3,351. 

Hold that number in your mind. 

We see around one hundred souls in the little church I pastor in Gillett, Arkansas, on most Sundays. One hundred is about 3% of 3,348. 

Last year we launched a new sowing of the Lord at the Gillett Methodist Church. I invited anyone who would to ask Jesus to highlight a Scripture verse for 2024 and to write that on an index card and bring it to church.

It would be a New Word for a New Year. We had about 46 cards turned in. It proved a rich, year-long awakening journey for our church as we learned to engage the Word of God together. 

New Year, New Word—with Sower Nation

This year I decided to take the little New Year—New Word experiment to the Sower Nation. We invited anyone who would to ask Jesus to highlight a Scripture verse for 2025 and to share that with us. 

3,351 sowers sent in their word from Scripture.

They are from all over the United States and several countries across the world. See the map here.

Many churches joined in the fun just as we did in Gillett (and are doing again this year). 

How Awakening Works

I wrote the January Series of the Wake-Up Call drawing from the Scripture texts sent in by the Sower Nation. We will work with these sowers (and churches) all year long to read, ruminate, rememberize, research, and rehearse these holy words. Many lives will be changed. It’s already happening. 

This is how awakening works. 

We are sowing into a field of over 40,000 souls through the Wake-Up Call.

About 62% (or 24,800) of them open the email every single day. 3,348 makes for about 14% opt-ins of those who open the email.

Going Broad and Deep with Sowers

In other words, we are going broad and we are going deep. 

Bringing it full circle, just this week I got a letter in the mail. 

Dear Rev. J.D. Walt,

My name is Joe Tannehill and I am a long time listener to your Daily Text/Wake-Up Call. Thank You for helping me with my faith and understanding of God’s Word! I would be honored if you would place my New Word for the New Year on your church bulletin board. My family is from Arkansas. I would appreciate meeting you one day. With much gratitude, 

Joe (Panama City, Florida)

Enclosed was his index card with his word: Lamentations 3:22-24

“Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.” 

Turns out Joe was #3,258! 

For the Awakening,