Sounding the shofar for Rosh Hashanah
30 Sep 2016
In Hebrew, ‘Rosh Hashanah’ means ‘Head of the Year’ and it's known as the Jewish New Year, celebrating the completion of creating the world and highlighting the relationship between God and humanity. This year Rosh Hashanah falls on 2 - 4 October. The shofar (horn) has been and is continuing to be sounded every morning (except Shabbat) in many Orthodox Jewish communities, stirring hearts to seek God and repent of sin. Maimonides, a respected Jewish sage of the Middle Ages, likened the sound of the shofar to an alarm call: ‘Sleepers, arise from your slumber, and those who are dozing, awake from your lethargy. Review your actions, repent from your sins, and remember your Creator!’ (Hilchot Teshuvah 3)
Trumpet Call South Africa
30 Sep 2016
From north to south, east to west, Africa faces enormous challenges and presents equally enormous opportunities. In recent years leaders from the South Sea Islands have followed a vision to see the ‘Welcoming of the King of Glory’ into each continent; last year they came to Europe and combined their visit with the European Trumpet Call in Romania. This year brothers and sisters from several countries, together with representatives of the Khoi, the indigenous people of South Africa, went to the most southerly tip of Africa, Cape Agulhas, for Trumpet Call South Africa. They stood on the shore where the Indian Ocean meets the Atlantic Ocean. The roar of the wind and seas added to the stones on the prayer altar built there over the years as they declared the Sovereignty of Christ, laid a red carpet on the beach, broke bread and in worship and praise welcomed the King.
10/40 Window Sunday
30 Sep 2016
This Sunday is a special opportunity to focus prayer on regions of the world that are home to the majority of the world’s Muslims, Hindus and Buddhists; the majority of the world’s least-reached people groups; the poorest of the poor; 45 of the 50 nations where Christians are most persecuted. This happens every year on the first Sunday of October. People are invited to celebrate and pray in their homes, in small groups, large groups, at Church and anywhere where Christians gather to seek the Lord, because the 10/40 Window is the ‘final frontier’ of world missions in order to finish the task given to the Church. Pray for powerful intercession this weekend to inspire more people to continue praying beyond October using nation profiles and prayer points. Pray for more Christians to learn about how to get involved in reaching the people of the 10/40 Window.
USA: ‘After school with Satan’
30 Sep 2016
Satanists from the Satanic Temple (TST) intend to open ‘After-School With Satan’ clubs. The Washington Post and other press outlets reported TST chapters petitioning nine school districts to allow them to preach Satanism in elementary school facilities after school by forming after-school Satan Clubs. They want to plant seeds of Satanism in children, to influence them to accept Satan and evil from an early age. The Satanists are focusing only on children aged 5-12. Satanism is held to be a religion by some US courts. Satanists are using wrong legality to attack the country’s most impressionable citizens, young children. Local residents are being asked to urge these nine school districts to do everything in their power to oppose and resist the satanic onslaught. In August the Tucson Arizona Area School District successfully rejected TST’s application for an After-School Satan Club; other school districts could also pass similar policies to reject the applications.
Syria: SAS training Syrians
30 Sep 2016
Both International Business Times and Russia Today have joined The Sun and Daily Mirror in reporting that British special forces are secretly training ‘New Syrian Army’ (NSA) rebels in Jordan. IB Times says the aim of the Marine commandos and SAS is to equip and empower the US-backed NSA to fight IS. Those who join the NSA are supposed to sign a pledge only to fight IS and not the Syrian Army. But the media are saying, ‘Don’t let us be surprised if they turn their fire on Syrian regular forces.’ Recently, US-led aircraft attacked a Syrian army unit, resulting in 62 deaths. According to the Independent, the Ministry of Defence confirmed British jets were involved in killing 62 sons, husbands and fathers. Previous attempts by the US to train Syrian rebels met with disaster. The Pentagon spent $500 million training just five men in 2015 and rebels handed vehicles and ammunition over to extremists. The programme was shut down.
Pakistan: teen's arrest for blasphemy
30 Sep 2016
The arrest of a Christian teenager in Pakistan for liking an ‘inappropriate’ photograph on Facebook has been widely condemned. The British Pakistani Christian Association said words cannot express the insanity, the depravity of this situation. Nabeel Masih, 16, is accused of blasphemy charges for clicking the ‘like’ button under an image of the Kaaba in Mecca, one of the holiest sites in Islam. A Muslim alerted officers to the post saying he found it insulting to his religion, police said. The teenager has been held in custody ahead of a trial. If found guilty, he could face the death penalty. The British Pakistani Christian Association chairman Wilson Chowdhry said, ‘If this kind of thing is sanctioned by the government then the Pakistani government has taken leave of all moral sense, and any semblance of protection for its Christian and minority citizens.’ See:
Prayer is one of the most humble activities we can engage in as human beings. It’s a ceding of the power to act for the humility of asking and waiting. It’s also God’s chosen means to bring about the transformation of human hearts, impossible circumstances, and even entire cities and nations.
We’ve been riding waves of encouragement in the past weeks as new cities have joined, resulting in over 30 cities/regions participating in 10 Days. Each place has a testimony, and we are privileged to hear incredible stories each day.
10 Days: What is it?
10 Days is an annual opportunity for the Body of Christ in your area to step away from normal routines of daily life and enter into an extended time of experiencing God together through worship, prayer, fasting, and fellowship. It’s a way for all the believers in your city to unite with Jesus at the center. It’s rooted in the 10 Days between the biblical Feasts of Trumpets and the Day of Atonement.
10 Days is intended to be part of the answer to Jesus’ prayer in John 17:21: “Let them be one as we are one.”
The next 10 Days is from October 2-12, 2016.
What Happens During 10 Days?
Ongoing Worship and Prayer is the heart of 10 days. Believers are invited to devote this time to corporate worship, prayer, and waiting on God together. These expressions of humility and dependence invite a response from God who “humbles the proud, but exults the humble.” 24/7 Prayer and Worship is one way to express this reality. Another model that may be more attainable for some cities is the Daniel Model, having three corporate gatherings of prayer per day in the Morning, Afternoon, and Evening.
At its core, 10 Days is incredibly simple:
- The Main Attraction is God and His Church
- The activities are prayer and repentance, fasting, worship, and going low before God
- The invitation is to make space by setting aside 10 entire days
- The atmosphere feels like a family reunion
- The reward is transformation, healing, renewal, revival, a heart on fire, love for God, his word, his people, and the world
Evening Gatherings are the most visible part of a city-wide 10 Days. Each night, a different group of congregations and ministries will host a gathering of worship, prayer, and communion. If you attend night-to-night, you’ll get to see the fundamental unity and incredible diversity of Christ’s body in your region, and probably make some new friends in the process.
Some New Resources for 10 Days and Restore
Vids: Here is a series of five videos to share that have been produced for the Restore Gathering by leaders around New England. While primarily a NE gathering, i know a few of you are coming from around the nation--if you are coming from a distance, please let me know so we can properly welcome you!
Charisma Article: Written by our own Grant Berry :) http://www.charismanews.com/opinion/standing-with-israel/60085-holy-spirit-inspired-prayer-movement-catching-fire-in-the-u-s
For more information, check out 10days.net
Registration Ongoing...Hurry Now, Early Bird Rates Ending October 31
All roads lead to the beautiful city of Chiang Mai in Northern Thailand. Come January 19-22 for the unique 'Great Commission Prayer Summit.' The Registration page has since gone live with the early bird rates coming to an end on October 31, 2016.
Participants are limited, which means the registration will end once we have the limited number of around 200 participants. Hurry now and register, if you would like to be a part of this unique prayer gathering, before we run out of space. Find the registration button below.
Registration Fees vary on country and regional basis ranging from $50 - $90. These registration fees will be reviewed upwards after October 31 ending the 'early bird' rates. The fees cover lunch, snacks and conference materials.
Participants are expected to make their own hotel bookings or other private accommodation arrangements. The Noble Place is highly recommended which has rooms ranging between $22 - $26/day able to hold 2 or 3 people respectively. This means the cost per room can be shared among several people.
Further Information:
Theme:
Contending For Global Harvest
When:
January 19-22, 2017
Where:
Great Commission Equipping Center
178/78-9 World Club Land, Moo 7
Hang Dong - Chiang Mai, Thailand
Who:
Church, campus ministry, mission leaders, prayer leaders, believers hungering to grow in Great Commission prayer, Everyone who's passionate and committed to praying for revival in the church and global harvest among the nations.
Areas of Interest Include:
1) Hunger for God, the Root of Effective Prayer; 2) The Spirit of Prayer for Global Harvest; 3) Principles & Pitfalls in Global Harvest Prayer; 4) Shaping Global Harvest Prayer Through Scripture; 5) Spreading Prayer Movements for Global Harvest; 6) Prayer, Revival, & Global Harvest
If you are passionate about Global Harvest and Awakening in these end times, if you'd like to see and be a part of a global prayer movement catalyzing the fulfillment of the Great Commission in this generation, hurry now and register for this exciting prayer summit. Join us and many others from all over the world to pray, strategize, reflect, and listen to heart of God as we anticipate a mighty move of His Spirit upon the Church and among the unreached of the world. We look forward to welcoming you to Chiang Mai, Thailand come January 19, 2017.
Please contact Rita Chiu by replying to this email if you have any further questions. Or visit the website here.