About Napa County:

 

Napa, California, is located 50 miles north of San Francisco in the beautiful Napa Valley. This world-renowned valley runs through more than 30 miles of agricultural land speckled with hundreds of wineries and thousands of businesses supporting the vitality of an active community. This county is known internationally for its hospitality, tourism and wines and hosts thousands of visitors a year.

 

Primary Cities/Towns of Napa County:  Napa, St. Helena, Calistoga, Angwin, Yountville, American Canyon, Berryessa, Deer Park, Rutherford, Oakville.

 

Napa County Prayer Focus: 

 

Prayer focus for Napa County: 

 

1.   New Wine of the Spirit-Napa has received many prophecies of God’s desire to release the new wine of His Spirit in this Valley. 

Please pray with us for the seven-fold spirit of God to be released, first more fully in the church and then overflow into the community.  Isaiah 11:2 reveals the seven-fold spirit:  The Spirit of the Lord, the Spirit of Wisdom, the Spirit of Understanding, the Spirit of Counsel, the Spirit of Power, the Spirit of knowledge and the Spirit of the Fear of the Lord.

 

2.  Humility-Pride, control and self focus have moved strongly in Napa and are robbing us of the full grace of God because God

opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble (James 4:6).  Racism and prejudice have long plagued this valley.  Please pray with us for the beautiful attitude of Christ—humility to be established among the people and culture of Napa Valley.                                     

 

3.  Holiness & Purity-Addiction to pornography and self-gratification have dulled spiritual senses, grown apathy and covered many in Napa with shame, robbing the Napa Valley of an awakening to God that brings a zealous intimacy with Christ. Please pray for a spirit of repentance, freedom from addiction and the power of holiness to be released by God in Napa.

 

4.   Hope & Faith-Fear of failure, discouragement and hopeless have gripped the hearts of many in Napa.  Please pray for great faith and healing to be released in and through the church in this county.  Please also pray the Healing Rooms of the Napa Valley, a ministry devoted to bringing God’s move of faith and health to many.

 

5.  Hospitality and Generosity-God created the land of Napa to literally flow with an abundance that gives and refreshes.  Every people group that inhabited Napa always had some expression of hospitality from the richness of the land.  Pray Napa overflow with the hospitality of Jesus and bring a refreshment of body, soul and spirit by giving generously to all who abide and visit this area.  Pray Napa would serve the Bay Area, California and beyond with this refreshing generosity.

 

6.  Creativity & Fresh Discoveries-Napa has a long history of birthing new inventions from Magnavox loud-speaker to the boysenberry.  Pray God would release in Napa His creativity for new discoveries that reveal His glory and advance the kingdom of God.  Pray for generational fruitfulness in the ways of the Spirit that will touch the youth and children.

 

7.  Unity & Cooperation-Independence, mistrust and comparison, especially among the churches has been part of Napa’s history.  A disconnect between church and community has taken place as well.  Please pray with the church of Napa as many are now committed to growing in unity and cooperation to lift up Jesus and move powerfully in agreement with heaven’s will for Napa and beyond.  Pray for the church to continue to grow in having God’s heart for the community and how we can bring the care of Christ into the practical and spiritual needs of Napa County.

 

A Brief History of Napa

 

To the Wappo Indians who first inhabited the valley, “Napa” meant a land of plenty.  Spawning salmon filled the waterways, clouds of migrating waterfowl darkened the skies and the valley floor served as home to wildcats, elk, black bear and grizzlies.  The first recorded exploration into Napa Valley in 1823 reported a population consisting of hundreds of Indians.  Father Jose Altimira, founder of the Sonoma mission accompanied the initial expedition and designated the Napa Valley for grazing of mission cattle.  “Recruitment” of Indians into the mission system began.  During the next decades a gradual destruction of the native inhabitants occurs through unintentional and intentional small pox infestations, forced relocations, slavery, killings and wars.   The Spanish and Mexican control of the area lasted until the Bear Flag revolt of June 1846.  During the Mexican rule, General Vallejo was a key leader and overseer of the Napa Valley having acquired land and authority from his government.  Friendly relations developed between he and several pioneers including George Yount who established the first local homestead in 1836.  Other land grants which had been given by Spanish authority to Mexicans were later traded to Americans, Nathan Coombs and John Grigsby for their carpentry services.  In 1847 some of Coombs’ land and others was given to begin the site of what is now the city of Napa.  In 1848 California becomes property of the United States and in 1850 after California becomes a state, Napa County becomes California’s second county.

 

In the 1850’s ranches continued to be spread throughout Napa County and the city of Napa developed much in part to the gold rush overflow and the silver rush of 1858.  Saloons, hotels and supply stores rose up.  But as the 1860’s progressed into the next century so did a more established family, agricultural and commerce environment for Napa with churches, parks, banks mills, tanneries, factories, transportation, resorts, inventions, newspapers, politics, libraries and opera.

 

In the mid 1900’s Basalt Rock Quarry, Kaiser Steel and the military shipyard at Mare Island were key work sites for residents of Napa County and Napa also became a bedroom community for commuters to the Bay Area.

 

Racial prejudice has been an ongoing issue in Napa from the earliest struggles/abuses of natives by Mexicans and Americans, to the legal battles between Americans and Mexicans for land.  Chinese have been abused and driven out of Napa as have Blacks.  There is some history of the Klu Klux Klan in Napa county.  Even today there are relational struggles between African Americans, Anglos and Hispanics in Napa as well as the “worker” and the “owner”.

 

Ranching, dairy, grain and fruit/nuts have long been a part of the life of Napa Valley as well as the processing and distribution of these.  Resorts, spas and hotels go back to the earliest days of the county.  Napa is the site of one of the earliest mental institutions of the state as well as home of an early state Veterans home.  The St Helena sanitarium was founded in the first decades of the county.  Fruitfulness, refreshment and healing have always been in the DNA of this county.  Many inventions and patents have been birthed in Napa.   Napa is now an internationally visited area for wine, food and tourism.