THIS DAY WE FIGHT!

on January 21, 2015

You may know that the title of this blog post is a quote from the film The Return of the King, the third film in The Lord of the Rings trilogy, based on J.R.R. Tolkein’s wonderful novels. It is also the title of a book by pastor and author Francis Frangipane. Frangipane’s complete title is This Day We Fight!  Breaking the Bondage of a Passive Spirit (Chosen Books, 2005).

Now This Day We Fight! is also the title of IRD’s Religious Liberty Program’s new prayer initiative for 2015. Each new entry will appear on Juicy Ecumenism, and then be permanently stored on the IRD website, in a special category under the  International Religious Freedom button.

We will focus on encouraging church members to intense, strategic prayer against the evil that threatens the global Church and that threatens all of civilization. To start our prayer effort, we have a special prayer against violence that was written by the late Reverend Cecil Kerr.

Kerr, onetime Anglican Chaplain at Queen’s University, Belfast, Northern Ireland, was one of the most courageous voices for peace, forgiveness, and reconciliation during “the Troubles.” He and his wife Myrtle founded the Christian Renewal Centre in beautiful Rostrevor, County Down, where Catholics and Protestants came together to learn from each other and pray for peace and spiritual renewal throughout Ireland. Kerr understood the importance of spiritual warfare. He knew that the work of reconciliation taking place needed to be undergirded by battle in the heavenlies against all of the plots and schemes of Satan to stop that reconciliation from taking place…often through violence.

In the same way today, we must realize that although some Christians remain in denial about the evil we face, and pray passively “for peace,” the Bible tells us we must do battle, not against flesh and blood, “but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” (Eph 6: 12) Praying Reverend Kerr’s prayer is a great way to begin to engage in that battle.

A PRAYER AGAINST VIOLENCE
(CECIL KERR, CHRISTIAN RENEWAL CENTRE, ROSTREVOR)

Lord Jesus Christ, we thank You that through Your death on the Cross You disarmed the powers of evil.
Help us, we pray You, to enter into Your victory and to stand in Your authority against all evil.
Send forth Your light and Your truth, O Lord.
Bring to light the deeds of darkness and let plans of violence and murder be revealed.
By the power of Your Holy Spirit convict those who have allowed their minds to be dominated by evil.
Lead them, O Lord, to true repentance that they may receive Your new life and rejoice in Your forgiving love.

Amen.

  1. Comment by Greg on January 21, 2015 at 7:57 am

    Hey, I’ve attached a “Coexist” bumper sticker to my Prius. I’ve done my part.

  2. Comment by Neil Bragg on January 21, 2015 at 11:03 am

    I thought they came that way from the factory.

  3. Comment by R.A. McClain on January 21, 2015 at 11:22 am

    Excellent as always, and sharing.

  4. Comment by faithmcdonnell on January 21, 2015 at 1:52 pm

    The great webmasters at Fiat have created the “This Day We Fight” button on the IRD website/International Religious Freedom section. All coming pieces on this issue will also be stored there.

  5. Comment by Kamilla Ludwig on January 21, 2015 at 5:12 pm

    Faith,

    I LOVE this! Count me in.

  6. Comment by JohnnyLaird on January 22, 2015 at 7:40 am

    How would you define ” the evil that threatens the global Church and that threatens all of civilization”

  7. Comment by faithmcdonnell on January 23, 2015 at 1:54 pm

    stay tuned for specifics if you are not clear

  8. Comment by mitchw7959 on March 22, 2015 at 9:29 pm

    It’s the homosexuals. In IRD fundamentalism, it’s *always* about the EEEEVIL homosexuals.

  9. Comment by faithmcdonnell on April 2, 2015 at 12:23 pm

    Actually, Mitchw, it’s about the ideology of the people who throw homosexuals from the top of 20 story buildings, and then stone what is left of them.

  10. Comment by virginiajim1775 on April 24, 2015 at 8:36 pm

    Mitch, you are partial right, all forms of sexual immorality as defined by Scripture (which includes homosexuality) are evil that defiles a person but there are evil acts other than homosexuality clearly outlined in the Bible. Jesus said, “”What comes out of a person is what defiles him. For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.”

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