Beyond a Football Game

It wasn’t until a couple of days before I left for Phoenix that I realized I was arriving in that city just in time for the Super Bowl. But it didn’t take more than a few steps off the airplane to notice that I had unwittingly entered into the craziness of hundreds of thousands of people descending on Phoenix for a few days of revelry and football fun.

I was there for the National Prayer Committee meetings—and of course we drew only about 70 people from around the nation for our event! But these are my favorite meetings of the year because I love being with spiritually mature prayer leaders who know how to come together in unity (regardless of denominational backgrounds) and seek God for revival and spiritual awakening.

As the city filled with people oblivious to their desperate need for God, we realized that the timing and location of our meetings were not a coincidence. We received reports from local prayer leaders of how the Church of Phoenix had already been praying for months in preparation for the Super Bowl, especially regarding the suspected increase in sex trafficking that often occurs around a major sporting event.

Now, I realize that many people believe this is a myth. I’ve read the articles. They believe the number of women and children who are transported to a city in anticipation of an increased call for their services is way over exaggerated. Maybe. Maybe not. But I do know that the sex trafficking of any individual is pure evil—and I have no reason to believe that thousands of men descending upon a city for a sporting event would not be prime candidates for this dark underworld of abusing women and children. 

Call to Action

What I love about prayer leaders is that when evil raises its ugly head, they are quick to respond! Stop and pray now. Rearrange schedules. Stop and pray again. Pile into cars and drive down to the Super Bowl stadium to prayerwalk. Pray around the hotels. Pray for God to work on behalf of those who are being forced into slavery against their will. Pray for perpetrators to be caught and victims to be set free. Pray for the love of Jesus Christ to cover all sin.

For prayer leaders, it’s what they live to do—to intercede on behalf others. I remember praying specifically in my group, as we stood in near the stadium, that the police would set a trap—a snare—for catching the perpetrators and rescuing the enslaved. None of us realized at the time that a national sting operation was underway. Of course, I had no insider information—just the prompting of the Holy Spirit in how to pray!

Here are some of the results of the prayers of many people and the determination of government and law enforcement to attack this issue:

• A national coalition conducted a sting operation through the cooperation of 27 agencies in 15 states, culminating with the Super Bowl.
• According to the Los Angeles Times, nearly 600 “johns” were arrested and 68 victims were rescued.
• More than 70 percent of those arrested were caught responding to online advertisements.
• 23 people were arrested on suspicion of sex trafficking.

I’m encouraged by these direct answers to prayer. We need to wake up as the Church and intensify our prayers regarding these kinds of atrocities. As we pray, we support government and law officials in doing their part to push against the tide of evil.

I pray that the Spirit will always prompt me to open my eyes to the dark side of this world—even if I’m eating chips, enjoying Super Bowl commercials, and wondering why in the world they didn’t run the ball!

Even If Sound Systems Are Horrible

It’s a story I keep blabbing about because it brings such great encouragement to my own heart. There are times when I am disheartened in my prayer life because God can feel silent—or I feel stale and ineffective in my prayers. Then suddenly God reminds me that He hears my heart, knows the intimate details of my longings, and is listening and working out His plans and purposes. I just need to keep praying with faith and hope!

I’m editing a book for a friend that’s an amazing and redemptive story of his life. In fact, I’ve been pretty surprised to learn about the painful and destructive way Mark lived prior to becoming a follower of Christ. I had no idea.

So I was especially blessed to read Mark’s story of the moment he gave his life to Jesus. He writes about attending the Promise Keepers event at the Metrodome in Minneapolis in 1996, walking in as a very broken man. He and his friends found seats near the top of the Dome, where the sound system was horrible. He couldn’t understand anything the speakers were saying because of the echo and loud commotion. But when the man who shared the gospel message got up to speak, Mark understood every word perfectly. He bowed his head in his lap, and with tears streaming down his face, Mark gave his life to Jesus. It was the most transformational moment of his life.

As I edited this section, I was overwhelmed at God’s goodness. I wrote a note to him in the margin: “Mark, I was in the intercessor prayer room in one of the locker rooms during this event. The leaders came down and told us how terrible the sound system was, and to pray especially fervently that the men would still understand the gospel message. Then they let us sneak up and peek at all the men streaming forward to give their lives to Christ!”

Wow. Eighteen years later, I find out that Mark was one of the men I was praying for that night!

Sometimes we don’t know how God might be answering our prayers. And many times we get discouraged because we’re not sure our heart cries to the Lord are making any difference. But sometimes God pulls back the veil and gives us a glimpse of the eternal impact of those prayers.

So please, don’t stop bringing that special burden before the Lord. You may one day be surprised at the way He has answered.

It's Time to Heal

It was an ugly, heartbreaking split between two churches 50 years ago. I was too young to have any idea of what was going on—I just remember suddenly being in a new Sunday school class with some of my same friends from my old class. We were in a new, vibrant church with familiar people, and so the transition was pretty easy for me.

But as the years passed, I began to get glimpses of the hurt and pain that accompanied the split of one of the largest churches in town. I overheard critical comments. There seemed to be a competitive spirit at summer camp between my new and old churches. Although we would join together for a Thanksgiving service with churches of the same denomination, I always knew there were still hurt feelings between believers who were once considered close friends. Certainly, unity in the Body of Christ was not on display as the two churches struggled to co-exist in the same town.

Then about five years ago I received an invitation (as did hundreds of people) to return to the original church for a 125-year celebration. I learned the son of the original pastor was scheduled to speak (his father was no longer living). I knew this former pastor was the source of great controversy, but I also sensed in my spirit God wanted to start a work of healing. So I prayed—and then sent a letter to the son who was scheduled to speak. I acknowledged that our families probably landed on different sides of the issues, but that it really didn’t matter. I simply stated this was an opportunity for him to speak peace and healing into the church by somehow addressing the obvious lingering conflict.

I then prayed that God would use this celebration as a defining moment of restoration and reconciliation. I returned to my hometown to attend the celebration, believing that the Lord was prompting me to pray those prayers. Although I had wished for more, he did touch on the past and spoke to the need to move forward. I had to trust the Lord was at work in even that slight mention.

Now, five years later and at exactly the 50-year mark—God is truly answering those prayers! Just last Sunday night, there was a unanimous vote to bring the two churches together as one congregation. God has done a work of healing and restoration—something I wasn't sure I would ever see in my lifetime! But the people are genuinely ready to come together in a spirit of unity and forgiveness, with great hope for the future.

I can’t help but wonder if this is just a glimpse of what is coming in the Body of Christ. True revival includes reconciliation between brothers and sisters in Christ who have experienced hurt and division over the years.

If this can happen between two churches after 50 years, it can happen in any church, ministry, family, or situation. That’s what I’m praying toward—the revival and restoration of the Church that in turn ushers in spiritual awakening in our communities and nation. It’s time.