40 Day Summer of Hope Challenge
My dear McCully Ward ‘Ohana, Aloha
What a wonderful opportunity it is today for us to gather, united together under the roof of this historic Honolulu Tabernacle building, in humble supplication, prayer, and fasting to our Eternal and Loving Heavenly Father on the behalf of those who are afflicted and suffering with spiritual, emotional, mental, and physical infirmities. We also recognize those who could not be here physically due to scheduling conflicts, but who, from wherever they may be, are joining us this day to fast for those who may be in need. Thank you all for showing your faith by being here in person or in spirit.
We know that where two or three are gathered in His name, there He will be also. We recognize and acknowledge the spirit that is present at this time, and invite that spirit to accept, seal, and consecrate our fast this evening.
A few weeks back, we put out a McCully Ward prayer roll, asking members to submit names of individuals that may need prayers on their behalf. We have had a pretty good turnout and we would like to share the names of those who wanted it to be public with you all so we can all fast and pray on their behalf. Here are some of the names that we would like to pray and fast for this week.
As we fast and pray as a ward family for these individuals, our hearts will be softened toward our brothers and sisters and we will draw closer to our Savior.
Along with our fasting and prayer, we wanted to introduce our Summer Challenge. We are calling it our 40 Day Summer of Hope. For our summer challenge, we wanted to pray for those on our McCully Ward Prayer Roll daily for 40 days. Can I challenge all of us in the McCully Ward to accept this call? We will update the names on the prayer roll for you weekly and post it on the website. Those names that request to be private, will stay private. We challenge all to pray for these names daily for 40 days (until July 1st) either individually (by name), or to pray for them as a group (those whose names lie in our McCully Ward Prayer Roll).
We chose 40 days for a very specific and spiritual reason. Have you ever noticed how the number 40 frequently appears in the Bible? I don't believe it's just a random number. It repeats itself often in the Old and New Testament. Let’s recount a few of them:
Spiritual/Literal Purification
Noah. It rained for 40 days and 40 nights. We had some rain recently, but nothing like in Noah’s time. It said that the rain covered the earth higher than the highest mountains. All were destroyed except the animals and the 8 that were safe and dry on the Ark. This wasn't just a catastrophic flood sent by an angry God. It represented more.
Spiritual Rebirth
Moses. When Moses was on Mount Sinai, he entered as a lowly shepherd. After being with the Lord for 40 days and nights, Moses returned as the Lord’s anointed. He transformed into the law giver and the leader of God's promised people.
Spiritual Strengthening
Jesus Christ. After being baptized by John, Jesus went into the wilderness to be tested and to fast for 40 days. He was tempted by Satan. This experience helped him to prepare for his ministry and to fulfill his purpose on the earth. When Jesus died, all hope of redemption to his little group of followers, died with him. But we know that after 3 days, Jesus was resurrected and hope was restored. When Jesus was resurrected, he was on the earth for 40 days teaching and showing himself to believers. Why did He do this? To strengthen his followers’ faith and to teach them to have no fear of death, for He has overcome sin and death. 1 Corinthians 15:55 O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?
Patience and Reliance on God
Children of Israel. The people of Israel were in the desert for 40 years before they could enter the promised land. Why? There are so many reasons, but a few of the reasons I would like to point out is that they needed to learn patience and to rely on God for their needs. We live in an age where we have information at our fingertips and every question on our minds can be easily answered in just a few seconds which sometimes can lead us to rely less and less on prayer to our Heavenly father. We can learn so much about patience and dependance on our creator from this story in the bible.
Repentance, Revival, and God’s Grace
Jonah. Most people, when they hear the name Jonah, they think of the whale or the great fish as the bible puts it, but the story of Jonah is so much more than that. Being swallowed by the fish is actually only a few verses. It tells the story of a prophet of God, doing the exact opposite of what God had commanded him. He was to go to Nineveh and cry repentance unto that city, and if they do not turn from their wicked ways, God would destroy that city in 40 days. Miracles of miracles happened and in 40 days, the King and all the people of Nineveh repented in sackcloth and ashes and fasted and prayed for mercy and God did just that. God granted them mercy and did not destroy the people of Nineveh.
Now, what would have happened if in any of these instances, the person or the people, would have just given up. What would have happened if on day 37, 38, or 39, Jesus would have given in to the temptations, or Noah would have lost his faith in the Lord, or Moses said “okay, this is too much for me to handle”, or the people of Nineveh would have gone back to their sinful ways. Would they have received the blessings promised? How many more times do you think God has given his people chances and right before the promised blessings are realized, we fall short and return to our old ways like “The dog is turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire” (2 Peter 2:22).
Don't give up Hope. There are times in our lives that we want to just give up. Hold on. You will receive the blessings. Things will get better. The clouds will clear. You will feel His love for you again. Just hold on.
I challenge all of us to take this 40 Day Summer of Hope challenge to heart. As we pray for those in need, we will find the promises of the bible to be true. Just like those who endured those 40 days of trial, we will see blessings of Spiritual purification (Noah), Spiritual Rebirth (Moses), Spiritual Strength (Jesus), Patience (Israel), and God’s Grace (Jonah) in our lives is our promise to you. In the sacred name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
With Faith, Hope & Aloha,
Your McCully Ward Bishopric
5/23/2024