c. 1997 Religion News Service

WASHINGTON _ Here is the text of the”Stand in the Gap Covenant,”distributed at the Promise Keepers rally which participants were asked to affirm:”Our great and awesome God and Father, in Your sovereignty You have brought us to Washington, D.C., in the name of Your only Son, Jesus Christ. You have met us and dealt with us in powerful ways. You have been faithful with all of Your promises and loving in all Your ways. We now stand before You broken and humbled, called and strengthened by Your Holy Spirit to enter into this covenant with You.”We covenant by Your grace to serve no other gods besides You. Where we have strayed from You, we commit to love You with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength. Where we have grown distant in our communion with You, we commit to pursue an ever-deepening relationship with You through worship, prayer and Your written word, empowered by Your Holy Spirit.

We covenant by Your grace to become men of integrity, relying on Your Word and Christ in us. When faced with moral, ethical, and sexual temptation, we commit to ask You for help that we might do the right thing.

We covenant by Your grace to love and serve our wives and children. We commit to give them first priority in our prayers and schedules. Today, each of us declares,”As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”Where we have used our masculinity against others, we now commit to honor all women and value all human life through our words and in our actions.

We covenant by Your grace to actively support the mission of our churches. Where we have criticized our pastors and withheld our support, we commit to follow their spiritual leadership and to pray for them daily. Where we have withheld our gifts, we commit to invest our time, treasure and talents into our churches.

We covenant by Your grace to pray for and to facilitate unity in the body of Christ. Where our pride, insensitivities and prejudice have divided the Church, we commit to seek forgiveness, understanding and reconciliation. Where we have done little to confront the sins of sectarianism and racism, we commit to intentionally love the brotherhood of believers and be an observable example of unity in Christ, that He might be exalted and known as the Son of God.

We covenant by Your grace to pursue vital relationships with a few other godly men for the purpose of encouraging one another toward love and good deeds.

We covenant by Your grace to be witnesses in word and deed to the love, forgiveness and hope that You have given us through Christ Jesus our Lord. Grant us the gift of Your empowering Holy Spirit today and each day from hereafter, that Jesus Christ may be seen and exalted in our lives.

Now, with this covenant we go forth in a spirit of unity in Christ Jesus, poised for revival in our churches and spiritual awakening in our land. For whether we live or die, we belong to You. `Now to the King eternal, immortal,invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever.’ (1 Timothy 1:17). Amen.

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