'Holy Spirit Woodstock' Countdown Begins

Organizers of "Awaken the Dawn" are preparing for tens of thousands of Christians to descend on the nation's capital next Friday for a weekend of praise and prayer up and down the National Mall.

The worshippers will take advantage of 57 tents strategically placed on the public land stretching from Capitol Hill to the Lincoln Memorial.

The National Mall has witnessed all kinds of protests and gatherings over the course of the nation's history but "Awaken the Dawn" is simply aimed at worshipping Jesus Christ around the clock from Friday, Oct. 6th to Monday, Oct. 9th.

Organizer David Bradshaw told CBN News, "We want to call America back to Christ."

"Our prayer really is that a whole generation, young and old, in America, would have a fresh encounter with Jesus' person," he explained.

Bradshaw and his friend Lou Engle who runs "The Call" events envisioned "Awaken the Dawn" after receiving prophecies for years that they'd be involved in a national gathering on the Mall.

One prophesier told Bradshaw, "You're going to be part of a new Jesus Movement. It's a Holy Spirit Woodstock."

Next weekend's event builds on an on-going ministry already on the Mall known as David's Tent. It began on the White House lawn in 2012 with a worship and prayer focus and has continued its 24/7 presence for more than 600 days in a row. Organizer Jason Hershey says he's excited to see how God will bless the nation with "Awaken the Dawn."

Hershey told CBN News "the hope is to bring greater exposure for David's Tent and fill it for decades to come." Hershey would like to see each state take a week at the tent every year "so that the U.S. really owns this tent on the Mall."

He's also creating an "Awaken the Dawn" 2.0 plan for next year. Hershey says he and Bradshaw are casting a vision for people in every state to create a "David's Tent" on their state capitol grounds over Columbus Day weekend 2018.

Believers have a rich tradition of committing to prayer and watching the Holy Spirit work. The book of Acts chronicles the work of prayer repeatedly and many also remember what happened with the Moravian prayer movement known as "The Lord's Watch."

It began in the early 1700's amidst division among a group of religious exiles from different backgrounds who were living in a German village known as Moravia. As relationships began to deteriorate the believers began to corporately study the Bible, hold all-night prayer vigils and confess their sins to one another.

Then, on Aug. 13, 1727, the Holy Spirit moved through a room of believers gathered for baptism and communion. They established a 24/7 prayer vigil which lasted 100 years and influenced the work of Christian leaders including John and Charles Wesley, founders of the Methodist church and William Carey, missionary to India.