December 19, 2012 – Allen and Diane Lake
A Tragedy
Arise, shine; for your light has come! And the glory of the Lord is risen upon you. (Isa. 60:1)
Recent events in Connecticut have left us heartbroken. No words can express the depths of human grief in the midst of tragedy like this, and the heart of God is also broken. Healing comes as we accept our limitations and ask Him for His strength.
The call of an intercessor is not an easy one, and it can sometimes feel we might have missed something to pray. There are no easy explanations for this or any tragedy, but in the midst of our sorrow, the Lord will speak – if we are listening.
While no one understands the realm of spiritual authority completely, some principles stand out from God’s word. The Lord created the earth with the intent that it would reflect the model of heaven, but the ultimate outcome was not His. Psalm 115:16 says, “The heaven, even the heavens, are the Lord’s; but the earth He has given to the children of men.”
Stewardship of the earth, then, was given to man (Gen. 1:28), but with the fall came spiritual darkness and the balance of power was lost. Satan was given a measure of our authority which will not be completely wrested from Him until such time as God crushes Satan under our feet; He will use us to restore the earth to its intended glory. (Rom. 16:20; Isa. 60:3)) Until then, it should not surprise us to see darkness increase in the earth; but remember, so shall the light increase. (Isa. 60:1-3.)
A Vision
I recently experienced a powerful vision. This vision occurred within a dream and was unlike anything I have ever experienced. In this dream, I was standing at a window looking out towards the sky. Suddenly, I saw a man falling out of the sky, and I turned to exclaim this to the people standing behind me. At this point I realized that no one else could see what was happening besides me, yet there was a remarkable depth and clarity to the scene that caused me to remark that while the Lord had shown me things before, I had never seen anything like this.
As the man fell closer and closer to earth, I understood by his physical presence and size that this was not simply a man, but an angel. He fell neither fast nor slow, but seemed to simply descend in some sort of effortless manner from the sky.
He landed in a river, and the seconds ticked by as I watched the surface of the river in the dream. And then, up from the river rose Jesus—He had a globe in His hand. And I knew that I had just witnessed a representation of the Lord’s plan to heal the nations, and that the time for this healing has arrived. (See Ezekiel 47:1-12; Rev. 22:2.)
Hope
Several things were spoken to me when I woke up. I heard that when God begins to do a new thing, there’s always a period of a year when chaos can be expected. I cannot say whether this means a literal year; my inclination is to think not. Rather, I believe we can expect a “period of time” of chaos on the earth as the “new thing” begins to take shape, a period in which we might wonder if God is present at all. But He is, and we cannot lose hope.
I next heard, “I don’t care how trivial your life appears at the moment, God is beginning to do a new thing.” I believe this to be a word to the body of Christ. We might wonder if God is present at all since darkness is increasing, and we could be discouraged at the lack of manifestation of this “new thing” which as been declared. But the new thing is here, and we can be full of hope.
I hear the Lord say to our nation, “Out of your affliction you will see the glory of the Lord rising upon you.” (Isa. 60:1) He does hear our cries, He does feel our pain, and as the church rises in authority in cooperation with the heavenlies, the healing of the nations will begin.
Suggested Prayer
The Lord’s Prayer carries great anointing in this season. (Matt. 6:9-13) Let’s ask the Lord to quicken His word as we pray this daily over our cities, our states, and our nation.
Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name, Your kingdom come, Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven, Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, As we forgive our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one. For Your is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever, Amen.
The reason the Lord has increased the saints’ authority in the last season is that it will be used in overcoming the deep darkness on the earth. We must embrace His hope rather than give in to despair. The Lord is with us. He is mighty. And He is bringing His great glory to the nations of the earth.
Diane is a writer, speaker and minister ordained with both Christian International and Generals International. Her articles are regularly featured on The Elijah List, as well as platforms like Charisma Magazine, Charisma News, Intercessors For America and others. She and her husband, Allen, co-founded Starfire Ministries with a vision to see the kingdom established beyond the four walls of the traditional church. They host a podcast with Charisma Podcast Network, and serve as Church Mountain, Regional, and Montana Coordinators for the Reformation Prayer Network, and as Media Mountain Leader/Facilitators for C.I.’s Culture Influencers.
