For the last three years, believers around New England have partnered together to do a Fall Solemn Assembly that was linked with 10 days of worship, fasting, and prayer based on the fall “Feasts of the Lord”.
On March 7, during a time of listening prayer regarding the Solemn Assembly, the Lord made it very clear that he had something different in mind for the “Solemn Assembly” this year. The Lord said that it would be a celebration, that it would happen on October 9th in Boston, and that others were also hearing from God about this and it would involve many different threads coming together.
As you can imagine, I was somewhat taken aback by the shift in emphasis for the Fall Gathering. I almost felt like God was winking at me—“just trust me Son”.
At that time, plans were already underway to do “10 Days Boston” this fall (September 29 to October 9). In response to this word, a group of us began to dream about a fall 10 day city-wide gathering of worship, fasting, and prayer that would culminate (somewhat differently from past years) in a celebratory gathering on Sunday, Oct 9.
A Divine Set-up
A few days later, I spoke with Zenzo Matoga who has been organizing the Boston Night of Worship. Zenzo shared with me the startling fact that BNOW was being planned for Sunday, October 9th--the same day the Lord had said to "bring threads together.” It was a moment of clarity—God had been setting us up! Personally, I was blown away by some of the similar ways that God was speaking to us, including the sense that this year would be a "Celebration" (consistent with BNOW) rather than a "Joel 2" Solemn Assembly.
This summer, after further confirmations from the Lord that left absolutely no doubt in our minds as to His direction, the 10 Days Boston planning team and the Boston Night of Worship team agreed to a common vision to align the 10 Days Boston with BNOW this year. In past years, the 10 days has culminated in a NE Solemn Assembly--this year it will build up to the Boston Night of Worship on October 9th.
While the character of the 10 Days will stay the same (focus on God doing a deep work in our hearts, opening ourselves up to personal repentance, and longing for Christ’s return) we’ll hit a different high-note than years past with the Boston Night of Worship. This is all part of God bringing threads together—I can’t wait to see what he does through this!
10 Days Boston: What if?
All of us worship and pray on a daily basis. However, there are some moments in time where our regular rhythms are not enough, where God invites us to set aside ordinary life in order to seek His face with extra-ordinary focus and passion. God uses these times of consecration to strengthen the simplicity of our faith in Jesus Christ, to deepen our love for one another, to breathe fresh vision, and to bring personal and corporate breakthroughs. After these times of consecration, our “normal” life is deeply affected, reviving us with a deeper awareness of God’s presence in all circumstances.
Can you imagine what it would look like, if at the same moment in time, thousands within the Church of Boston set-aside “normal” in order to seek God’s face together?
Can you imagine thousands of believers overwhelmed by fresh revelation of who Jesus Christ really is, and who we are in Him? Perhaps thousands will have personal breakthroughs in a short period of time. Many of us have witnessed when just one person in a local congregation has a profound encounter with Jesus, it can affect the entire congregation. What if thousands had this experience within a short period of time and then came together on October 9th for extravagant worship? Could it be the turning point for an entire city?
10 Days Boston: The Plan
Of course, the heart of 10 Days Boston is followers of Jesus setting themselves apart to seek God with united worship, fasting, and prayer. Fundamentally, we’re asking you to set yourself apart and go deep with God during these 10 Days.
With a deep sense of thankfulness for what Christ has done for us, 10 Days Boston will be characterized by an unapologetic desire for “more”. Through concerted worship and fasting, we are expressing a deep longing for more of God in our own lives, for love, purity, and power in the Church, as well as intentionally “longing for and hastening the day” of Christ’s return.
There will also be three ways we’ll be seeking God corporately
1) Nightly Gatherings (Sept 29-Oct 8) hosted by different groups of believers in different locations. Together with believers around metro Boston, we’re planning a mobile gathering of worship and prayer that touches every corner of the city of Boston and engages the city-wide church. Each night from 7-9pm, a different group of congregations will host a gathering of worship and prayer in a different part of the city. See our schedule to see who’s hosting, find locations, and get directions
2) Daily, Ongoing Prayer (Sept 29-Oct 8) The evening gatherings will move all around the city. During the day the worship and prayer will continue with two set “prayer hubs”, one in Cambridge and one in South Boston. As God calls you, we’d encourage you to engage in daily, corporate worship and prayer during the 10 Days
3) A Culminating Gathering: Boston Night of Worship on Oct 9 is the final, celebratory gathering. Make sure you’re not still fasting at this point! We’re coming together to celebrate the finished work of the Cross and declare that “Jesus Christ is Lord over Boston”.
www.uniteboston.com will be the online hub for locations and scheduling. We’ll be sending regular email updates as the schedule solidifies.
A Call to the Region
In addition to this call to Boston, we are inviting believers around New England to worship, fast, and pray from September 29-October 8 and then join us in Boston on October 9th for the Boston Night of Worship. We’re hoping to see city and area-wide churches set themselves apart during these days to humble themselves, pray, turn from sin, and turn towards God’s face. We hope you can join us as well.
Blessings,
Jonathan Friz and the 10 Days Boston Team
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