Feeding the 5,000 in Pennsylvania
Photos by Autumn Dennis autumnddesign@gmail.com
Five shofars—rams’ horns traditionally used in Jewish ceremonies as a solemn summons—blew at 3 p.m. The “biggest church barbeque ever” had just concluded on a hot, sunny day in mid-September in rural Washington County, PA. Nearly 2,500 guests, their stomachs filled and satisfied with as much chicken, brisket, and mutton as they could eat for free, were called away by the distinct, haunting tones of the shofars to the main stage for their own time of special prayer, worship, testimonies, and exhortation.
Crowds at the fairgrounds listen to Pastor Mike MacIntosh’s message. “When the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?” he exhorted them from Psalm 11:3. Mike, founder of Horizon Christian Fellowship in San Diego, CA, and of the United States Prayer Force, was the keynote speaker at the event.
“The event happened to be on the Jewish festival of Rosh Hashana, which commences 10 days of repentance. We didn’t plan that, but the Lord gave that as an extra blessing,” marveled John Thomas, pastor of Calvary Chapel Brownsville, PA.
Organizers Patrick O’Brien (left) and Pastor John Thomas of Calvary Chapel Brownsville, PA, pray before Mike delivers his keynote message. They were inspired to call the Prayer Gathering by the biblical story of Jesus feeding the 5,000—physically and spiritually.
The Washington County Prayer Gathering on September 13 was highlighted by keynote speaker Calvary Chapel Pastor Mike MacIntosh, founder of Horizon Christian Fellowship in San Diego, CA, and later of the United States Prayer Force ministry. Inspired by the biblical account of Jesus feeding and teaching the 5,000—physically and spiritually—the gathering united people from more than 50 area churches. “To have 50 churches come together to focus on feeding people and bring to our attention the need to get right with God is huge in and of itself,” exclaimed John. “It’s biblical to feed 5,000. We asked ourselves, ‘Why don’t we believe God for feeding 5,000?’”
And when He [Jesus] had taken the five loaves and the two fish, He looked up to heaven, blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to His disciples to set before them; and the two fish He divided among them all. So they all ate and were filled. Mark 6:41-42
Pat O’Brien, a believer who attends CC Brownsville, had the original vision for the event. A local banker for many years and now a sheep farmer, he used his many community contacts and ministry networks to help bring the Prayer Gathering to life, planning for two years. He explained, “We wanted it to be grounded in Scripture. The foundational verse was 2 Chronicles 7:14. Our goal was to achieve a greater healing in our own personal hearts and within our families and our community. We were praying for an outpouring of the Holy Spirit, for revival and awakening of the Church, and for those who don’t know the Lord to come to saving faith in Him.”
“If My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” 2 Chronicles 7:14
Mike MacIntosh Exhorts Godliness
Pastor John recommended Mike MacIntosh as the keynote speaker. “I grew up in Southern California. Calvary Chapel founder Chuck Smith was my pastor until I left on adventure to Pennsylvania in 1984. I had great memories of Mike MacIntosh.” In addition, Mike organized chaplains to minister to first responders at New York City’s Ground Zero immediately after the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. “9/11 is close to us here, as one of the planes crashed in Shanksville, PA, an hour from us,” John stated. During his address, Mike described the trauma and horror of that time.
John shared that Mike brought to the event God’s broken heart for our nation. “All of us really walking with the Lord feel that. God does want to work, but I don’t know that we’re so open to what He wants to do, especially regarding repentance.”
Five men blow their shofars, calling the 2,500 attendees to prayer, worship, testimonies, and exhortation after lunch. Some 2,000 lbs. of lamb, brisket, and chicken—donated by the community—were served to all attendees at no cost. Victor Najor, who often works with Mike MacIntosh during large events as a “food evangelist,” assisted with the preparation of the meat, infusing it all with his special blend of spices.
Pat added, “Mike called us as a country, churches, and individuals to repentance. He called us men, in particular, to be serious about the roles we play as fathers, husbands, and leaders in our churches and communities. He reflected on how different forces of the devil are working—whether it’s transgenderism, homosexuality, promiscuity, or adultery—to pull us off our moorings as a country and away from our Christian foundation, and into chaos, quite frankly.”
John further described Mike’s message: “We need to return to the Lord. I think that the Church just wants to have fun, when there’s a seriousness that we’re losing our country.” The crowd, he said, was so involved in Mike’s speech—despite seeking refuge from the 90-degree heat from the distant trees—that “you could have heard a pin drop.”
Mike has been exhorting, “Wake up, America!” since he founded the United States Prayer Force in 2023, a movement dedicated to prayer, revival, and spiritual renewal. “Look at Mike’s faithful ministry to the Lord for 50-plus years,” Pat emphasized. “He’s been living for the Lord from the moment he was saved. His perspective was very healthy for us, and it opened our eyes to some of the broader challenges in front of us as a country. It encouraged us into deeper prayer and ultimately into more significant action for the Lord.”
If the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do? Psalm 11:3
Organizer Pat O’Brien (left) prays for Rocco Welsh, a hometown son and two-time All-American, Penn State National Wrestling Team champion, after the young man shared his testimony with the crowd. Shortly after his address, Rocco and his girlfriend were baptized together. “What a great message for so many young athletes in our area,” Pat exclaimed.
Mike MacIntosh greets some of the 51 pastors from various denominations and areas who participated in the Prayer Gathering, including these from Calvary Chapel South Pittsburgh, PA.
Prayer, Praise, & Revival
“Everywhere you looked, you saw people praying together,” John recounted. Some of that prayer was directed from the platform. “Part of what we wanted to do was to pray for the area pastors. We asked them to stand up and for everybody to gather around and lay hands on them. Then we offered prayer for salvation among the crowd.”
Prayer was the highlight of the event for Pat. “We had these really nice poster boards and Sharpie pens. We encouraged our attendees to write a special request of some kind on them. Well over 500 prayers were posted on those boards.” Photos from the gathering show “somebody with a hand on someone else’s shoulder in prayer. I’m sure there were literally thousands of prayers that went up to the Lord, like a sweet aroma, that day.”
Elizabeth Leon from Calvary Chapel South Pittsburgh speaks with gathering attendees, enjoying fellowship in the Son and the sun after a horrendous thunderstorm flooded the field and stage the night before. The sun boldly shone for the day, and the rain returned just as the event closed.
Pastor John Thomas enjoys a moment with a Prayer Gathering volunteer. John was a key organizer of the event.
One man in attendance, an executive, sheepishly approached Pat that afternoon, asking him to look at a photo on his phone. “I wouldn’t normally show this to anybody.” Unaware he was being photographed, the man’s head was down, his hand in the air, Pat revealed. “He said, ‘I could feel the Holy Spirit working on my heart, and I could feel His presence on the fairgrounds that day.’”
Although the man was already a believer, Pat noted, “Executives live in a button-down world, always showing composure. Maybe they don’t dismiss matters of faith, but they’re certainly not blowing their horn all day about them because of how it is in the business world. That admission really touched me because I know that hearts were softened and stiff necks were loosened that day. People were crying out to the Lord and praising Him.”
Even one of the speakers, a local man, one of the nation’s premier collegiate wrestlers and a member of the powerhouse Penn State Nittany Lions wrestling program, made a bold declaration of faith beyond the stage. Rocco Welsh shared his testimony and encouraged others to pursue a life grounded in faith, perseverance, and purpose. Pastor John proclaimed, “Then he and his girlfriend were among the first to get baptized. It was quite the testimony of not just telling others what to do but showing others how to do what we’re telling them. That witness is just beautiful.”
Pat recalled, “There were a lot of young people there to see Rocco, get his autograph, and take his picture. But they also got to hear his testimony. For a young successful man like that who literally has the world by the tail, he’s put Jesus first. What a great message for so many young athletes in our area.”
Mike Macintosh prays with Jesus Leon-Vargas and Edmund Coronel. “We were praying for an outpouring of the Holy Spirit, for revival and awakening of the Church, and for those who don’t know the Lord to come to saving faith in Him,” emphasized organizer Pat O’Brien of CC Brownsville.
More than 20 people were baptized on the “prayer grounds” that Saturday. Baptisms were held in two large, heated troughs, complete with changing stations and towels. “People did come to saving faith, and made that public,” Pat revealed.
Baptisms were held in two large, heated troughs, complete with changing stations and towels—21 people were baptized that day. Pat reported, “People did come to saving faith and made that public. We were so excited that the church was there to hear a message and be there in unity for revival. At the same time, they were able to receive people who were coming to faith.”
A man is supported by prayer warriors as he is baptized.
Prayer, praise, and joyful fellowship marked the event at the Washington County Fairgrounds, officially named the “Prayer Grounds” for the day.
Favored by God & Man
The Prayer Gathering experienced great favor from both God and local officials. There was a deluge of rain the night before the event, Pastor John said. “It flooded the field. Some of the farmers came in and spread gravel so people wouldn’t have to stand in the mud.” However, the next day, it didn’t rain. “And then right at the end, when we’re packing everything up, the windows opened up, and another deluge totally flooded everything. So God gave us a window on September 13, a literal window of sun.”
Much of Pat’s public community service, including smaller prayer events, has come through a ministry, Men of Honor. The September gathering was the largest and most ambitious to date. Months before the gathering, Pat and John presented the board of the Washington County Fairgrounds with a bold request: Would they agree to rename it the Washington County Prayer Grounds for just one day, September 13? “A motion was made, seconded, and unanimously approved that the second Sunday of every September from now on, it will be called the Prayer Grounds,” Pat attested.
(Left) Mike Macintosh speaks on the main stage about God’s message for America to spiritually “wake up” and return to the Lord. He called the crowd to repentance, and the men, in particular, to embrace their roles as godly fathers, husbands, and leaders.
(Right) The proclamation that this September 13 be dubbed the Washington County Prayer Day was unanimously passed by the county’s commissioners
Next, they went to the county commissioners, asking for a proclamation that this September 13 be dubbed the Washington County Prayer Day. The county clerk, a believer, helped draft and format it “in a beautiful way,” Pat related. It was unanimously approved by the commissioners. “Look how they honor Jesus and the Holy Spirit—it proclaims Jesus Christ as Lord. It’s so far beyond what I could expect an elected official in today’s times to do.”
The proclamation noted the county’s history of drawing strength from “faith, prayer, and service to others” and wanted to continue the work from before.
John confirmed, “God was working in the hearts of people in different ways and from different points of view, and it all came back to that godly foundation.” In fact, Pat added, the chairman’s administrative assistant told him they were having trouble finding pastors to pray before their general meetings. “I said, ‘Oh, I’ll get you a whole list of pastors!’ That’s another way the Lord opened a window for more ministry in this county.”
Pat admitted that future plans have not yet been made as planners take a break “to breathe, reflect, and pray. But based on the way the Lord has opened doors for us, I believe He’s calling us to do it again.”
A Window of Opportunity
“So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; it shall not return to Me void, but it shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.” Isaiah 55:11
Washington County, steeped in history and an hour south of Pittsburgh, was named after the country’s first president, George Washington. It’s also the site of several spiritual revivals, including one in 1802. The Prayer Gathering was a “small, grassroots, foundational event, highlighting the organic things that God is doing outside the bigger metropolitan area,” John confirmed. “As we’re trying to get our country back together, we’re thinking, What better place to do this than George Washington’s back yard?”
John concluded, “We’ve got to do what we can while we have a window. I think this is a window in our history. Who knows what’s going to happen even after the November elections? The answer: We’ve got to seek the Lord. He has the answers, but we have to believe and embrace that.”
Church and nonprofit tents dotted the landscape of the 150-acre Washington County Fairgrounds, one of the oldest west of the Allegheny Mountains. The event was supported by more than 50 area churches and many local ministries, including Men of Honor, led by Pat O’Brien.
Jonathan Traylor was one of two musical artists leading worship at the event. With over 179 million global streams, he has received nominations from industry influencers and toured with well-known Christian performers. He touts a "Billboard #1" song for his feature with Jordan Feliz and Mandisa on "Jesus Is Coming Back." A passionate worship leader at the Forest Hill Church in Charlotte, NC, Jonathan believes in building God's Kingdom on earth through the local church and the world together.
People of all ages enjoy the performance of Jonathan Traylor, an acclaimed Christian recording artist, worship leader, songwriter, and speaker known for his energetic blend of worship, gospel, and contemporary Christian music.
Music Artist Jordan St. Cyr leads a worship session. He is a Juno Award-winning Christian recording artist, songwriter, and worship leader whose music has encouraged millions with chart-topping songs.
Many were prayed for and saved at the CC South Pittsburgh tent. Here, Jan Green (left) and Edmond C. David Dennis (center) talk with an attendee.
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