearts are warming and there seem to be both a drawing of the lines and a softening. What do I mean by that? I have a sense that those who will be coming to the Lord are having their hearts softened. Others are getting more anti-Jesus. Is that the wheat and the tares growing up together? Is that people like Saul who persecuted the Church, but had a dramatic encounter with the Lord on the road to Emmaus was transformed into arguably the most influential Apostle?

Many have been praying for revival and awakening for a REALLY long time here in New England. I have been in on it for nearly 20 years. I am very much a late comer. I believe it begins with an awakening of the churches…of His Church. It is beginning here on the North Shore.

I pray we all awake to the beauty of His Holiness in every aspect of our lives. The times are changing. It is not always pretty or pleasing but God is in the midst. The church, at least here in New England is beginning to wake from a long hard sleep. Let us all prepare for the harvest. (Fitting for this fall season=}….