Hey Everyone! Check out my guest blog post on ChurchCrunch.com. I blogged about how we used Twitter to enhance our 24 hour City Wide Prayer Vigil in Crestline, OH.
Thanks goes to human3rror for allowing me to contribute to the blog.
It is 5:51 AM, and it is the earliest time that I’ve ever started to write a blog post. I look around me and watch the saints that have prayed earnestly through the night. Their voices are rough and strained. Their eyes are heavy. Yawns creep up among us all at random times, but our excitement has not left.
The sun is still hiding beneath the horizon, but its light is spreading all over the city. The soft glow of early morning light washes the city in hues of purple. We have prayed the night through, and we are happy to have the toughest hours behind us. I can see the energy growing like a light in every eye.
You see, we know that God has heard us tonight. He has been present among us and has been taking careful note of our petitions. His Spirit has been infusing us with divine energy and passion all night long. Here are some highlights from the 24 City Wide Prayer Vigil:
These are just a few of the many things that have occurred while we have been here. The Lord has supernaturally connected us to the many brothers and sisters around the globe in prayer. Thank you to all who sent in their prayer requests, to those who participated in the event by coming to prayer and to Peacemakers Int’l, Tabernacle of Praise and the Crestline Ministerial Association for sponsoring the event.
God Bless You All!
America loves to eat. The lowest rate of obesity in the adult population of the United States is in Colorado which was just below 20% in 2008. Amazing. My fellow Americans, we love our food. A lot. And we love all kinds of food. Almost everything edible is consumed in this country from corn to dandelions from cows to snails. What? You don’t eat delicious dandelions or succulent snails? Well, let me ask you a question. In this country of freedom, why are you restricting yourself?
Perhaps you’ve never thought of it that way. You may think why I’m not restricting myself, I just don’t want to eat those things because they’re disgusting! Are you sure? It seems to me that those who eat those foods truly enjoy them. Aren’t you despising the freedom that you have by restricting yourself to such a paltry diet? Maybe you just haven’t given these delectables a proper chance because you’re stuck in your cultural rut. You are a close-minded food snob due to your limited background.
The point is this: Everyone one of us make choices on what we ingest. We decide every day what we are going to buy, cook and eat. Don’t think your choice is all that important or relevant for anything? Food manufacturers, retailers and restaurants spent approximately 11 billion dollars in advertising to influence your choice in 2007. If nothing else, your choice is worth 11 billion dollars judging by their behavior. Oh, there is someone else who thinks that your food choices are important as well.
The LORD said to Moses and Aaron, 2 “Say to the Israelites: ‘Of all the animals that live on land, these are the ones you may eat: 3 You may eat any animal that has a split hoof completely divided and that chews the cud. 4 ” ‘There are some that only chew the cud or only have a split hoof, but you must not eat them. The camel, though it chews the cud, does not have a split hoof; it is ceremonially unclean for you. 5 The coney, [a] though it chews the cud, does not have a split hoof; it is unclean for you. 6 The rabbit, though it chews the cud, does not have a split hoof; it is unclean for you. 7 And the pig, though it has a split hoof completely divided, does not chew the cud; it is unclean for you. 8 You must not eat their meat or touch their carcasses; they are unclean for you. 9 ” ‘Of all the creatures living in the water of the seas and the streams, you may eat any that have fins and scales. 10 But all creatures in the seas or streams that do not have fins and scales—whether among all the swarming things or among all the other living creatures in the water—you are to detest. 11 And since you are to detest them, you must not eat their meat and you must detest their carcasses. 12 Anything living in the water that does not have fins and scales is to be detestable to you. 13 ” ‘These are the birds you are to detest and not eat because they are detestable: the eagle, the vulture, the black vulture, 14 the red kite, any kind of black kite, 15 any kind of raven, 16 the horned owl, the screech owl, the gull, any kind of hawk, 17 the little owl, the cormorant, the great owl, 18 the white owl, the desert owl, the osprey, 19 the stork, any kind of heron, the hoopoe and the bat. [b] 20 ” ‘All flying insects that walk on all fours are to be detestable to you. 21 There are, however, some winged creatures that walk on all fours that you may eat: those that have jointed legs for hopping on the ground. 22 Of these you may eat any kind of locust, katydid, cricket or grasshopper. 23 But all other winged creatures that have four legs you are to detest. Leviticus 11:1-23 (NIV)
In this passage, we see God creating food consumption policies. Quickly, you will notice that the Israelites were not to eat pork, shellfish, catfish, lobster or crab, along with a host of other foods. He tells the Israelites that they are not only supposed to abstain from eating these unclean foods, but they are to “detest” them. Just like you may detest eating dandelions or snails.
Is it right for God to restrict our diets? In all honesty, we do this all the time. Weight Watchers are restricted. People in Jenny Craig are restricted. Doctors restrict the diets of diabetics. The reasons for these restrictions are obvious, but why would God ask Israel to do so?
There are many reasons, but there is one that I wish to present to you today. God wanted His people to be able to discern that which is clean and that which is unclean. Notice He did not use the words good or bad, as pertaining to the morality of their existence. A pig has the moral right to exist, and there is nothing evil about it, yet it is unclean.
There are things in life that are clean and unclean as well, even if they are good. Friends are good, but not all friends are clean. Work is good, but not all jobs are clean. Recreation is good, but not all entertainment is clean. Although the Apostles have given us permission by the guidance of the Holy Spirit to eat those foods which we have been brought up to eat (Acts 15:22-29), still mature Christians know the difference between that which is clean and unclean. So, let us choose wisely what we will allow into our lives.
What things in your life are clean and unclean? How do you know the difference?
Extra! Extra! Read all about it! 24 Hr. City Wide Prayer Meeting to be held at the Crestline House of Prayer starting at 9 am on Friday July 10 and ending at 9 am on Saturday July 11. You are officially invited to come and join us! If you have any questions, get ahold of me or Jody Varga.
I’m so excited about this coming prayer event. This is the first time that I have been involved in organizing a prayer event involving multiple congregations and organizations. We at Tabernacle of Praise believe that everything that God wants to do in this communigyt and through our church begins with prayer. Almost all of the promises of the Lord for blessings and favor are hinged on whether or not we pray. Check out this verse:
“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 will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” 2 Chronicles 7:14 (NIV)
It’s not just enought that we humble ourselves and acknowledge that we need God; we must actively seek His attention and present our requests to Him! It is imperative that we do this as a community.
The Crestline House of Prayer is located above the Parr Insurance company at 224 N. Seltzer St. in Crestline.
This event is being sponsored by Tabernacle of Praise, Peacemakers International and the Crestline Ministerial Alliance in an effort to unite the Church of God within the Crestline area in prayer to confront the issues that our churches, families and economy are facing today. We will be praying around the clock with the door open, so please come when you can and join your prayers with ours!
This morning I am sitting in the living room watching my son play on the floor. It’s early, about 7:30 AM. This morning around 7, I snatched him from his mother’s side so that she could sleep. All he wanted to do was play and sing, and that is what he is doing right now (I would capture it on video and upload it for you, but the battery in the camera is dead. Go figure.).
As I watch him wiggle and croon, I wonder about all the other fathers throughout history. Did they every dream of what their sons would be as I do now? I think of the great men of the ages: Abraham, Moses, Peter, Paul, Winston Churchill, George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Billy Graham, and all the others. They all had fathers. Did those dads know that their sons were going to be remembered in the annals of time as men who changed the course of history, that it would be their prodigy that would begin a nation, lead the Church that Christ began, win a world war, lead a revolution or win a million souls to Christ?
Then I think of other men. Did Solomon know this his kingdom was to be divided under the foolish rule of his son Rehoboam? I wonder if Hezekiah ever imagined that his son, Manasseh, would lead the children of Israel into greater sin than any of his forefathers. It’s hard to believe that a man like Hitler could have any parents, but he did have a father. Would that father have shuddered if he saw what his son would be? Or even more recently, would Ted Bundy’s dad have imagined that his son would have been executed for the horrendous murders that he committed?
With these thoughts in mind, I pray for my son. I pray for myself. I pray for my family and the world. Every one of us has the potential for greatness or infamy. The chance to impact this planet for the cause of Christ or our own gain. I want my son to grow up to be as happy as he is now, to be as full of vibrant life as his eyes are holding right now. Every dad wants that for his son. Even Hitler’s dad wanted that for his son. As men, we want to be proud of what our sons become.
I believe that God is no different. He sees us in our beginning moments of life and plans the best for us. He wants to be proud of us. He believes in us. He is our Father. Even those who have gone astray into the darkness of this world, still hold a special place in His heart as He waits for them to become what He meant for them to be. May we see all of God’s children through His eyes.
