Foundation of Prayers Buried at Tabernacle Site

Written by Bob Nigh
DAVIS--When speakers share the Gospel in the new tabernacle at Falls Creek in the future, they can rest assured that their messages are supported by a firm foundation of prayer--literally!
And, when those who respond to an invitation walk the aisle of the 7,056-seat, all-weather facility in the years to come, they’ll approach an altar that has been bathed in prayer as well.

Falls Creek For the Sake of the Call Campaign officials made sure that is the case July 27-28 when they invited state pastors and staff and Campaign supporters and donors to participate in special ceremonies to bury "prayer capsules" in the floor of the tabernacle, the construction of which is expected to be completed by May 2007.
The ceremonies coincided with the last two nights of youth weeks this summer.

"With completion of the new tabernacle proceeding at a rapid pace, all indications are that we will be occupying the new building in time for Falls Creek 2007," said Anthony Jordan, executive director-treasurer of the Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma. "As we prepared to enclose the new tabernacle shell and begin work on the interior, we thought it appropriate to ask pastors and campaign donors and supporters to write prayers or resolutions and bury them in sealed capsules.

The prayer letters and resolutions from churches were buried beneath the spot where the pulpit will be located, and the prayers from donors were buried where the altar will be located. "These were not time capsules to be opened in later years," Jordan explained.

Dedication prayers preceded the burying of the capsules each evening.

"As you can tell, this is quite a place and God has given us a wonderful, wonderful thing," Jordan commented to pastors July 27. "How exciting it was tonight to see all of those people sitting on pews outside the walls of the amphitheater. But it's hard for them to hear. Next summer, I hope you’ll have to bring an overcoat; it will be that cool on the inside. That'll be something unique for Falls Creek, won't it?
"I ask you to dream with me a little bit about next summer when we have 6,000 people to hear for the very first time the proclamation of the Word of God in this room. Then, the invitation will be extended, and young people and adults will come and give their hearts to the Lord Jesus.

"When all of that is said and done, it's not about a building, it's about people coming to know a Savior. That’s why we're doing this.

"It's about doing what God has called us to do. I'm glad that Rounds and Moorer found this 160 acres, and I’m thankful to God that there have been those who have walked before us and who have made Falls Creek what it is. Because of what they began, we get to be a part of seeing God do magnificent things here."

Jordan acknowledged that participants weren't just burying prayers in the ground.

"The purpose tonight is to, in a very real way, consecrate this very ground on which men of God will declare the love of Jesus," he stressed. "Our commitment and our desire more than anything else is that when somebody stands up here, the prayers we are going to bury here beneath this platform will be like the prayers we lay before the altar of God and that they will be a sweet smelling aroma to our Lord. That all of those who stand at this site will be committed to declare the the simple, but powerful, truth of Jesus Christ. There is no other message than that.

"Our prayer over this place is that they will proclaim that truth. We know there is no magic to the prayers we bury here, but there is something significant and symbolic about it. That we as men and women of God, and as preachers and leaders, would come here and make this spot a place that is sacred, wholly separated to God. That's what this is all about."

As construction on the nearly $30 million in Falls Creek improvements continues, Jordan asked those assembled to pray specifically about two things as they returned home.

"We'd ask you to pray specifically for two things as we continue with the construction of this building," he said. "Number one, pray for the safety of those who work in this building. You can imagine how hot it is in here. A lot of people, lot of metal and steel and a lot of opportunity for people to get hurt. So, join us in praying for their safety.

"Then I would ask you to continue to pray (about funding the projects). We need to raise about $6.7 million between now and next August. That's a lot of money, but you and I serve a Father who owns the cattle on a thousand hills . . . and He's good at directing people to participate in this. He has already done that; we started from nothing, and have a little more than $23 million that has been committed. God is going to take care of that, but you pray for us. We don't want to get lazy in our asking God to provide supporters so we can finish this facility.

"I don't know of anyone I can count on more than you who are involved in ministry and truly understand the significance of this place. So, would you just join us is doing that?"
Jordan concluded the ceremony with a prayer lifting up those specific concerns: "Father, thank You so much that You have called us to this place. You have provided Falls Creek; it was not in our minds to do, but it was in Your mind, and in Your heart. Lord, I don't know how to thank You that You would choose to provide a Falls Creek in the middle of the Arbuckle Mountains, (and) that You have so blessed Oklahoma Baptists.
"And Lord, we just thank You that You have blessed us more than anyone else . . . Lord we ask that You would consecrate this place to Your glory. We pray for safety for every worker who comes into this place, and I would pray that some of these men and women would have an unusual sense of Your presence that even in this place, Father, Your Spirit would work upon them, and Lord, we pray for the salvation of these.

“We pray, Father, that You would protect them physically, and Lord we pray that You would provide the resources. We believe You led us to do this, and we have stepped out in faith. We trust You, we don't trust ourselves or anybody else. We trust You to provide every dollar that is needed to make this place a reality, and so, we cry out to You to raise up men and women with generous hearts. Lord, we pray for some who can give $1 million or $2 million or $3 million. Lord, we pray for those who can give $2 or $3.

"Lord, we cannot wait; we feel such excitement in our hearts. Next May when we walk into this room and for the very first time, it is filled with Your glory and Your praises, I can't even imagine what it's going to be like, and Lord, we can't wait.

"Consecrate this place for Your glory. May the prayers of Your people resound and reverberate through this room for as long as it stands."