Drenched in the late afternoon sunlight of June 12, a crowd of believers from all over Jordan - representing 11 Nazarene churches and 15 churches of other denominations - sought God's face in worship and repentance.

Nazarene leaders invited evangelicals across the country to join them for what was already to be the largest gathering of Nazarenes in Jordan's history. They had hoped for an attendance of 1,500. About 2,000 came.

During the three-hour event, 200 people publicly accepted Christ as their personal savior. More than 500 people came forward to receive the anointing of the Holy Spirit.

The event was the culmination of Jordanian Nazarenes' participation in the region-wide Easter to Pentecost emphasis. During this journey, which began the Monday after Easter, Nazarenes across the region sought the infilling of the Holy Spirit. The Easter to Pentecost journey is part of the "Power of One: Eurasia Region Missional Church Initiative" - a church planting and leadership training initiative that equips local churches to be missionally engaged.

Jordanian Nazarenes chose 2 Chronicles 7:14 as their theme: "If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land."

After Easter, Jordanian Nazarenes prepared themselves for Pentecost with organized prayer. One Nazarene congregation had 100 people sign up to pray for 30 minutes each day, covering every hour of each week in prayer. They also scheduled regular fasts. The prayer effort intensified starting June 1, when about 25 people met daily at the church for morning prayer.

They also organized a prayer and fasting meeting open to all denominations on June 10.

Because the Pentecost celebration was a culmination of several months of prayer and fasting, people arrived that Sunday with an air of expectation. The other denominations and groups throughout Jordan were invited in hopes that together they could influence the Middle East with the message of holiness and Holy Spirit empowerment.

Special speakers, worship music, and testimonies made up Sunday's program.

Despite several electricity outages, the people continued raising their voices in praise without electrical music instruments or microphones, said Lindell Browning, field strategy coordinator of the Eastern Mediterranean.

"The Pentecost experience was truly that! The sharing by all the pastors and the prayer times were anointed," Browning wrote later. "There was healing and deliverance.  It was an indescribable experience. God was there and is now going to continue His mighty work here."

One 10-year-old boy was brought forward because he suffered from a hearing loss.

"After praying with him they removed the hearing machine from his ear and started to talk with him in a soft voice and he started to hear in a very good way," one of the pastors said.

A member of the worship team experienced a strong sense of God's call to become an intercessor for people and cities in Jordan, the pastor added. And a Christian man from the Jordanian Parliament attended the service with his wife, coming to the front for prayer. 
"One pastor from another denomination called today thanking us," the pastor said. "His church members told him, 'This is the first day we celebrate the Pentecost. Why [did] we never [do] that before?'"

The planning committee envisions holding the same event next year, but wants a team made up of the broader Christian community to lead the planning, rather than just Nazarenes.

 "We pray that the Pentecost Day not be just an event and finished, but we ask to pray that the church of Jordan experiences the power of the Holy Spirit every day," the pastor said. "We ask you to pray for protection for the work team from sickness or any war against their lives for them and their families."
--Eurasia Regional Office