GDOP efforts around the world follow a similar sequence of events, beginning with 10 Days of Constant Prayer leading up to Pentecost Sunday, a corporate worship and prayer gathering on Pentecost Sunday, and 90 Days of Blessing following Pentecost.

Currently underway and ending Aug. 28, the local 90 Days of Blessing component of the 2007 GDOP movement is calling on Christians to demonstrate the love of Christ by blessing communities through acts of kindness and service.

“We as Christians are the hands and feet of Jesus Christ. Our world, our city, our own neighborhoods, need us to be a life-giving force, showing kindness and love, meeting needs and fulfilling the desires of God in this world,” said Carl Nelson, president and CEO of the Greater Minnesota Association of Evangelicals. “The 90 Days of Blessing is an intentional movement of Christians to do that, mobilized by the work of the Holy Spirit and by our prayers on the Global Day of Prayer.”

GMAE is a financial sponsor of the GDOP overall and Nelson served as part of a steering team that identified community organizations and service projects where churches and teams of volunteers can get involved.

The 90 Days of Blessing are focusing on four areas of specific need: housing, schools, youth mentoring, and food shelves and emergency services. Individuals or church groups can select an area of need and contact one of the organizations listed on the GDOP Minnesota Web site (see action box) to get involved.

“We have concentrated the attention and focus in hopes that the response and support could be qualified and quantified by the organizations we targeted,” said Sheila Ford, project manager for the 2007 GDOP effort.

For example, Urban Homeworks is looking for volunteer teams to help renovate and build housing to help lower income urban families; World Relief is looking for 100 volunteers to help new refugee families, or to provide them with “family welcome kits”; and Meals on Wheels is looking for volunteers throughout the city to “help deliver food to shut-ins.”

Another initiative organized by the GDOP is a joint campaign called “Food Banks for Kids” involving the three largest emergency food shelves in Minnesota. The project is attempting to raise funds to provide lunches for malnourished children during the summer months. Many of these children rely on school lunches, and during the summer they do not eat healthy meals. Hope for the City, Second Harvest and the Emergency Food Network are collaborating to help solve this problem.

Christians already actively involved in other service projects are also encouraged to identify those projects with the GDOP movement.

“My hope is that this effort will galvanize us to a greater level of commitment to serve with the heart of Christ,” Ford said. “As the Christian community sees how impactful their efforts are, they will be encouraged to increase their engagement.”

“The 90 Days of Blessing that follow the GDOP gathering in Minnesota is a natural continuation of prayer. Prayer transforms who we are, and as we change we begin to live out God’s purposes and desires for people around us,” Nelson said. “During the months of June, July and August we are praying that Christians throughout Minnesota will be mobilized through the work of the Holy Spirit to demonstrate the love of Jesus through acts of kindness and generosity extended toward our neighbors and community.”


ACTION POINT:
For more information about local GDOP events, visit www.globaldayofprayermn.com. To read more about the international movement, visit www.globaldayofprayer.com.