Special Prayer initiatives around Pentecost

By: Dr. Jürgen Bühler, ICEJ President

The days around Pentecost, or Shavuot, were a unique time this year that carried a taste of revival in it. Many prayer initiatives culminated around these days, and it seems heaven was giving its kiss with unprecedented latter rains that lasted well into the month of June. We all were reminded of the words of the prophet Joel: “Be glad, O children of Zion, and rejoice in the Lord your God … for he has poured down for you abundant rain, the early and the latter rain, as before.” (Joel 2:23)

On Pentecost this year, the ICEJ celebrated three years of our Rosh Chodesh Prayer chain, which started on Pentecost 2020 right at the onset of the Covid season. It started with a meek 12 hours of prayer in late May 2020. Initially, we were not sure if we could fill 12 hours of continual prayer. But we have witnessed this initial prayer chain quickly turn into a growing monthly prayer chain that now covers more than 280 hours of ongoing prayer every month involving prayer teams from over 80 nations – and by the grace of God it keeps growing!

Yet it is not the amount of hours that matters but rather the answers to prayer that we have experienced. In our special 3-year anniversary Global Prayer Gathering in May, we received one testimony after another that through this new way of prayer, revival broke out in churches in the Philippines, while young people in particular experienced a prayer revival in many places worldwide. In Thailand, an unusual door opened for the Gospel in a nation that had never experienced a true revival. And in some countries governmental changes were seen as a result of prayer, and many personal needs were met. Also, many nations testify that during these prayer times an unprecedented unity has come in their countries between churches, pastors and ministries.

Our true champion in the Rosh Chodesh monthly prayer chain is our branch in the Philippines, led by Pastor Stephen Mirpuri, who in our current monthly prayers has a network of intercessors taking over 80 hours of prayer time. Thailand are India also have passionately taken the lead with many hours of prayer in each country.

I want to encourage believers in every nation to join this unique tool of the Rosh Chodesh Prayer Chain for your nation. We have seen the effectiveness of these prayer meetings by experiencing and witnessing with our eyes that the Lord is a prayer answering God!

Another exciting prayer initiative that culminated on Pentecost Sunday, 28 May, was a 21-day prayer and fasting call that was joined by the International House of Prayer in Kansas City, the International Prayer Connect and Empowered21. Between these three ministries, literally millions of believers worldwide joined in prayer and fasting for Israel. The closing session took place the Southern Steps of the Temple Mount in Jerusalem. One highlight was a passionate call by Dr. Billy Wilson of Empowered21 to dedicate this coming decade towards completing the Great Commission that Jesus gave to his disciples to take the Good News of Jesus to all peoples by 2033, considered by many to be the two-thousand year anniversary of the death and resurrection of Jesus.

The week after Pentecost, the Jerusalem Prayer Breakfast was held in Jerusalem with some 500 delegates from around the world. It started in the Israeli Knesset with greetings from members of Knesset and selected delegates from around the globe. I could share a few thoughts on Psalm 133.

The next morning, the annual Jerusalem Prayer Breakfast took place with participation by members of parliaments from around the world as well as former heads of state. In a special dinner session, similar testimonies were shared as we experienced in our own prayer campaigns: prayers are being answered in amazing ways, even on a governmental level. It further underlined to me to be bolder in our prayers and to ask God for breakthroughs even in hopeless situations.

Former Israeli Religious Affairs Minister Matan Kahana speaking at a Knesset event during the 2023 Jerusalem Prayer Breakfast (Photo: Jerusalem Prayer Breakfast)

These exciting events at Pentecost were somewhat overshadowed, however, by media reports of the hostile protest of a known and rather aggressive Lehava anti-missionary group at the event at the Southern Steps. Some of the Hebrew banners stated that Christians are not welcome in Israel and that they are ‘thieves’ of the holy sites. Yet from all sides in Israel came strong condemnations of the protests by Israeli leaders, while the Israeli media reports were favourable to the praying Christians.

During the Jerusalem Prayer Breakfast, Israeli parliamentarians uniformly condemned the demonstrations. The Israeli officials defending the pro-Israel Christian community included the Speaker of the Knesset as well as MKs Matan Kahana, Ohad Tal and Tatiana Mazarsky, along with former MK Rabbi Yehuda Glick. Israel’s Foreign Ministry and the deputy mayor of Jerusalem Fleur Hassan-Nahoum were also quick to denounce the anti-Christian protest, which was spearheaded by fellow deputy mayor Arieh King, known as a radical religious activist. To be clear, there was no missionizing at the event, but believers came to pray as Jerusalem is called to be a “house of prayer for all nations” (Isaiah 56:7).

Prayer gathering during Pentecost Sunday at the Southern Steps in Jerusalem (Photo: All Israel News)

Despite the misguided protest, nothing could take away from the enthusiasm that was felt during the days of Pentecost. A Jewish observant friend told me recently: “Jürgen, there is something in the air. I cannot tell you what it is. Maybe Messiah is coming or a great spiritual awakening is going to take place. I am not sure. But I know we stand in front of something really big.”

I totally agree with my Jewish friend. We all felt it during Pentecost this year.

五旬節前後的特別禱告活動

作者：尤根布勒博士，ICEJ總裁

五旬節或五旬節前後的日子是今年獨特的時期，充滿了復興的味道。許多祈禱活動在這些天前後達到了高峰，天堂似乎正在以以前所未有的後雨親吻，這場後雨一直持續到六月。 我們都想起了先知約珥的話：「「錫安的民哪，你們要歡喜，要因耶和華－你們的神快樂；因祂賞賜你們合宜的秋雨，為你們降下甘霖，秋雨和春雨，和先前一樣。」 （約珥書 2:23）

今年五旬節，ICEJ 慶祝了我們的月朔祈禱鏈成立三週年，該祈禱鏈於 2020 年五旬節在新冠疫情季節開始時開始。它始於2020年5下旬的12小時的溫柔祈禱。最初，我們不確定是否可以完成12小時的持續祈禱。但我們見證了這個最初的禱告鏈很快變成了一個不斷增長的每月禱告鏈，現在每月涵蓋超過280小時的持續禱告，涉及來自80多個國家的禱告團隊 - 並且靠著神的恩典，它不斷增長！

然而，重要的不是時間的長短，而是我們所經歷的祈禱的答案。在我們五月份特別舉辦的三週年全球禱告聚會中，我們收到一個又一個的見證，透過這種新的禱告方式，復興在菲律賓的教會中爆發，尤其是年輕人在世界各地經歷了禱告的復興。在泰國，一個從未經歷過真正復興的國家為福音打開了一扇不同尋常的大門。在一些國家，政府的變革被視為祈禱的結果，許多個人需求得到了滿足。 此外，許多國家證明，在這些祈禱時期，他們國家的教會、牧師和事工之間出現了前所未有的團結。

我們月朔每月祈禱鏈中有位真誠的擁護者就是我們在菲律賓的分會，由斯蒂芬·米爾普里牧師領導，他在我們目前的每月祈禱中擁有一個代禱者網絡，花費了 80 多個小時的祈禱時間。 泰國和印度也熱情地帶頭進行了長時間的祈禱。

我想鼓勵每個國家的信徒為你們的國家加入月朔祈禱鏈這個獨特的工具。我們親眼經歷見證，看到了這些禱告會的果效，主就是垂聽神的禱告！

另一項激動人心的祈禱活動在五旬節星期日（5 月 28 日）達到高峰，這是為期 21 天的祈禱和禁食呼籲，堪薩斯城國際祈禱之家、國際祈禱連接和 Empowered21 也參加了這項活動。 在這三個事工之間，全世界數以百萬計的信徒加入了為以色列祈禱和禁食的行列。閉幕式在耶路撒冷聖殿山南台階舉行。 其中一個亮點是 Empowered21 的比利·威爾遜 (Billy Wilson) 博士熱情地呼籲，要在未來十年致力於完成耶穌交給門徒的大使命，即到2033年將耶穌的好消息傳給萬民，許多人認為這是兩個- 耶穌受難與復活一千年周年紀念日。

五旬節後一星期，耶路撒冷祈禱早餐會在耶路撒冷舉行，來自世界各地的約 500 名代表參加了此次早餐會。它在以色列議會開始，受到以色列議會成員和來自世界各地的選定代表的問候。而我分享了一些關於詩篇133的想法。

第二天早上，一年一度的耶路撒冷祈禱早餐會舉行，來自世界各地的議會議員以及前國家元首參加了會議。 在一次特別的晚宴上，我們分享了類似的見證，就像我們在自己的祈禱活動中所經歷的那樣：祈禱以令人驚奇的方式得到回應，甚至在政府層面也是如此。它進一步強調我要更加大膽地祈禱，即使在絕望的情況下也要祈求上帝取得突破。

以色列前宗教事務部長馬坦·卡哈納 (Matan Kahana) 在 2023 年耶路撒冷祈禱早餐期間的以色列議會活動中發表講話（照片：耶路撒冷祈禱早餐）

然而，媒體報導稱，一個著名的、相當激進的萊哈瓦反傳教組織在南階梯的活動中進行了敵對抗議，這在某種程度上掩蓋了五旬節這些激動人心的活動。 一些希伯來標語稱以色列不歡迎基督徒，他們是聖地的「竊賊」。 然而，以色列各方都對以色列領導人的抗議活動予以強烈譴責，而以色列媒體的報導則對祈禱的基督徒有利。

在耶路撒冷祈禱早餐會期間，以色列議員一致譴責示威活動。捍衛親以色列基督教社區的以色列官員包括以色列議長、議員馬坦·卡哈納、奧哈德·塔爾和塔蒂亞娜·馬扎斯基，以及前議員拉比耶胡達·格利克。以色列外交部和耶路撒冷副市長弗勒爾·哈桑-納胡姆也迅速譴責了由被稱為激進宗教活動家的副市長阿里耶·金帶頭髮起的反基督教抗議活動。需要明確的是，這次活動沒有宣教，但信徒們前來祈禱，因為耶路撒冷被稱為「萬民禱告的殿」（以賽亞書 56:7）。

五旬節週日在耶路撒冷南台階舉行祈禱聚會（照片：所有以色列新聞）

儘管有誤導性的抗議，但沒有什麼可以消除五旬節期間人們感受到的熱情。 一位猶太觀察家朋友最近告訴我：「尤根，空氣中有什麼東西。我無法告訴你那是什麼。 也許彌賽亞即將到來，或者一次偉大的屬靈醒悟即將發生。我不知道。 但我知道我們正面臨著一些非常重大的事情。」

我完全同意我的猶太朋友的觀點。 今年五旬節期間我們都感受到了這一點。