The Church in the United States is confronting challenges of greater magnitude than it has ever faced before. Many nations around the world wonder if they are actually witnessing the world's greatest known superpower crumble from within. The fear and trepidation is global. We also hear the dismal cry of disillusioned Americans: "How could things have gone so wrong so quickly?" Luke 21:26 continues to unfold in our generation: "Men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken."
The reality is a destructive landslide of secular and anti-Christ forces has been reigning over contemporary American society for decades. According to recent studies, fewer people identify themselves as Christians than ever before in our history. The allegiance of contemporary American society has slowly shifted from a covenant-keeping God toward a secular mindset, causing a tragic erosion of divine favor over our nation. In light of the godly origins and heritage of this country, this is a disturbing revelation indeed.
Can a nation whose motto has been 'In God We Trust' now reject its foundation without a qualm? Has its conscience been seared beyond the ability to recognize its true fallen state? Will the United States suffer the same fate as many of the once godly but now thoroughly secularized societies throughout Europe and the rest of the world? This constitutes a state of emergency for the Church!
But there is good news: In light of the present crisis, Americans are turning to Jesus for shelter from the storm. When the enemy comes in, like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord raises a standard against him (Isa 59:19). I can see with my spiritual eyes a divine standard rising over this nation. I cannot add my voice to the doom-sayers of our day, yet I issue a sober warning in the words of Jesus, as recorded by John the beloved: I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work (John 9:4, emphasis added). These words have never been truer! The fields are white and ready for harvest (John 4:35). As we are faithful to lift Him up, He is faithful to draw all men to Himself. It's harvest time in America!
But before we go any further, I must pose a question: What level of impact has the local church had upon her community? Are we making a significant difference today? Are we truly salt and light as the Bible declares we should be? The impact of the Church must be deep enough to transform a culture and win a generation to Christ. Every member is required to be mobilized—functioning within his or her unique gifting—and prepared to produce a significant impact on our society. When we mobilize the Church around God's eternal purpose, His grace is released and the harvest is the inevitable outcome!
The urgency of the hour demands a fire baptized people set ablaze for Christ who know how to effectively engage the enemy in spiritual warfare on every front. They know that the anointed presentation of the gospel within and without the four walls of the church is the only weapon that can strike a deathblow to the kingdom of darkness in this hour. In these uncertain times, we must do more than come against the devil with a feather of good intentions. We must violently storm his gates. We must confront sin, fear, lust, religious bondage and unbelief with radical spiritual force. The result will be radical change, and it's all within our grasp.
As the kingdom of God advances in our ranks, we will retrieve a vast spoil of humanity presently under satanic control. We will literally snatch them out of the gates of hell, one by one if we have to! Hell is too hot and eternity is too long for us to sit and sour in the Church while those in the world are dying in their sins and crying for an answer!
Let us seed, plead and bleed before we see one sinner perish eternally and go to hell. If one is going to cross over into the gates of hell, it ought to be over our dead bodies. No hell-bent sinner should end up there without a fight for his or her soul on the battlefield of intercession. This is why I'm proposing what I call an "Impact Now" Campaign here at Upper Room!
I.M.P.A.C.T. NOW is an acronym meaning I MUST PRODUCE A CULTURAL TRANSFORMATION…NOW! I believe that all facets of our ministry must be engaged in this pursuit. I recently received a fantastic report from one of the many components of our I.M.P.A.C.T. NOW campaign. This report so stirred me that I must share it with you now; I can't wait!
Our Evangelistic and Drama I.M.P.A.C.T. TEAMS are seeing an incredible response to the If I Die Before I Wake performances on Friday nights. Not only is our sanctuary filled with hundreds of people who are traveling by busloads from our local communities, but on Friday, February 27, 2009, something extraordinary happened. Four hundred young people flooded the aisles and came to our altar, answering the call to make Jesus Christ their Lord and Savior!
I spoke to Pastor Nick D'Onofrio, who witnessed this event and was equally excited. He told me it reminded him of our younger days during the "Jesus Movement" back in the '70s. He said that as he stood in the back of the sanctuary, he saw groups of fifteen, sixteen and seventeen year olds consistently coming into the sanctuary looking for seats before the show. Instead of gathering to go to a club, going out drinking, or looking for drugs or some other kind of trouble, they were coming together to the house of God!
My son, Regan, gave the altar call that Friday night. He explained to me that he had never seen what happened in front of that platform before in his life. Regan told them that he had experienced personal pain in his life and knew what it was to be searching for an answer. He felt an urgency as he said to them the following: "It's not in getting high, smoking, drinking, or dancing in a club. The answer is Jesus." I was told that those who responded to Regan's prayer came running to the altar in droves. This type of a response stirs my spirit!
He went on to say, "With those in the world as desperate as they are, the Church must be ready to receive them. They're not going to come in looking like us, smelling like us or talking like us. But God loves them just as they are—just like God loves us. The Church has to embrace this hunger. This new generation of young people is un-churched, and needs to be taught and trained to share what they have received. These are the hungry ones out in the world who are being magnetically drawn by a limitless love that knows no boundaries."
I had the opportunity to speak to two of the heads of our Drama Ministry, Dominick Bonanno and Pastor Teresa Nunziante. Of the recent performances, Teresa said, "The first Friday we had about 400 people show up and we were blessed; that night 150 were saved and that was even more of a blessing. The second week, there were about 600 in the audience and about 250 came to Christ. The third Friday came and we were overwhelmed to see about 1,200 people had come to the production. The altar call that night was filled with people hungry to receive Christ. When week four came (February 27), we saw over 1,500 people in the sanctuary, and words couldn't describe the feeling. Seeing over 450 at the altar was the greatest blessing of all." This increase is nothing less than the working of Almighty God honoring the ministry of an evangelist.
Dominick spoke about this phenomenon as well: "People all over the room lifted their hands in the air and accepted the call of salvation. As they made their way to the altar and I watched people pray to receive Jesus as their Lord and Savior, I couldn't help but well up with emotion at the witness of God's faithfulness once again. It wasn't a success because it was a great show, but because God was able to move through a group of people working in unity. The cast yielded their lives and gifts to the cause of bringing the Gospel message to people desperate for an answer."
Hearing about these If I Die performances has sparked me to make a strategic decision. Since God is clearly troubling the waters for the salvation of souls at Upper Room, I feel impressed of the Lord to extend these performances indefinitely.
The many talents and abilities of those in the cast of If I Die have been graciously made available to our loved ones, families, friends, neighbors and communities. Like the loaves and fishes, God is using what they have in their hands. But you have a part to play as well. I encourage you to get tickets and invite everyone you know to these Friday night 7:30 pm performances. This is an evangelistic tool that can change lives forever. There is a harvest. They are hungry. They are waiting. We are on assignment. Let's I.M.P.A.C.T. our community—NOW!
