Dear brother, sister in Christ,
 
My name is Ingrid Wijngaarde. I am sending you this e-mail and I hope that you will take a moment to read it.
 
I took it upon myself to be the contact person in The Netherlands for the global prayer action, Operation Global Rain. Not that I think so much of myself, but because in recent years I have come to realize how important prayer is. Myself and a small group of inspired members have taken the task upon ourselves to translate all the articles on the website of Global Rain. This task is almost done! 
 
If you would go to the site - www.operationglobalrain.com - you will find in the right top column of the Homepage the topic 3ABN interview. There the organizers give an explanation of how it all began and who all are involved. You may download the video and show it at your church (on a sabbath afternoon perhaps).
 
How: click on the link; double click on the google video (lower right), go to google video; double click on download; download the video perhaps after installing google video player; automatically the file will be saved in a folder on your C-drive.
 
The organizers are all SDA who respect the authority of the GC. So no church reformers or self-appointed Warriors of Truth. When you read the articles and watch the video, you will discover that it is all sound and clear.
 
Go through the six translated articles on the homepage "Nederlandse" and see if you can put forward these suggestions to your church and have them implemented.
 
In any case the church or some households should agree to open their doors for prayer from 19 to 20 hours local time. You can agree with your local elders to present Sabbath sermons on prayer, leading up to June 27th. The articles on the website are in fact complete sermons.
 
Perhaps not your whole church will attend on Wednesday evenings. It certainly is too much work for the pastor alone. Ask the local elders and other capable members to take charge of an evening, but you should be present on those evenings. The church members will be stimulated when they see that their pastor makes time to attend and thinks it important.
Do not be discouraged when just a few members attend. What is important is that they freely chose to attend. It depends somewhat on how you encourage them on Sabbath mornings. Even if only two members attend, do not cancel the meetings! This also goes for the ten days.
 
Deal with issues in your church that are not right by talking them over. Stimulate members to make things right with one another. I am not a pastor, but I know what I would (try to) do! I would give priority to church praying, to this operation. I believe God will not let our efforts go by unanswered!
 
It is not the intention of the organizers to command the Holy Spirit to come down, or to set a date for something that MUST take place (as some claim). We simply make use of an easy date to remember and a given opportunity to call upon God as one body and bring our pleas to Him. This is absolutely no second 1843.
I see this operation as one of becoming conscious of a sense of urgency. God's people should be made conscious of the deplorable state she is in. All SEEMS to be Love and Peace, but in the mean time the opposing forces are very busy. THEY do not rest! God's children need to pray more earnestly, for ourselves, that we may stand firm. If Jesus needed 40 days and nights with the Holy Spirit to be prepared for the inner struggle, who are we that we think that we will get through when the time comes, if we will not engage in preparation?
 
This is neither about sanctification through works or working to gain God's grace. This is doing what He asks: “Ask and it shall be given you”; “It is not needful that I pray for you, for the Father Himself loves you”.
 
Neither is this an emotional surge from a few frustrated souls. This is being aware that the morality in the world around us is falling apart and that we will be dragged along if we do not choose a personal position.
 
The organizers have a vision that:
If all SDA in the world would pray for themselves, for their homes, for their church, and for the world -the people we have yet to reach;
If they would pray for nothing else than for the Holy Spirit, who only can cause sanctification in all segments of our lives;
If all SDA would pray for the promised power of the Holy Spirit, just as the 120 disciples in the upper room waited on and prayed for the promise of Jesus;
Then the work of God would live in our personal lives, in our homes, in our churches, Unions, Conferences and Divisions and eventually receive power in the world and we would see mighty things happen.
Then we will perhaps also baptize thousands here in Europe in one day (why not!).
 
We can continue to focus on methods, post modern people (who often want everything for which they will give up nothing) and courses for leaders -all noble causes, do not misunderstand me! - but the work is eventually done by the Holy Spirit alone, for if the Lord will not bless the work, the labourers toil in vain.
 
I call upon EVERY pastor, EVERY local elder and deacon, and along with them, EVERY member of the Adventist Churches in the Netherlands (or abroad) to do something with this opportunity.

The material is at hand and ready. You need not do anything else, than to print it and to hand it out or preach it to the members.
After about a week the translated Dutch pages with the theme sheets for the ten evenings will be added together with instruction for use. That is also already prepared. We are still very busy translating some new articles.
 
When was the last time that you presented to God's people that the fruit of the Spirit is given to persons who long for it? God does not waste His blessings.
When have you told them that the Early Rain is different to being baptized in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit?
When was the last time that you explained that the early rain is different from the latter rain and that both blessings are poured out in answer to intense longing and prayer?
When have you last explained that the Loud Cry by the fourth angel is different to the message of the third angel and that it means the last powerful work of the Holy Spirit among God's people?
When have you taught them that the Holy Spirit will only be poured out in the hearts of those who long for Him, and only when all differences, strives and grudges no longer matter, when sins are confessed and put away, when every believer sees in every other person a candidate for God's Kingdom, and when he/she is able to get along with them here on earth in order to enjoy heaven with one another?
When have you last talked about racist remarks done in your church and have checked yourself to see if you unaware are guilty of the same?
When did you preach about Joel 2 en 2 Chronicles 7:14, where God gives us mighty promises IF WE WOULD ONLY BEGIN TO PRAY? Really pray, no going through the routine order of service, no kneeling tortures because of long tedious prayers, but real prayers from our heart.
 
We can not force the Holy Spirit. But if we do nothing, nothing will happen as well. We have to cross the river and possess the land. God has promised it, so we should get into action. Getting our feet wet is the least damage we may receive. And be sure that God has already dealt with the giants!
 
Friendly greetings, Ingrid