Sunday Inspiration: Walk Across America
Wow! I had another extraordinary week with lots of amazing things happening. Let me share a few that are closely interrelated.
On Tues morning Aug 27 I received an out-of-the-blue phone call from Georgia Fauber, a good friend who lives about 2.5 hours from me by car. I hadn’t spoken to Georgia for several months.
Georgia told me about Jim Buckley, a 71 year old pastor who had walked across America from California to Virginia and was now headed up to New York City. She told me Jim would be marching through Culpeper later that day and would probably stay overnight here. Glenda, Jim’s wife, had been driving an RV alongside Jim for the entire trip.
As I learned more, I knew I had to meet with Jim and Glenda to welcome them to Culpeper, thank them for coming, and hear their story. My schedule was quite full that day, but I managed to carve out about an hour to meet with them for dinner in Culpeper that evening. Virginia Morton, author of Marching Through Culpeper, joined us.
What a treat that conversation was. Jim shared his story about going to Utah about 6 months ago to visit his son, who is planting a church there. Jim said he loves to walk and while walking 8 miles one morning in Utah, he heard the LORD say, “I want you to go on a long walk.” When Jim asked if he was to walk across Utah, he heard in a quiet, still voice “No, I want you to walk across America.”
Why walk across America?
According to Jim, “I’m walking across America, INVITING AMERICA HOME, touching hearts and homes, one home at a time.” Homes in America are troubled with abuse, addictions, loneliness, immorality, anger, and more. We minister to people in troubled homes, which are sometimes good homes. I am walking across America because homes need hope.
Inviting America Home
After meeting with Jim, I heard in my spirit to make “Walk Across America” be the title of my Sunday Inspiration on Sept 1.
This morning I chose to go to the early worship service at Mountain View Community Church with my wife. I nearly didn’t go because I wanted to send out my Sunday Inspiration before driving to Massanutten for a family get together. However, I decided I would send this message late tonight after getting back home.
It turned out that I happened to sit right behind Josh and Maddison Hicks without knowing it was them. This was the first time I had seen them at this church and the first time I had seen Maddison since she played the lead role in the Marching Through Culpeper Stage Production in August 2012. After the worship service, Maddison told me she decided to play the “Fruit of the Spirit” CD I gave her more than a year ago for the first time at the worship service at St Luke’s School in Culpeper on Fri Aug 30. And then Maddison told me about all the positive things that have come from that. It was amazing to hear about the good fruit of a seed planted more than a year ago that I completely forgot about.
“My Love Will Never Die” From “Marching Through Culpeper”
Today was the first day Pastor Mark Jenkins was back preaching after a 5-week sabbatical. Mark began a new series titled “My Hope America with Billy Graham.” Mark’s message was outstanding. He shared that the first step to bringing hope back to America is to pray intentionally for those in our sphere of of influence who do not know Jesus as their LORD and Savior.
Mark closed his message by showing an 8 minute video testimony of Danny Velasco. This was an amazing story of the power of prayer to set someone free from long standing addictions and poor choices.
Blessings to be a beacon of hope and light in your sphere of influence!
Joseph
P.S. Opportunities are often disguised as problems. Don’t miss an opportunity because it’s dressed in a misleading costume and is looking like a problem.” – David Jeremiah (Signs of Life book)
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More blessings
Ebenezers® is a first class, fully operational coffeehouse that seeks to serve the community on Capitol Hill in Wash DC. It is the most popular coffeehouse in the greater DC area. The idea for Ebenezers® was birthed one day as Pastor Mark Batterson was walking past the building and the LORD told him, “I want you to turn that “crack house” into a coffee house.”
3) I challenge each of you to start keeping a Gratitude Journal. Before going to bed each night, write down 5 things you are grateful for.
4) My house shall be called a house of prayer by Pastor Jim Cymbala
5) Tuesday Night Prayer Meeting At The Brooklyn Tabernacle
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