Prayer Will be Major Focus of General Assembly
Indianapolis, IN—Amid the business, fellowship, discussions, and worship at the upcoming Church of God International General Assembly, the underlying focus is that it all will have a covering of prayer, specific prayer that has been taking place for months.
General Overseer Tim Hill has called two focused prayer campaigns that have centered on the General Assembly (GA24), including the annual Agree in January, a Global Prayer Emphasis in May, and now a 15-day time of prayer and fasting that concludes June 30, just days before thousands of delegates gather in Indianapolis for GA24 on July 8-12.
Continuing a long-standing and beloved tradition, on-going prayer for the General Assembly will take place all week, starting with a pre-Assembly gathering of leaders on Sunday night. Beginning at 8:00 a.m. on Tuesday, July 9, just prior to the official opening of GA24, “Priority Prayer” will take place, followed up on succeeding mornings through Friday.
Following the opening time with the General Council each morning, focus will move to intercessory prayer held every day in rooms 137–139 across from the main hall entrance. Prayer will begin every day at 8:30 a.m. with a lunch break at noon.
Beginning at 2:00 p.m., prayer will be “taken to the streets,” walking a few blocks to the Indiana State Capitol for prayer on the lawn in the afternoons (Tuesday through Friday). Each day’s activities will conclude with pre-worship prayer from 5:00–6:00 p.m. back in the Intercessory Prayer Room, breaking for dinner until joining worship in the evenings.
Arnie Clemm will be leading Assembly prayer activities this year. Clemm has led a pre-Assembly prayer movement called by Indiana State Overseer Barry Clardy and conducted by the Indiana region since early this year. The participants have been praying at the Indiana Convention Center the last Thursday of each month since February. The final pre-assembly prayer will be held this Thursday, June 27.
According to Clemm, prayer points during the week of July 8-12 will be posted in the prayer room location at the Indiana Convention Center, along with the relevant topics being discussed by the International General Council that day.
“We look to provide the prayer foundation, so critical to the decisions being made by the International General Council,” Clemm stated. “Additionally, we will pray for our leadership who will be leading the meetings, which begin on Tuesday morning. We already know Tuesday will have nominations for the Executive Committee, followed by nominations for Church department ministries and then the election of the Council of Eighteen.”
General Overseer Hill stated that the opening session of the General Council on Tuesday will include prayer and communion.
“These movements of the last several months have been powerful and effective,” Hill said of the recent prayer initiatives. “We can certainly be confident that the activities and decisions made at this General Assembly will have been bathed in prayer.”
