Friday, December 29, 2006

In Honor of . . . CHPA (Capitol Hill Prayer Alert)


~ CAPITOL HILL PRAYER PARTNERS

Dear Friends,


It is with great sadness that we share the news that one of our sister ministries here in Washington, D.C., the Capitol Hill Prayer Alert (CHPA), headed by Harry Valentine, will close its doors in the New Year.

CHPA was one of the few ministries in place in Washington, D.C. back in 1994 when the Lord raised up our own work, now called the Capitol Hill Prayer Partners.

It was Harry Valentine and his faithful prayer partner, Pierre Bynum, who first blessed me on Feb. 24, 1994, and sent me forth to pray in the Visitor's Gallery of the U.S. House of Representatives over a bill that was about to impact homeschoolers nationwide: HR6.

Their prayers, and my small intercession, were joined with thousands of others, so that a miracle occurred that day, and the Armey Amendment, which was attached to HR6 and was designed to spare home schooling families of egregious federal intervention, PASSED in a great victory by a vote of 374 - 53.

I left the Visitor's Gallery that day, greatly gratified to see this victory, wrought through prayer. Little did I know then what I know now: God had a plan for me way beyond "one day on the Hill." Later that evening, He gave me the vision to do what we still do today: to invite intercessors to pray for all in authority in the Halls of Congress, every day they are in session.

After I recovered from the shock of receiving this call to prayer from the Hand of God, the first person I consulted to be sure we would not be duplicating any other work on Capitol Hill was . . . Harry Valentine. Harry very kindly informed me that, although CHPA had been raised up to ALERT intercessors through mail, fax and later email of the need to pray for pro-life and pro-family legislation, they had never been called to directly "put feet to their prayers" and hence to pray on-site in Congress. He then confirmed that my vision was of the Lord, and graciously encouraged me to pursue it.

Within days, our Lord raised up a small but very faithful and anointed troop of five intercessors, and we have been in place ever since . . . praying on site inside Congress and asking that His will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. YOU are now an extension of this work and, by agreeing together on God's Word being fulfilled, we trust Him to hear and to respond . . . in His way, and in His time.

BUT ALL OF THIS BEGAN AT ONE SMALL PRAYER MEETING WITH HARRY VALENTINE AND HIS PRAYER WARRIORS AT CAPITOL HILL PRAYER ALERT!!

So, as we close out this year, may we ask you to remember the Capitol Hill Prayer Alert in your own year-end giving?? They have been so faithful, for so long; and we can only say "THANK YOU, CHPA! WELL DONE THOU FAITHFUL SERVANTS!"

Please make your checks out to: CHPA and mail them to: CHPA, P.O. Box 7334, Arlington, VA 22207

Thank you all, God bless you, and Happy New Year from Capitol Hill Prayer Partners . . . on watch with you and for you in Washington, D.C.

Sara C. Ballenger
Founder and President
Capitol Hill Prayer Partners