#PrayFirst

Copyright Max Lucado: http://maxlucado.com/read/blog/an-invitation-to-an-online-prayer-gathering/

A few Sundays ago, my heart swelled with love as Pastor Sam (Daystar Christian Center) took an offering to be sent to Liberia, Sierra Leone and other EVD ravaged countries as aid. I was struck by the empathy and 'Christ-likeness' of the move, and it blew my mind that he had set the target to give $1,000,000.

I gave as much as I could to that cause right away, but I've wanted to do more since then. You probably know how I stopped watching CNN temporarily after James Foley was beheaded. There's Ebola ravaging Liberia, and I teared up yesterday while listening to Johnson Sirleaf's letter to "The World". There's Boko Haram, and the 200+ girls that were kidnapped months ago; for the first time yesterday - I couldn't muster the words to pray for their safe release at a Sunday service. There's the upcoming election in 2015, and the attendant uncertainty. There's the rising gap between the 'haves' and the 'have-nots' in Nigeria and indeed around the world. There's the many natural disasters happening right, left, and center.

What then is a brother to do?

PRAY.

Today, I'm grateful for a chance to join Max Lucado's "Pray First", and I ask that you join too; if you can. You do not necessarily have to stream. Just ensure to raise your voice in prayer to God starting 12.00am tonight, for at least 30 minutes.

And then when we're done praying, let's do.

Do. Volunteer. Give. Help out in anyway you can.

Remember, we are the world.

"We are unaccustomed to such images: Health workers clad in head-to-toe protective gear. Emergency response teams loading and unloading patients into awaiting ambulances. A journalist kneeling in the desert wearing an orange jump suit and somber face. Standing over him, a man in a mask wielding a blade; then using it to do the unthinkable.

Ebola. ISIS. World plague? Barbarism?

Are we living in a science fiction novel? Parents want to protect their kids. Hospitals want to help the sick. The world seems on edge. We feel helpless. Is there anything we can do? Absolutely!

It is time for us to pray. Here is my idea: PrayFirst- an Online Prayer Gathering, livestreamed on Monday, October 20, from 6:00 to 6:30 pm CST. (This is 12.00am October 21, Nigerian time) We will join our hearts and ask God to help us. Can you join us for prayer? Can you help get the word out? Ask your church to announce it. Use your social media outlets. Tell your friends. Share the link below and #prayfirst. We really need help. We really need to pray." - Max Lucado.