Reconciliation
Part 1

By Karin Paparelli

Hundreds of church and ministry leaders gathered in Austin, Texas for the "Church without Walls Leadership Conference" this September. The conference was hosted by Tom Pelton, president and founder of March for Jesus USA. As the March for Jesus organizer for Suffolk County, I was invited to attend. I expected to learn more about organizing our local march for next year, but God had another agenda: Building the Kingdom!

The anointed worship services were led by England's Noel Richards who is well known in the UK for his contemporary Christian music. Eleven years ago, Noel had a vision to see Wembley Stadium filled with Christians praising God after seeing a Queen concert and people chanting "We are the champions of the world...". This past June, Noel's vision became a reality as more than 40,000 people in that same stadium lifted the name of the Lord on high at a concert appropriately entitled "Champion of the World".

There were several prominent Christian speakers at the conference including Cindy Jacobs who spoke on gender reconciliation and unity in the body. Ted Haggart offered his experience and understanding of praying for the 10/40 window through strategic level spiritual warfare. Bishop Wellington Boone emphasized preparing the church as the bride of Christ and Steve Hawthorne explained how we can take back our country for God through PrayerWalking.

Among the other march leaders attending the conference were representatives from Canada, Latin America and the international office in London. Each one offered testimony about what God was doing in their part of the world. In El Salvador for example, the Gospel has been in this country for over 100 years and no president has ever attended a prayer meeting or march. The current president, after initially refusing to attend, was shown a video clip by a Christian aide and could not believe that this was happening in his country. He had never heard of March for Jesus but he was so moved that he immediately ordered all people to give full attention to the march. The president went to the prayer rally with the full house of representatives and all the court judges. The following day, there was no mention of the march in the local newspapers so the president personally wrote a press release and told how it was a work of God.

March for Jesus USA decided to unite North and South American march organizers to pray for one another. Suffolk County's prayer partner is Pastor Fernando Castillo of Venezuela. Pastor Fernando led a march through Caracas of about 70,000 people which is about 10,000 more Christians than the census figures claim live in that city. Please pray for him, his family and his church as they seek to build God's Kingdom. They currently have a prayer request for approximately one thousand dollars to replace equipment which was damaged in the rain during their march.

During the conference, the Lord imparted his plan for bringing in the great harvest and preparing his bride the church. There was a sense of urgency and not a single moment was wasted. In five days he spoke to his people through visions, prophecies and prayer. Even the time spent in between sessions was filled with revelation. Many times as we worshiped together, we were humbled and wept for our nation. I believe many, if not all, have gone back to their communities with a new fire to share the vision that God has revealed. The Lord is preparing to pour out his spirit upon us, but there are a few things that we need to do first. Top on the list is reconciliation.

Reconciliation: "All this is from God who reconciled himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation." (2 Cor 5:18-20). The apostle Paul implores us to be reconciled to God through Christ and to spread that message to all and the Lord Jesus Christ commands us to be reconciled to one another. "Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift." Matthew 5:23-24.

Many churches and ministries have been seeking reconciliation. This is not a new idea, but we are not finished yet. Not until every church member has reconciled himself to God and others. I believe Long Islanders have fallen short in our efforts to reconcile and forgive each other. We need to reach across generations and gender, races and denominations. God has also revealed the need for us to reconcile with our Native American brothers and sisters and ask forgiveness for the injustices of our forefathers. It is our responsibility now, because God will not use us until this is done. He is calling His church to unite as one church, the church of Jesus Christ. Time is short. Every one of us needs to be free from unforgiveness, whether it be toward one person or an entire race, gender or generation. Shepherds, I urge you, it is not enough that the church be reconciled but each sheep must also be reconciled to one another.

God is calling us into a new place that He has prepared for us. He has given us the plan, this is only the first step. Will you take this first step? Has someone wronged you? Go and make peace with your brother or sister. Forgive as the Lord has forgiven you. God is getting us ready to be used for his purposes. Will he use you? Will you prepare and let him? Let us embrace together what the Lord is calling us to do. Here's how to start:

1) Pray for the holy spirit to bring to mind any unforgiveness and then bring it to the Lord and repent of it.

2) Go to that person(s) and ask for their forgiveness and offer yours.

3) Pray for blessings for that person(s).

4) Thank the Lord for what he has done for you and for what He is going to do.

God bless you and may you walk in His grace.

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