"THIS IS A CALL TO PRAYER: ORAD SIN CESAR..."Dear Christian Friend, THIS IS A CALL TO PRAYER: ORAD SIN CESAR: PRAY WITHOUT CEASING. "When you hear a sound in the mulberry trees", says the Bible, you will know it is time to act. Jesus said we all and even He must work while it is yet day. An evangelist who worked in various countries said he felt that Guatemala was like the cutting edge of God's harvest sickle. There was a most extraordinary movement of the Lord's saving power here, but that far from sitting down and acting as if the battle were over, the true Christians, like soldiers, should press on into a much greater victory, first for Guatemala and then for poor suffering San Salvador, Honduras and the other countries of South America. Thereupon this evangelist went from church to church and missionary to missionary asking for pledges of prayer and even organized 24 continuous prayer groups. At that time there were assassinations, threats and bombs going off all over. He found some missionaries planning to leave. He remonstrated, "This is a critical time to stay at the front of the battle for the spiritual victory of all Latin America. Don't go now because of such dangers." Some heeded and some went on with their plans and left. He heard of one person, some called fanatical. He was Orland Wolfram who had undergone one severe bombing experience, who had gone to the U.S. for eye surgery, but had come back to Guatemala. He visited with me, and then used that as an illustration all over in his work in Guatemala, then went to the U.S., not to stay but in getting prayer pledges, telling of it to many church groups there, especially those who were known for having organized sustained prayer campaigns. He was called to Korea for a few special meetings and found a movement there with hundreds of thousands and a special prayer group within it of about 25,000. He came back to Guatemala telling that there are tens of thousands of praying soldiers pledged to pray daily in intercessory prayer for Guatemala until the revival wave here will be complete in Christ and flow on to other Latin American countries. The local TV people of one project are Christians and doing a documentary of all such work and even the President here is actively involved. So will you, my faithful prayer partners, be doubly energetic, not only faithful at prayer, but also in urging others and organizing others to participate in intercessory prayer? One hundred years ago the great Reformer, Justino Barrios, broke the perpetual ban the powerful Catholic Church has against allowing any evangelicals to come to or preach in Latin countries. The Presbyterian church promptly used the opportunity, and the evangelical work has steadily increased ever since. For some times these have been special campaigns and united efforts, celebrating the centennial. The final event for the year has been the evangelical campaign in the big stadium, and a procession or parade. The Catholics have processions, with their favorite saints or statues, regularly, the Evangelicals very infrequently. For this occasion all churches were urged to close their Sunday morning meetings and ask their members to come out to participate, singing praises to their Savior, in place of carrying images. We sent out and gave extra tracts, then went here and there interviewing. Not being able to see much, I kept asking every acquaintance I met what their experience was and thus have a pretty good picture of the whole situation. In the first place, while most parades go down Main Street, those planning to head the parade, could not get from their home district to the downtown area. Every entrance thoroughfare from out of town or edge of town areas was jammed. When the cars, buses and trucks filled with evangelicals from all over the country could not move any further, the people instead of being frustrated, just piled out wherever their vehicle stopped and began marching centerwards on foot, singing as they went, including tiny tots just barely able to walk. No one was watching a "parade" from the sidewalk, the whole country it seemed was one great procession of glory filled with saved souls praising their Lord. Everyone was greatly moved. It was almost like heavenly throngs singing celestial anthems. Everywhere the same. Not just Main Street but every main street all over alive, marching and praising the Lord. So many everywhere it was impossible for them all to reach the down town Main Street and most never did. It made no difference. They praised the Lord in the march where they were. The Evangelicals were thrilled with the turnout and the size of their own numbers, and the unbelievers were awed. There was no way to accurately guess the number. One hundred thousand could have paraded down Main Street, but these many, many hundreds of thousands just woke up the whole city, paraded where they could, and made the overall effect infinitely greater, more moving and just awesome. God sent His servant the evangelist with the divine message that now was not the time to rest as though the harvest were over, but the time for the great final push for complete victory. Won't you participate? You have been in the battle so faithfully. Press on a little longer, and even harder in organized intercessory prayer. The Lord is at hand. May He bless you all the more working out that which is perfect in His sight through the blood of His everlasting Covenant and Son, our wonderful Lord. Sincerely, Orland Wolfram |