A Gator Prayer and Nation

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Last week I visited the Florida city of Gainesville—affectionately known as “The Swamp” or “Gator Country”—but I was not there to congratulate the University of Florida’s (UF) basketball team for their April 2 victory over Ohio State. I attended a campus prayer meeting with my daughter Gloria, who will be a freshman at UF next year. We joined about 150 other people in a cramped auditorium to pray that a spiritual revival would touch UF.

 

We gathered inside the Baptist Student Union building, which, thanks to vandalism, bears a sign that reads: “Baptist Stud Union.” But this was not your typical Baptist prayer meeting. A praise band led us in a full hour of intense worship while most students had their hands in the air. Some of them were members of Chi Alpha, a Pentecostal campus outreach directed by the Assemblies of God.

 

 

“Lord, we repent. We need you, God. Come to our campus,” one female student declared from the stage. Another took the microphone and shut his eyes tightly as he prayed: “Lord, we need Your miracles. Send signs and wonders to Gainesville.”

 

The meeting was led by Ken Malone, a pastor from Central Florida who mobilizes prayer events in the state. He has gained attention among some charismatic groups because of a prophecy he gave three years ago in which he declared that UF’s football team would achieve national prominence.

 

That prophetic word, given in a small church in High Springs, Fla., in July 2004, said that UF’s football success would be a sign of coming spiritual revival in Gainesville. It said: “‘And you watch,’ says the Lord, ‘Over the next three years, as the football team begins to increase in strength and in power … I am going to cause a turnaround in the football team and you’re going to see it as a natural sign that I am turning the church around within that city.'”

 

Because UF won the national football championship in January of this year, and because the Gators won back-to-back national basketball titles in 2006 and 2007, some Christian students are buzzing about Malone’s message.

 

Malone reminded his audience of the word on Friday night and declared again: “Revival is coming to the city of Gainesville!” The students cheered, and then lined up one by one to pray. Included in their number were international students from Asia, Africa and Latin America.

 

Is God preparing to visit this town? Carl Krames, a Gainesville businessman and volunteer campus minister, says spiritual momentum is definitely building. He points to First Assembly of God, a church that had only 40 students attending regularly three years ago. As many as 400 students attend today. Its pastor, Mike Patz, found Christ as a freshman at UF in 1990.

 

The fourth largest university in the country, with 50,900 students, UF hosts numerous ministry groups including InterVarsity, Campus Crusade, the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Chi Alpha and several local church outreaches. But it’s also known for its wild fraternities, raucous tailgate parties and retro-hippie subculture.

 

Krames, who attends several weekly prayer meetings for the UF campus, said he developed a spiritual burden for the university after watching the
Transformations video series about the impact of prayer on Guatemala, Colombia, Fiji and other nations. “I used to have a bad attitude about Gainesville,” Krames told me. “I thought it was just a party school. Now I believe God has something for Gainesville.”

 

Malone agrees. “The Lord has positioned the church on the UF campus to bring awakening to the city. Gainesville will have a national impact.”

 

I couldn’t help but inquire if Malone’s enthusiasm for Southern football might have influenced his judgment in this situation. After all, it’s not that often you hear a prophecy in church about a football team winning a national title.

 

But Malone, an Alabama native, quickly reminded me that his only cheer is “Roll Tide.” He adds with a laugh: “To be honest, I’ve never really been a Gator fan.”