Why I Won’t Move Forward Without Prayer

Kathy and I are preparing for our trip to Uganda. We leave next Friday, September 2nd and will arrive in Uganda on Saturday night at 10:40 p.m. The plan is to get a good night’s rest and join the Youth Ablaze Conference Kick-off at 5 p.m. on Sunday. My first presentation is Monday morning, September 5th. Here is what’s been going on.

In June and July, we raised over $50,000 for the conference.

The total cost of the conference is $85,000. The remaining $35,000 is raised through delegate registration and sponsorships in Uganda. Thanks to the generosity of family and friends, the financial commitment is met and the conference is funded. Praise God for his church!

For weeks I have devoted myself to prayer and message preparation.

This week I have been in prayer with fasting as I ask God for his message to the 8,000+ youth of Uganda. I thank all of you who have responded to my request for intercessory prayer. It is making a huge difference. I feel your support. God is on this big time.

Every Wednesday at 3:30 p.m., I speak to Pastor Elijah in Uganda.

We use this time to get caught up on all that is happening both here and in Uganda in preparation for the conference. We always finish by praying together. In addition to the speakers, he tells me there are two hundred pastors, one hundred and twenty-five administrators, two hundred security personnel, and three hundred cooks preparing to serve the 8,000+ delegates.

We have had three months of 24/7 prayer coverage.

This Wednesday Pastor Elijah gave me an update on the prayer for the conference. He said, “Prayer and fasting is the key to everything we do.” Beginning June 1st prayer intercessors have been praying and fasting seven days per week, twenty-four hours per day. There is a team leader each day who stays at the altar for the entire twenty-four hours.This person then has eight prayer leaders who lead teams of people in prayer covering all elements of the conference in three-hour segments. This level of prayer support is pretty overwhelming to me.

We are a week away.

The conference officially starts on Labor Day. The theme of the conference is “Kingdom Minded Entrepreneurship.” My series of six talks will be themed on Proverbs 23:7, “As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he.” The talks are about getting out of poverty. My topics and their associated content are coming into focus. I ask for your continued prayer support.Next Wednesday we begin taking our daily dose of malaria pills, packing and completing our messages.

It’s happening!

Pastor Elijah left me with this message this week, “Prayer is the magic. It takes us away from the crowds, out of the noise of the world. Then you will always hear God.”Thank you for being on this journey with Kathy and me.