The late Bob Gass, who wrote the devotional Word for Today was a keynote speaker at a 7.30am breakfast event in Auckland in 1998. “Breakfast with Bob Gass”, the event was called, and it was most probably on Tuesday.
I was not interested in going, but my girlfriend (now wife), her sister and mother convinced me to look at it as having breakfast with them, then listen to some Irish guy for a bit, then leave.
Reluctantly, I went along. Anticipating the inevitable, Bob spoke about the prodigal son. It felt like he was speaking directly to me. At the end, I responded to the call to believe and to have a personal relationship with Jesus.
Later that evening, after rugby league training, I decided to quit smoking to improve my fitness level. After nearly 10 years of smoking, it was a miracle to break the addiction cold turkey. But it was months later that I realised the miracle of being able to quit smoking, was on the same day I made a decision to have a personal relationship with Jesus.
A few months later, my support group organised for me and a couple others to attend a Promise Keepers event in Auckland back in 1998. Like before, I refused to go. But they were clever to rally up the other two people to attend with me, so I couldn’t say no.
I had only been a Christian for less than six-months. But to walk into an auditorium with hundreds of men with their arms raised, praising and worshiping the Lord as loud as they could sing with tears streaming down their cheeks, you could feel the presence of God fill the auditorium. For an introvert like me, it revolutionised my mind about men coming together not for rugby, but to worship the Lord together.
I attended the next year’s event, and it was after that event that a group of us guys formed a 4 x 4 men’s group from our church. We called ourselves ‘The Parish’. My flatmate and his group called their 4 x 4 ‘The Brotherhood’ after that event as well.
My love for the Lord and my walk with Christ, I owe it to those guys, who are dear friends to me to this day. They were mature in their faith, and they walked with this young Christian with a ‘take no prisoners’ type of attitude. They laid their hands on me praying and prophesied over me, loved me and built me up.
I’ve heard people say perhaps PK’s days of big events are over. Maybe they’re right. But here is what I know; it is never about Promise Keepers, but its about a multitude of men coming together to:
- worship and praise our Living God in our cities not to prove a point, but to put a stake in the ground that is otherwise being taken over by evil, that Jesus is alive, that God is sovereign over this nation of Aotearoa;
- that our old men still have fire in their belly to stand tall and worship the Lord, and for the young men to stand by them to hold up their arms as they intercede and worship the Living God declaring His Lordship over our nation and the generations to come.
John Dawson, a wise man and one of the fathers of YWAM, said once “the best thing we [as men] can do for the next generation, is to let them see our hands lifted high worshipping the Lord”.
When we come together and there is unity, God will command a blessing. “Behold, how good and how pleasant it is For brethren to dwell together in unity! It is like the precious oil upon the head, Running down on the beard, The beard of Aaron, Running down on the edge of his garments. It is like the dew of Hermon, Descending upon the mountains of Zion; For there the Lord commanded the blessing – Life forevermore.” (Ps. 133:1-3)
The Lord is calling us men to come together at the ‘Men Coming Together’ PK Event in August to worship our King, to declare His Lordship over this nation, our communities, our churches and our families.
When we come together in unity, God will command a blessing. I look forward to seeing you there!
In His richest blessings,
Frank Po Ching