WE NEED ANOTHER DUNKIRK": 30,000+ TURN OUT TO PRAY & FAST FOR AMERICA AND ISRAEL
By Joel C. Rosenberg
(Houston, Texas, August 7, 2011) -- The year was 1940. The moment was one of the darkest in the history of the English people. More than 300,000 British troops suddenly found themselves pinned down in northern France. Nazi forces were bearing down on them. The Brits didn't have enough ammunition or supplies. At any moment, Hitler's forces would launch a ferocious attack. The Brits faced imminent annihilation. Prime Minister Winston Churchill and his advisors thought at best the navy could rescue 20,000 to 30,000 before it was too late. Others feared even that might not be possible. And the stakes couldn't have been higher. If so many forces were wiped out, Hitler and the Nazis would invade the British Isles -- and win.

So the King of England called for a national day of prayer. That Sunday, an estimated 70 percent of the British people showed up at churches all over the country. They begged for the Lord's mercy on their fathers and sons, and for their national survival. And the Lord heard those heartfelt prayers and responded with what became known as "the miracle at Dunkirk." Hitler inexplicably delayed giving his generals the order to finish off the Brits. A great storm over Germany prevented Nazi planes from being able to take off. The British people quickly assembled some 900 fishing boats, yachts, trawlers, and other private and government vessels, and began ferrying the troops of the French beaches and back to England a few at a time. By the grace of God, nearly a third of a million souls were saved as a result, as was the British nation.

"We need another Dunkirk," said Dr. James Dobson at Saturday's national day of prayer in Houston as he recounted the famous story and called American Christians to devote themselves to prayer and fasting. "God answers prayer." He is absolutely right.

What an encouraging day during such a discouraging week. Against the backdrop of a severe financial crisis and near-crippling political gridlock in Washington, the S&P's first-ever downgrade of American debt, the increasing prospect of a double-dip recession, and the terrible tragedy of the murder of 30 American special forces heroes in Afghanistan -- including operators from the Navy's SEAL Team Six -- more than 30,000 Americans gathered peaceably here yesterday to pray for the Lord to have mercy on our country. They joined together with evangelical Christians gathered at some 1,300 satellite viewing locations in all 50 states. They implored the Lord to spare us from the judgment our many sins deserve. They pleaded with the Lord to pour out His Holy Spirit and give us a Third Spiritual Awakening. They chose, too, to pray for the Lord to bless the State of Israel and the Jewish people, and prayed faithfully and passionately for the peace of Jerusalem.