Wow, how quickly the summer months passed and here we are already on the threshold of Fall. We are certainly looking forward to planning and training for our upcoming Saftey Projects for the ember months, with its darker evenings there will be more strategic Patroling and Events.
And as we plan to move forward we must also look back and give thanks for the safety of our Summer Prayer Patrols in America, and the great favor and welcome we received there.
Our 1st stop was in the quiet country town of Evert. Evart is a city in Osceola County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 1,903 at the 2010 census. And so, this was very much a new experience for the Prayer Patrol crew that went out to pray outside the Town Hall, the smallest one we have seen so far.
There were not many people out on the streets of Evart for the Patrollers to engage with at first, but, just as they had finished praying outside the hall and was about to make their way back to base a group of young people came by. They were friendly and very inquisitive, perhaps due to the British accent. Thankfully we were able to engage them, we explained our mission to them we then asked if they would kindly help us by suggesting whatever they thought were some really important issues facing the Township and its people, especially youths, that we should include in our prayers. Immediately one youth shouted out ‘gangbanging’ then ran away. The others stayed, and they all nodded but one guy spoke up and said: “yes that’s it, it is terrible around here, us youths are terrified, and we only feel safe to walk in groups now.” They appeared quite serious and obviously passionate and vocal that something should be done to safeguard the town and its young people. Unacquainted by the term ‘gangbanging’ we asked them to explain what it meant so that we might know how best to pray.
Aparently, gangbanging is a slang term they used for the situation where men a van approaches a person walking along the street on their own, kidnapping then into their van, tying them up, and driving off with them often taking them to a secluded spot to rape them. And there are many secluded spots near to the town. One girl obviously distressed, told us that if we did not believe them then we should go and visit the local supermarket, not far from where they were, and there we would find posters of many young persons reported gone missing as they walked out alone. One of the Patrols also recalled seeing a large Beware Trafficking warning poster outside the tiny town library.
The young people huddled in, one lad removed his cap held it in his hand and bowed his head in a sign of respect as we prayed. We prayed for them, for the missing children and their families, the politicians, for those who commit these awful crimes, that they would be caught and changed, and prayed too for the future safety of the township. Their faces lit up afterward, they thanked us and rode off as a group towards the quiet ballpark across the road, where we could see the first boy that had shouted out ‘gangbanging’ was sat on a log in the park waiting for them.
The look on the faces of those youths gave us the assurance that significant work was done that day, even though we were only a very small patrol team.
So, from the quiet Township of Evart to the lively bustlings of New York City: see map below
Downtown New York
ROY WILKINS PAK, Jamaica Queens, USA
BELOW Youtube video HIGHLIGHTS of PEACEMAKERS 2019 New York Prayer Patrol
Uk’s Peacemakers Chief the Reverend Dr. Palmer joined with local New Yorkers and others from further afield and representing a mixed array of denominations for an interesting evening of Prayer Patrolling at the Roy Wilkins Community sports ground which is in the vicinity of the Jamaica Queens area of New York.
The small team of energetic Patrollers was led by New York’s young Prayer Patrol Advocate for the evening, local Businessmen and inspirational Motivator Lewin Carr. In this short highlight video clip, he delivers a very powerful proclamation and a prophetic word for the area and for New York in general. “We have left the energy on the earth and it is indestructible”
A number of people on the ground showed interest in the patrol, and members of the team were able before, during and after the patrol to engage with, encourage and pray with many of them.
NEXT: signup for Prayer/City Patrols Training Bristol Oct 25th, 2019 …details coming soon.
NEXT: Peacemakers Prayer/City Patrols BE SAFE NIGHTS: Bonfire 31st October and Halloween 5th November 2019