A New Commission

Last weekend I was privileged to meet with a leader in the underground church from a certain Mideast country. There were more than 30 of us in all, people from different backgrounds. We spent the weekend together, getting to know each other.

These are not your normal church believers. They well know the problem of denominationalism, so they have avoided or eliminated the “Saul” problem, which is perhaps the root problem of the Pentecostal Age. The quality of people, I must say, was impressive. One older man (David) had planted 500,000 churches, mostly through his trained teams. 80,000 of them are in mostly small towns throughout India. Others are in China and other places in Asia.

The first five of David’s disciples were killed in India. David himself faced death many times, and he was nearly always in danger. His wife remained behind in Singapore, and when her husband would leave on a mission, she often did not know where he was at any given time, nor even if he was still alive. What a life!

Another young couple had gone to Indonesia to bear witness of Christ. They spent time in Bali, which is a Hindu island in the midst of the Muslim islands. In 2013 they also moved for a time to Banda Aceh, which, if you recall, was hit hard by the “Christmas tsunami” in 2004.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2004_Indian_Ocean_earthquake_and_tsunami

There they faced a threat of death from radicals who broke into their home one night and stole everything, threatening them and their two young children with death if they did not leave. They had to pray and count the cost, but they decided that this was where God had sent them. So they stayed, if I recall, for a year.

The main stories, however, came from the Mideast, where we heard the full story of how the underground church is growing by leaps and bounds. The people themselves are so oppressed by the religious and political leadership that they gravitate to the love of Christ. Especially the women.

Because of the secretiveness of their activities, I cannot say much about the marvelous things that God is doing there, but I will say that one of them wrote a song that is now well known among the general populace. It is essentially a prayer for the outpouring of the Spirit, and it is being sung by millions. By the providence of God, the religious police approved it, though it is heretical to Islam.

I saw a short video of a young boy who had downs syndrome. He could sing, so he was asked to sing his favorite song. He sang this one, and as he did, he instinctively raised his hands in worship, asking for a touch from God. The Holy Spirit came down upon those watching, and they did not know what hit them. It was a powerful moment, and, I believe, a forecast of greater things to come.

I cannot say more, because I do not want to endanger their lives. However, I can say that I went to this small conference with some expectation. My main expectation, based on the “resurrection cycle” of 76 days, was to see something significant on January 17.

This date goes back to 1983 when I joined the Net of Prayer and essentially was commissioned to a ministry of intercession and spiritual warfare. I had been conscripted earlier on November 12, 1981, but I did not know it until later. (See my book, The Wars of the Lord.) It was not until January 17, 1983 that I consciously joined the NOP, just before moving to Batesville, AR on January 23. (The full 76-day cycle at that time ended on January 27-30.)

So on January 17, 2021, I was led to join with this new movement and was anointed and commissioned as an ambassador for Christ to disciple the nations. Keep in mind that this is a movement, not a denomination. The movement has leadership but no one is required to submit to the rule of men. It is a commitment to Christ, not to men.

I believe that this marked a significant milestone in the direction of this ministry—even in the midst of lockdowns and restrictions and political craziness. God, of course, does not view outward circumstances as problems. After all, He has to create His own enemies and hindrances just to give us something to overcome. In the military, they call it “cannon fodder.”

So Part 1 of this present trip has been completed. I am now beginning Part 2 and should be back to the office a week from today, God willing. No doubt Part 2 has to do with the next watch date of January 23, which, in 1983 was when I arrived in Batesville, AR to begin a new life.

There is some uncertainty in the air, because of political events and possible changes of policy. Lockdowns are being threatened once again, but God has other plans for me. So keep me in prayer, as I am following the leading of the Spirit and keeping my eyes on Jesus, rather than on the storm around us.