Solemn Assembly

Yesterday as my first official act as the minister at Graves Chapel, we participated in the "Family Research Council's, Call2Fall." I felt that it important to join with the 5,000 plus other churches and pray for our country, repenting for the past and present, and praying for a time of renewal. The other reason I felt it important was the fact that yesterday was my first official Sunday as their new minister, and honestly I just felt that it was prudent to spend our first hour together in prayer. We prayed for our country of course,but we prayed for the church at large and for our own congregation. We prayed that God would forgive us for turning away from Him as a nation, we prayed that God would move our leaders to repentance and they would repent and fall to their knees and turn or return to Him and His ways. We prayed to seek forgiveness and healing, we prayed that God would move within our communities and bring a revival. In praying for the church at large, we asked that God would forgive preachers and congregants for not being diligent in handling His Word. We prayed that we would return to the Bible as our only source of authority and our only guide for growth and missions. That we would teach the Bible to people where they are and that God would again be honored not only in the church, but in our homes, communities, states and our country. That both the churches (corporate) and the individuals would train up their families, would make disciples and live lives that are Holy and Blameless before God and men.
The major difference in our gathering from the majority if not all the other churches around the country participating Sunday, was that instead of fasting, I felt it prudent that we celebrate this new beginning. We celebrated in anticipation of what the Lord is going to do, not only in our country,communities and lives, but in our congregation as well.
I shared this from the pulpit, "We need to act in anticipation of our prayer. We need to celebrate this new beginning, and celebrate in anticipation of what God is going to do among His people."
We will work toward a time of regular personal and corporate fasting, but yesterday we needed to praise God for the blessings He has already provided but for the blessings to come!
All in all it was a great Sunday and an even greater beginning, and I look forward to all that the Lord is going to do in our lives, our congregation, our community, our country and our world!