2 for 1

What if two seats on the Supreme Court opened up instead of just one? I'm just sayin’...

Back to the Midwest

My trip to Sioux Falls, SD was an overwhelming success. God's hand moved mightily, and it seems to be a season of disruption. This feels like one of those times when all bets are off. The Lord himself changes the times and seasons of our lives. Ferrill and I went to South Dakota with a long list of tasks, and nearly every item was accomplished. We couldn't have had a more productive time. We'll be returning next Friday to do the same thing in Rapids City on the western side of the state. I'm hoping for a little extra time to maybe see Mt. Rushmore and visit some of the Sioux reservations.

In addition to scouring the city for office space and living arrangements, we did anywhere from four to seven meetings a day with little sleep in between. We met with pastors, community leaders, businessmen, intercessors, leaders of the Sioux Nation and Republican campaign directors. Three State Senators even attended some of the meetings, and I think there may have been some Representatives in there somewhere. Something big is stirring in South Dakota.

We're excited to have made a connection with the South Dakota Family Policy Council. They're the SD arm of James Dobson's Focus on the Family. We're praying for a closer and continued relationship with Dr. Dobson as Bound 4 Life gets launched in a big way this September in South Dakota. Two people that I had the extreme pleasure of spending several days with were Gabriel Medicine Eagle and his wife Vi. They are amazing people, and I'm humbled to have spent time with them. Gabe is a native pastor among the Sioux people and has done much to plow the way for a massive move of God on the reservations.

Please pray for finances to come to us. In many ways, we're way over our head. But I realize that God wants this more than I do, so my trust is in Him to accomplish everything. Also, please pray for wisdom for our leadership team. We're considering throwing everything we've got at South Dakota. In military terms, it's called "concentration of force." We're pondering what it means for us if we pull people from our bases in DC, Charlotte, Boston and San Francisco all at the same time.

Lord, I pray for open heavens for South Dakota!

Hour of Decision

Sorry I haven't written much in the last week. I know many of you out there check this site often for updates on what we're doing. I haven't abandoned it or lost interest though. I simply haven't had time to put thoughts to page or even the ability to distill what's happening right now. Suffice it to say I've been led supernaturally on a journey to South Dakota. That's right, I'm in South Dakota right now.

In a nutshell, here's what's going on. In February of this year, both the House and Senate of SD passed HB-1215 and Governor Mike Rounds signed it into law. That's the bill that suddenly got the attention of the entire nation because it banned abortion. No, abortion didn't end, but this was designed to make sure that it did anticipating Roe v Wade being overturned in the Supreme Court at some point in the near future. Immediately, pro-choice activist groups decended on these small midwestern towns and mustered a signature petition to have the law put to popular vote on November 7th. So, again, the state is in an hour of decision. It's all about where you stand on the shedding of innocent blood. Law makers have taken a bold stand on this issue and have done their duty. Now the people must decide by showing up at the ballot box in less than four months. Planned Parenthood is currently fund raising on a massive scale and launching an ad campaign designed to sway the masses and specifically to confuse them so that people are unclear on the issue. The item on the ballot will be called "Referred Law 6" and people need to vote "Yes" on it in order to keep the new law on the books.

Now this is an interesting development. As soon as Governor Rounds signed the law, the president of the Sioux Nation made a stunning statement. Cecelia Fire Thunder, their first female president, told the press that she would personally open an abortion clinic on the Sioux reservation in Pine Ridge out of the jurisdiction of the US government. What an incredibly defiant move! What has developed in the aftermath is nationally significant though. On May 31st the Council of Elders convened and moved to suspend Ms. Fire Thunder while impeachment hearings took place. On June 29th the Sioux Nation impeached their president. They released a statement that abortion was not consistent with Sioux values because "life is sacred."

As a ministry The Cause has been in a whirlwind for the last week and half. Divine appointments have opened up. Unexpected invitations have arose. And step by step we have been drawn into South Dakota. Why? Why now? Why us? We have revisited a prophetic word that was released by Chuck Pierce and Dutch Sheets on June 28, 2004 which says this in part:

God is going to use this state very strategically to tear down national strongholds. If we don’t get breakthrough in SD... we don’t get revival in America. SD will become a very conspicuous place... from this place the nation will begin to be legislated. There is something here that has to happen that is going to release the nation, and if we don’t get it here, the nation can’t go into what the Lord wants.

The prophecy goes on to say:

I just decree right now, in Jesus’ name, that the Spirit of God is coming to visit the Native People of this state... There is going to be an outpouring of the Spirit of God that comes to this region, and it is going to flow through all of these reservations... there has been something reserved for those people, and they will rise up and begin to be seen as a people of God, as a blessed people, as a people visited by the very Spirit of the Lord, and there will be a move of God’s Spirit that will be key to what He wants to do in this entire state.

Now c'mon. How do you walk into Pierre, SD and get that? Have you seen Pierre? South Dakota is the poster child for small town America. The local sore point I've discovered here is that Rand McNally actually left South Dakota out of the almanac. When called on it, they said "Well, South Dakota doesn't matter anyway." (A comment they quickly retracted) We believe that God is wanting to fulfill this word right now. I am here with my friend Ferrill Galloway, director for Bound 4 Life, meeting with local pastors and leaders to discuss what God is wanting to do. As a ministry, we are considering sending all of our forces to South Dakota in September for 21 days of 24/7 prayer and fasting. We want to mobilize the entire nation to rally to SD to fight the battles of the Lord. Were dreaming big on this one. What if thousands and thousands hear the call to come to South Dakota? What if they join the South Dakotans here and throw themselves into prayer and fasting with abandon. What if the hearts of this state remain steadfast on the abortion issue and simultaneously a third seat opens up on the Supreme Court? What if President Bush appoints a third conservative judge that becomes the swing vote to overturn Roe v Wade? What if South Dakota then becomes the first state to ban abortion in America and begin to redeem the land? What if the prophetic word is true?

It's worth everything I have to find out.

Print this out. Share it with everyone you know. Begin to pray and mobilize in every circle of influence you have be it big or small. Watch for more info here on my blog and also at www.bound4life.com.

Full Circle

It's pretty cool right now. God has truly blessed me. It began last year when we moved to DC from Colorado. We made a pit stop at our former church in Muncie, IN where I had the opportunity to share a bit about what we're doing. We hadn't been in that church for over eight years. Two days later I received a phone call that one of the young people there had decided to put off college and join us in DC. It was Ali Orewiler. Her and her twin sister Rebekah go way back with Kim and I. We've known them pretty much their entire lives, and they were the flower girls at our wedding when they were four years old. In January, Rebekah decided to postpone school after taking only one semester and join us in DC too. How wonderful it has been to have these amazing young ladies from our previous lives with us again. Now we've been joined by one of our former students from Denver. Sarah Taylor has become a vital part of the community here, and she is proving herself invaluable in so many ways. It's amazing to have these young people from our different stages of life here with us. And now Sarah's younger brother Jared is visiting for three weeks too. Jared is nothing less than a spiritual son to me. He's just finished his sophomore year of high school, and here he is giving up his summer in service to his country and generation. These young people are off the charts. I wish I had half of their zeal when I was their age. I'm honored to be here with them and blessed to have them in my life.

Thank you Ali, Bekah, Sarah and Jared. You make my life rich.

On The Road Again

We're piling in the car for another road trip tomorrow. Our friend and cohort Chuck Mervin is getting married this Saturday at MorningStar which shares our base in Fort Mill, SC. This will make two trips to the Cause base down there in three weeks (can anyone say $3.05 per gallon?). Big plus for this trip though- my close friend of over 20 years, Jeff Eckart, is speaking at a youth camp just outside Greensboro, NC right along our way. What great timing since our whole families haven't been able to get together for over two years. We'll be spending Thursday evening and Friday morning with them and then heading on to Fort Mill about an hour away.

In other news, we had a great family day on Saturday visiting the Smithsonian Air & Space Museum. This is like the coolest place in the world. C'mon Spirit of St. Louis! It's all about long-distance flying.