Les Greaser has experienced firsthand the power of prayer. He heard his parents’ petitions and ultimately saw them answered as he grew from a challenging child into a man of God. He specifically remembers his mom praying for him when she didn’t know what else to do.
“I’d hate it when mom went to talk to God about me,” shared Greaser, who now pastors Kent Christian Church in Washington state. “I’d rather she just whip me.”
Prayer can redirect the heart of a wayward child or right the course of an off-track nation, and it’s at the core of the ongoing Decision America Tour, which is scheduled to stop in the Northwest this week.
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In anticipation of Franklin Graham’s June 29 prayer rally in Olympia, Washington, Greaser and members of his church were among the more than 200 who attended the Church Awakening Statewide Prayer Gathering.
“It was our sins that have gotten us into this predicament.”
The day of prayer was held in late May in the legislative building in Olympia, and people came by the busload to lift up their state, the nation and the upcoming Decision America Tour stop.
“I don’t know how to put it into words. I felt like we had the ear of heaven,” said Alec Rowlands, who pastors Westgate Chapel and started the Church Awakening group in 2004.
“This felt hope-filled, and I can’t explain why other than the Holy Spirit was in fact encouraging a genuine spirit of intercession.”
There was a spirit of urgency, Rowlands said, explaining prayer began anew every hour after a short time of a capella worship.
“It was more like Ezra 9 praying with people saying, ‘How can we lift our faces toward You? We’re ashamed.’ No one was pointing any fingers. It was our sins that have gotten us into this predicament,” Rowlands said. “A very genuine spirit of repentance prevailed all day.”
Perry Puppe, a 72-year-old retiree who attends Kent Christian Church, attended the day of prayer and said he could sense the presence of the Holy Spirit as people lifted up petitions to God.
“We’re looking for God to forgive us, the United States of America, from turning from Him and bring us back to His protection and guidance,” said Perry, who served in the Army in the early 1960s. “I love this country. I was born here, and I want to see God back in charge again.
“What we’re praying for also is a revival, and we know it’s coming,” Perry added. “We’re standing on God’s Word. There’s going to be a great revival. We can just feel it.”
“But our hope is in the Lord, not necessarily what we see.”
Rowlands said one of the trademarks of the Northwest is its unchurched population.
He had a fellow pastor once tell him, “I don’t know that I’d want to pastor in this area.” Rowlands recalled him saying, “Let me pastor where there are drug addicts on the sidewalk outside the church, and they know they need the Lord. Nobody around here seems to know they need the Lord.”
While there is certainly answered prayer inside the church walls, Rowlands said progress outside of the church is slower.
“We’ve not seen anything move in this state yet,” Rowlands said. “As a matter of fact, things have gone in the opposite direction. We were one of the first states to legalize marijuana. We were one of the first states to strike down the defense of marriage act, and so there’s not a lot of hope. But our hope is in the Lord, not necessarily what we see.”
The Decision America Tour stop is an opportunity for people to join together and cry out to God. Ken Ramey, field representative for the Washington Decision America Tour stop, is so excited about the upcoming prayer rally, he can’t help but tell everybody about it. Just the other day, he walked into a coffee shop and struck up a conversation with a group of gentlemen who were chatting in a circle.
He invited them to the rally, noting simply, “You all ought to come if you care about America.”
“You all ought to come if you care about America.”
Prayer is the only hope, echoed Greaser, who added he is thankful Franklin Graham is holding prayer rallies in all 50 state capitols this year.
“I’ve often said we quote 2 Chronicles 7:14, but we don’t do it, and I believe he’s doing it,” Greaser said. “I believe that ultimately the church on its knees and changing the hearts of men is the only thing that’s going to save us.”
