The leaders in these persecuted churches cried out to the Lord and they looked forward to His second coming. Their cries awakened me. God loved the church and gave Himself up for her and prepared her to be a radiant church (ref: Eph. 5:25-27). The church has a trumpet and the church blows out a sound. I learnt to ask the Lord to fill my mouth with the messages of “reconcile with the Father”, “life changing”, “life giving”, “awake”, and “faith, hope, love”.
As I return back to Toronto, I started the daily discipline to praise and pray. In His grace, I invite the Spirit to take control of my mind, emotion, and body to lift up my hands to worship and kneel to Him in the early mornings.
2). The Lord is good to all nations
The pastors and leaders in the persecuted churches are convicted by the speedy heart beat of heaven. Our heart beat and pace are to align with the kingdom’s. How I wish that as we worship, the eyes of the blind be opened, the ears of the deaf unstopped, the lame leap like a deer, and the mute shout in joy (ref: Is 35:5-10). The hungry heart will be fed and the thirsty soul will be satisfied. There is a Highway for God’s children. It is a way of Holiness. As we start to sing praises and get close to the Lord’s heartbeat, gladness and joy will overtake us and sorrow and sighing will flee away. The Word continues to grant comfort to His suffering and needy children.
I learned the truth of Is 19: 23-25. In the end times, there will be a highway from Egypt, Assyria, and Israel. The Lord will bless them, saying, “Blessed be Egypt my people, Assyria my handiwork, and Israel my inheritance”. From the persecuted churches, they helped me understand this prophecy. There is a recent revival in churches in Egypt. It is the 7th year after the Arab Spring. This 7th year marks the falling down of the spiritual strongholds. The Israelites circled six times around Jericho and as they obeyed and walked around Jericho on the 7th day, the walls fell down. Will this passage be an encouragement to the Middle East churches? The spiritual strongholds will fall down. Therefore, churches are to prepare for this spiritual battle. Awake churches!
Another question that was in my mind was the Assyrian people. This prophecy could not come true because the nation Assyrians was swept away in history. Surprisingly, the Lord led me to a home visit after the service. The family came from Syria and were waiting for refugee sponsorship. As I tried to understand their background more, they clarified to me that they originally were Assyrians but resided in Syria. The group of Assyrians become refugees in Lebanon. They were able to accept the Lord and grow in their walk with Him in their time of suffering. The Lord answered my questions and led me to have a strong conviction of His coming soon. The highway in Isaiah 19 points to the amazing plan of God and demonstrates the promise of His covenant to the beloved ones.
It is time to bless others and share His gospel to those who have ears to hear. I am enriched by His Word and His Prayer. I am more sensitive to the spiritual battle around the world. The darkness age is approaching fast. And the faith of the persecuted is to awaken us.
This is my prayer – May the Spirit of God like a fire ignite and warm up our aloof hearts. May the Spirit of God like oil anoint our logical minds. May the Spirit of God like a wind blow away our spirits of lacking. May the Spirit of God uplift us to a deeper trust and wider horizon. Amen.
