History Belongs to the Intercessors

I have so much I want to write, but let’s start with Star Wars. The last scene in The Force Awakens shows the island in some far reaching part of the galaxy where Luke Skywalker had been hiding out. In actuality, that island is in the westernmost part of Europe, off the coast of Ireland. It is call Skellig Michael. Wikipedia describes the island as a twin-pinnacled crag named after the archangel Michael.

I was able to go there with my family in 1995 before it was Star Wars famous. I remember that it was rocky, covered in bird poop, and stood powerfully against the incessant attack of the Atlantic sea. 

Prior to Skellig Michael being know as the Star Wars island, it was known as a monastic outpost. For over 600 years straight, twelve monks at a time would live on Skellig Michael, enduring its harshness in the “beehive” stone huts that are still there today.

Now, why would anyone want to live in such a rough place? They would do this because they saw themselves as the western frontline defense of the world. As Christian monks, they were not seeking to defend against invading armies. Instead, they saw themselves as spiritual warriors using prayer and other spiritual disciplines to keep evil from reaching Europe’s shores.

The name “Michael” is in line with the thinking of these monks. Michael is the name of the archangel who leads God’s army into battles with Satan.

These monks lived lives filled with extreme consecration and intense intercession. As with much of the intercession we do as Christians, it is hard to know what results were brought about by all the consecration and intercession of these monks. Yet, as we read stories of spiritual warfare in the Bible, it is clear that we humans have an important part to play. We also learn that “the prayer of a person living right with God is something powerful to be reckoned with.” (James 5:16) A consecrated Christian given to consistent intercession is more powerful than any make-believe Jedi using the make-believe force. And now is the time we Christians are being called into battle by Jesus, our Commander. 

I love what Walter Wink says in this quote:

“Intercessory prayer is spiritual defiance of what is in the way of what God has promised. Intercession visualizes an alternative future to the one apparently fated by the momentum of current forces. Prayer infuses the air of a time yet to be into the suffocating atmosphere of the present. History belongs to the intercessors who believe the future into being.”

Right now, I have no doubt in my mind that Jesus, our Commander, is calling all Christians to fervent prayer. I have no doubt in my mind there are spiritual forces in spiritual defiance of what God has promised in our time and space. I have no doubt our prayers can change the momentum of the current forces leading us into self-centeredness and self-destruction into new forces that bring humility and godly renewal to our city. 

With that in mind, Living Streams Church is calling everyone to our sanctuary on the next two Sunday mornings for a time of consecration and intercession. Please join us if you are healthy and ready to regather and engage in the spiritual battle of our cultural moment. 

And for those who see all this as a bunch of” spiritual mumbo jumbo”, I know how you feel. Part of me feels the same way, but we have to remember what Jesus said: “God is spirit and He is looking for those who will worship Him in Spirit and in truth.”

So, let’s shake off the lethargy, awaken from our spiritual stupor, and boldly enter the throne of God on behalf of our city, our church, and our households. 

David