Some cities seem to be places of destiny. Topeka Kansas is one of those cities.

Founded in 1854, the year that the Kansas – Nebraska act brought armed conflict between free and slavery forces, it became the capital of Kansas in 1861 when the state joined the union. With the population of just over 100,000 it never grew like Kansas City to the East, nor did it become legendary like Abilene and Dodge City to the West. Yet it was in this backwater city that God chose to pour out His Spirit for a new Pentecost.

The Pentecostal breakout began with Charles Parham, a young Methodist minister who had held interdenominational revival and healing meetings beginning in 1896. In 1900 he established a Bible school at a building known as Stone’s Folly in Topeka. There the Holy Spirit fell on a group of students who were seeking the Baptism of the Holy Spirit with speaking in tongues. The Pentecostal movement was born in Topeka on January 1, 1901.

From Topeka the Pentecostal revival spread all over the world. The movement broke down denominational barriers and even broke down racial barriers. In 1906 the famous Azuza Street revival was led by a black man, William J. Seymour. But in Topeka, unfortunately, Parahm’s school was closed down and Stone’s Folly became a brothel before it burned to the ground.

But God was not finished with Topeka. In 1954 Topeka became a flash point for racial reconciliation as the U.S. Supreme Court outlawed school segregation in Brown vs Topeka Board of Education. Christian leaders like Billy Graham had been calling out the evil of segregation, but the spirit breakthrough to end segregation came in Topeka. Like the Pentecostal movement before, the Brown case moved far beyond Topeka, finally bringing an end to segregation.

God was also not finished with Stone’s Folly in Topeka. A farmer built his home on the foundation of Stone’s Folly and in 1946, the Catholic Diocese of Lawrence brought the property as an orphanage. Then came the Catholic Charismatic renewal of 1968, and a growing awareness of significance of Stone’s Folly to the Pentecostal and Charismatic movements. In the last few years Stone’s Folly has become a meeting place to receive a fresh infilling of the Holy Spirit and foster unity of Christians.

This week Christians are preparing for Pentecost (See www.Pentecost .cmax.tv) and celebrating the 67th anniversary of the Brown case in Topeka.

We ask that you join us in prayer for another Holy Spirit breakthrough from Topeka, combining both the Pentecostal outpouring and the racial reconciliation breakthroughs of the past.

Dr. David Cole from the King’s University in Dallas summarizes this work of the Spirit.

“The Holy Spirit’s Outpouring is for everyone… Breaking down barriers of race, class, and gender”

Amen

St. Patrick’s Day, March 17, is recognized as an Irish celebration, but in fact the whole Christian world owes a large debt to St Patrick.
Brought to Pagan Ireland as a slave, Patrick escaped and returned to his home in Roman Christian Britain. However he was unable to forget the lost souls of Ireland and returned to evangelize the island. The Pagan wizards and priests were no match for the man of God, and the whole island was Christianized as the result of his efforts. For this he is rightly honored as the evangelist of the Irish.
But his legacy of a Christian Ireland blessed far more people than just the Irish. Even before his death in 461 AD the Roman Christian Britain of his boyhood was being overrun by the Pagan Angles and Saxons. Soon the British and Irish switched roles: The newly Christian Irish sent missionaries to the newly Pagan Britain. And in about a century the Anglo-Saxons were Christianized. So the British saved the Irish so the Irish could save the British.
An even more remarkable turn about occurred as the European continent fell into chaos during the time known as the Dark Ages. The formerly barbarian, unlettered Irish were able to save countless manuscripts from destruction and became the custodians of the civilized Western worlds’ knowledge. They also expanded their evangelistic efforts into Europe, bringing about a revival of Christianity in France and Italy. Thus, Patrick’s Irish followers became a beacon of learning and hope in the Dark Ages, helping preserve the centers of European Christianity as well as its British and Irish outposts.
Alas, the Irish were not immune to the instability of their times, as they were first invaded by the Vikings and then colonized by the ungrateful English. After the Reformation they were persecuted for their Catholic faith and allowed to starve in the horrible famine of the 1840’s. The Island remains divided between the Catholic Republic in the South and the Protestant North.
It is ironic that these two peoples, still divided over religion, owe their Christian faith to the other: The Irish to the British Patrick, and the British to the Irish missionaries. Yet, there is progress being made to reconcile these peoples. Several years back we at Corporate Prayer Resources made a Prayer Journey to Ireland and saw our and many other prayers answered as a peace process began in Northern Ireland. There are also continuing reconciliation efforts underway between the Catholics and the Protestants to heal this terrible division.

As we look forward to this St Patrick’s day, the best way to honor St. Patrick would be to pray that there would be reconciliation, forgiveness, and peace between his British homeland and his beloved Ireland, and between Catholic and Protestant.
And may it be so.

In the early Church the date of February 4 was set aside as “Dismal Day”.

Dismal Day was a somber day set aside to remember the plagues of Egypt during the Exodus. The name “dismal” itself means “Evil days” and was intended to memorialize the woe and suffering of the Egyptians. Rather than celebrate the victory of the Israelites, the purpose of the day was to serve as a reminder of the consequences of disobeying God. Thus, the reflective and introspective mood of the day.

At the time of the Exodus in 1446 BC Egypt was the most powerful nation on earth. The Israelites, who had come in 1876 BC, had settled in an area of the Eastern Nile Delta known as Goshen. After the death of their champion Joseph in about 1806 BC, the Egyptian Pharaohs became fearful of the Israelites and made them into slaves. One of the Pharaohs had even initiated an infanticide against the Israelite children in about 1526 BC. It was a survivor of this holocaust, a stuttering 80 year old named Moses, whom God chose to confront the most powerful man in the world.

Of course the Pharaoh refused to submit to God’s command to let His people go, and God sent the famous Ten Plagues of Egypt. Because of their stubbornness, the Egyptians saw their river die, their crops fail, their livestock destroyed, and finally their children die. Then, to top it off, their army was destroyed chasing the Israelites and history tells us that the entire country of Egypt was later overrun by foreign invaders. Certainly “Evil Days” for the Egyptians.

It is unfortunate that the Church no longer sets apart Dismal Day to remember the consequences of rebellion against God. To remember how the most powerful Nation on Earth brought judgment on itself by mistreating God’s people and killing God’s children. To remember how their river died, their economy shriveled, their children were lost, and their military was humbled. To remember how defiance of God’s commands destroyed the most powerful Nation on Earth. And to seek God because it is beginning to unfold again right before our eyes.

A year ago on Dismal Day the Coronavirus plague was just beginning in America. As it progressed it humbled the gods or modern America: science, government, education, and business, in the same way that God humbled the gods of Egypt with the Ten Plagues. Dismal Day has become a present reality in today’s America.

In Ancient Egypt, God had set aside the land of Goshen as a place of safety, and the Israelites were spared from the seven last plagues sent on Egypt. Today many Intercessors believe that God has set aside Lands of Goshen in America, and that He will make a distinction between those states, cities, and people who follow Him and these who do not. Just compare the Coronavirus job losses in places like Texas (3.3%), where God is honored, with New York (10.4%) and California (8%) where He is not. This is no time to disregard God’s plans and purposes.

The Nation is in serious trouble as it suffers more and more from its disobedience. The Church needs to humble itself and pray for an Awakening.

Dismal Day would be a good time to start.

On Monday, January 18 the U.S. celebrated the Martin Luther King holiday, honoring the life of an American hero and a Christian martyr.

Dr. King grew up in a world where many people believed that the black African people were inferior to the white Europeans. This belief, which was used to support slavery in the U.S. and the colonization of Africa by Europe, directly contradicts Biblical teaching that all humans are from the same family and that God commands us to love our brothers. However, the rise of Secularism and a Darwinistic view of the human race gave a scientific veneer to the myth of racial superiority. To their shame, even some Churches went along with the lie. Modern science has now proven that all humans came from the same mother, as the Bible teaches, and that there is more genetic difference within the races than between them.

So Thomas Jefferson was right when he said all men are created equal. But making that statement a reality has been a long battle in the U.S. We fought the Civil War to end slavery, and the war brought God’s judgment, as one soldier died for each person left in slavery after the American Revolution, and the slaveholding South was devastated. Nevertheless, racial inequality was reborn in the “Jim Crow” system of laws which discriminated against black people in the South. After the Second World War black servicemen who had proven themselves the equal of their white brothers found it more and more difficult to accept their oppression.

In many countries oppressed minorities had taken up arms, but the U.S. was spared from this fate. Instead, a black Baptist pastor called on his people to use nonviolent Christian principles to bring about change. Dr. King envisioned an America where people were judged on character, not color. He faced hate filled racists, but wanted to redeem them instead of destroy them. Eventually his Christian forgiveness and love bought an end to the Jim Crow laws and led to a broad level of reconciliation between the races. Sadly, he and many others gave their lives to bring about the nonviolent Civil Rights revolution.
We still have some work to do to reach Dr. King’s goal of a color blind society and full racial reconciliation. But on this day we celebrate a Baptist pastor who used Christian principles and his Christian faith to bring his white and black brothers together.
Let us pray that Dr. King’s memory will be honored by reconciliation and unity, and that those who would divide and promote hatred, whether white or black, will be exposed and repudiated.

The most controversial presidential election in over a century is finished and Joe Biden will be sworn in as President on January 20.

Joe Biden is now putting together his cabinet and his team of advisors. He will also be hearing many voices from radical left who are wanting payback for their support. Many Christians have been concerned that some of those influencers are motivated by demonic forces of lawlessness, hate, greed, and anti-Christian bias.

Now comes a new prayer assignment based on a word given by Dutch Sheet’s brother Tim in December. Normally we caution intercessors against confronting demonic principalities because they are elected by the people and have a right to occupy their positions. However, the prophetic message stated that it was “Open Season” until January 20 on the principalities, powers, and demonic forces as intercessors are led to pray about them. We believe that God has given us an opportunity to bind these demonic powers and reduce their influence in the new administration.

We must always remember that our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the demonic powers (Ephesians 6:12). We are not to curse those who have made themselves our enemies, but bless them and thereby inherit a blessing (Romans 12:14; 1 Peter 3:9). Such blessings lead the way to overcome evil with good (Romans 12:20-21). In addition, we are commanded to pray for those in authority so we can lead peaceful and quiet lives (1 Timothy 2:2).

So let us pray for Joe Biden to be in good health and regain all of his mental capacities. Pray that he will renew his walk with the Lord as so many presidents have done in the face of the awful pressures of the office. Pray that he will be blessed with wisdom and understanding from the Lord. He will need it.

The demonic forces trying to gain control of his presidency are legion. As we wrote last week, there is a spirit of lawlessness which has brought political bitterness, racial division, criminality, and governmental oppression to the country. Christian values and freedoms of religion and speech are under attack. Immortality and its offspring of abuse, abortion, and poverty continue to spread death and destruction. The nations of China, Russia, and Iran seek to counter the beneficial influence of America overseas and cause division at home. There is also a strong Anti-Semitic spirit which seeks to destroy Israel. Let us pray to God for mercy and ask Him to bind these spirits in the window we have been given up to January 20.

There is also a more powerful way to deal with forces of spiritual wickedness which was demonstrated by Jesus when he sent out the 72 to preach the Kingdom of God (Luke 10:1-20). Jesus saw Satan fall to Earth, the only biblical example of an overthrown demonic power, as the people accepted the gospel and were set free from satanic control. Like Jesus, we should pray for workers to go to into the harvest field for “Open Season” on the demonic forces holding people captive.

Many Christians were discouraged by the presidential election, but we must seek God for our peace and accept His judgments. Sometimes the answer is “no.” Do not be overcome with despair but redouble your efforts to serve the Lord His way.

So pray for Joe Biden, bind the demonic powers seeking to destroy America, and work and pray for revival, which is America’s only hope.

“The Harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the Harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his Harvest field” Luke 10:2

Yes, there really is a Saint Nicholas. He was a fourth century Bishop in Myra, in Asia
Minor. And he really was famous for his gift giving and his concern for the poor and for children. His feast day is Sunday, December 6.

In the Middle Ages some enterprising citizens of the Italian city of Bari stole his remains and built a cathedral in his honor in Bari. Because of the importance of Saint Nicholas to both the Catholic and the Eastern Orthodox Church, the cathedral is one of the few places in the world where Catholic and Orthodox minister under the same roof. Pilgrims of both denominations are welcome there.

When the Charismatic renewal swept through the Catholic Church, one of the leaders in Bari, Matteo Calisi, wondered if the tolerance expressed at the Saint Nicholas Cathedral could grow into real reconciliation. He and Italian Evangelical pastor Giovanni Traettino reached across the divide and began a movement which has brought Catholics and Protestants together throughout Italy. Over the years the reconciliation movement has reached out from Bari to Protestants in North and South America, Africa, Europe, and Asia. In addition, the Orthodox and Messianic Jewish churches have also become involved.

One of Calisi’s major impacts was in Buenos Aires, where Cardinal Bergoglio opened the Catholic Church there to reconciliation with the Protestant leaders. We now know Cardinal Bergoglio as Pope Francis, and he has continued his historic outreach to other Christian traditions. In 2014 the Pope sent a historic video to Kenneth Copeland at a Pastor’s meeting which can be seen on Youtube under: https://youtu.be/b5TwrG8B3ME Since then many Church leaders have met with the Pope to heal the divisions between Christians.

The reconciliation movement born in Bari seeks to bring Christians into genuine unity in our diversity. God realizes that we have different practices and beliefs, and we’re told to tolerate our brothers (see Ro14:1-4 and Ro 15:1-7). Our real unity is through Christ, for if we are each in Christ then we are also united in Christ. (see John 17:20-23).

During 2017, the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation, many meetings were held around the world to promote the reconciliation of Christians. In October of 2017 Matteo Calisi organized a meeting with Kenneth Copeland and Cardinal DiNardo, President of U.S. Bishops, and about 40 other Christian leaders including Lou Engle, Mike Bickle, and John Arnott in a visible show of unity at the Kairos 2017 conference in Kansas City. A similar meeting was held in Dallas, Texas on October 3-5, 2019. During the 2019 meeting Lou Engle prophesied that the reconciliation movement would lead to worldwide revival.

In the face of God’s plan for unity, the spiritual powers of darkness made the year 2020 one of the most divisive in recent history. Racial tensions, riots, and a bitterly divided electorate seemed to negate hopes of unity, while Covid lockdowns acted to push Christians to the sideline. Even so there has been growing recognition that, as Lou Engle says, only United Church can heal a divided nation.

So let us all join Christ in His prayer that we may be brought into complete unity so the world will know Him (John 17:23).

And we need to thank Him for the gift of the reconciliation movement which was started in the Spirit of Saint Nicholas.