Rest in Peace

Photo credit: Yahoo News

Cynthia Hurd 

Susie Jackson

Ethel Lance

Rev. DePayne Middleton-Doctor

Hon. Rev. Clementa Pinckney

Tywanza Sanders

Rev. Daniel Simmons Sr.

Rev. Sharonda Coleman-Singleton

Myra Thompson

(You can read more about their lives HERE.)

To my dear Brothers and Sisters of the Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina:

I am heartbroken and grieving over your horrific experience and the loss of the nine beautiful brothers and sisters who were killed on Wednesday. Neither my heart nor my mind can truly comprehend that such evil exists in the world and that your congregation was the target of such evil. I am so very sorry, and I stand with you. Please know I am praying for you with all my heart. 

I love you and am asking Jesus to help us heal and be one in Him. 

Your sister and friend,
Scarlett

Here is the precious son of one of the ladies who was killed. His heart and grace make me weep.

Jesus died a passionate death for us, so our love for Him should be as passionate. 

- Sister Jean German Ortiz

(Taken from the Emanuel AME Church website)

Blessings and love. xo

Preparing for Revival in 2014

Friends and Partners,

Thank you for your continued support and partnership in spreading the message of spiritual awakening and revival.  I’ve enjoyed speaking twice already this month and am looking forward to more opportunities in 2014.

One of the stories I share is about the Scottish Hebrides Revival starting in 1949.  Thought you would enjoy this brief video clip of what God has done in the past.  Many that I connect with around the country believe that God wants to do similar things here in our own country.

The Hebridean Revival  - Duncan Campbell

Thank you so much for your help.

To join our support team, click on Field Staff Support at IFA Royce Team.

Gratefully,

Bob

Bob Royce

Intercessors for America

Mobilization Coordinator

PO Box 915

Purcellville, VA 20134

800-USA-PRAY

540-317-2097 Direct

transformingamericathroughprayer.com

getamericapraying.com

Colorado Update and on to Mexico

Prayer Partners,

Thank you again for your interest and support in casting vision for deep spiritual awakening and revival in our country . . . especially while in Colorado Springs a couple of weeks ago.  Overall, 85 participants from 20 different communities across Colorado came together.  Our strategy is to share amazing stories of God’s transforming power and love from around the world.  

Over 8oo global communities have been identified where there has been an undeniable invasion of heaven coming down to earth!  Of these, only 2 have been identified in North America. We lovingly ask the diagnostic question, “Lord, if you are doing it there, then why not here?”  After communicating this message, our hope is to connect with individuals and small groups who will cry out for this movement in their own community.

One of the stories we share at these Discovery Weekends is from Almolonga, Guatemala.  Enjoy this 4-minute clip from our partner ministry, The Sentinel Group.

http://vimeo.com/73269915

I leave this week to head to Cuauhtémoc, Chihuahua, Mexico, for several days to share this message.  I will be connecting with community leaders for a few days, as well as speaking at an all day prayer and repentance gathering on Saturday.  Benjamin, our 11 year old, is coming with me.  We leave Thursday and return to DC late Monday night.  We appreciate you interceding for us and the beautiful people of Cuauhtémoc (as well as for Scarlett and the kids at home).

To join our support team, click on Field Staff Support at IFA Royce Team.

With heartfelt appreciation,

Bob

Bob Royce

Intercessors for America

Mobilization Coordinator

PO Box 915

Purcellville, VA 20134

800-USA-PRAY

540-317-2097 Direct

TransformingAmerciaThroughPrayer.com

Today is the National Day of Prayer

The 62nd annual National Observance of the National Day of Prayer (Cannon House Office Building on Capitol Hill) will be broadcast LIVE on this page Thursday, May 2, 2013 from 9:00 am – 12:00 pm ET. Speakers include Pastor Greg Laurie, Dr. James and Shirley Dobson, Congressman Robert Aderholt, Mrs. Vonette Bright, Mr. Pat Boone, Congressman Frank Wolf, Wintley Phipps, Chaplain Barry Black, The Annie Moses Band, Dr. Dick Eastman, Mr. David Butts, Mr. John Bornschein, and more. A full speaker schedule will be available later this morning.

Bob is there with the IFA team and is excited about the meetings he's been in and the conversations he's had with these leaders in D. C. this week. You can follow the broadcast on this page starting at 9:00 am ET. If you are not in a place where you can watch the live stream, you can follow along on Twitter.




The theme verse chosen for 2013 is Matthew 12:21 “In His name the nations will put their hope.”

A New Strategy - The Journey To Transformation

For 15 years George Otis, Jr. and the Sentinel Group have researched stories of transforming revival from around the globe from both a biblical and historical perspective.  These are amazing stories of where the Lord’s presence comes and not only changes lives but impacts the social fiber, the government and even the ecology itself.  For example,

·         Almolonga, Guatemala – Jails closed because crime has decreased; carrots the size of a person’s arm are being harvested.

·         Cali, Colombia – The world’s largest drug cartel is dismantled through the prayers and fasting of the church of Jesus Christ; in restaurants, press boxes and newsrooms, residents are hungry to talk about God stories . . .  they can’t get enough.

·         Fiji -  Villages repenting of idolatry and darkness invite the Lord’s presence to come down and heal relationships and the land.  Once dead coral reefs suddenly spring back to life, and fish that have been gone because of the oppressive weight of sin on the environment return in abundance.

There are 800+ stories like these that the Sentinel Group has documented.  The curious observation is that only 2 communities are recognized in North America.

So we at IFA want to humbly ask the question, “Lord, if there,  then why not here?  Would You come to our community?”

George’s research has discovered predictable patterns and principles that make communities attractive to a touch from heaven.  In fact, in Scripture we are invited to seek the Lord and ask Him to come down . . . but on His terms . . . 2 Chronicles 7:14.

Two weeks ago we started training 16 coaches from across the U.S. to walk with communities through a “Journey to Transformation” by learning the biblical, current and historical findings that the Sentinel Group has compiled through the years.  We believe that there are friends gathering around the country who are longing for this transforming revival to touch their own neighborhood.  These current day experiences are grounded not only in biblical hope but present, life-giving reality. 

My role as a coach is to come alongside community leaders in 25 states to help cast vision, teach and prepare for this kind of spiritual awakening.  This is humbling and awe-inspiring for me personally.  I have experienced some similar miraculous stories and heavenly invasions both in North America and internationally, but I have never lived in a community where the pervasive presence of the Lord is so tangible.  We are walking and preparing with friends here in northern Virginia for this kind of spiritual awakening.  We believe this grass-roots strategy is the Lord’s heart to help bring some healing to our fractured, imploding nation.

To find out more about the Journey to Transformation, go to

http://www.transformingamericathroughprayer.com/

Thanks for your continued prayers and partnership.

Bob Royce

Mobilization Coordinator

Intercessors for America

PO Box 915

Purcellville, VA 20134

800-USA-PRAY

540-317-2097 Direct

GetAmericaPraying.com

How I Lead My Children In Worship

One of my favourite things about home education is having the time in our school day to include worship and prayer to our God. This is a significant part of our morning and one that I try not to let slip. If we do go a day or two without it, we cannot wait to get back to it!

I remember reading a devotional by Jeannie Fulbright several years ago that said this:

If I could tell moms only one thing that would help their homeschooling, 

having regular morning devotions would be it. 

Truly, nothing else has blessed our homeschool experience more.

(You can read the entire post here: First Things First)

I could not agree more. Having time in the mornings for time in the Word, prayer, worship and being in the Father's Presence is crucial to everything else we do and really, to who we are. We have learned and are learning to wait before Him (not always patiently), to press in to what He wants to say to us. And we have learned and are learning to hear His voice.

I thought I'd share what we do because I have had a couple of moms ask, out of curiosity or out of wanting some encouragement to do something meaningful with their own children.

We start out reading a chapter from the Bible. We do not always go in order, from Genesis to Revelation, but we happen to be doing so at this time. I pray and ask what book God wants us to read and hear from Him. Right now we are in Leviticus and I am reading it from The Message version. 

Then there are two email messages that I receive on a daily basis and I usually read both of those aloud to the children. The first one is The Spirit Of Prophecy by Bill and/or Marsha Burns. The second one is The Elijah List by numerous prophetic ministers from several different countries. Both of these emails are FREE. SOP comes Monday through Friday. The Elijah List is every day.

If there are any reports from our friends in Kenya, we read those, as well. If not, we continue on with our journal. I record items under the titles "Prayer" and "Thanksgiving", as well as any dreams anyone had the night before. (It's a great idea to document dreams, especially if you think they have a prophetic significance.) Our journals have served as a tremendous tool in reminding us what God has done in our lives and the lives of those we have prayed for, how He has spoken to us in specific situations and in showing us the themes that were present in the past. It is a great practice to look over our journals at all the "Ebenezers" (from 1 Samuel 7, meaning "the stone of help" which signifies a symbol of remembrance for how God provided, intervened, came to our rescue) and give Him thanks and praise for who He is and what He has accomplished.

After we record items under our "Prayer" and "Thanksgiving" categories, I turn on my Pandora app on my phone and we listen to several different worship songs, anywhere from 3-10.  I just click through until I find something that is fitting. It's just personal preference. We take time to focus on Jesus and worship Him. This can involve dancing, raising our hands, bowing before Him, sitting, lying on the floor, etc. 

There is no formula. 

Our goal is to worship Jesus and focus everything on Him and to be led by the Spirit in doing so. I truly believe this is the most important thing I can teach and lead my children in (and yes, academics are important to me, but I believe that being in God's Presence, praising Him and hearing from Him are crucial to daily living).

And then after we have spent a little time (or a great deal of time on some days) in worship and praise, we pray. Sometimes we are just voicing what we have written in our journal, other times we are just listening. Sometimes I just encourage the children to speak out whatever the Spirit puts on their hearts, which may be something we have discussed and written down, or not. 

One of the biggest things the Father has taught me, and the children, in turn, in the past 10 years or so is about spiritual warfare. I'll leave that subject for a whole other post, but we are very aware that speaking our prayers, our decrees and our declarations are a form of standing with the Father and against the enemy. We also speak directly to the enemy in our offensive strategy against him. We give praise to God and we stand firm against the devil. This is something we are given the opportunity to practice over and over. I consider these practices to be basic life skills and again, crucial to daily life.

I just want to close by saying that even though I am writing this from a homeschool mom's perspective does not mean that I think moms whose children are not homeschooled cannot or do not lead their children in worship. 

In fact, I'd love to hear from you. What does your worship and prayer time with your child/children look like? 

Happy are those who hear the joyful call to worship,

for they will walk in the light of your presence, Lord.

Psalm 85:15

Inaugural Prayer Breakfast

From my husband:

Friends,

At 3:30 am this past Monday, Inauguration Day, I started meeting and gathering with hundreds of colleagues from across the country to pray for our nation and the inauguration specifically.  I have three brief highlights I want to share.

1.        Native Americans – In a humbling and profound act of repentance and forgiveness, the descendants of the tribes who owned and settled the land before it became Washington D.C., officially forgave our English ancestors for mistreating and displacing their forefathers and “welcomed” everyone else to their original native land.

2.        The Voyage of the St. Louis – In 1939 the United States refused 900+ Jewish refugees from Europe who sailed on this ship seeking asylum in our country and were waiting just off the Florida coast.  We publicly repented and asked forgiveness this week from our Jewish friends who were in attendance. 

3.       Keynote speaker was Jonathan Cahn, author of The Harbinger.  He gave a clarion call and urgent message of repentance for the church and the nation in light of the cloud of judgment that has already started.

As always, thanks for your partnership in helping us mobilize our country to prayer and repentance.  It is a privilege to be here in the nation’s capital.

Bob

Bob Royce

Mobilization Coordinator

Intercessors for America

PO Box 915

Purcellville, VA 20134

800-USA-PRAY

540-317-2097 Direct

GetAmericaPraying.com

Bob's New Video

Bob is starting a series of video updates to communicate what is going on here in the D. C. area, around the country and the world.

Here is the first installment...



More words of hope and encouragement to come!

Enjoy your night. xo

Our latest prayer letter

Over the past year in our country, we have experienced some very unusual and even tragic events:

·         August 23, 2011 - 5.8 earthquake hits D.C. cracking both the National Cathedral and Washington Monument.  “As goes the church, so goes a nation.”

·         June 30, 2012 – Derecho storm knocks out power to over 1 million in DC, Maryland, and Virginia the day after the Supreme Court ruled on the Affordable Health Care Act.

·         July 20, 2012 – Mass shooting and killing at Colorado movie theater

·         August 5, 2012 – Mass shooting at a Sikh temple in Wisconsin

·         September 11, 2012 - U.S. Ambassador Christopher Stevens and others killed and wounded in Benghazi, Libya

·         October 22-31 – Hurricane Sandy, the largest Atlantic hurricane on record, pummels the northeast

·         November 6, 2012 – Election

·         November 9, 2012 - General David Petraeus, CIA director resigns due to an alleged extramarital affair with his biographer

·         November 12, 2012 - For only the third time on record, the total number of acres burned due to wildfires across the country so far this year has topped 9 million, according to data from    the National Interagency Fire Center.  The area scorched, as of Friday – 9,101,461 acres – is roughly the size of the states of Massachusetts and Connecticut combined [USA Today: http://www.usatoday.com/story/weather/2012/11/11/wildfire-season-destruction/1695465/].

From a diagnostic perspective,  the alarm bells are going off in our country at many levels, and we cannot hit the snooze button any longer.  We need supernatural, wisdom, power, mercy and intervention.  At Intercessors for America, we believe that what is needed is  a decentralized, grass-roots, community by community awakening and visitation.  We are praying for a Third Great Awakening which transforms and realigns us to the original intentions and purposes on which our nation was founded.  Thanks for helping us spread this message.  If your community is eager to learn more, we can help.

My recent trip to Asheville, NC, was enlightening.  I spent 13 hours listening, praying, repenting with about 250 people from around the region who are interested in revival.  One man asked for prayer for healing for a hearing problem he suffered with for years.  I gently and authoritatively placed my hand on his ears, quietly and briefly spoke healing and love in Jesus’ name over him.  After the meeting, he and his wife came up to me in tears saying that he was already hearing better.  The joy and freedom on their faces was radiant.  What a privilege to see the Lord do this first-hand!

As we continue to move forward informing, connecting and mobilizing prayer around the country, I want to say thank you for investing with us.  In the past three months 18 new friends have joined our financial team through either one time or regular monthly giving.  Thank you so much for praying and helping us in this initiative.  The need is ongoing, so please continue to pray with us and give when you are able. And if you know of anyone who might be interested in supporting us, please let me know.

§  To join our team through online giving, click on the link below [https://www.ifapray.org/donations.php], click on Field Support Bob Royce

§  

As our nation, and world, navigates through uncertain and perplexing times, let’s encourage one another with these words from Jesus, “In this world you will have trouble.  But take heart!  I have overcome the world” [John 16:33].

Deeply concerned, yet hopeful.

Bob

Bob Royce

Mobilization Coordinator

Intercessors for America

PO Box 915

Purcellville, VA 20134

800-USA-PRAY

540-317-2097 Direct

GetAmericaPraying.com

Awaken WNC

If you have a heart for prayer and are in the Asheville area, you will want to be apart of this FREE event on Saturday! There is no charge but they do require registration.

Go here for more information and to register: AWAKEN WNC

You can also follow them on Facebook: AwakenWNC

Our family will be heading out tomorrow morning for Bob to be apart of this event. We are thrilled that we can make it a family trip and see extended family while we are there!

Crying out

The children and I had an intense prayer time for our country this morning. The main phrase I felt led to pray is "Let there be Light"...

Let there be Light...

Let there be Light...

Sometimes it looks like things are hopeless or too dark or far too much work.

But God.

He is able. He is Love. He wants to rescue and save and bring the dead to life.

Thank You, Father!

And may the Light of Jesus be illuminated over each man, woman and child today.

Addendum - Prayer and Fasting

I loved this quote from the Elijah List today by Mahesh Chavda...

Let us arise, shine, and build a hedge of protection and glory around our families, our workplaces and communities, our churches, and our nation in this hour. 

And here is a message Bob sent out this week to those who are joining with us in prayer...

Friends,

IFA hosts a nationwide prayer call the First Friday of every month.  I received this text from a dear lady after last week’s call:

"Brokenness & tears are beginning to come to the American church for our sins & indifference & lethargy.  Yay!  Had my first meltdowns in past 2 weeks.  Heard tears & wails on the IFA prayer line. Keep doing what you're doing."

Psalm 51: 16-17 “ My sacrifice [the sacrifice acceptable] to God is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart [broken down with sorrow for sin and humbly and thoroughly penitent], such, O God, You will not despise” [AMP].

Thanks for helping us mobilize the church to pray and repent.

Bob

Bob Royce

Mobilization Coordinator

Intercessors for America

PO Box 915

Purcellville, VA 20134

800-USA-PRAY

540-317-2097 Direct

GetAmericaPraying.com

Prayer and Fasting for Our Nation and Beyond

After being back in the States for a little over a year now, I have been stunned by how the culture has changed. I think the elections have made the differences more clear. After the Democratic National Convention when God and Jerusalem were taken out of their platform, then put back in, and then God was booed, frankly, it has put me in a place of grief. Is there no fear of the Lord anymore? 

I don't know about you, but after this week with all the events that are happening in the political arena, in our relationship with Israel and with the recent attacks at our embassies in the Middle East and the murders of four American diplomats including Ambassador Christopher Stevens, not to mention our economic situation, I am feeling the weight more and more. 

Don't misunderstand. My hope is in Jesus. My hope will always be in Jesus. 

There were many prayer initiatives in place before this week, but I feel that the need for intercession (and repentance) has grown this week by leaps and bounds. If you are sensing the need to cry out to God and fast for our nation in these unstable days for or the world, please check out the following pages for encouragement and direction in your efforts.


Aglow International - America Arising

Capitol Hill Prayer Partners

Chavda Ministries - 40 Days to Save America

50 Days of Decision - Video

Intercessors For America - Saving America Through Prayer

International House of Prayer - 24/7 Prayer Room

National Prayer Committee - 40 Days of Prayer 
     (And these guys have a whole page of prayer ministries on their site.)

This is another excellent resource:

Derek Prince Ministries - Prayer Worldwide 

Let's get on our faces and cry out for mercy!

^{2 Chronicles 7:14...} if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.

Jude 1:20-21... But you, dear friends, by building yourselves up in your most holy faith and praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in God’s love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life.

Revelation 5:8... And when he had taken it, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of God’s people.

And I'm sure there are other ministries and organizations encouraging prayer during this time. Feel free to share additional resources in the comments.

A very special day

The angels were rejoicing yesterday [Luke 15:10], as they and our family welcomed a new brother into the Kingdom of Heaven. Our very own Benjamin gave his life to Jesus yesterday!

We had been having a conversation about baptism and why we don't do infant baptism but wait until we decide to follow Christ before we are immersed in the waters. The conversation continued with Ben saying he wanted to get baptised and then we discussed the reason for baptism and all that it symbolizes. He asked me if he had given his life to Christ. I told him that he would have to answer that for me and then he said he wanted to right then. I told him that it would be a good idea to go into his room to spend a few minutes with Jesus and pray.

He came back about 15 minutes later with a big grin on his face. He said he had prayed and told Jesus that he knew why Jesus had to come to earth to pay for his sins and that he wanted Jesus to have his life. Then he said that while he was sitting quietly in his room, he had a picture (some might call it a vision).

He said there was a white wall with a door in it. There were lines of people who were drab and grey with no smiles. They were going through the door and when they came out they had changed. They were wearing jeans or shorts and all sorts of different patterns of colourful tye-dye shirts. We talked a bit about how that was such a wonderful picture of what happens when we go through the "Jesus door"we are changed and given new life! I thought this was such a great picture for Ben. He is a colourful guy and appreciates colour so much.

We called Bob to tell him and he rejoiced with us. Later in the evening, we discussed Ben's decision more and talked about baptism with him. We decided we shouldn't wait to baptise him [Acts 8:26-39].

What a very special day and we are thrilled to have a new "brother" in the family!

We bless you, Buddy, as you continue to grow in Christ and in the glorious destiny He has for you. xo