We will not lose heart.
/This excerpt was written by Niki H back in April at the beginning of the Covid shut-downs; the truth of this word remains even more relevant today. Church, do not fall asleep on your watch. Do not mistake following a movement for being a part of a movement. Do not sell the your birth right to be a carrier of change to any organization or party. We have been given the mantel and authority to bring forth the kingdom of love and light into the dark and lost world. - Jessie J
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It’s time for the Church to wake up. To live like a Bride fully alive walking in the power and love of her Beloved. I believe this could be our finest hour.
I’m reminded of John 11:4, when Jesus, speaking of Lazarus, says, “this illness does not lead to death. It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.” I really believe this virus and the fear of the hour, meant and seeking to destroy us, will be the very thing that ushers us into our divine destiny. I in no way want to suggest that this thing is from God but I do know a God who delights in redeeming even the darkest of days and who brilliantly uses every bad and evil intention to miraculously bring forth life.
A famous quote in reference to the United States after the attack on Pearl Harbor during WWII states, “I fear all we have done is to awaken a sleeping giant and fill him with a terrible resolve.” Though unknown (at least by me) whether this was actually said or just a quote from a film, I believe it captured the times well and I believe it is a prophetic declaration that will well capture the times we are in now as well. I believe this is the Church’s hour to fully wake up and show the glory and hope of her Beloved to a world that desperately needs it.
Just as an attack on U.S. soil awakened a country to get actively involved in the war, I believe this crisis is awakening a Bride to fight. To not merely be bystanders that, while appalled at the atrocities of war and filled with sympathies in our words, remain immobile.
May we now be moved to be physically engaged and actively involved in the fight. May we be moved to the point of willingness to sacrifice – a laying down of our very lives. If ever there were a call to arms in our day, now is the time. Let us not let this moment pass us by. May we not be ones that find ourselves wondering where we were when the war was waging all around us, but instead, may we be mobilized and fully given to the fight. And as the weeks continue on, may we not lose heart or become weary of doing good. May we daily be faithful to take up arms and fully engage. May the Church not simply send good wishes to a hurting and fearful world but may we be the sleeping giant now awakened and filled with resolve-now ready to be physically engaged. Ready to sacrifice. Willing to shed blood and tears.
May this be the catalyst that awakens the Church of Christ. Though once rocked to sleep by our own comfort and distance, unaware of our own strength and authority, the Church is waking up and moving to be nameless, faceless, lover-soldiers of King Jesus. May this be the last straw that pushes us to be fully mobilized in our calling and break the back of the enemy.
May this time not be remembered primarily by the spread of disease and the shutdown of nations, but by the awakening of a world to the powerful hope of Jesus and the unstoppable love of a Father.
We are awake. We are in it for the long haul. We will not lose heart. We will never give up. We will arise as the glorious Bride of Christ and step into our divine destiny, storming the gates of hell with a hope that’s secure and a love that breaks chains, moves mountains and renders darkness powerless. We will not waste this hour and look back with regret. We will never be the same.