What if God's watchmen on the walls of this city were never sleeping? What if the darkness was pushed back by the Kingdom of Light? Would the city be transformed? What if God used YOU to do it? Why not Topeka? Why not now?

OPERATION ROLLING THUNDER IS NOW 1 CHURCH 1 DAY.


News

Local Observances Mark 2013 National Day of Prayer
A team from Topeka leads worship and prayer in the Old Supreme Court Room.





The homeschool Deo Gloria vocal ensemble lift their voices to resound in the capitol rotunda at the NDOP noon observance.
      Hundreds gathered in the capitol rotunda in Topeka to observe the 62nd annual National Day of Prayer as part of an all-day prayer effort on Thursday, May 2.  Worship and prayer continued through the day from the Old Supreme Court Room as teams from around the area went non-stop from 8 am until 5 pm.  The only interruption was to gather at the statewide noon observance in the rotunda which featured pastors, legislators, Governor Brownback and others.

Pastors Soraya and Gustavo Oropeza of A Dios Sea la Gloria offer a bilingual prayer at the NDOP citywide evening event.
      The citywide evening observance took place at Central Park Christian Church in Topeka.  The theme for the service was “Clean Hands, Pure Heart,” a reference to Psalm 24.  Members of the Christian community took part in worship, corporate prayer, and small group prayer, led by pastors and leaders representing various ethnic groups and traditions. The worship was led by a multi-church, multicultural team.
      The National Day of Prayer is supported in prayer by Operation Rolling Thunder.


2012 National Day of Prayer in Topeka 

A citywide event to pray for the mercy of the Lord over our community and nation, and pray for the Church to extend mercy in His name.

Governor Sam Brownback called the Church to prayer at the Kansas Capitol observance of the National Day of Prayer in Topeka on Thursday, May 3, 2012.  The National Day of Prayer (NDOP) is observed every first Thursday in May annually.  The national theme this year was “One Nation under God.”
“Have Mercy!” was the theme of the city NDOP evening event which was held in the Washburn University Student Union.  The theme focused on the need of our communities to receive God’s mercy and for the Church to extend His mercy to others.  Participants included pastors, students, and other members of the diverse Christian community.
            A Declaration of Spiritual Emergency was enthusiastically recited, calling for brokenness, humility, and repentance.  Prayers were offered for revival and for the blessing of Israel.
Pastor Polo Delacruz of El Encuentro Familiar Church acted as the master of ceremonies.  Worship was led by the Holy Smoke Worship Band.  Partnering ministries included Capitol Commission, Chi Alpha Campus Ministries, Capitol Commission, Christians for Life, Concerned Women for America, Culture Shield Network, Operation Rolling Thunder, Topeka North Outreach, Transform Topeka, and Youth for Christ.
The traditional noon statewide NDOP observance was held at the Kansas statehouse, on the south steps.  Governor Brownback was the master of ceremonies.  In addition, worship and prayer took place throughout the day in one of the committee rooms which served as a prayer room.


2011 National Day of Prayer in Topeka
     May 5, 2011, was a day filled with prayer in the capital city.  The day began as a statehouse committee room was transformed into a worship and prayer room.  At noon, Governor Brownback joined a one-hour prayer meeting in the south wing of the capitol.  Many legislators were in attendance since the legislature was still in session. The prayer room concluded at 5 pm, but by 7 pm, Unity in the Community was underway.  This citywide gathering of prayer and celebration was hosted by El Shaddai Ministries.
     Some comments about the day were:
  • “I really felt like we changed the spiritual atmosphere over the state and our leadership.  As it is in heaven, let it be on earth!” – B.M., Salina
  • “It was a blessed day!” – D.C., Lyndon
  • “To God be the glory for the things He has done, and for the things He has yet to do.” – J.P., Topeka
  • “Beautiful.” – T.W., Topeka
Enthusiastic Crowd Gathers for 2010 National Day of Prayer in Topeka
Around 200 believers gathered to observe the 59th annual National Day of Prayer at the Kansas Capitol on Thursday, May 6. Since the building is undergoing renovation, the noon meeting was held in the old Supreme Court chambers of the statehouse instead of the customary rotunda location. The setting seemed appropriate considering the recent federal case ruling this annual day of prayer unconstitutional. The crowd was encouraged to pray in the authority of the courts of heaven.
Read More. . .     or See Photos. . .

A Federal Judge Has Ruled the National Day of Prayer Unconstitutional
On April 15, a Federal judge in Wisconsin ruled that the National Day of Prayer is unconstitutional. The case was brought by an agnostic/atheist group called the Freedom from Religion Foundation. While there are no immediate consequences to the ruling, praying Christians should begin to intercede for this issue. Click here for a link to the news story.

A nation that does not recognize its dependancy on God, and set aside at least one day a year to pray, is a nation inviting God's judgment. Let's take on this battle on our knees.

Operation Valiant Warrior Held on Eve of Veteran's Day
Operation Rolling Thunder in Topeka sponsored a prayer gathering for the troops on the eve of Veteran's Day 2009. The event, called Operation Valiant Warrior, was held Tuesday, November 10, at the National Guard Armory in Topeka.

The prayer gathering focused on praying for US troops in Afghanistan, Iraq, and around the world, for the physically and emotionally wounded, for military families, commanders, and for spiritual awakening. Almost 100 were in attendance.

Prayer for the troops was led by Pastor E.T. Watson of El Shaddai Ministries. "They deserve better, " he said, referring to the fact that our armed forces are entitled to the support of a nation that fears God and follows His commandments. Gene Roles of Pointman Ministries prayed for those who struggle with recovering from the adverse effects of war. Pastor Richard Sundermeyer of Family Life Church offered prayer for miltary families. He has numerous family members in the military and is intimately familiar with their struggles. Dave Depue of Capitol Ministries prayed for those in command positions, and Zoie Kern prayed for spiritual awakening in the military. She commented that, though her prayer was prepared in advance, it echoed the prayers offered previously throughout the evening.

According to David Epps, Operation Rolling Thunder city director, the prayer strategy was "to lift up our hands as Moses did in intercession on the mountain while the victory is won in the valley below." In the seventeenth chapter of Exodus, we read the account of Moses praying on the mountain with hands uplifted as Joshua and the Israelites battle the Amalekites in the valley. As long as Aaron and Hur kept Moses' hands raised, the Israelites prevailed.

"There is a great need for those who are not in the battle to support those who are," said Epps. "Our troops and their families are making a tremendous sacrifice. They need our prayers."

The prayer meeting was neither for nor against war, but intended to encourage those who serve in our military and to pray for their safety and well being.

The Topeka chapter of Operation Rolling Thunder is committed to promoting 24-hour prayer for our government-- including the military. In addition, Operation Rolling Thunder participating churches pray for the areas of Education, Business, Media and Entertainment, Family, Healthcare, and Churches. In April and May of this year, 35 local churches participated in this prayer initiative that covered our area in constant prayer for these areas of need. Each church took responsibility for one 24-hour day each month or partnered with another church to do so. Many communities in Kansas participated and are continuing to do so with great results.

ORT in Topeka Impacts Internationally
Sometimes God works in interesting ways and through amazing spiritual connections worldwide.

Shortly after the start of Operation Rolling Thunder (ORT) in Kansas, a prayer group spontaneously sprang up in one of Topeka’s middle schools. ORT began on April 6, 2009, thirty-one days before the National Day of Prayer. Three days later, on April 9, a small group of Christian teachers and staff at the school decided to begin praying every Thursday after school. One of the items on our ORT prayer list was to “Pray for our teachers that they come to work each day inspired to make a positive difference in the lives of their students.”

Though they were unaware of the ORT prayer emphasis, this prayer group began to meet every Thursday afternoon to pray for the school and other issues as the Lord would lead. Interestingly, one group member was led to pray for the Netherlands in his personal prayer time on Thursday, April 23. He did not know much about the Dutch people, but he sensed “an extreme burden” for that nation and began to intercede and do research.
When he brought this prayer burden to his prayer group, they began to pray in earnest. Their prayer was that “God would manifest Himself” in a powerful way. Deep intercession gave way to rejoicing as the burden lifted.

On April 30, the Dutch royal family was riding in an open top bus in a parade in the Dutch town of Apeldoom when a car burst through the crowd in an apparent assassination attempt. CNN reported:

Five people were killed Thursday after a man tried to attack the Dutch royal family during a Queen's Day celebration by crashing his car near the royal family's bus, Dutch police said.

Authorities are not releasing the name of the man, but said they have charged him with trying to attack the royal family.

As members of the Topeka school prayer group learned of the incident over the Internet that same day, they were shocked and amazed. Their small group halfway around the world had been interceding for this nation during the critical days leading up to this tragic event. They did not know why. Now it became clear. Though the deaths and injuries were terrible, the Lord in His mercy had protected the Dutch Royal Family and saved the nation from national grief and turmoil.

Soon, the prayer group also learned of ORT. Now they are giving praise to the Lord and give credit to ORT intercessors for the genesis of their group.

If you connect the dots, you see how the Lord used a military veteran in Washington State to initiate a prayer ministry adopted by our state director in Kansas. She, in turn, inspired Topekans to pray 24/7 with one result being the beginning of a prayer group at one of our middle schools. This group prayed for the Netherlands just days before a horrible assassination attempt which could have been successful except for the prayers of intercessors.

While this is amazing enough, consider the fact that the Lord does this all the time, everyday. Hebrews 1:3 says of Jesus, “He is the reflection of God’s glory and the exact imprint of God’s very being, and he sustains all things by his powerful word.” (NRSV)

Our Lord is perfectly running the universe.And through intercession, we get to participate in running it!