“You have never been this way before…
Consecrate yourselves,
for tomorrow the LORD will do amazing things among you.”
Josh 3:4-5 (NIV)
| Wow! We stepped through Pentecost into a new day! We’ve never been here before. Our nation is on fire, the enemy is pulling every string possible to bring chaos, fear and destruction. First the virus, then the economy, and now the riots. But here’s what the Church needs to remember, the physical OFTEN reveals the spiritual. In other words, what we see happening in the natural realm is just an indicator of what’s going on in the spiritual realm. It is a way to see into the unseen realm. The good thing about it is that God always takes what the enemy brings as evil and turns if for kingdom advancement! This is where the Church needs to rise up, and pray like we never have before. No one else has access to the Father in heaven but us, His kids. We need to rise up, stand up, speak up and wake up! It’s time for the Church to arise! Please join us in praying this way throughout the summer. I just have a feeling that the prayer opportunities for us are just going to increase, by a lot! Please keep alert, watchful and prayerful! Here are some amazing opportunities to join with others. We will be having both Zoom and in person gatherings this month! Some of it is still coming together. Praise God.Please don’t do ministry or life, as usual! These are the first days in a new era! And first days matter! Athens Prayer Vigil for Peace, Healing & Justice Wednesday through Friday June 3-5 / 6am to 9pm each day The Arch – Corner of College Avenue and East Broad Street We are calling Christ followers across Athens to join in praying for peace, healing and justice. The Church, God’s people, is the only mechanism that can approach the Father “with confidence” on behalf of the issues we are facing today. And it is really intense! We need God to move in our city, state and nation. Prayer is a huge key in that! As such, we are having a THREE DAY PRAYER VIGIL at The Arch, corner of East Broad Street and College Avenue, starting Wednesday (June 3) and concluding Friday (June 5). Each day will go from 6am to 9pm. You can sign up for as many ONE HOUR slots as you are able. Fill free to bring your prayer partners. Please be sure to help us cover every hour. There is no limit to how many people sign up for any given slot, though we do ask all praying people to observe the social distance guidelines (i.e. six feet, mask, etc). There will be a prayer guide available, so please provide your email address. To sign up please go to https://www.slottr.com/sheets/18252004 Pastors Prayer & Discussion on Current Racial Tension Wednesday, June 3 / 9:30 Athens Church (Starting Point Lounge) – 10 Huntington Rd., Athens 30606 The pastors across Athens will be gathering to discuss our response to the racial tension our nation/state/city is walking through right now. Please join us in praying about what God would have us to do as an expression of the unity of the Body of Christ in Athens! Student Pastors Prayer Thursday, June 4 / 9 to 10am Athens Church (room next to new green space) – 10 Huntington Rd., Athens The Student Pastors will continue to meet on the first Thursday of the month. In June we will be doing it in person!!! Student Pastors across Athens have had to be very creative in reaching out to their students who have been “sheltered in place.” Now we are reopening these ministries. Please join us from wherever you are and pray that God would draw students back in, even more hungry that before! Be praying for all those who minister to the youth of our city, starting with the ones at your church. Pray that God would prepare them for this new season. Pray that God would protect these Students Pastors, their teams and grant them creativity and wisdom as they reconnect with their students and stir them toward Jesus and missional lives! Pray for all the students in our city as well, that this unprecedented moment in history would be the catalyst for revival in them, in our city and specifically among our Middle and High School students. Athens Prayer Walk Saturday, June 6 / 10am to noon The Arch – Corner of College Avenue and East Broad Street Prior to the Covid19 shutdown, we were having monthly prayer walks. Our first one back just happens to be scheduled in the midst of protests in Athens. Please come out and pray with us as we walk where much of the protest has been happening. It is truly a conflict of kingdoms, and the power of prevailing prayer overcomes the enemy. We meet at The Arch and go from there. And of course, we ask that everyone observe the social distance guidelines. Please join us if you can! Athens Intercessors Community Monday, June 8 / 7 to 9pm Via Zoom We will be gathering once again as the Athens Intercessors Community. At this point it will be via Zoom. We want to debrief all the prayer/intercession activity, share what God has been saying to us over the past month and get a sense of where we are heading over the summer. If you’re one of the intercessors, please join us! Pastors Prayer Wednesday, June 10 / 9 to 10am Living Hope (House of Prayer) – 2150 Lexington Rd., Athens 30605 This month the pastors are coming back together in person to pray for and with each other! Please use this opportunity to pray for the pastors in our city, starting with your own! Pray that God would give them extraordinary wisdom, creativity and boldness as they lead their congregations through this exciting yet challenging new season of reopening. Pray that God would empower them to lead well, and for your church to be an instrument of life and help to the community. Ask God to guard and even deepen the unity He has been establishing over the past 10 years in our city. In the midst of all the weight that is currently on them, ask God to abundantly bless, refresh, encourage, protect and provide for your pastor, their marriage and their family. Ask God to meet each of these lead shepherds across Athens right where they are, and give them all that it takes to stay connected to God and run strongly throughout this battle. Ask God to use these pastors as a voice in our city! Groups Pastors Prayer Wednesday, June 17 / 9:30 to 10:30am TBD People are longing for community! New types of groups have formed, and soon groups will be able to meet in person again. New and old types of groups will be the norm in this new season. Pray that God would continue to lead the Groups Pastors to create even more new, effective ways to stay connected. We continue our monthly Groups Pastor in May via Zoom. Please pray for those who lead the groups ministries in our city. They need wisdom and creativity. Pray that God would prepare them for the days ahead. Pray for the groups’ leaders to lead well in these new formats. May God give each of these leaders a grace to rise up for the occasion. Pray for people in the groups to be willing to dive into the new formats as well as re-engage around in person groups, to share their lives and be open to grow. Pray that God would raise up more group leaders for this new season as we come out of our period of social distancing. Ask God to protect and expand this vital ministry in our city. Ask Him for heaven to come down upon every group that meets in Jesus’ Name in Athens! Executive Pastors Prayer Thursday, June 18 / 9 to 10am TBD In June, the leaders who “run” churches across Athens will be coming together to share and pray with and for one another. These leaders are making decisions in an arena no one has ever walked in before. Please pray for the executive / administrative pastor (or those who do that role) in your church and the others who carry this load in the churches across our city. They need wisdom, creativity and faith. This is very a crucial ministry at such an important time as this! Pray that God would give them supernatural joy as they keep the systems operating and create new ones for Kingdom growth in Athens. Pray that God would increase His presence and favor in their lives and homes. Pray that God would give them what they need as the Church emerges in this season. Prayer for the Middle East & Israel Tuesday, June 26 / noon to 1pm Living Hope (House of Prayer) – 2150 Lexington Rd., Athens 30605 Our monthly M.E./Israel prayer meeting is back in person and Friday June 26. This is an opportunity to pray for Israel and the Middle East in such an important time as this! We will be observing the reopening guidelines (i.e. masks and distancing). Ongoing and inspirational… Athens Daily Prayer Texts Ongoing All across Athens area Every morning at 8am Daily Prayer Texts are delivered to cell phones across Athens and beyond. They are also posted each day at noon on the APN Facebook page. If you would like to receive these prayer focuses each day, please text @athenspray to 81010. This is a simply amazing way to start your day and to stand in unified, and focused prayer with others from across our city for our city! For more (and up to date) stuff… Every day we post something on the APN Facebook page. Usually it is more than once. These posts include prayer opportunities, prayer points, prayer inspirations and the Daily Prayer Text. It is definitely worth checking out daily to help stay connected with what God is doing in our city, especially in such a time as this! Bless you heaps!!! Steve |
