OctoberFast:
A Glance Back with Face Forward
During the days of October 14 through November 3, 2002, thousands of local Christians responded to an invitation to 21 days of prayer and fasting for Lancaster County.

Off And Running
From initial conception to final celebration, OctoberFast came off very well. God dropped the idea into the laps of the Executive Team of the Regional Church of Lancaster County through the hands of Pastor Sam Smucker (who was simply sharing a prayer initiative that God had given him for his own congregation at the Worship Center). The Executive Team brought it to the Regional Leadership Council, and they warmed to it right away, Wayne Kaufman (pastor of Gates of Praise Ministries in Leola) moved quickly to seek God and prepare our 21-day prayer list. Kevin Eshleman, Dan Snyder and others on the staff at LYNC (Lancaster Youth Network of Churches---formerly Lancaster Youth For Christ), with several volunteers from Teaching The Word Ministries, helped Regional Church executive director Mark Ammerman strategize and get a mailing up and out to 685 area pastors, inviting them to join in this 21 day period of fasting and prayer. Many Council members were helpful in the process throughout.

Christian Radio Partnership
WJTL and WDAC were open-hearted and open-armed in partnership with us (and each other) in promoting this prayer initiative. John Shirk at WJTL and John Eby and Greg Barton at WDAC were a great help. Greg Barton recorded an in-house interview with Mark and promoted the OctoberFast ahead of time. John Shirk adapted our 21-day prayer list and recorded each item on CD for WDAC to air on their station (while John and his DJs read his text live throughout each day on WJTL. These prayers ran daily throughout the 21 days. Both stations also announced the Celebrations at the end of OctoberFast. It was a truly heartening bit of cooperation that I am sure was an encouragement to all who were aware of it, and it served to bring the prayer concerns to a multiplied listening audience of potential intercessors.

A "Fast" Response
In the initial weeks of the OctoberFast, I received phone calls and e-mails from several area Christians (pastors, leaders and others) who were expressing their commitment to join in the fast. Immediately following the first news items on WDAC, I had a phone call from a women truck driver in Chester County (calling from her cell phone in her truck!), wanting to know how she could mobilize Chester County churches to pray for Lancaster during the 21 days. During the early days of the Fast, I found out that God had moved upon some of our neighboring counties to pray in a similar manner to the initiative we were undertaking (totally apart from any news of our plans). Even nationally, an extended period of prayer had been organized (essentially for the sake of the elections).

Whole Congregations Sign Up and Climb On
Churches and ministries who specifically contacted me about joining in the fast are: The Worship Center, In The Light Ministries, DOVE Ephrata/Lititz , Lancaster Evangelical Free, Marietta Community Chapel, Petra Christian Fellowship, Ephrata Community Church (with the pastors and leaders associated with HarvestNet and Covenant Community Church in Centerville), ACTS Covenant Fellowship, Teaching The Word Ministries, New Life Assembly of God, Erb's Mennonite in Lititz/Manheim, Grace Community Church of Willow Street, Living Hope Community Church, Lititz Christian, Wayne Kaufman’s house church, and Sunnyside Mennonite Church. Many other leaders and churches represented on the Regional Council also were involved. Add to that various pastors and leaders (with or without their congregations) who contacted us because of our mailing---and untold numbers of individual Christians who heard about the fast via radio.

The Math
I would venture to say that 5,000 area Christians participated in OctoberFast with some regularity, and that thousands more joined in periodic prayer while listening to the daily prayer concerns on WJTL and WDAC.

God Answers Prayer!
Some of the dynamics that we were able to gauge during this 21 day season of fasting and prayer are:
• It rained! God visited us with a season of desperately need rainfall, raising the water table, soaking the earth, ending the drought. And the rain continues. Some among us see this as a natural manifestation of what God is doing in the spiritual (and will continue to do) in answer to prayer.
• A greater number of the unsaved attended church
• A greater number of conversions took place (in one Lancaster City congregation, 40 people surrendered their lives to the Lord in the last two weeks of OctoberFast).
• A large number of leaders and congregants who committed themselves to fast and pray have given testimony to heightened spiritual awareness, deeper walks with God, renewed vision, and a transformed perspective in their Christian life.
• Medically-verified miraculous physical healing
• Marriages transformed and relationships strengthened
• Increased attendance at school
• Increased corporate prayer
• Increased seeking of God in established prayer groups (a putting aside of agenda-oriented prayer in favor of drawing near to God himself)
• New ministries birthed
• Youth impacted by participation in OctoberFast (one congregation’s youth group turned off their TV’s and videogame boxes for the whole three weeks, setting a very practical standard in their lives for a disciplined walk with God)
• A heart for unity as congregations excitedly embraced this initiative with the knowledge that they were praying with thousands of other Christians about things that would effect the life of the entire county
• A sense of God’s presence and pleasure during the time
• A sense of a very real spiritual war (many who pray and fast on a regular basis found it actually difficult to enter the fast at first, and they continued to experience spiritual opposition from the enemy. This caused them to press on with even more faith, assured that they were going to be tearing down some significant Satanic strongholds.)
• Seasoned and long-time Christians answering altar calls and experiencing breakthrough in areas that have been “old stuff” in their lives for a long, long time

The Finish Line?
Participation in our FastEnd celebrations and prayer was also significant.
• At The Worship Center, around 500 Christians gathered, with a large number from New Life Assembly of God. A “Concert of Prayer” was held in which the people prayed and worshiped in a program centered around the Hebrew “names of God”. It was a vibrant, “high energy” evening in which the testimony of the “sweet presence of the Lord” was strong.
• At In The Light Ministries in Lancaster City, 200 people gathered for worship and prayer. Rather than continue to lift up the concerns listed in the 21-day prayer list, the congregation praised its way through the list, thanking God for hearing their prayers over the past 3 weeks. Then In The Light’s pastor Phil Hernandez, with nearly 75 of the people present for the fast-end celebration, went together over to Pastor Tommy Stoudt’s church (Victory Church) to “continue the party” as Victory Church celebrated a congregational anniversary.
• At Marietta Community Chapel, around 40 Christians from several congregations met for nearly two hours for worship (led by a team made up of Christians from various churches), testimony and theme-based, small-group prayer. There were pastors from at least three congregations present.
• At DOVE Ephrata/Lititz there were around 75 people present, principally from the DOVE congregation and from Ephrata Community Church. In spite of the small turnout (DOVE had meetings all that weekend with a special concert, and so many stayed home that night just for a break!), they reported a tremendous time of prayer. The sense of unity was strong, the prayers never lagged, and they went a half hour over what they had aimed for. Upon closing, one young man felt the group should pray for all pastors present, and so they did.
• At Petra Christian Fellowship, around 90 people attended. It was a good evening of prayer, with worship led by one of the leaders of TBS (Tuesday Night Bible Study, the weekly gathering of Lancaster County youth that currently attracts around 500 young people for worship, prayer and practical biblical admonition). Pastor Lester Zimmerman had prayer stations in the sanctuary for people to walk around the room and pray for various concerns. In closing, five prayer leaders led the congregation in prayer for several different themes of our County. They reported a clear sense of God’s presence with them.

We Ain't Seen Nothin' Yet
In the little that we have reported here (gathered by the eyes and ears of a relatively small number of Lancaster County Christian leaders), we see God’s hand upon us in this season in a mighty way. This brief testimony of our Father's faithfulness leads to some very important questions:
• How much more has He presently done for us (exceedingly abundantly above what we have asked or conceived) during these 21 days of seeking His face? How much greater is the actual present testimony (if we could but gather all the “intelligence”)?
• How much more will we see in the days ahead?
• How much is dependent upon our continued prayers?
• What does God desire to do in our County?

Can we believe God for the unity for which Jesus prayed?
Can we believe him for the salvation of the lost?
Can we believe him for the transformation of our region as He forgives our sins and heals our land?

Hand To The Plow
Let’s press on, hand to the plow (that’s one biblical image that Lancaster County can well understand!)

Thank you all for your partnership in this blessed season of prayer.
Let’s continue to pray for rain from heaven. Rain for the land. Rain for the church. And rain for the unsaved souls of our friends, family and neighbors all around
Start a congregational prayer meeting (if you don't have one already). Join a small prayer group. Find yourself a prayer partner. Continue to ask God to move in our region. Join us in praying through our current THRONE OF GRACE prayer guide as part of a 52-week chain of prayer and fasting for Lancaster County (from the National Day of Prayer 2003 to the National Day of Prayer 2004).

365 Days of Prayer and Fasting in 2003!
Erb's Mennonite Church in Lititz/Manheim was so inspired by their involvement in OctoberFast that they have committed to fast and pray every day of the coming New Year!
Of course, not every member will be fasting every day! But they have developed a prayer strategy that includes a monthly theme with daily concerns, and members are signing up for particular days. In this way, someone is praying every day for the entire year, not only for the region but for the particular needs and ministries of their church body. What a wonderful way to engage the church family in united prayer. We trust that God is hearing their prayers and richly blessing them as they seek His face.
Erb's Mennonite also adopted a week in the Regional Church's current THRONE OF GRACE fasting and prayer initiative.

That's the report so far!

Sincerely yours in the Work and the Word

Your brother,

Mark Ammerman
Executive Director of the Regional Church of Lancaster County

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