I have known some unusual people in my life, but a long-time friend of ours, and a colleague in ministry, Pastor John Halvorsen, is at the top of the ‘Unusual’ list in as much as he doesn’t do the normal things that most people do. John, accompanied by his wife Sandy, is currently in the middle of his fourth prayer walk across America. More about that in a moment.

First, let me share some of John’s unusual accomplishments.

  • He canoed across the Arctic Circle, during which time he got converted.
  • He led a canoe trip from Montreal to Duluth during the 1976 bicentennial.
  • In 1980, he led a team of ex-drug addicts, most of whom had never canoed in their lives, on a canoe trip down the headwaters of the Mississippi River to the Gulf of Mexico and broke the record for canoeing the Mississippi.
  • In 1998, he took his first Prayer Walk along the River Road from the Canadian border to the Gulf of Mexico.
  • He went on a Prayer Walk across the United States from the Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic Ocean.
  • He then went on a long adventure, going on a Prayer Walk from the Atlantic Ocean in Portugal to the border of China, where he continued by train because he was not allowed to prayer walk across China.
  • In 2019, he then went on another Prayer Walk from Los Angelos to New York City.
  • In addition to this, taking the Appeal to Heaven Flag with him, he has prayed at the North Pole, the South Pole, and the Equator.

As you can see, John Halvorsen has done unusual things as he has been led by the Lord. He is now in the middle of his fourth Prayer Walk in the United States, walking about 3,500 miles from Miami to Seattle.

I asked Ron Olson, who works with John in plotting his route to walk (you can’t just walk along interstates), along with many other related activities and events, to share an update on what has been happening. Here is Ron’s report.

There was an urgency in his voice when John called me last December to tell me that God had called him to once again prayerwalk the nation. This fourth walk across America would be from Miami to Seattle. But there was also an urgency to God’s call. We were to begin as soon as possible. In fact, John wouldn’t even have time to build himself up by walking around Duluth before it began. The start date was going to be the first week of February.

John is walking across America with a message that is really quite simple. Simple, but with the very power of heaven behind it. John is not using this walk to raise money for a cause, nor is this a political event. He is beseeching believers everywhere to earnestly appeal to heaven on behalf of America, so the Church comes out of its slumber and a mighty great awakening sweeps across this nation. It’s a call for believers to step into the world with a demonstration and proclamation of the Kingdom of God.

As we were quickly preparing, John was told by a fellow minister that there would be more warfare against this walk than any of the others. None of us realized how quickly that word would turn out to be true. The walk began on February 5th as John stepped away from the Atlantic Ocean in Miami Beach. But after just nine days of walking, he was unable to continue. Physically exhausted, he was diagnosed with Covid and was hospitalized for five days with pneumonia.

The walk would not begin again until March 8th. During those three weeks, the enemy did everything he could to attack and discourage John, and try to stop this walk. The walk has continued, but so have the personal attacks on John. Yet, in the midst of it all, God has shown himself strong. It seems that whenever the battle gets more intense, people have come out to pray with and encourage both John and Sandy.

The past two weeks have seen some of the most amazing connections with people along the walk. This was largely due to Dutch Sheets. Just before the last prayer walk from Los Angeles to New York City, John and Sandy were at a conference and Dutch asked John to share about what he was doing. Then Dutch, Chuck Pierce and Lou Engel prayed over John, Sandy and the walk. He and Sandy have kept in touch with Dutch’s ministry ever since. 

On July 5, Dutch featured John and Prayer Walk America on his daily Give Him 15 prayer podcast. The result was beyond anything we could have imagined. There was an immediate increase in people contacting us from all over the world. Our number of Facebook followers almost tripled. The number of people wanting to receive our Weekly Prayer Alert more than tripled. 

In the podcast, Dutch prayed for new friends to come out to meet them with food, provision and prayers. My inbox exploded as people began contacting me, wanting to walk with John and offering to feed and house them whenever John and Sandy would reach their city. I heard from people in the United Kingdom and from the leader of the National Prayer Council of Norway. I’ve had to open files for Nebraska, Wyoming, Idaho, Oregon and Washington, just to keep the names of people there who want to walk with John when they reach those states.

People saw on our map where John was walking in Kansas, and began contacting Sandy to find out how to meet with them. People came out to walk, pray and provide for their needs. There was even a trio of women who drove over two hours to meet John and Sandy.

Within just a couple days, John was invited to participate in a nationwide prayer call, and was interviewed for a worldwide podcast that originates in Cleveland, Ohio. It has been absolutely amazing!

The blessings along the walk have been seen almost daily, and God has orchestrated the route to pass some truly significant sites, both historically and spiritually. One of the most significant will be reached this week.

John’s route is taking him past a little town in Kansas named Lebanon. Just outside of Lebanon is a monument that marks the geographic center of the contiguous United States. It is literally the heart of America. On Monday, John and Sandy reached that site and stopped to pray for our nation. On Friday, July 23rd, John will take the day off so they can return to Lebanon to participate in the Prayer At The Heart rally, a six-hour time of prayer and proclamation for revival in America. I contacted the organizers of the rally to let them know about Prayer Walk America and that John would be at the event. They responded by asking John to be available for an interview and to pray for the nation. You can learn more about that rally at prayerattheheart.com.

John and Sandy still have a ways to go on this walk. They are only now reaching the half-way point and still need to get across the Rocky Mountains in October. But it is clear that God is walking with them every step of the way. As I was reading some of the comments on the Dutch Sheets podcast, there was one from a woman that really stood out to me. She quoted 2 Corinthians: 2:14.

But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of Him everywhere.

This perfectly sums up what John and Sandy do. From the very first prayer walk in 1998, they have always allowed God to lead them, and they always leave the fragrance of God with everyone they meet. Whether it’s someone they meet in town, a gas station attendant, a construction worker on the side of the road, or the person behind the counter at the donut shop, John and Sandy always offer a prayer, a word of encouragement and a demonstration of how much God loves them. 

If we could all simply make a practice of doing that in our own lives, revival in America would start today.

CLOSING THOUGHT

Recently, Dave Keating, a missionary to Zambia, was back visiting America. Knowing little about what was happening in the Prayer Walk, he told John, ‘As of July 4th, your voice will be heard.’

This is the time to pray for America. I encourage you to link up with John and Sandy to pray for America during this critical time.

MORE INFORMATION ON PRAYER WALK AMERICA! 

To learn more and follow John and Sandy along the prayer walk, go to their website prayerwalkamerica.com or their Facebook page facebook.com/pastorjohnhalvorsen.