After praying at Oregon’s state Capitol Mall in Salem, as well as the downtown area, I returned to our motel. Jeanette and I checked out of the motel, then headed for Portland for an entire day of cross walking. You can read about the awesome Portland Cross Walk by returning to our Home page.

After a special cross walk in Portland, which was prompted by TV and newspaper reports that  the city’s largest gang was targeting police for assassination, we headed for Olympia, the capital of Washington and just an hour away. As we left Oregon’s most populous city and entered Washington state, we were greeted by a large sign that also bore witness to why we were walking the cross in the state of Washington.

The sign made us smile because everyone entering Washington from Portland sure can’t miss reading God’s Good News about our Savior’s crucifixion on the cross for our sins, His resurrection from the dead, and His soon return. And, as we would find out later, there are many believers living in the Evergreen State.

But we would also soon discover that the state’s beautiful capital city also had some major problems.

MARIJUANA IS LEGAL TO USE RECREATIONALLY IN THIS STATE

Shoot Dope, Skip Rope, Eat Cantaloupe. A Not So Normal Guide To Getting High.

In 2012 Washington’s citizens voted to legalize the recreational use of marijuana, aka cannabis. Since then there has been an upsurge in the number of marijuana-related fatal car crashes, reported in a 2016 article in the Washington Post and according to a new study by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety. No doubt, this and other safety issues concerning the legal use of cannabis products will eventually show that marijuana is not a safe and benign drug, as many pro-pot proponents tout.

For now, cannabis is legal to use in this state by those over 21. But, of course, we all know that this dangerous drug is most certainly used by those under twenty-one as well.

When we checked into our motel room I noticed that, along with many other sight-seeing brochures and visitor’s guides situated inside a large wooden rack,  a colorful guide and map to the state’s licensed cannabis shops was also included.

One of the reasons we had come to Washington was to pray that the people of this beautiful state would choose to say NO to using drugs, including marijuana and other cannabis products, even though it is legal to do so.

But I could see that we had our work cut out for us.

THE YOUNG KIDS HANGING OUT SEEMED SO LIFELESS

What You Need To Know About Marijuana.

After a good night’s rest, I unloaded the large cross from the go-ye-mobile and headed toward downtown, just a short distance away. Olympia is a beautiful city. But as I reached downtown I noticed that there were small clusters of  young people just hanging out and not really engaged in any real activities. When I approached and tried to start conversations with theses youth, it felt as if they were all under the influence of a drug, which I suspected was marijuana. I also noticed that there were many homeless people as well.

The problem with using any psychoactive drug, whether legal or not, is what it eventually does to an individual’s motivation, the so-called amotivational syndrome, which results in a feeling of emotional flatness, indifference and the inability to participate in normal life challenges, such as getting a job, etc.

This Organic Brain Syndrome (OBS) also results in diminished willpower, lack of concentration, short attention span, increased confusion in thinking, impaired judgment (which can cause accidents), pathological passivity (zombie-likeness), and hostility toward all forms of authority.

THC (tetrahydrocannabinol), one of the prime ingredients in all cannabis products and which causes the “high,” stunts the cognitive growth and maturing process of a user, resulting in emotional and psychological immaturity for as long as the psychoactive substance is used. In other words, if a user began smoking pot regularly at age 14, he or she will mentally remain and act and think like a 14-year-old until quitting the drug, even though he or she grows chronically older.

And, of course, there are other health issues and problems related to chronic or regular cannabis use. You can order a free copy of THE TRUTH ABOUT MARIJUANA by contacting the author at Tom@WalkTheCross.com.

PRAYING FOR OLYMPIA’S THIN BLUE LINE

It Is Vital To The Well-being Of Any City That Its Thin Blue Line Is Both Strong And Righteous.

Olympia is a capital city in need of much prayer because of  the large number of young people using drugs, as well as a large number of homeless youth and adults. As I walked the downtown streets and prayed, I asked the God of grace and mercy to pour out His Spirit on the youth of this city and to bring them out of the valley of despair and lifelessness and into His green pastures of eternal life and vitality.

I also hoisted the cross upright at the Police Department and prayed hard and long for Olympia’s Thin Blue Line, that many of these police officers would accept Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord and be a blessing to all the people of this besieged city. There are Christians in this beautiful city, and I asked God to move on their hearts to not only uphold Olympia’s police officers in prayer, but to also reach out to all the youth and young adults as well.

WASHINGTON STATE NEEDS GREAT REVIVAL!

The Two-Sided Tract I Handed Out To The People Of Washington State.

Throughout this entire downtown cross walk, I sensed a feeling of deep apathy among the people living in Olympia, as if everyone has given up on life and purpose and meaning. Because I knew this was a spirit of depression and apathy, I rebuked Satan in Jesus’ name and asked the Lord of the resurrection and Life to tear down the citywide satanic strongholds of deception and replace all of them with His dynamic towers of truth. In my spirit, I felt God’s power flowing throughout the entire area and His assurance that, indeed, He was about to break some very powerful strongholds and send forth not only great revival, but great awakening among the people as well!

ASKING GOD TO POUR OUT HIS TRUTH AMONG WASHINGTON’S POLITICAL LEADERS

Praying Hard And Long At The Capitol Mall.

After much prayer in the downtown area, I walked the few blocks to the Capitol Mall. As is my custom, I walked the cross to each of the four main entrances, hoisted it upright at each entrance, and prayed long and hard for great revival, great awakening, great godly sorrow that produces genuine repentance, and great restoration to break out throughout the entire state.

It is my pleasure and responsibility to pray for each state’s governor and state political leaders whenever I travel to that state. And that’s exactly what I did, asking the LORD of hosts to pour out His Spirit of truth upon all the state’s leaders, including county, local and city leaders as well. Only God’s truth can set chemical captives free! And only the living God can reach Washington’s seven million residents and bring them all to Jesus!

This Capitol Mall cross walk prayer took over an hour, because I wanted to pray specifically about the state’s liberal mentality, which the devil always uses to his advantage to entrap the souls of individuals through deception, delusion and temptation. For any state’s leaders to sell their souls to the devil so as to obtain badly needed tax revenues — in this case, legalizing cannabis products so as to gain large tax revenues — is a sure sign that these leaders need Jesus very bad!

I shudder to think what Washington state will be like in just as few years, as marijuana rears its ugly head and addicts hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of gullible Washingtonians to its psychoactive properties. There will be a tremendous price to pay for such addiction. As I prayed for Washington state, I asked the LORD of the Harvest to send forth Bible-truthbearing men and women into the state’s diverse field of souls, who will somehow be able to convince the people that drugs are not the answer; they are the problem, as well as the problem-making culprits.

A VERY UNEXPECTED PLEASANT SURPRISE

Guess Where This Group Of Visitors Are from?!

As I walked the Capitol grounds, I noticed a large group of people taking pictures throughout the scenic gardens. I approached one woman and asked her to take a picture of me as I prayed for the state of Washington. She quickly said yes. After the picture-taking session, I thanked her and greeted the large group she was with.

“Where are all of you from? ” I asked. To my complete surprise, one of the men answered, “Bakersfield, California.”

“What? You’re from where?” I asked in disbelief. “We are from Bakersfield, California,” another man answered. “We are on our way to Seattle after this,” he added.

I smiled real big. “Bakersfield! That’s where my wife and I live, too!” I shouted loud for all to hear.

Everyone was now laughing and shaking their heads in disbelief. I shared about the eight-state cross walks, and why I was at the Capitol Mall this day. One of the ladies mentioned that she had seen me cross walking in Bakersfield, but didn’t put it all together until I mentioned where I was from. After a few minutes of talking about Bakersfield and where we each lived, I asked if they would like to pray for the entire state of Washington and its seven million  citizens, that they all come to accept Jesus Christ as their Savior.

“LORD, SEND OUT YOUR HOLY FIRE AND LET THE REVIVAL BEGIN!”

Claiming Olympia and Washington State For Jesus!.

The large group of adults and youth quickly said yes. We all bowed our heads and they asked me to pray. After a long prayer for the salvation of Washington’s seven million souls, which was accented by a lot of “amens” and “Yes, Lords,” we hugged, shook hands and said goodbye. I lowered the cross to my shoulder and walked toward the street that would take me back to the motel Jeanette and I were staying.

As I walked toward the motel, my mind was full of faith-filled thoughts. I couldn’t help but believe that God, indeed, was going to reveal His truths to many, many people living in this state. Truths that would bring them to Jesus. Truths that would change their mindsets. Truths that, though hard to swallow at first, would set them free — from the Fall, from the devil’s deceptions, from the addictions, and from the worst prison of all, the prison of the mind.

I prayed loud as I walked. People passing by would look. I would smile, then would say, “Praying for your state, that you all come to Jesus! Do you know Jesus as Your Savior?” Some said yes. Other just shrugged. Each received a two-sided tract card about the need to come to Jesus. As each one walked away I declared, “LORD, I claim that soul for Jesus and for Your kingdom. Make it so, I ask You in Jesus Name! Amen.”

“Lord, let the revival begin!!”