By: Rickie Bradshaw

“Blow the trumpet in Jerusalem! Announce a time of fasting; call the people together for a solemn (consecration) meeting. Bring everyone – the elders, the children, and even the babies from their mother’s milk. Call the bridegroom from his quarters and the bride from her private room.” Joel 2:15-16

If we are to see revival and transformation in our churches and communities, we must put aside time and convenience to embrace a desperation for God.

When God instructed the people to come together for a time of repentance and fasting, He did not choose the more mature believers or those who had time to spare. He called everyone, regardless of their spiritual maturity, from the elders to the babies.

And He did not instruct them to find a convenient time when the majority of the people could come together. God said to call even the bridegroom and the bride because their future together did not take presidence over the need to come before the Lord in corporate repentance.

For us to experience true breakthrough prayer as a corporate body of believers in our city, we must cease trying to structure our lives around our own schedules and levels of comfort. If we are to see revival and transformation in our churches and communities, we must put aside time and convenience to embrace a desperation for God.

This means it’s important for us to come together across churches to pray for revial and the transformation of our city.

As we seek God, it’s important to remember:

We must worship God as the one who, in his kindness, leads us to repentance.
We must ask the Lord to give us greater insight into those things that grieve his heart and offer confession of sin, personally and corporately.
We must pray for conviction and new freedom from schedules and all that dictates our time and our availability to God.
We must pray that our churches and our pastors feel a greater sense of urgency to come together in corporate breakthrough prayer.
Pray that our churches and our pastors will seek God in a radical way, which may mean adjusting schedules and time restraints for more corporate prayer.
Pray that pastors and their churches in your community will look for ways to join you and your congregation in corporate fasting and prayer for the Lord to visit His Church with revival and spiritual awakening amongst the lost.

For more information on prayer resources for revival and spiritual awakening, contact Rickie Bradshaw at Rickielb@msn.com or 713-503-9173.

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