Twenty one years ago I visited the Dominican Republic, and upon departure vowed to never return. It remained for all these years as the only nation where I had made such a rash pledge, provoked by my frustration with warring churches & competitive leaders.
I have never been so glad to have been wrong.
I sat one week ago in the office of Colonel Candelario, the Commandant of the National Police for the city to which we were assigned, Moca, the capitol of Espaillat Province. Tears filled his eyes as he shared the burden of his responsibility, as his predecessor had lasted only 15 days in the same position over what had become in the past 3 months the most violent region of the country. Colonel Candelario shared his desire for the help of God, stating that “we have heard, from a General in the Honduran Police, that only God can reverse the course of human violence. It is impossible for our policemen to change people’s hearts. This is the work of heaven”. I asked the Colonel if I could pray for him, to which he readily agreed. We prayed for strength and protection for his men, and called upon God to blanket the city with the peace of Christ’s Kingdom. He then asked us to return the next morning to speak to and pray over the entire city police force. What a privilege to stand before all of those men early the next morning, most of them armed to the max for the challenges of the day ahead. I encouraged them as men under authority to know that they were authorized by God (Romans 13) to “keep the peace”, and therefore had the right to seek God for their own protection. They were intensely tuned into every word. When we finished and pronounced God’s peace and protection over their city, they filed out into the streets, where one of the younger recruits suddenly burst out singing at the top of his lungs in heavily accented English: “Good morning USA!!, I have a feeling that it’s gonna be a wonderful day”!
I love the Kingdom of God, where the sobriety of eternal things runs smack dab into the hilarity of the human personality. I’m sure that God as well was smiling over that one!
Later that day, several of those policemen sent to escort us were bowing their heads in prayer during one of the many outreaches we conducted, inviting Jesus Christ to be the Lord of their lives.
Everywhere we went, we were given a royal reception by the authorities and local population. The mayor of the city invited us into his office, and there we prayed and spoke the word of the Lord over his life. All over the nation was an intense excitement for the 20 simultaneous stadium events that would define One Nation One Day. 2,100 people divided into 20 teams conducted over 1,000 separate outreach events. Hundreds of thousands of people came to faith in Jesus Christ. Homes and clean water filtration systems were built, shoes were distributed to children in need, and 6 medical brigades treated many thousands of people more.
While the teams went out into the streets, Lenora and I spent a great deal of time in front of radio microphones and TV cameras, inviting the people of Moca to the great celebration event at the stadium. Even the many secular programs and interviewers were so gracious, as everyone agreed that “peace” was what the D.R. desperately needed.
Contrary to the belief of the cynical, there ARE some nations that are moving in the right direction morally. Sometimes we are blinded by the sad recent events in the USA. But God is on the move. The United Nations asked the Dominican Republic last week to adopt their “world policy statement” on same sex marriage equality and multiple gender endorsement. Thousands of church leaders converged on the capitol in Santo Domingo, and the Dominican Congress roundly defeated the legislation! Glory to God!
They have a deep consciousness of Biblical morality, as the only nation in the world that has the Bible on their national flag, and a deep conviction that they must stay true to those roots.
The Bible states in Chronicles that “The eyes of the Lord go back and forth across the earth, looking for a people to whom He can show Himself strong, whose hearts are loyal to Him”. We realized last week that we were standing among such a people. And the outpouring of God’s Spirit on the night of the 20 stadium events proved it to be so. In our own stadium, we had a great breakthrough, despite some spiritual opposition and many distractions. In the end, a multitude flooded the field for prayer. All of the stadium seats were filled to at least 90% capacity. The mayor of the city came and spoke, declaring that the city of Moca was dedicated to Jesus Christ. I preached a simple message from Jeremiah 29:11, of the “God who knows you, the God who thinks peaceful thoughts about you (Jesus coming to save), and the God who plans marvelously for your future”. The Holy Spirit made the connect, and God gave the increase.
God asked through the prophet Isaiah, “Can a nation be born in a day?” We have seen the answer to that question. Which nation will be next? We are in that time of world history where the last great harvest of souls has begun. A magnificent net has been lowered, and though the media and methods available to us in the 21st century, we are able to participate in an era of mass evangelism unlike any the world has ever seen.
May His Kingdom come, and may His will be done, on earth, even as it is in heaven!
Kelly & Lenora Brake
Brake Ministries International
July, 2015