Prayers for America’s governments

“I urge, then, first of all, that petitions, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for all people, for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness.”  (1 Timothy 2:1-2)

A 24-hour prayer time was recently called for my church where people signed up for specific times to come and pray. Some of us were asked to write a prayer on a specific subject as a guideline. The following is based on what I submitted that day.

Prayers for Local, State and Federal Government

In Jesus’s prayer in John 17, he did not pray for the world. He prayed for the believers who existed at that time, and those that would exist in the future:

“I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine… Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word;” (John 17:9; 29)

I believe we should pray for all those who work in government, the elected and the non-elected (staff or volunteers) ones; the Christians and the non-Christians who have been elected, appointed or hired to government positions, in federal, state, regional, county and city governments. That includes all the court systems as well on each level.

These are the people who run the governments of America, many of them behind-the-scenes, invisible people. They pull the strings, make the decisions, even write the legislative bills voted on. Every one of them is vulnerable to make bad decisions, because of the sheer numbers of opportunities and temptations to compromise their principles that they face on a regular basis.

Most of us pray at election time for the people running for office, don’t we? But too often we don’t pray for them afterward. Or we don’t think to pray for the non-elected people who work in government, and there are a great number of them. We need to pray for the lost to get saved, certainly, but also for the faith of the saved ones to be protected.

Below are prayers found in the writings of Paul and others. I believe It would be good for us to use these prayers now for those who work in the various governments and agencies across America.

•  “Wherefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus, and love unto all the saints, 16 Cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers; 17 That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him: 18 The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints, 19 And what [is] the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power.” (Ephesians 1:15-19)

•  “And this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and [in] all judgment; 10 That ye may approve things that are excellent; that ye may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ; 11 Being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God.” (Philippians 1:9-11)

• “For this cause we also, since the day we heard [it], do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; 10 That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God; 11 Strengthened with all might, according to his glorious power, unto all patience and long-suffering with joyfulness; 12 Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light:” (Colossians 1:9-12)

• “Wherefore also we pray always for you, that our God would count you worthy of [this] calling, and fulfill all the good pleasure of [his] goodness, and the work of faith with power: 12 That the name of our Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in you, and ye in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.” (2 Thessalonians 1:11-12)

• “I thank my God, making mention of thee always in my prayers, 5 Hearing of thy love and faith, which thou hast toward the Lord Jesus, and toward all saints; 6 That the communication of thy faith may become effectual by the acknowledging of every good thing which is in you in Christ Jesus.” (Philemon 1:4-6)

• “Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, 21 Make you perfect in every good work to do his will, working in you that which is well-pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom [be] glory for ever and ever. Amen.” (Hebrews 13:20-21)

Word for 2023 — WAR

I’m not through making the dark, darker, the Lord said.

Talking with the Lord about the upcoming New Year several nights ago, I asked him the question:  “What is going to happen in 2023, Lord? What will you be doing?”

His answer was surprising to me.

WAR.

That is the only word he said. I waited, but there wasn’t any further answer. I thought to myself, well, maybe that was just my imagination. I kept thinking about it, wondering about it.

Finally this morning, I asked him for more. I had in mind writing and posting an article about the coming year, as I have for some years now.

“I’m not through making the dark, darker,” he said. He reminded me of what he’d said about that last year, what I had posted then and re-posted a little while later.

He’s quite serious about it. He is NOT through. WAR is what he said, and WAR is what is coming. Not a physical fighting war, although he didn’t rule that out, but a continuation of the fierce spiritual war that has been going on this year.

I went to the Esther’s Petition blog site on my computer and began reading the original post. Here it is… apparently this is still happening and will continue into the next year. It is not a fun prospect.

“There are still a few slivers of gray and white among the dark places, and I am closing those gaps and making it all dark. Very dark.”

I knew that wasn’t all there was to it, and it wasn’t. He continued.

“I’m also making the light, lighter. Brighter. The contrast will become ever more evident around the globe, as those who have preferred the dark are beginning to long for the light.” For Jesus, the Light of the World.

I knew that Father God is not responsible for the darkness and so I waited for more discussion. He went on to explain.

Making dark places darker is making them much more obvious, much more evident. Far more repugnant to those who have loved the darkness… up until now. That love is turning.

A spiritual revival has sprung up in various places around the planet in recent years, growing more widespread; gaining more attention.

It is a precursor of a soon-coming global outpouring of the Holy Spirit with tremendous worship and joy, miraculous signs and wonders, miracle healings, salvations and deliverances. Years-long prayers and intercessions are coming into fruition; patience is paying off.

At the same time persecution and murder of believers is worsening. The battle for the Faith — the faith of believers — is certainly not new. It started with the apostles.

But Christians worldwide, and particularly prayer warriors, have been under many deadly and increasingly vicious attacks in recent days, some insidious or temporary irritations, but some long-lasting disasters.

All are designed to distract from the Word of Truth and from the work of the intercessor. The enemy assumes (rightly so in many cases) that it’s hard to minister to other people when you’re in real distress yourself, physical, mental, emotional, financial, family, or community.

Never mind!

The increasing supernatural darkness can never stop the Light from coming, the overwhelming, engulfing glory of God.

2022 (and 2023!) will be a year of contrasts, challenges, conflicts, and confusion. And a year of confirmations and celebrations.

Gaming the System

“They’re gaming the system.”

That’s what the Lord said to me, several days ago. I was praying, as so many people were, about the runoff election in Georgia.

“What do you mean?” I wondered, when I heard His words. What does that mean, exactly, “gaming the system?” (I looked it up online this morning. Basically it means using rules and procedures meant to protect a system to manipulate that system for a desired outcome, instead.)

His answer wasn’t long in coming.

Patriots are hoping. Conservatives are hoping. Hoping to reverse the current status-quo with one, important election. Voters who are struggling against high prices and inflation worries with Christmas coming up fast, are hoping.

Unfortunately, our hope has been worldly hope. You know, with a 50-50 chance of success. Scriptural hope is confident expectation of future success, not quite the same thing.

Some folks have been planning, meeting, discussing and arguing. Strategizing over best ways to achieve short-term goals, like getting more like-minded voters to the polls, appointing poll workers and poll watchers. Thinking up every way possible to prevent the lying, deceiving, cheating and stealing that has most certainly happened in previous elections.

They have been drafting volunteers, holding training sessions and providing persuasive scripts. Using phone calls, emails, tweets, blog posts, snail mail, social media as well as door-knocking in chosen neighborhoods they are repeating communications in a wide variety of formats throughout the state — and no doubt irritating, annoying and aggravating some people on the receiving end of those pleas.

And behind all this, the Lord continued, all the while many believers are “gaming the system.” Praying, praying and more praying; they’re not just requesting but begging and pleading. Fasting. Reading more Bible than usual. Making promises and commitments to attend church more often, enroll in Sunday School, attend a Bible study, volunteer somewhere, and of course, contribute more cash to worthy causes and in the offering plate.

They are bargaining with God for this short-term but oh, so important positive answer.

There is nothing wrong with all of those things, the Lord told me. They are good habits to cultivate.

But did they ask Me what I wanted them to pray? Or did they assume they knew, they just KNEW that they knew what I wanted and made that the basis for their prayers, their actions and activities, in this short-term effort? All that energy!

Too few of them did. Understand this: My desire, My plans and strategies are quite different, because my goals are different.

I play a long-term game.

Many of MY people, called by MY name, are “desperately” praying for revival across America. Just how desperate are they? They are desperate when they themselves or ones they love are hurting, sick or broke, their situation seeming hopeless.

That’s simply not enough. There won’t be revival, real revival that results in real change of hearts without the key ingredients: Grief. Mourning. Weeping. Conviction! Confession! Repentance.

Over what, though, I wanted to know? Aren’t we the born-again, washed-in-the-blood clean ones, the righteousness of God in Christ ones? Don’t we live the most honest, most moral life we know how to live? What is there for us to weep over?

You have gotten used to the way things are, He said. You have gotten into the mind-set of “I vote. But I’m just one person, there’s only so much I can do, after all.” You have turned your eyes away from the frequent reports of the ugly, sinful, evil behavior and destructive damage being done across this nation, sometimes saying a short prayer as you turn the page, or scroll down the screen, or turn off the TV news. “Help, Lord!” You pray.

But you don’t acknowledge any real responsibility or feel any remorse. YOU didn’t do it, after all. So who is responsible, then?

None of the evil being done in America could have happened without the silence of the people who should have stood up, looked up, showed up and spoken up. No, YOU didn’t do it, but MY PEOPLE did it by their silent, passive acquiescence.

And now when they themselves are “feeling the heat,” they cry out for revival, for an outpouring of my Spirit.

And one is coming, but not like they envision. An outpouring of conviction from my Spirit.

Revival will not come without repentance from the very people who yearn for revival. II Chronicles 7:14 was written with them in mind.

“If MY people, which are called by MY name, shall humble THEMSELVES, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from THEIR wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive THEIR sin, and will heal THEIR land.”

Change the focus. Change the prayer. Change the behavior. Then I’ll change America, and the world, to what I want it to be: Mine.

 

Henry’s Sentries are being called up

Tuesday, June 14, 2022

A radical revolutionary not afraid to speak up against Great Britain, Patrick Henry is most famous for his speech that includes the line, “Give me liberty or give me death.” Governor of Virginia during the Revolution, he fought to add the Bill of Rights to the U.S. Constitution.

As I was dreaming a nonsense sort of dream early this morning, a word from the Lord interrupted my dream quite loudly. “Henry’s Sentries.”

It was so loud, so pronounced, that it woke me up from sleep about 4:00 AM. There was nothing more than that, no explanation, nothing. I couldn’t imagine what it meant.

I know what a sentry is – a guard, a watchman – which is what prophetic intercessors are, in the spirit realm. I am one of those.

But who or what was Henry? Immediately the name, Patrick Henry, came to mind. All I remembered about him was “Give me liberty or give me death,” a statement he made in a speech before the American Revolution.

Questions and more questions kept coming:

• Who exactly was Patrick Henry?
• How was he connected to “sentries?”
• How did he get information that caused him to support resistance to Great Britain?
• Who were his friends, acquaintances, cohorts, compatriots in those times?
• Henry’s sentries — were they secret agents? Spies?
• Pre-Revolution and/or during the Revolution?
• Did Patrick Henry know Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson and George Washington and if so, were they friends?

I got up, fixed a cup of coffee and went to the computer. Using various phrases to seek out what that word referred to, I learned that without the voice and influence of Patrick Henry, there would be no Bill of Rights attached to the Constitution. That piqued my interest even further.

And then I came across a free online digitized biography of Patrick Henry, written by his grandson William Wirt Henry: “Patrick Henry: Life, Correspondence And Speeches V1.”, published in 1891. I found a printed copy online and ordered it. I started reading the digitized  version, taking a break only to go to a Tuesday prayer meeting at my friends’ home.

I have learned some interesting things about Patrick Henry:
– Ordinary looking, unassuming (usually).
– Didn’t care much about his outward appearance or dress.
– Loved music; played the violin and flute.
– Loved fun, quite personable with an excellent personality.
– After a few years of regular school he was tutored at home by his father.
– Closely observed people and things, keeping his thoughts to himself a lot of the time.
– Highly intelligent; a voracious reader.
– A Christian from an early age; knowledgeable of the Bible.
– Possessed a remarkable and accurate memory of whatever he read, saw or heard.

I have also learned some important things about him:
– Married at age 18, he failed at two occupations, then read a couple of law books, applied for a law license, was examined and licensed.
– He began a highly successful practice while still a very young man, serving the working class people mostly; quite successful in court, he soon became respected and well liked in that area of Virginia.
– He was a powerful, anointed orator when he finally began to speak on issues that he felt passionate about. Like freedom. Liberty.
– Elected to the Virginia House of Burgesses on a “fluke,” in just a few short days he became one of the most notable and powerful voices in Virginia politics. Amazing!

I gradually came to realize that Henry’s sentries didn’t live during his lifetime. God is calling them up in OUR lifetime.

Henry was a modern-day Son of Issachar (see note below), one of Holy Spirit’s sentries whose relationship with the Lord, close observation of the times and events he was living through, and courage and willingness to speak out were instrumental in saving the American colonies from the grip of Great Britain.

Sentries like that are needed now, in the time we’re living in. I could name a few that I know of across the nation today, but many more are needed.

I shared about this with the members of the prayer group and was asked to pray a prayer of impartation over the group – there were nine of us there today – for this specific assignment. And so I did.

We are all connected to other intercessors in this area and other places, some prophetic, some not, but we have discovered a common thread in the last few weeks: attacks of the enemy to distract our attention and change our prayer focus.

Some have been hurt in odd accidents, some have become sick with unusual ailments or someone in their families have, and some have been experiencing sudden disturbances in their household or with relatives.

At the same time, there have been a number of great answers to long-time prayers, real breakthroughs.

We are committed to continuing our prayers / commands / decrees, asking the Lord to sharpen our spiritual seeing, our hearing, our attention to his voice; committed to taking greater authority over the distractions of the enemy, to standing up and speaking out when and as the Holy Spirit directs it.

How about you?

……………………………………………..

The sons of Issachar are described in I Chronicles 12:32: “Of the sons of Issachar, men who understood the times, with knowledge of what Israel should do, their chiefs were two hundred; and all their kinsmen were at their command.” They served David well.
See https://www.livingaschristians.com/resources/2020/06/14/the-sons-of-issachar

The world is winding down

18 April 2022

At bedtime last night, I prayed as I often do, “Father, please speak to me.”  What I had in mind was, what did the Lord want me to pray about, to request of him. That brought on a conversation I didn’t expect.

“The world is winding down,” he said.

Then he defined what “the world” actually is. Every human being alive at one moment in time constitutes the world. It’s people, not the planet earth. And this world, this iteration of the world, he said, is winding down. He continued explaining.

The people of the world consists of many believers and many unbelievers, young and old. Many, many are tired. Even faithful, spirit-filled believers are weary, exhausted from holding on, interceding, trying to believe their prayers are right and will be answered, although it’s been a long time and there’s still no breakthrough.

They are not just spiritually tired, they are physically, mentally and emotionally worn out. They are ready to come home.

And while this world winds down, the next iteration of the world is winding “up,” he said. It is is being called up even as we speak, an army to be energized and trained whether they ever wanted to be or not.

Although they haven’t been planning or studying to be pastors, preachers, missionaries, revivalists, or even administrators in a church somewhere, they are my next-gen warriors for a battle they’ve never imagined being in. How shall they fight?

They will call those things that be not as though they were, and thus call my will into being, here on the earth.

A great number of soldiers are being called up by my Spirit. Some are longtime Christians who thought they knew how to pray. They did in some ways, but they didn’t know how to do the kind of spiritual warfare necessary now.

They need to know how to speak the word I give them and see it happen in front of their eyes.

Recognizing my voice suddenly, surprised and maybe not pleasantly surprised at its message, they find themselves ready to obey. Dissatisfied with the status quo of their own faith, their own life, they have felt unsettled in the spirit but haven’t known why.

This is why.

A new army of warriors is necessary now so I am calling them now. Their training is going to go fast, covert and overt fighters, learning to throw spiritual “monkey wrenches” into the enemy’s plots and plans, sometimes in an instant.

Here is more of what the Lord said in that conversation:

Change will come in how these fighters think, how they think about their own spiritual authority, about praying and listening, seeking and speaking in agreement with God’s word, commanding, decreeing and declaring what he wants spoken.

Change will also come in what they see, not just what exists in the natural, but also what exists in the supernatural.

They will also see what God wants to exist in the future. Describing those things as though they already are, co-laboring with him they will call them into being.

This world is going away fast, he repeated. As people retire, resign from their present assignment or die, new warriors are taking their place in homes, schools and colleges. Malls. Hospitals. Government departments. Office buildings. Factories. Farms. Churches too. Military installations, new recruits and seasoned soldiers, U.S. Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force. Every branch.

Ordinary looking men and women, doing ordinary work, won’t be ordinary natural people any more. They will watch and listen for my voice and say what I say. Command what I command. Decree what I decree, declare what I declare, the Lord said. Then he added:

Call them up with me. Say with me, Warrior Army, arise now. Arm yourselves. Be on guard. Be alert. Say what the Lord tells you to say, now. The training will be fierce but it will be fast. The results will be, too.

As our conversation ended, I knew one thing for certain — 

This is going to be live fire training.

Although I fell asleep in a few moments I was wide awake again in a few hours. I got up and stayed up, meditating about all he had told me and wondering, should I publish that conversation or keep it to myself? I was listening for his directions as I began typing these notes.

Lies coming down

I shared this word with only a few fellow intercessors back in February, but this week I’ve seen more and more of it coming to pass.

On Monday night February 14, 2022, as I was praying before sleep the Lord showed me ranks of angel warriors with swords drawn and pointed outwards, preparing to attack.

Father God showed me that he has called Time and the warriors are deploying. He is calling an end to the lies and deception that the enemy has been using across America (and the whole world, for that matter).

The spirit behind all the lies and deception is actually the spirit of fear, He said. Fear of being found out, truth revealed, deceptions uncovered, lies that had brought much influence, power and wealth, while hidden.

Over the coming days / weeks / months there will be a battle of God’s warriors against the spirit of fear behind the lies, deception, all the deliberate falsehoods afflicting God’s people — indeed all people.

You won’t actually perceive this battle very well on the earth for a little while, He said, because it is a purely spiritual battle. But you will perceive the results soon as the lies are made obvious. The lies and deception will come down, will end, and the truth will become obvious.

Soon the spiritual battle will descend onto the earth and the natural world will also engage in this battle. Spiritual warriors and prayer warriors will be put to work more fiercely than ever.

So be alert, be aware, watch and keep watching, listen and keep listening. More importantly, pray and keep praying.

Posted 1 April 2022

 

Making the dark, darker

Talking with the Lord on Saturday, December 3, 2021, as usual I asked him the question:

“What is going on right now, Lord? What are you doing?”

And he began telling me, as he nearly always does.

“Making the dark, darker,” he said.

“There are still a few slivers of gray and white among the dark places, and I am closing those gaps and making it all dark. Very dark.”

I knew that wasn’t all there was to it, and it wasn’t. He continued.

“I’m also making the light, lighter. Brighter. The contrast will become ever more evident around the globe, as those who have preferred the dark are beginning to long for the light.” For Jesus, the Light of the World.

I knew that Father God is not responsible for the darkness and so I waited for more discussion. He went on to explain.

Making dark places darker is making them much more obvious, much more evident. Far more repugnant to those who have loved the darkness… up until now. That love is turning.

A spiritual revival has sprung up in various places around the planet in recent years, growing more widespread; gaining more attention.

It is a precursor of a soon-coming global outpouring of the Holy Spirit with tremendous worship and joy, miraculous signs and wonders, miracle healings, salvations and deliverances. Years-long prayers and intercessions are coming into fruition; patience is paying off.

At the same time persecution and murder of believers is worsening. The battle for the Faith — the faith of believers — is certainly not new. It started with the apostles.

But Christians worldwide, and particularly prayer warriors, have been under many deadly and increasingly vicious attacks in recent days, some insidious or temporary irritations, but some long-lasting disasters.

All are designed to distract from the Word of Truth and from the work of the intercessor. The enemy assumes (rightly so in many cases) that it’s hard to minister to other people when you’re in real distress yourself, physical, mental, emotional, financial, family, or community.

Never mind!

The increasing supernatural darkness can never stop the Light from coming, the overwhelming, engulfing glory of God.

2022 will be a year of contrasts, challenges, conflicts, and confusion. And a year of confirmations and celebrations.

 

Acceleration, happening now

18 October 2021

Last night the Lord quickly answered my prayer question, “What’s happening now, Lord?”

Acceleration, He said. More and more things are happening fast, and faster, and faster. Some are visible, some invisible.

Some people – believers and unbelievers – have been blase up to now, simply shaking off news of behaviors and actions of ungodly people. Now they have begun to feel uncomfortable. They wonder if perhaps they should pay closer attention to current events. Their discomfort is growing more intense by the day. Soon their discomfort will have to be addressed.

Some ungodly ones who thought their way of doing things would benefit them and their friends are noticing unplanned results instead. Their ideas have brought results they didn’t anticipate and don’t like. Things are worse for them today than yesterday and will be worse tomorrow than today. They’re wondering what to do, but none of their ideas will be better than their past ones. Indeed, they will be worse. Some will be much worse.

Yet things are better today for many who now have life. Yesterday they had death; they were working for the wages sin brings, and that is death. Yesterday they came to a decision, decided right, and today they have life. Today many others will come to that same decision, will decide right and also have life. Their numbers are increasing exponentially.

The acceleration is working both ways. Watch for it. Pray about it.

He’s taking the blinders off

April 12, 2021

“We’re in a time of spiritual pause,” the Lord said to me last night. He is turning his “ship of state,” the body of Christ, to re-focus their attention.

I had been feeling a bit off spiritually, mentally, emotionally, during the day. It was sort of like waiting for the other shoe to fall. I’m sure you’re familiar with that icky feeling. I’ve felt it several times in recent years. It’s always significant, I’m sure, but just what the significance is hasn’t always appeared. And so as I prayed last night, I asked him “What’s going on, Lord?”

And that’s what he said: A spiritual pause; a re-focusing.

I imagined a huge ship. The captain can’t just jerk the steering wheel to change direction, it takes a while for a ship of that size to make a turn. It moves slowly, slowly, bit by bit until the change is complete.

He is mobilizing his spiritual army and changing directions of the entire army, the Lord told me. It will take a little time. How much time? I asked, but he didn’t say.

He went on. The body of Christians worldwide have been acting like race horses with blinders on. Running around and around, horses wear blinders to block out distractions from their main focus — getting ahead. And so it has been with the human race, he said, even many if not most Christians.

My inner vision switched from the horse racetrack to the “rat race…”

What has been our focus? I asked myself. The main focus of myself, my family and friends, other people I’ve known in and out of church over my lifetime? I gave that some thought.

It wasn’t complicated. Here in America, we’ve been so focused on getting through school and college, getting a job or career, we’ve put blinders on ourselves out of necessity. We needed to avoid being distracted by less essential things, hindrances to a successful life.

Many of us focused next on getting married, having a family and raising kids. Buying a house, then a better house. Dealing with everyday stress with hobbies or vacations. Community volunteering for good causes. Trying to save for a “rainy day” or retirement. Taking care of any health problems that arise in ourselves or the family. Those things were important, weren’t they?

And of course unless we ourselves were called to a ministry of some sort, a Christian’s life meant going to church, supporting ministries and missions, praying and studying the Bible as much as possible. In our spare time we kept up some with current events, especially those that affected our own. There’s nothing evil in any of that, is there? I was thinking.

No, the Lord said, but I’m taking the blinders off now. I’m refocusing everyone’s attention. Directions are changing.

My people will see things they don’t see now. They will see what happens in the spirit world as well as the natural world. They will discern, begin to sense and feel the warfare going on around them.

Distractions? Oh, there will be a lot of distractions.

They’ll notice people they didn’t notice before. The man hurriedly walking down the street. Tired clerks in the store. Shoppers without smiles. Neighbors you see but have never met, co-workers you don’t really know, church members whose faces you recall but names you don’t. People in stores. Gas stations. Doctor’s offices. Hospitals. Workplaces. Needy people under attack everywhere you look, worried, anxious, sad, angry or depressed. Some are desperate. Disconsolate. There’s no more time for complacency in the body of Christ.

Along with distractions comes discomfort, he said. Unease and dissatisfaction. This war may have started without their notice, but they will notice it now.

There really is a war, there really is an enemy, and the enemy really is out to kill everyone he can — believers and non-believers alike. But while the warfare is escalating, the turning is accelerating. A change in direction is coming: the army is mobilizing.

I was concerned about what I was supposed to do with what I was hearing. Why are you telling me all this? I asked.

Well, you’re not the only one, he said. As he spoke I could almost see a small smile on his face. Listen. Discern. Arm. Pray and intercede. Decree, declare and command.

Watch and warn. And so I am.

Who is the “Fat Lady”?

This was written to answer a question from a fellow blogger last week… I thought others might like to read it too.

The Lord has given me several words lately about what is happening in America.

• If a man could do it, a man could get glory, and the Lord will not share His glory.
• Having done ALL, stand. Having DONE all, stand. Having done all, STAND.
• Pray and keep on praying.
• It’s not over until the “Fat Lady sings.”

As I pondered over who the “Fat Lady” is, I saw a mental image of Lady Freedom atop the US Capitol building in Washington, DC.

It’s a female warrior wearing an eagle helmet and holding a sheathed sword. That statue and its location are definitely worth meditating over.

A few years ago I began writing a blog titled Tapister. (https://tapister.wordpress.com)  A tapister is someone who creates tapestries. I believe the Master Tapister is at work in the world.

For several years one word has echoed in my mind — Watch.

Matthew 24, Mark 13, and Luke 21 repeat a command: Watch. Be on guard. Be alert. Keep watch. “What I say to you, I say to everyone: Watch!”

Watch for what? Earthquakes. Famines. Fires. Floods. Pestilence. Wars. Revolutions. Persecution of Christians. Betrayal by relatives. Fake Messiahs, working signs and miracles. Great distress. Fearful events. Sun darkened, moon not giving its light. Stars falling from the sky.

Tapister was created to help me and others watch for events and to watch for patterns. Also to tell others and above all, to pray.

Ezekiel 33 describes the duties of the watchman. It is a bit chilling to think how many believers today aren’t paying attention to what God’s watchmen are saying to them.

I haven’t kept Tapister updated much in recent months, there is just so much that bears watching in the world. But my own Watchman vigil certainly continues, it’s part of my personal habit pattern daily, and it’s why I post articles online.