September 26: Day of Repentance and a Return to the Lord
Dear brothers and sisters,
As the Body of Christ, we are called not just to imitate Christ, but to join in His work of redemption in the world. Part of this is acknowledging our own sin which not only hurts us and those immediately around us, but that also prevents the light of Christ from shining as purely and brilliantly to the world in our words and deeds. God calls us to “be holy as I am holy” (1 Peter 1:16) and to evangelize and make disciples (Matt 28:19). Are we giving a clear witness of the holiness of God, of how God’s people should cherish and honor the Holy Spirit who dwells within us? Is our primary hope when interacting with others to see them in heaven?
This Saturday there are two opportunities at the National Mall in Washington, D.C. to repent as a body of believers and to let our light shine. One event, The Return, is from 9am-9pm and has as its primary focus the issue of repentance (to repent for the Church, the country, and the nations) and is followed later in the evening with prayer and worship. The second event is a Prayer March led by Franklin Graham from 12pm-2pm will start at the Lincoln Memorial and progress past several memorials to stop and pray for specific intentions on its way to the U.S. Capitol. Specific details can be found below.
There are livestream options for those who cannot be there in person (see details below), but if you are able to participate in one or both to some extent in person, we encourage that. For those that will go in person to at least part of one or both events, it would be nice to go as a group.
GROUP PLAN #1: MEET AT THE SHADY GROVE METRO AT 10:00 AM
Angelica and I will be planning on arriving in D.C. sometime around 11:00 am and will join first in the Prayer March that starts at noon. The march should pass The Return event further down the mall. After the Prayer March (should end around 2pm), we will join in with The Return.
We will take the metro from the Shady Grove Station to the Smithsonian Station (which is right next to where The Return event occurs) and then walk to the Lincoln Memorial. We will leave the Shady Grove station by 10:00 am, so if you would like to join us, please arrive at the Shady Grove metro by 9:50 am. We also suggest charging your SmartTrip metro pass before hand which you can do online.
If you want to travel with us, please text us at 301-461-6385 to let us know your name and anyone else coming with you so that we can be on the lookout for you before we embark. If you live closer to D.C. and would like to meet us at the event, please text the same number to let us know and we will try to let you know where we are so that we can try to find you.
If there is another group of people who will be going at another time (earlier or later), we will post that information here so that you can join them.
SPECIFIC DETAILS ON THE EVENTS:
The Return: 9am – 9pm.
Official Website: https://thereturn.org/
This is an all-day event, led by many who have devoted their lives to serving God. Some of the speakers that many of us have heard of are Dr.James Dobson, Pat Robertson, Secretary Ben Carson, Michele Bachman, Alveda King, Anne Graham Lotz, Mike Lindell, Kevin Sorbo, Nicky Cruz among many others. See the attached schedule and map below. It will be located on the Mall right next to the Smithsonian Metro Station.
Note: if you are attending in person, it is recommended to bring chairs as there is no seating provide. If you don’t want to leave the event to get some food, please bring food.
Livestream: If you cannot attend in person but would like to livestream this event, you can do so at: https://thereturn.org/live-stream/.
The Prayer March: 12pm – 2pm
Official Website: https://prayermarch2020.com/
This is scheduled to be a 2 hour event and is a prayer walk from the Lincoln Memorial to the U.S. Capitol. It overlaps with the scheduled “Repentance and Intercession for America” which is part of the focus of the Prayer March, though the Prayer March also seems to have a more general intercession. Below is a map indicating how the Prayer March will proceed.
Livestream: If you cannot attend in person but would like to livestream this event, you can do so at: https://prayermarch2020.com/live/
Map of the Prayer March with Prayer Focus
We pray that these events are successful in their turnout and witness, but more importantly, in their goals of turning the hearts of men/women back to God. We pray that all of you, whether you can participate in person or not, would experience the tremendous blessing of a renewed/deepened devotion to God and a greater experience of the union that God can have with a heart that is after God’s own heart.
Note: we need to let you know that neither event is led or sponsored by Catholics. However, all of God’s people are called to repentance, prayer and unity. We believe these events are inspired by the Lord and we hope that many will participate. Whether you choose to come or not, we pray that you will join us to truly humble ourselves before the Lord, repent of sin and pray for a world-wide movement of repentance and revival.
May God richly bless each of you!
Don & Angelica James