Attracting the Ruwach of God

At the end of the Souly Business retreat I received a note from a young man named Jason. Jason was one of the first men I met at the retreat and he was the one who volunteered to carry my bags to the cabin. Over the course of the next few days I would bump into him several times. He would always smile and ask how I was doing, it seemed as if there was some sort of connection going but I couldn’t quite figure it out. Later on I found out that there was indeed a spiritual connection, as Jason was the one assigned to pray for me that weekend. The written note indicated that in his prayers he was asking the Father to touch me with the Holy Spirit and to breathe fresh life into my soul. Each man that attended the Souly retreat for the first time had a “Jason” interceding for him as well.

What was the source of the spiritual miracles experienced that weekend? Prayer. Not only was every first time camper assigned a prayer partner, but also every hour of the retreat was covered in prayer. It was touching to look over the list of names inserted into each prayer slot, especially the 12 AM to 6 AM ones. We also learned each speaker was prayed over for 30 minutes before speaking and again 30 minutes after as well. Talk about a prayed over group and a room saturated in prayer! No wonder the words articulated transformed hearts and lives!

These prayers, coming from humble servants totally depending on God, attracted the “Ruwach” of God. The Hebrew word Ruwach means the wind, the breath, the power, the very life of God, which comes to us through the Holy Spirit. Prayers birthed out of broken hearts desperate for God will pave the way for a mighty Ruwach of God to revive His people as promised in 2 Chronicles 7:14:

If my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.

I praise God for Jason as well as the leaders of Souly whose humble prayers attracted the Ruwach of God to breathe fresh life into my life as well as so many others that weekend. What is encouraging to me is that this type of prayer is happening all over the world as well. Last week my friend Ray Haakonsen living in South Africa sent several links to a National Day of Prayer event on April 22 called It’s Time. Over a million people gathered on a farm for a day of prayer for their troubled nation. At the very end of the prayer time a powerful Ruwach blew through the crowds, a sign of God hearing the prayers of His people. Don’t just take my word for it, go ahead and look it up for yourself.

How our churches need the Ruwach of God to revive us from our lethargy and lukewarm spirit that has led to a nation also in crisis. On May 4 we are called to pray for our nation during the National Day of Prayer. It is undeniable that humble, desperate prayer attracts the Spirit of God as evidenced through Souly Business and what took place a few weeks ago in South Africa. Oh may the Spirit of Christ awaken believers in our nation and beyond as we too cry out for a mighty wind of His Spirit to breath life into “dry bones” desperately in need of a spiritual awakening.