“The more prayer the better but it’s not from me!” said farmer-evangelist Angus Buchan today in response to a viral social media message purporting to be a call from him for Christians throughout South Africa to pray on Wednesday (January 24 2018) for rain in the Western Cape.
“We are praying 24/3/18 Mitchells Plain,” said Buchan, referring to the “It’s Time” meeting to pray for South Africa which he has called in Cape Town in two month’s time.
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The hoax message, claiming to be from Buchan, and written in his style and referring back to last year’s historic “It’s Time” prayer day in Bloemfontein (albeit stating the event was on April 21, when in fact it was on April 22), spread rapidly through Christian social media networks, with many people reporting receiving multiple copies of the message.
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South African believers, concerned about the water crisis in the Western Cape, took up the call for an hour of prayer from 1pm to 2pm on Wednesday, sharing the message widely, promoting it in churches and at events, and planning ways to participate in the national prayer event in groups or alone all over the country.
When people began to realise the call to prayer was not from Buchan and therefore a hoax, they faced a dilemma — to support the call or to drop it. It seems that many — if not most — are taking the line of Buchan himself — saying “the more prayer the better” regardless of the trigger.
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Respected prayer network Jericho Walls International posted a call to prayer on its website today, saying: “Several groups asked for Christians to unite in prayer on Wednesday 24 January 2018 to pray especially for the water crisis in Cape Town, but also the drought that is plaguing nearly the whole country.
“Pray as individuals, but try to unite in prayer in groups anytime between 12:00 and 14:00 or in the evening.”
The seriousness of the Western Cape water crisis is brought home by the latest estimate of the Western Cape Water Supply System on the day that the City of Cape Town is expected to run out of water if nothing changes. The latest “day zero” estimate is April 12 2018.
Significantly, the Cape Town “It’s Time” (see promotional video clip below) meeting is scheduled to take place just 19 days before “day zero” — and will surely provide an opportunity to pray for God to end the drought — or, hopefully, to thank Him for breaking it. At a prayer day in parliament on November 24 last year Buchan prayed a prayer of faith, declaring that the Western Cape drought would be broken in March 2018.
[fbvideo link=”https://www.facebook.com/UncleAngus/videos/10156211228658856/” width=”400″ height=”320″ onlyvideo=”1″]
In conclusion, what about the hoax itself? Who was behind it? Why? Whatever the answers the incident highlights the hazard of hoax messages and fake news in today’s social media space. This time, the result of masses of people passing on a hoax message was prayer. But what about hoaxes that promote more sinister agendas? May Christians take this strange episode as a warning to adopt a more critical stance to social media messages and take steps to verify them before passing them on.
Good day..I have started the message and have send it to all my contacts and created an event last week Wednesday. You may look at the original post and event…it makes no mention of Angus Buchan Somewhere someone wrote that it came from him. Its not true. Although it does not matter where it came from it matters that we pray. Please continue to spread but remove the name Angus Buchan before you do. I do not know who added his name and appologise that it happened. I also received it later with his name on. I am just being obedient.
Thank you Andre for alerting us. Angus always uses a brief video clip to promote his events. You cannot falsify that one. Sadly, Christians are so gullible, and willing to believe false statements too easily.
Thanks again for your excellent weekly communication. You are a star!
Remember we don’t follow a person but we follow God and a call for prayer is never a bad thing. Maybe someone associated Angus(adding his name) with the fact that he is bold enough to pray for rain publically putting his trust in God to open the heavens. We prayed in our office on Monday for rain and so it rained,still raining in Johannesburg. “Elijah was a human being, even as we are, He prayed…and the heavens gave rain. James 5 May we believe in the power of prayer and stop trying to solve the water crisis in boardrooms only the Maker of heaven and eart as well as rain, can solve the crisis….we just need to ask in prayer.(Our office will be praying at 1pm/24 Jan.
I am praying this hour for the heavens to open and pour down literal rain and that the rain of the Holy Spirit touch people all over South Africa. What difference does it make who made the call to prayer. We are called to have discernment that we may judge what is not of the LORD but how can a call to pray be fake news especially when we know how badly it is needed?
I totally agree with you Dianne. It does not matter who made the call for prayer. There is a promise in the Bible that if we pray He is faithful to answer. Also Zech 10:1. We are better off looking to the LORD than to a man.
I agree we don’t seek a man, we seek our God, the God of Abraham,Isaac and Jacob, so we prayed because only God can change things and I read, If My people who are called by My Name and humble themselves,then will I hear their prayer and heal their land, God can remove the drought, but we need to walk with Him daily and not when we have a crisis and then forget about Him, daily, in obedience, worship and Praise for all things, He is in control.
When i read the appeal to pray for rain in the western Cape, i was immediately on board.We shut our school from 13hr to 14hrs, so that our Learners could learn to identify with a national need. You see, we don’t simply believe its a Western Cape problem, but a National problem. Do for others what you would like done for you! South Africa is a rain starved country. KZN may on another day be faced with a severe season of drought and we trust the now struggling Capetonians will repay the favour! I am convinced, God responds in a very favourable way to Angus Buchan’s prayer and faith, but also to the prays of little Children! (Ps. G. Nicolas)
2chron 7:14 gives us one directive and 4 conditions for healing our land.
To the church … thats us.
1. Humble ourselves (prayer being only 1 aspect of humility)
2. Pray
3. Seek My face
4. Turn from our wicked ways …… THEN I will forgive their sin and heal their land.
In our meditations n prayers today maybe we should each one personally, very carefully consider all 4 points, in God’s light.
God never does anything without a good reason. Withholding rain is Gods deliberate response to something.
I believe the drought is tied to, or part of, many things happening in a few arenas in S.A. at the moment. The drought is not an isolated matter.
Lord help us to understand the times (as in our situation) as the sons of Issachar did, and respond according to Your will, with all our hearts, understanding that our combined response is not an event but an ongoing life.
Although I now do reside in North America, I do follow any updates from my hometown and pray for Gods supply to reach Cape Town and Africa in general I love you all with the love of our Lord
Have been praying as Led for spiritual & physical Rain in SA generally for some time. I don’t see this as a hoax as intended by those who initiated it but a positive add on. What the enemy intended for harm God has and will use for good going forward. Lord Bless all those who DID pray and let them not be put off to do so again in future… Even if it is another hoax.
After reading all of this, my humble opinion, we need the grace of God for our country as a whole, if someone made a mistake?? it served a good purpose ,and our heavenly Father has been listening since… I do agree with Neville. It is not about any person, it is all about our all mighty God of heaven and earth,to HIM alone the GLORY!!! in JESUS name we ask LORD…