Day 17 - Isaiah 61 Fast

My favorite person in the world has written an encouraging word for us as we near the half way mark of the fast. I was also encouraged again this morning by a vision of Jesus brilliantly dancing over Boston this morning; it brought a great sense of peace. I am also excited to realize that the JHOP Worship and Prayer Night is at exactly the half-way point of the fast; I believe we are at a tipping point!

From Betsy Hill:

“For all of them were trying to frighten us, thinking, ‘They will become discouraged with the work and it will not be done.’ But now, O God, strengthen my hands.”

This is taken from Nehemiah 6:9 in the context of the scattered Israelites coming together and rebuilding the destroyed walls of Jerusalem. Their adversaries were trying to sabotage their plans by words of discouragement and by force. But Nehemiah knew better than to grow discouraged and believe false reports. They hired false prophets to come and say things that would make him afraid, but he perceived rightly from the Lord that the enemy had sent them, not God.

The result? “So the wall was completed on the twenty-fifth day of the month Elul, in fifty-two days. When all our enemies heard of it, and all the nations surrounding us saw it, they lost their confidence; for they recognized that this work had been accomplished with the help of our God.” (Neh 6:15-16). God used them, despite the odds, to rebuild the wall. He even provided supplies for their work from those who didn’t worship God. The plans of the Lord were victorious!

On my way to prayer on Monday, I was focusing on how no temptation has come against us that Christ Himself has not first endured. This includes discouragement. Maybe you find yourself encouraged and this doesn’t appeal to you, but maybe the circumstances the enemy sent to frighten you or fill you with discouragement took a little ground in your heart. Maybe you are tempted to believe the report that the work we have begun won’t come to completion. I just felt compelled to send out the encouragement that even Christ Himself may have been tired of fasting during His forty days in the desert. We know from scripture that at the very least, He was hungry (Luke 4). But we know He held out and by faith spoke against Satan on the fortieth day despite his fleshly hunger.

So may we each be like Nehemiah and believe God, not circumstances, and pray to our God to strengthen our hands for the work He is doing! And may we remember that Jesus too got hungry and be filled with faith to hold strong because we know that victory is coming!! (The angels, after all, did come to wait on Him after He resisted Satan.) Stay up and be filled with faith! Rejoice, we’re moving forward and taking ground daily!!

Days 15 & 16 - Isaiah 61 Fast

Day 15

We gathered at the usual early morning time and for several hours in the late afternoon/evening. The later gathering was marked by a real sense of God’s presence in worship. Multiple people saw images of Jesus during worship. I was particularly impacted by a vision of Jesus laughing with and gently encouraging a person I was concerned about and a sense of Christ’s presence that brought a great sense of peace. Some loud and boisterous worship broke out towards the end of the meeting and really increased our faith in a dramatic way. God is with us!

Yet you are holy,
dwelling in the praises of Israel.
Psalm 22:3 (ESV)

Day 16

Our focus continues to be asking God to embolden us to share the gospel with our friends and neighbors and for God draw people to Alpha which is starting this week. We are already expecting over a dozen guests to attend the Alpha gatherings! I continue to be amazed by the spiritual growth that is happening among the dozen or so 20s aged young men and women who are rising early in the morning multiple times a week to pray. God is giving a supernatural energy to them as they go about their jobs and classes the rest of the day. In addition, we are continuing to hear testimonies about divine appointments where we meet people who are interested in exploring the gospel. God is transforming us.

JHOP Boston - ONE10 Prayer & Worship Gathering

Days 9 - 14 Isaiah 61 Fast

I apologize for not updating those of you who are following what God is doing during the Isaiah 61 Fast. I got swamped with responsibilities last week and didn’t have the energy to keep posting, but I am back in action! I am hoping to keep daily updates coming this week.

We continue to gather a daily core of 10-12 people each day. We really appreciate those who have come to visit us for a morning. It is very encouraging. In line with Isaiah 58, God has mobilized some of us into action. Dave Csinsi is heading up teams of people to go out to befriend and pray for the homeless on Saturdays. They went out for the first time yesterday and were able to minister to a few people. One of whom wants Dave to come visit his shelter. In addition, this week Fenway Church is kicking off three Alphas (Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday nights). Alpha is a ten week introduction to Christianity by addressing important questions and discussing them in an open forum. Last year, several people come to Christ through it. We are already expecting several seekers at each gathering.

A few of the themes that continue to emerge in prayer:

1) Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness will be filled. God is looking for a people who will “press in to know him.” We are seeking the face of God and expecting to meet with him and be filled with the power of the Holy Spirit.

2) Isaiah 35:3-4 Two keys to seeing an outbreak of signs and wonders that marked Jesus’ ministry are proclamation of the good news (“Do not fear, God will come to save you”) and the formation of a great community that “strengthens the weak” and “encourages the fearful.”

3) A growing belief that it is Boston’s time for revival. We believe we are partnering with God’s plan for Boston. May his kingdom come and will be done!

Details on RIT Debate on Existence of God

This story is a testimony of God's power and the hunger in an emerging generation to search for truth. My friend Arricka goes to school there and sent me this update.

Near the end of Fall, the RIT Skeptics, a group founded with the purpose of debating and even debunking popular beliefs, approached InterVarsity Christian Fellowship about the possibility of a debate about the existence of God. At first IV was hesitant to accept the offer, but then they felt God wanted them to and saw that it fit perfectly into the theme of Winter Quarter on why we believe what we believe. The Skeptics proposed that three of their members debate three of our members moderated by Professor Spencer Meredith, a Christian politics and philosophy on campus. We were delighted by the idea and chose Val Tracy, a junior, Daron Ladson, a senior, and Drew McClean, also a senior. On January 18th, the Debate on the Existence of God was held. We had prayed all day Thursday and Friday from 5 PM on through the debate. At 7 PM, our auditorium which seated 313 students, was more than filled. As the debate began, students began filling up the aisle, standing in the back, and finally filling the front and side of the stage. We estimate more than 450 students attended. The debate lasted for more than 2 hours, first in a session of 30 questions evenly composed by both groups and then in a session of questions which students texted or emailed in during the debate. Many questions were not answered when the debate was called to a close and thus students came up afterwards or conversed about them even as it finished. In addition, several students expressed interest in studying the Bible more to see what it says. Before it finished, Professor Meredith proposed that a similar debate be hosted soon between himself and a few other skeptical professors as age adds to insight. Both groups are very excited about this and plans are being made now about the recourse. God is good!

Days 7 & 8 - Isaiah 61 Fast

Ran out of time to post yesterday; of course, God never runs out of time. Must be cool to be God...

Day 7

Well, Sunday morning services are so much better if you've spent 2 hours praying before hand. It was amazing to see how easy it was to enter into corporate worship when we had already been seeking God before hand. As we prayed for the church in the US and their Sunday morning services, I was struck by the realization that although we were rising early to "welcome in Sunday" all day long starting in a remote island in the Pacific Ocean a global anthem of praise had been rising up to Jesus growing as it rose in the East and spread across of the rest of the globe throughout the day. We are indeed a part of something much bigger than ourselves.

Day 8

I am so proud of our students who continue to rise early in the morning to pray. Later today, we will be praying from 2-7:30pm. This morning's theme seemed to be God renewing a sense of hunger and thirst in us. Jesus said, "Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness will be filled." We repented of hungering after the things of the world instead of a relationship with Jesus. We turned to God in worship and prayer. We rested in the love God has for us and the assurance of his victory over Satan.

To conclude, I hope you are encouraged by this story of another young woman who God used last week.

Because of being inspired to pray every morning since Fenway started the 6-8am prayer, I was praying this morning. I heard this story on the news about a young man that was killed last night in Boston. I was moved to pray for him and his family. I went to work and started my day as usual. At lunch time, I prayed that God would make me a witness to the next patients that I was going to see in the afternoon. So, I went about my business and began to evaluate a patient. As I was evaluating her, she began to cry saying, "My grandson was killed last night." It was the same young man that was on the news. I sat with her and just let her cry and hugged her.

I wanted to share this with you because God moved me to pray for this family and little did I know that I would be interacting with them that same day. God gave me an opportunity to share his comfort with this woman in a real way. I'm so thankful that God spoke to me, answered my prayers, and had me meet face to face the unknown people I was praying for.

Day 6 - Isaiah 61 Fast

Today was marked by intense spiritual warfare for God to move in Rochester Institute of Technology in Rochester, NY. We heard reports that 500 students had showed up at a debate on the existence of God on Friday night put on by Intervarsity and the Skeptics club (more news to come once we get the details). Some of us had prayed for it yesterday. Encouraged by this report, we spent a couple hours praying into what God was doing there for a revival to break out at RIT. We believe that as we sowed into other areas in prayer outside Boston that we would also reap in Boston. Despite this knowledge, I was surprised at how intensely God met us as we interceded for RIT. We all left convinced God is doing something major there. Lord, may the fires of your Spirit spread across campuses all across the United States and across the globe!

I am also vastly encouraged by reports of how our gatherings are already making a mark on the people who are praying. Here is one testimony from young woman at BU who has been participating in our prayer times:

It's been an interesting first week back in Boston. I wanted to update you on some really cool things going on in New England... mostly just that God has been stirring in our hearts a deep desire and passion for His love. Stoking the fire--if you will. We have been blazing; we are no longer satisfied with business as usual.

Spontaneously, my friend Jenny invited me to a prayer conference called The Nazarite Uprising, hosted by International House of Prayer. It was going on in Connecticut drive there, but the three hours of prayer, worship, and exhortation was way worth the long drive. The conference focused on our response to the jealousy of the bridegroom for us, His bride. Such a response can only be that of extreme devotion and love. The message of the so it took us 2.5 hours toNazarite vow in the Old Testament was to forego the legitimate pleasures of the world, even that which is good, for the better and most wonderful pleasure of knowing God. It's not for the sake of being radical, religious, or legalistic, but just to know Jesus as he want us to know him.

The presence of God was so thick in the room that, upon entering, I felt this immediate joy well up and I started to dance. It was almost as if I couldn't contain my praises any longer. It was not
physically possible.

Many people that night assigned themselves to a more radical calling: to usher in the Kingdom of God with prayer and fasting, and to mark themselves with love as those set apart for the Lord.

Additionally, God has called Fenway church and many other Christians in the Boston area to 40 days of fasting and prayer from 6-8am with the express purpose to "loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke" (Isaiah 58:6). As you know, it's hard to be a student and get up at 5:30am to pray before classes, and I personally have not had much sleep all week, but it has been so worth it.. Each day it gets easier to desire to spend that time with Jesus, and therefore, to actually get out of bed into the freezing cold--just to worship and seek His face and will for the city's destiny and our own. I am not boasting in myself, but in God's supernatural strength as we take steps of faith in response to His promises. We're not stopping until we hit Revival, and we believe God's already planned on it.

This testimony communicates the heart that is beginning to develop in us at these prayer times. Maranatha, come Lord Jesus, come!

Day 5 - Isaiah 61 Fast

I know God did a deep work in the hearts of those who gathered this morning. Jesse and Brian imparted the Father heart of God to us in a deep way (and I am pretty sure they did not even mean to do it). We were challenged by the call not to a season of prayer but to a lifestyle of prayer. Listening to them and reading through Luke and Acts, I come away with the undeniable reality that one of the main elements and most likely the chief occupation of God's people is prayer. Jesus certainly modeled this lifestyle of seeking the Father throughout the gospels especially in Luke.

Jesse Engle gave a very affirming word on the value of what we are doing on this prayer journey and on the joy God has for his children as they turn to him in prayer. Brian Kim shared on how in prayer and fasting we come before God in weakness that he might by his grace empower us with his Spirit. Both men imparted a sense of daily taking up our crosses in prayer and dying to self that Christ might be revealed and glorified in and through us.

Our meeting concluded with a deep in awakening in our hearts of the Father's love for us and his desire for his children to come to him and experience the good gifts he has for us. How often we miss the love and grace of the Father simply because we have busied ourselves in the world or in the "building of the kingdom" that we have missed the one most important thing - coming before the Father in prayer.

Finally, we continue to be gripped by the growing sense that God's eyes are indeed on Boston and that he is awakening something here that is a part of a great, global, and sovereign move of God.

Luke 18 Leaders coming to prayer Friday morning

I attended the Luke 18 Prayer Furnace training last night. The Holy Spirit flowed over the room like a wave on numerous occasions. I was really touched by the manifestation of the presence of God almost like the dream I had with Lou Engle in it. I was also moved by Brian Kim and Jesse Engle's (son of Lou) messages on prayer. They are calling out for God's church to once again be "A House of Prayer for all Nations."

Brian and Jesse will be joining us at prayer tomorrow, Friday January 17, at Ruggles Baptist Church where we have been praying (874 Beacon St. Boston, 2nd floor). I urge you to come and catch the passion for prayer and the radical message these young men carry. These men have literally given their entire lives to prayer and raising up a mighty end-times prayer movement. You would benefit greatly from what they have to impart and from joining with them in prayer. They carry an anointing from the Holy Spirit for transformational prayer.

I am excited to see what God has for us tomorrow.

Day 4 - Isaiah 61 Fast

{When You said,} "Seek My face," my heart said to You,
"Your face, O LORD, I shall seek."
Psalm 27:8

God reminded us of this verse this morning; it was also talked about at the Prayer Furnace Training last night. This fast is not about twisting God's arm to start a revival. This fast is about seeking the face of God. The Hebrew word for face can me "presence." We are contending for the presence of God to sweep through our lives and churches. I am reminded of Moses who told God, "If your Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here." (Exodus 33:15) We are nothing without the presence of God, there is no power, no meaning, no lasting satisfaction or purpose without it. God is calling out to us, "Seek my face!" How will we respond? This morning twelve of us responded, "Your face, O LORD, we shall seek."

The promise of God's word will surely come to past as we press in to know God during this fast. He will come to us, change us, empower us, and use us as agents of transformation in Boston.

"So let us know, let us press on to know the LORD His going forth is as certain as the dawn;And He will come to us like the rain,Like the spring rain watering the earth."
Hosea 6:3

News from Outside

I continue to receive emails about God speaking Isaiah 61 and Isaiah 58:6 to others before I sent out the email about the fast. In addition, I am excited that God is sending leaders from the two groups (Luke 18 Project and Collegiate Impact) in the next two weeks who are committed to seeing revival on college campuses. The Luke 18 project training is tonight , and we will keep you informed of where the Collegiate Impact team will be next week.

I believe God is bringing these groups together to partner with campus ministries and church planting movements (like our church plant in the Fenway which is part of the Newfrontiers movement) for revival and awakening.

Day 3 - Isaiah 61 Fast

The inscription on the Liberty Bell reads:

"PROCLAIM LIBERTY THROUGHOUT ALL THE LAND UNTO ALL THE INHABITANTS"

It is a quote from Leviticus 25:10 which states, "Consecrate the fiftieth year and proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you; each one of you is to return to his family property and each to his own clan." All the slaves living in Israel were released from captivity and given the option to return to their own lands.

The Liberty Bell is an American symbol representing a call of freedom to all who are oppressed. It was by tradition (but not historical accuracy) rung to call the militia together at Lexington and Concord and to gather people for the first public reading of the Declaration of Independence. It was used as a symbol during the abolitionist movement in the United States.

Today, we continued to pray with around a dozen people. A band of BU students went to pray at Marsh Chapel, the center for religious life at Boston University (BU), as the first day of classes began. Together we were declaring that we are in "The year of the Lords' favor..." (Isa. 61:2) and that it is a time to, "Proclaim freedom for the captives..." (Isa. 61:1) We know that Boston is city where many people are yoked in slavery to sin. We declared Isaiah 58:6 that this fast is to, "Set the oppressed free and break every yoke." The yokes of depression, immorality, relativism, humanism, shame, and addictions are being broken over our city and campuses!

Two thousand-eight is a year of Jubilee for Boston. We are ringing a Liberty Bell with our prayers, a militia of prayer volunteers is gathering ready to respond at a moments notice to God's word. We are preparing to proclaim liberty to captives through the bold proclamation of the gospel. A declaration of freedom has been signed by the blood of Jesus. The time of battle is at hand. The Holy Spirit promises to embolden and empower as we go. Sound an alarm! Freedom for captives! A mass exodus from darkness of Satan to the kingdom of Jesus Christ!

Lord, stretch out your hand over Boston and save. Gather a people of your choosing to proclaim the yoke of slavery is broken throughout the land! The time is now.

David W.

Subscribe to updates via email

On the sidebar on the right, you can sign up to receive these updates by email. I hope they are source of encouragement to you.

One of the purposes is so people can be alerted when events/outreaches are planned during the fast. As Minutemen (see Day 2), we have to be ready to respond to the call of God immediately!

We are sounding an alarm bell inviting anyone who God moves to join with us in these daily prayer meetings at Ruggles Baptist Church (874 Beacon St. Boston) from 6-8am each morning. Also, if there are other prayer gatherings which are along these lines in Boston and Cambridge please let me know so we can potentially partner together for revival...

Day 2 - Isaiah 61 Fast

Wow, we really began to feel the tangible presence of God this morning after a lengthy time of personal and corporate repentance. God was really imparting a heart of compassion for the lost and a realization of our own lack of fear and love for the Lord. Over a dozen people show up including several friends from Youth Storm; they brought a real fire, zeal, and genuineness. A young man from BU who was recently saved summed up our passion for the presence of God well, "God, we will have faith in you no matter what we experience, but we are desperate to experience more of the greatness of your love, a love that extends to us despite our lives of sin." (paraphrase)

We are also continuing to receive confirmation that we are right in the center of God's will. In the last two days, I have received emails from a senior Pastor in Connecticut and two friends of mine in LA who are starting a worship tour. God had spoken to both of them about Isaiah 58:6 and Isaiah 61 as themes for this year and their tour!!! In addition, one of the Youth Storm girls reported God has given her multiple dreams over the last week of people smoking, and she had no idea what it meant until she came to our meeting and heard the story of how the Isaiah 61 Fast started. God is amazing! From these dreams, we realize God is speaking to us urgently about our own complacency and comfort. God is calling his people to join the battle in prayer and fasting and radical obedience.

Finally, God spoke yesterday and this morning about an important hallmark of this Fast. Isaiah 58 is all about what kind of fasting God desires. It is not merely of fast to humble ourselves in prayer and fasting; an Isaiah 58 Fast is also a fast of action. I received a prophetic sense at the end of the prayer time that this movement is like the Minutemen that started the Revolutionary War. This fast came about in less than 24 hours. This fast is not only gathering the militia (volunteers not trained professionals; what a blessing to see our young men and women rushing off to work and school after 2 hours of intense prayer!) but about military action. This Fast will be modeled after Isaiah 58, a fast of prayer and action. A liberty bell is sounding calling the church to action and the lost to freedom. We committed this morning to daily obedience to whatever God commands whether it is street witnessing, other prayer gatherings, or helping the homeless etc. We are believing God for divine appointments, prophetic evangelism, healings, signs & wonders, and mass conversions throughout the fast. We are not waiting till the end of the fast to decide what to do; we are going to act during the fast. We are in a battle between light and darkness, and the city of Boston is at stake.

Let mercy triumph over judgment!

David W.

Prayer Furnace Training Scheduled for this Week

Join the Luke18 Project Leadership Team as they share the vision of planting and multiplying prayer furnaces on college campuses in the Boston area.

Information

Event Info

Name:	1-Day Regional Boot Camp Training for BOSTON area
Tagline:	Pray. Worship. Plant. Multiply.
Host:	Luke18 Project
Type:	Meetings - Informational Meeting

Time and Place

Date:	Wednesday, January 16, 2008
Time:	7:00pm - 10:00pm
Location:	JHOP Boston Missions Base
Street:	135 Western Ave
City/Town:	Cambridge, MA
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Contact Info

Email:

Luke18Project@thecall.com

MIT starts 24/7 prayer on 1/14!!!

Here are some details from Yeona:

Hey all!

MIT is actually starting our 24/7 prayer tonight too!
God is indeed moving powerfully in our city!

Our daily revival prayer is 8am in the basement of W11:
http://whereis.mit.edu/map-jpg?mapterms=W11&mapsearch=go
24/7 prayer will be happening there too except for night shifts from 12-8am which will be in student dorm rooms since we cannot use W11 at night. (we are praying for a permanent 24/7 prayer room)

Here is the sign up sheet if you would like to join us!!
http://jacohen.scripts.mit.edu/prayer/signup.php

if you have any questions, need directions, or want to be added to mit prayer warriors mailing list, you can email yeona@mit.edu or call 574-302-6608.

Blessings to you!!!
yeona

Day 1 - Isaiah 61 fast - January 14

On six hours notice, six men of God gathered from 6-8am to kick off the 40 days of prayer. We worshiped God asking his Kingdom to come. We consencrated ourselves for the spiritual battle we are entering through repentance for sins of pride, lust, masturbation, pornography, complacency, homosexuality, anger, impatience, unforgiveness, and dirty speech. We cried out for God to move in Boston and make Boston a "city set on a hill, a light for the nations." There were prophetic words regarding God's light illuminating Boston so that is would become a beacon of light to the nations.

I think that it is significant that God gathered six men to start this spiritual battle. He is calling men to rise up as spiritual leaders and warriors.

Amazingly, MIT has kicked off a week of 24/7 prayer on last minute notice TODAY too. See the details in another post!

More to come as the news begins. I believe God is launching a massive prayer movement in Boston... Get ready! Remember, we are praying for the Isaiah 61 anointing of the Spirit that brings radical transformation in people's lives.

Intro to the Isaiah 61 Fast

On January 13, God gave me a dream that inspired an immediate launch of 40 days of daily prayer gatherings asking Jesus Christ to release the anointing of his Spirit on us as a new semester begins.

I hardly ever dream, but God has suddenly confirmed several things to me through multiple people in the last 24 hours. I believe if those of us who God is moving respond in obedience in this hour; we will begin to see God move in powerful ways.

I am calling for an "Isaiah 61 Fast: 40 days of daily prayer gatherings" for the realization of Isaiah 61:1-2 in our city. I believe that even now God is sovereignly moving and preparing a great harvest in Boston. Salvations are increasing, and we are finding more and more people who are open to knowing and experiencing God in Boston. As the next school semester begins, God is seeking a people who are crying out for an impartation of the Spirit and contending with the spiritual forces of Satan and his ideologies which hold people captive.

I am inviting those who are seeking a ground shaking move of God to unite in prayer in your own locations or at Ruggles Baptist Church from 6-8am starting Monday. I believe this will be the first of several waves of gatherings that will take place over the next 40 days as God begins to mobilize people to pray. I also encourage you to fast as the Lord leads.

I am personally warring against my own tendencies to complacency and comforts and speaking to my soul, "Worship your God!" I am committing to praying every day (God-willing) at Ruggles Baptist Church from 6-8am seeking the anointing of the Holy Spirit and contending against the enemies that war against the Spirit. I would like to thank Pastor Larry Showalter who on last minute notice agreed to open up the doors of his church.

Join us or pray as God leads you:
Where: Ruggles Baptist Church 874 Beacon Street, 3rd floor Boston
When: Everyday from 6-8am from Monday January 14 - February 22

For the full story of the dream and how God led us to this point read below. For concise version, read bolded part in the entry below about half way down. Will you cry out?

The Isaiah 61 Fast: 40 days of daily prayer gatherings

Where: Ruggles Baptist Church 2nd floor 874 Beacon Street, Boston
When: Everyday from 6-8am from Monday January 14 - February 22

Early Sunday morning on January 13, 2008, I had a dream. In the dream, I was sitting against the side wall on what looked like the third floor of Ruggles Baptist Church. Near a northwest window with sun coming in, a man was standing with his back to me. I knew the man was Lou Engle (Lou leads the Call and represents the radical prayer and fasting movement). I looked to the right and saw a bookshelf with a stack of board games, and a box with a nazi flag and other WWII symbols stuck out at me; the box said “Axis & Allies” (an old strategy game). I then saw some of the other games and thought that I was just picturing a stack of games my family had. In the dream, I went back to what I was doing (reading or thinking- I’m not sure) and a moment later the presence of God flooded into the room from the south and moved towards Lou. I was immediately roused and looked up expecting Lou to be doing something, and God spoke to me as I looked at Lou, “Is it possible for a human being to carry the mantle of my presence like this?” The dream ended, and I instantly felt that God was challenging me to pray and fast for a greater manifestation of the tangible presence of God.

I went to Abundant Grace Church that morning, and two sisters said they both had dreams on Wednesday night about a person smoking. Because they both had similar dreams, one of the women shared her dream with me. She said, “I saw you standing against a wall in a small room where I was sleeping on twin bed. Someone else was there, but I didn’t know who it was. I was sitting cross legged on the bed, and I said, ‘Now that I quit, you need to quit too.’ I thought you were smoking or something. Then, my dream ended.” The woman had just quit smoking a week earlier.

During the church service two themes began to emerge. First, the presence of God could be felt during different moments of the worship; yet I felt as we were worshipping that demonic influences and ideologies were attacking and stopping new believers and seekers from worshipping God in Boston. Then the pastor showed a video of a revival in Guatemala where a city of 20,000 people was transformed from a place where Christians were persecuted to 80% of the city being born-again Christians. The main theme of the video was that the power of prayer and fasting defeated demonic and cultic strongholds. Secondly, the pastor preached on Isaiah 61 and the anointing of the Spirit of God, which transforms peoples’ lives. He talked about God’s people being agents of transformation through the power of the Holy Spirit. One of the concluding questions was: "Are you desperate enough for change to pray?"

As the pastor was speaking, God began to speak me about launching a daily prayer movement to usher the presence of God into our city as we started a new school semester. I felt God leading me to consider daily prayer for an extended period. Our church plant was already starting 4 days of prayer and fasting beginning the following day. I felt led to look at the calendar to see when 40 days of pray would end if we continued to pray after those first four days; I thought it would be around March. As I looked at my calendar, I found out 40 days ended on Friday February 22. I was amazed because a year ago I had a vision of the Spirit and fire of God falling on a multi-day gathering of people starting February 20 and lasting several days! I had tried to plan a conference for those dates 3 different times but each time had been unable to put something together. February 22^nd would have been one of the concluding nights. However, recently the friends who I had wanted to participate emailed me saying they wanted to come at the end of February to host a worship night.

At this point, I was feeling the power of the Spirit on me. I really began to feel God was doing something. I got up to share my dream with the church at the end of the pastor’s message. As I was sharing, God spoke to me about a Spirit of complacency and comfort that was keeping people from crying out to God to move in desperation. My sense was not prayer in striving but in re-prioritizing our lives towards God and the transformation he wanted in Boston. After the service, as I talked to the women who had the other dreams, everything came together.

In the dream I had, Lou Engle represented the radical prayer and fasting movement. The “Axis & Allies” game represented the spiritual battle that we are in. In that game, if the Americans do not mobilize quickly and join the battle, the Allies will lose to the Axis powers. I felt God beckoning people to respond to a call to seek God in prayer for revival and a breakthrough of the presence of God and to contend against the anti-Christ powers that were opposing this work. I also felt God was positioning key people in the next 40 days who were “on the ground” laboring in the harvest fields of Boston to begin to pray, fast, and unite together. I feel even now God is positioning different movements, groups, and people, ready to bring them into the spiritual battlefield that is Boston. Finally, the dream of me smoking represented my own personal complacency and love of comfort, which was holding me back from prayer and fasting and thus holding back the manifestation of the presence of God in my life and our church plant. My sister’s dream of me smoking confirmed my attitude in my dream where I was sitting on the sidelines! The preaching Sunday morning confirmed that God desired to place “a mantle of his presence” (a mantle represents anointing and authority) on those who would seek him so that they could be Isaiah 61 agents of transformation and of God’s victory over the enemies that would oppose him (Isaiah 61:2).

That afternoon my wife called me on her way back from the Airforce Reserves. She said that morning, while driving, she listened to the message I spoke almost 3 years ago in New Hampshire on Isaiah 61 and was moved powerfully. When I had preached that message, I was traveling with my same friends who wanted to come and host the worship night this February. They believe God for signs, wonders, and healings!

I believe God is calling many of us into a season violently contending in prayer against the enemies that oppose the move of God in Boston and fervently seeking God for the realization of Isaiah 61, the manifestation of God’s power and presence in his church. I am calling those who God moves to join in daily prayer for revival for 40 days starting January 14th. You can join us daily from 6-8am at Ruggles Baptist Church near Kenmore Square. Our prayer focus will be Isaiah 61:1-2 for the anointing of God’s Spirit and destruction of God’s enemies in Boston.

Isaiah 61

1 The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me,
because the LORD has anointed me
to preach good news to the poor.
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
to proclaim freedom for the captives
and release from darkness for the prisoners,

2 to proclaim the year of the LORD's favor
and the day of vengeance of our God…

Isaiah 58:6

“Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:

to loose the chains of injustice

and untie the cords of the yoke,

to set the oppressed free

and break every yoke?”

I believe as we contend in prayer and fasting for Boston the yoke of slavery to sin will be broken as God’s presence revives the church and awakens the lost to the reality of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.

Welcome to Boston Awake

Boston Awake is an online facebook group (www.facebook.com) and now blog that is seeking to unite college students, young people, and church leaders to pray for an awakening in Boston fueled through the power of the Holy Spirit. This group is a grass roots network of believers in Boston who are desperate for the movement of God in our our city and campuses. We are contending in prayer for the gospel to transform the darkness of our city. The first purpose of this blog will be to relate daily updates from the Isaiah 61 Fast that began today.

Boston a light has dawned!

For the King and his Kingdom!

David W.