My Last Post on This Blog

After posting regularly on this blog for 18 years, I've moved it to https://RichDrama.Substack.com. 

A criminal hacked this blog and set it up so that every time it posts there are invisible links to porn sites, which increase their likelihood of being found when people are searching for that sort of thing. Not only do I not want to help their cause, but Blogger recognizes the code as spam and deletes my posts as soon as they appear. They've been good to repost them once they look at them, but they've given warnings that eventually their goodwill will wear out, and they'll take down the blog. 

I've moved it to a new site, which contains every post that is on this blog, but it's not ready to be posted. Eventually you'll be able to find it at www.RichDrama.com/Blog, but in the meantime I'm posting new things to https://RichDrama.Substack.com and https://JoyceAndRichSwingle.Blogspot.com so people can continue to follow us on Blogger.

You can get email updates via our Substack, or if you prefer not to get updates every time I post -- which can be as many as five times a week -- I have less frequent options at www.RichDrama.com/Updates. 

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See the rest of Olympic champion Eric Liddell's Chariots of Fire story in Beyond the Chariots. Watch it online and book a live performance. 

*mark ( a solo performance of the Gospel of Mark.)

I just discovered a prayer of mine from 1994 was answered! 

Tonight we saw George Drance of Magis Theatre Company perform *mark ( a solo performance of the Gospel of Mark.) at the Salvation Army's Theatre 315. It was brilliantly directed by our friend, Luann Purcell Jennings, and marvelously brought to life by George. I've been to Israel three times, and Joyce has been five times. Luann directed George to draw First Century Israel on the entire floor of the theatre in chalk as the play moves along. It was a very simple method of giving us another tour of Israel, this time with Jesus and his disciples!

So now to the miracle: We were told that George was the pastor of Ellen Stewart who ran La MaMa, a downtown theatre space known for its avant-guarde work, not as a haven for Christians. I interviewed Ellen for a paper in grad school, and I told George I was delighted to hear he was her pastor! He indicated it wasn't really an official pastoral role, but I got the idea that he had an ongoing witness to her in some way. My interview was in 1994, and I'm certain that I prayed for her. Two years later George was able to speak into her soul. Glory to God! 

Yesterday Joyce had an epiphany while we were in a small group prayer meeting: Corey ten Boom said life looks like the back of a tapestry. It's messy and certainly not a thing of beauty. It's not until we're with the Lord in the New Jerusalem that we'll see the beauty of what the Lord was weaving together. Joyce observed that sometimes on earth the tapestry is turned over a bit, so we get a glimpse of the work in progress. I feel like that happened for me a bit tonight! Glory to God!

*mark is running through April 29. Don't miss it if you're in the area!

And pray that your prayers from decades ago are answered, too!

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I was performing I Dreamed I Was Free in 1994 for the first time. It tells the story of Quaker abolitionist John Woolman, who spoke against slavery a century before our Civil War.

The Power of On-Site Intercession

Intercessors for America ran this piece today:

Lord, direct us to pray with Your authority where You place us, and where we gather to pray, multiply the effectiveness of our prayers!

The importance of traveling to key sites to pray was reinforced the other night when we saw a solo performance in New York City called *mark ( a solo performance of the Gospel of Mark.). The actor, George Drance, draws a map of first century Israel on the stage floor in chalk, and takes us on the journey with Jesus and his disciples. It struck me that Jesus went out of his way to take his disciples to Caesarea Philippi. We’ve been there several times, and there are ancient altars to one pagan god after the next. The biggie is a tribute to the god Pan in a massive cave known as the Gates of Hell. That was where Peter declared, “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God!”

[Click to read the whole article...]

Here's the video they posted:

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I performed a scene from my one-man play, The Acts at Caesarea Philippi.

Joyce in Frankfurt

During EuroTour18 Joyce was invited to speak in Frankfurt. She's translated to German by our friend Thorsten M.

Here's a film in which one of Rich's colleagues was translated to German: www.RichDrama.com/YourLanguage.

The photo is of a trip to the Rhine Valley we took after Joyce's message.

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I play a lead in Providence, which I like to call a feature-length music video.

Songs of Revival

We have an exciting announcement...

Sign up for updates to find out when Songs of Revival is ready and when it's heading your way!

Springing to Action

On today's Headline Prayer Live we covered a great number of topics facing America and the world today, including two articles Joyce and I wrote.

Here's Joyce's:

Prayer for the Lost

Lord, point those who need salvation toward the mercies of the Savior. Let them mourn their sin and turn to Jesus for forgiveness and restoration. In His Name. 

As we move from the blessed Holy Week, I am more acutely aware that millions do not yet know the love of God and the grace of Jesus. Millions passed through this past week unaware of the precipice upon which their souls teeter. For me, the joy of Resurrection Sunday is tinged with sadness for these many whose eyes are blinded to the horror of sin and its effects.

[Click for the whole article...]

And here's mine:

Film Inspires Prayers for Persecuted Christians
Lord, use this film about some who were killed in A.D. 203 for being Christians, to target our prayers for those persecuted today.
A film about Perpetua — who was martyred for her faith about 1,820 years ago — is now available to watch online and with your church. Not only does it bring to life the first book we know was written by a woman, but it also shines a spotlight on the 360 million people being persecuted for their faith in Jesus Christ today.

[Click for the whole article...]

My article is mostly an introduction to two videos of interviews. The first is with some of the creatives behind The Diary of Perpetua:

Nooshig Luz Salvador, whose grandparents survived the Armenian Genocide, is glad the film is giving her a platform to talk about today’s Armenian Genocide in Azerbaijan. She and Father Andreas Garabedian did an interview to talk about the siege of an Armenian village that has lasted more than 120 days:

Nooshig sent a link to an organization that empowers you to send letters to our leaders urging them to stop the genocide. 

Here's the program: 

And here's the entire film followed by a discussion with the cast and crew: 

You can also order a DVD with extras from Still Small Theatre's Store, and also set up a screening in your area with a representative of Open Doors International, to help connect the dots to modern persecution.

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I Dreamed I Was Free tells the story of Quaker abolitionist John Woolman, who spoke against slavery a century before our Civil War.

Armenian Genocide Today

I recently did an interview with Nooshig Salvador -- who plays a key role in The Diary of Perpetua -- and her priest Father Andreas Garabedian about today’s Armenian Genocide in Azerbaijan.

Appreciate your prayers for the cessation of this atrocity. 

You can watch The Diary of Perpetua in its entirety and a video of interviews with Salvador and other creatives now on www.HeadlinePrayer.org. On April 11 Joyce and I led Intercessors for America in praying for this and other articles, including one Joyce wrote. You can watch it now.

You can share this page using www.RichDrama.com/ArmenianGenocideToday.

Screenshot from an interview filmed by Laura Mae.

A Blessed Resurrection Day!

A blessed Resurrection Day to all!!!

The same One who delivered the people of Israel out of bondage delivers all who receive the blood He shed on the cross as the perfect Lamb of God on the lintels of their heart!

On Good Friday Joyce and I focused on the words of the Passion, so last night we focused on the imagery and watched The Passion of the Christ by Mel Gibson without the subtitles. Only hearing Hebrew, Aramaic, and Latin helped us really see what the Lord did for us, so that we might be set free!

I find it easiest to understand the Christian doctrine that "Heaven" is a state in which angels now, and men hereafter, are perpetually employed in praising God . . . . To see what the doctrine really means, we must suppose ourselves to be in perfect love with God—drunk with, drowned in, dissolved by, the delight which, far from remaining pent up within ourselves as incommunicable, hence hardly tolerable, bliss, flows out from us incessantly again in effortless and perfect expression, our joy no more separable from the praise in which it liberates and utters itself than the brightness a mirror receives is separable from the brightness it sheds.
—C.S. Lewis from Reflections on the Psalms
The C.S. Lewis Bible

The Lord has been speaking to me through the time that He wakes me in the night. Last night I saw it was 12:46, and I felt like He was directing me to a chapter and verse, but what Book? He let me go back to sleep but as soon as I woke He reminded me, and I knew it was Isaiah, but there aren’t 46 verses in that chapter. Immediately I saw it was verses 4 to 6. What a perfect passage to encourage us to make known his deeds at Passover and Resurrection Day!

Pray that many will step into Eternal Life today! 

 

Joyce and I will be on Headline Prayer Live on Tuesday at 12:15 p.m. Eastern. To get an email reminder that morning sign up at www.RichDrama.com/Prayer.
 

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I released “Pentecost: Beyond the Imagination,” a scene from my one-man play, The Acts (which includes the Resurrection) at www.RichDrama.com/Pentecost.

Good Friday

Joyce pulled together artwork from the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and we gave voice to the images to tell the story of Good Friday to Westchester Chapel: 

Pray that many are moved closer to the Lord and into relationship with Him if they don't know Him yet.

Images from The Metropolitan Museum of Art used with Open Access permission. Scripture adapted from the King James Version.

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I released “Pentecost: Beyond the Imagination,” a scene from my one-man play, The Acts, at www.RichDrama.com/Pentecost.

Ambassador Theatre Plus All the Rest!

We recently gathered to pray over all 40 of the Broadway Theatres on one day! Here's one of them:

Plans are in the works to do it again. If you're in the NYC area and are interested in joining us, sign up for an invitation by joining our NYC list at www.RichDrama.com/Updates.

www.RichDrama.com/PrayOverBroadwayLive

 

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See the rest of Olympic champion Eric Liddell's Chariots of Fire story in Beyond the Chariots. Watch it online and book a live performance. 

Filtering News Through a Biblical Lens

Joyce wrote this article, about the founder of one of the few news sources we trust these days. It ran on www.HeadlinePrayer.org recently:

Lord, thank You for Floyd Brown and The Western Journal. Please prosper his efforts to provide news with a Christian worldview. Amen.

Floyd Brown, founder and former publisher of The Western Journal and author of several books, joined Kris Kubal, IFA’s chief program officer; and Camille Solberg, IFA’s former director of government and media, on Pray with America’s Leaders on Feb. 2, 2023. They discussed the topic of presenting news from a Christian worldview.

[Click to read the entire article...]

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I play a lead in Providence, a feature-length music video about the intricate ways the Lord is involved in our lives.

The Call of God Upon the IFA Call Team, Part 2

Part 1 of this article explains what the Call Team is. Here's the rest of the story:

Lord, thank You for our wonderful IFA Call Team and all the ways You’re answering their prayers for our intercessors! We thank You for all the praise reports and prayers posted on Part 1 of this article. Breathe into those and our prayers prompted today, Lord.

IFA’s Call Team reaches out to our intercessors to thank them for their support and offer to pray for them. Read how the team was formed and about two other Call Team members in Part 1 of this article.

[Click to read the whole article...]

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I Dreamed I Was Free tells the story of Quaker abolitionist John Woolman, who spoke against slavery a century before our Civil War.

Defeating Unseen Enemies

Joyce's article about our friend Jeannie Ortega Law ran in Intercessors for America's The Connector today: 

Jeannie Ortega Law is a survivor of a background in Santería and of experiences with suicidal ideation. She battled her way out of the hard streets of her Brooklyn, New York, neighborhood to soar to the top of the Billboard pop charts. At the apex of her secular music career, Ortega Law opened concerts for pop star Rihanna. Now she opens for the Lord God through Most High King Ministries, which she and her husband, the Rev. Renn Law, operate together.

[Click to read the whole article...]

Here's the interview on Pray with America's Leaders Joyce used as the basis for her article:

Pray the article and interview inspire and set free many! 

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I Dreamed I Was Free tells the story of Quaker abolitionist John Woolman, who spoke against slavery a century before our Civil War.

Pfizer Leak Implies Admission

This is old news now, but I'm catching up on things I didn't report because we dropped everything to get to the Asbury Outpouring.

I wrote this before James O'Keefe was ousted from Project Veritas. He said, ""The only thing that has changed is that we broke the biggest story in our organization's history… with 50 million views."

Here's my coverage of that story...

Lord, thank You for organizations like Project Veritas that expose the dangerous and immoral practices of Big Pharma. Bring justice and a halt to putting profit over people.

On February 6 Project Veritas posted a leaked document implying Pfizer’s admission that Jordan Trishtan Walker was working for them when he was recorded revealing plans for directed evolution of the coronavirus and fertility issues related to their current covid vaccine.

[Click to read the whole article...]

I prayed outside Pfizer World Headquarters, where the LED van had just showed the undercover footage:

  

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I Dreamed I Was Free tells the story of Quaker abolitionist John Woolman, who was exposing the injustice of slavery a century before our Civil War.

Greg Laurie Tells the Rest of the Story Behind Jesus Revolution

Jesus Revolution is in its fourth week in theaters nationwide, and Intercessors for America ran my introduction to an article telling the rest of the story about his parents...

Lord, thank You that Jesus Revolution is doing better at the box office than many of the films the world is celebrating! Thank You for the story told by Jesus Revolution and the bigger story it didn’t have time to tell. Continue to shift our culture back to You, and may legacy media acknowledge it’s happening!

Jesus Revolution grossed more than four of the films up for Best Picture at the Oscars combined, and Jon Erwin is the first filmmaker in cinematic history to achieve four A+ CinemaScores! During their prayer team’s call on March 3 Greg Laurie read a letter about worship, prayer, and evangelism that broke out in a theater when the film stopped showing after half an hour. He and the host of the prayer call, Kyle Thompson, told many stories of revival breaking out after the film ends. In one case someone was baptized in a fountain outside the theater! Thompson talked about how glad the team is that the film opened after the Asbury Outpouring (the film’s soft opening was within hours of the final public service at Asbury University), so no one can say that the film sparked the Outpouring! On March 10 Michael W. Smith was the guest on their prayer call, and he prayed these lyrics from Zach Reese’s “The More I Seek You” over the prayer team and those seeing Jesus Revolution:

The more I seek you
The more I find you
The more I find you
The more I love you
I want to sit at your feet
Drink from the cup in your hand
Lay back against you and breathe, feel your heart beat
This love is so deep, its more than I can stand
I melt in your peace, its overwhelming

In the article below, Laurie tells the rest of the story about his mom and stepdad, how they were overwhelmed by the Lord’s love so deep…

[Click to read the article...]   

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I released “Pentecost: Beyond the Imagination,” a scene from my one-man play, The Acts, at www.RichDrama.com/Pentecost.

The Call of God Upon the IFA Call Team, Part 1

A blessed St. Patrick's Day to you! If you haven’t seen it, or want to be blessed and recalibrated again, enjoy one of the one-man plays that launched my career: www.RichDrama.com/StPatrick.

Tuesday morning Part 1 of my article about Intercessors for America's Call Team posted to www.HeadlinePrayer.org and I got to talk about it on Headline Prayer Live: 

Lord, thank You for our wonderful IFA Call Team and for all the ways You are answering their prayers for our intercessors!

Intercessors for America has a Call Team that reaches out to our intercessors to thank them for their support and to pray by phone with them and for them, and for their families. Shortly after Dave Kubal became President/CEO of IFA in 2009, he began telephoning some of the intercessors himself. As the organization grew, Dave told the staff: “OK, this is what we’re doing: We’re calling everybody.” But by 2020, IFA had grown so quickly and so much that a specialized Call Team was needed to do all those calls.

[Click here to read about miracles...]

Join us in praying:

To get email alerts when we're going to be on Headline Prayer Live sign up at www.RichDrama.com/Prayer.

Part 2 is now available.

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I play a pastor whose prayers are answered decades later in Providence.

Pray Over Broadway!

The Salvation Army’s Theatre 315 is inviting you to join us in praying over every Broadway theatre this Saturday:

Do you want you want to pray for one of the most influential artistic communities in the world? Then join us on Saturday morning March 18 at the Times Square Corps as we host a coordinated prayer walk thru 40 Broadway theatres!!

 

Beginning at 10am we will gather for donuts and coffee, provided by our local Starbucks. We will have a short time of praise & worship and then gather into our 4 teams. Each team will be provided a designated prayer route of about 10 theatres each – and then hit the streets to pray. Each team’s walk should take roughly 30-45 minutes to complete. Afterwards we will reconvene at the Times Square Corps for a time of testimony, praise and worship, and closing prayer.

 

If you desire to make a difference and influence our culture for the kingdom of God, then sign up today!!

 

*2 Corinthians 10:4,5 “The weapons of the war we’re fighting are not of this world but are powered by God and effective at tearing down the strongholds erected against His truth. 5 We are demolishing arguments and ideas, every high-and-mighty philosophy that pits itself against the knowledge of the one true God. We are taking prisoners of every thought, every emotion, and subduing them into obedience to the Anointed One.”

I’ll be leading one of these four groups. If you’re in the area I hope you can join us! Wherever you are pray for effective intercession!

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I play a lead in Providence, a feature-length music video amor prayer being answered decades later. 

Graves into Gardens at the Asbury Outpouring

Earlier I posted about my favorite time at the Asbury Outpouring (3:00 a.m.). Here's a worship song from that hour that we used for a recent service at Westchester Chapel Church of the Nazarene: 

Pray revival keeps breaking out around the world, and report it if you're a part of it!

This was a part of a service at Westchester Chapel Church of the Nazarene.

CCLI# 352386
Used by permission.

 

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I released “Pentecost: Beyond the Imagination,” a scene from my one-man play, The Acts, at www.RichDrama.com/Pentecost.