As the leaders gathered together in February, we had a beautiful encounter with our God.  We realized as we shared our desires and stories that we were about to be caught up in something much bigger than ourselves. While worshiping and praying about how to join in with what the Father in heaven was already doing, we laid a map of Georgia on the floor and asked the Holy Spirit for guidance.  He spoke through the Word and confirmed that He was requiring of us 52 days of prayer on the campuses, and that we should pass a “torch of prayer” from campus to campus.  We clearly felt Him speaking to us about Nehemiah, and how average people, who together built where they lived and took on what they could in 52 days and nights, rebuilt the wall.  Some schools knew they could pray for a whole week, others for 2 days, and we knew that it would ALL have to be from God’s grace!

On March 12, outside on the front quad of Georgia College and State University’s campus, we started these 52 days of prayer worshiping and asking for grace to rebuild the wall.  We (the leaders of each campus) were committed to encouraging one another and traveling from campus to campus as often as possible, especially as the “torch” was passed. We made sure not one campus started alone, and the school who was ending their continual prayer time would send a group to help kickoff the next school in prayer.

For 52 days and nights prayer tents, rooms, and basements were filled with prayer and worship unto the King of Kings. Students of many ministries on each campus started to get addicted to the presence of God, and often doors to share the Gospel would open.  At Georgia Southern, one student shared that “One night around 2am my friend Brice walked outside the tent and ran into a guy named Jonathon. After sharing the Gospel with him for about 20 minutes, Jonathon was broken and stayed in the tent repenting and praying for one hour straight!”

On each campus unity and purity were both happening as never before, and we know that on each campus it is just the beginning.  A student at Brewton Parker College shared that “…many people commented on the awesome presence of the Lord in the prayer room and begged for a permanent one. I can say that now we are very close to getting a prayer room on campus - the administration has been approached and we will have our room when the SGA moves into their new office!”

At the University of Georgia after the “torch” of prayer came and went, some students couldn’t bare not having a neutral space, so they took it upon themselves to take over a study room in the student learning center and filling it with hour after hour 24-7 prayer (which they are getting away with by following the study room rules by having at least 2 people in there…though not studying, praying!).

As we closed the 52 days of prayer in Macon (center of GA), we met to celebrate like in Nehemiah’s day when the wall was finished.  We were encountered with the JOY of God, and His pleasure over us as we worshipped and shared stories of how Jesus gave us grace to do what He Himself desired!!  We realized even more that we find ourselves in the middle of a story MUCH bigger than ourselves!!