Dear Pastor, Prayer Leader, and Faithful Saint,
During this year's 40-day Lenten season of prayer and fasting, many believers throughout this country experienced renewed intimacy with their Lord, reaching previously unplumbed depths in their devotion to Him. The testimonies of those who participated in the 40-day journey defy the space restraints in this e-mail; innumerable brothers and sisters across this nation experienced ultimate heart healing as thousands of believers rekindled their passion for Jesus Christ.
Igniting any great movement of the Lord is a stirring within the hearts of God's children to seek His face with great fervency. The Old Testament recounts story after story in which the Lord graced His chosen nation with peace and safety ... when, and only when, they wholeheartedly returned to Him.
" 'These people come near to Me with their mouth
and honor Me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from Me.
Their worship of Me is made up
only of rules taught by men.
Therefore once more I will astound these people
with wonder upon wonder;
the wisdom of the wise will perish,
the intelligence of the intelligent will vanish.' "
(Isaiah 29:13-14)
As children of the Most High God, we are called to " 'Be holy, because [He is] holy.' " (1 Peter 1:16). We must "... offer [our] bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God." (Romans 12:1). Unfortuantely, we pilgrims and sojourners have fallen prey to the world's subtle influences and enticements, and, to the enemy's delight, we have become distracted and busy with earthly pursuits, pitching our tents in a place that is not our home instead of actively and purposefully living in obedience to God.
The Body of Christ is under great and escalating attack, and the oppressive attempts to muzzle and neutralize the Church show no sign of abating. This country was built upon the firm foundation of the Word of God and the Gospel message of Jesus Christ (see 1 Corinthians 3:11). Our founding fathers, many of whom were ministers of the gospel, united in purpose and fought for this mesage to be freely exercised and propagated in the fledgling nation now recognized as the great superpower, the United States of America.
When blessings abound, however, people can soon forget the Source of their abundance, as well as the hardships, trials, and struggles they victoriously overcame along the way. Quite often, our Holy and just God must redirect our focus. Currently, negative news reports abound, frightening legislation is being drafted, and Christians are increasingly harassed in every public arena. Believers, however, should not fearfully or apathetically retreat. What the enemy intends as harm, the Lord intends for good to accomplish His purpose of bringing salvation to the ends of the earth (reference Genesis 50:20). We must judiciously heed His warnings, purposefully reject our complacent lifestyles, and fervently return to our First Love. He is after the hearts of His people!
For this very purpose, we will pitch a tent ... not in which to rest but by which to take a stand. For 10 days, we will unite as the Body of Christ, seeking the Lord in humble prayer and fasting, lighting the fire on His altar, and offering Him a daily sacrifice of praise and worship. We will turn to Him, not in an effort to manipulate Him but in the recognition that every single believer must choose to make Him life's utmost priority.
In that truth, Trumpet and Torch Ministries invites your church or ministry organization to join us and other ministries, which are devoted to prayer, fasting, and revival, for a united time of prayer and worship, at the Tent of Meeting in Fredericksburg, Virginia, as we unite as the Body of Christ for the glory of our gracious and Heavenly Father.
If you do not live in our area (as this email is being sent to all our faithful prayer warriors across this great nation) we ask that you pray. Pray for the hearts of God's children to respond as you have, to make Him their utmost priority; pray that He would knit our hearts together to lift up a sacrifice of praise to His holy name; and pray that a passionate fire for Jesus Christ would ignite a boldness in the heart of of every believer and spread like wildfire across this great nation
FIRE in the City
10 Days of 24-Hour, Around-the-Clock,
Prayer & Fasting, Praise & Worship, Intercession & Teaching
in the City of Fredericksburg
May 1st - May 10th, 2008
Memorial Park
(Commonly Known As Kenmore Park)
1101 Kenmore Avenue
Fredericksburg, VA 22401
Igniting at 2 PM on May 1st (National Day of Prayer)
Burning Continually through May 10th
Coverging at 2 PM on May 11th (Global Day of Prayer/Pentecost)
As area pastors, prayer warriors, and worship leaders, we ask that you simply inform your congregations of this opportunity to unite with fellow believers and that you stress the importance of the 10 days of prayer and fasting. (Answers to many questions about fasting can be found in the FAQ section of the Trumpet and Torch website.) The Lord is already stirring the hearts of His children. Many are anticipating a great move of God and have already expressed a desire to participate in a revival of His Church.
The heart of this resurgence is the 10 Days of Prayer and Fasting. A 10-day prayer and fasting guide is available for downloading at
www.trumpetandtorch.org. Information can be found by clicking the
FIRE in the City button located on the top menu of the website home page. Please encourage your congregation to submit these 10 days to the Lord, offering their lives as holy and pleasing sacrifices to Him. The 10-day guide will help guide them as they surrender these days to seek the Lord with all their hearts. The will be led, meal-by-meal and day-by-day, through a transforming devotional journey that will set their hearts of fire to burn passionately for the Lord.
"... 'Return to Me,' declares the LORD Almighty, 'and I will return to you.' ..."
(Zechariah 1:3)
This is not an event! This is a call of God. He is imploring His children to return to Him with undivided hearts, to repent of our waywardness, to reconnect to our Head, Christ Jesus, and to express our sincere and earnest adoration of Him in active faith, deliberate trust, and intentional obedience. We can do nothing apart from Christ; therefore, let us fully return to Him!
" 'Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your First Love.
Remember the height from which you have fallen!
Repent and do the things you did at first.
If you do not repent, I will come to you
and remove your lampstand from its place.' "
(Revelation 2:4-5)
Please visit www.trumpetandtorch.org for the lastest information, including the schedule of events and opportunities to become involved. The FIRE information page should be available by Sunday, April 27th. As well, please join us on Sunday, April 27th at 2 PM at Meditation Rock in Fredericksburg (behind the Mary Ball Washington monument, 1500 Washington Ave., near Memorial Park, commonly known as Kenmore Park).
We look forward to your involvement, and we covet your prayers as we walk in faithful obedience to the Lord.
For the Glory of God and For the Hearts of His Children,
Richard Alexander
Traci Alexander
Kathryn Wells
Trumpet and Torch Ministries
Bowie Curry, PrayerNet
and Other Area Supporting Churches and Ministries
" ' Return to Me,' declares the Lord Almighty,
'and I will return to you.' "
- Zechariah 1:3
