A Warfare of Rest - August 1-21, 2013
For thus says the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel: “In returning and rest you shall be saved;
In quietness and confidence shall be your strength.” Isaiah 30:15
There remains therefore a rest for the people of God. For he who has entered His rest has himself
also ceased from his works as God did from His. Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest,
lest anyone fall according to the same example of disobedience. Hebrews 4:10
The Whirlwind
Last week during a time of worship and prayer, I saw a clear vision. There was a large whirlwind and at the very centre of it, a group of people who were standing perfectly still. I also saw other people, standing all along the periphery, just out of reach of the whirlwind. They looked like they were longing to get into the centre, but they could not because they were tied up and unable to move. As the vision continued, the whirlwind grew to the point that the wind began to hit these people on the periphery and as it did, it literally began to rip all the bondages off them. Once they were free, the wind pulled them into the centre to join those who were already standing. As the number of those standing in the centre grew, so did the size and scope of the whirlwind. It kept reaching out farther and farther, pulling in more people, and then expanding again.
As I watched this scene play out in front of me, I heard the Lord say to my heart, “Though many in your generation carry a genuine longing and desire for Me, they have allowed hope deferred to open a door of unbelief through which the enemy has entered in to entangle them with the cares and worries of life. But the good news is that they can be set free and awakened. Not through your own efforts but through a warfare of rest. If a remnant will choose to strive to enter into rest, their obedience will release a wind of the Spirit that will awaken hope and set Gen Xers free from the distractions and the snare of the enemy who has taken them captive.”
A Divine Strategy
The way of the kingdom is always about opposites – serve to lead, give to receive, die to live. So it shouldn’t come as a surprise that a key to break the power of entanglements is to enter into rest. Therefore in obedience to the Lord, we are releasing a call for a 21-day corporate “consecration of rest” from August 1 to 21, 2013.
Although God is speaking to us specifically about Gen X at this time, we believe this call to enter into rest is a kingdom strategy for the wider Body of Christ in this hour. Throughout the Church, there are many believers of every age who are struggling with entangling distractions, unbelief and hope deferred. If a remnant of believers will choose to answer the call of the Holy Spirit to strive to enter into rest, we believe our collective obedience will release the wind of God to bring hope and freedom not only to our lives, but to many in the Church.
21 Days
So what exactly does it mean to enter into a consecration of rest? Honestly we don’t have a road map because we have not been this way before. But we are willing to journey together with God and one another over the next 21 days to find out!
To consecrate means to set apart for a holy use. So we encourage you to set apart time each day to spend quiet before the Lord. We also know from Hebrews 3 and 4 that it was the unbelief of the Israelites that prevented them from entering into God’s promised rest. So as we enter this consecration, let’s ask the Lord to reveal to us hidden areas in our lives where unbelief is operating and causing us to live by the power of our own labour and not by the grace of God.
Hebrews 4 says to “exhort one another daily” and so each day we will release a short email, whatever we feel the Lord is releasing for our mutual encouragement. We would also love for this journey to be an expression of the corporate body and not just a few of us, so if the Lord gives you a vision or dream or speaks to you through a scripture or if you have a story or testimony you would like to share, please send it to share@awakenthedream.org.
Anticipating the whirlwind!
Stephanie
On behalf of the Awaken Team
To view the 21 days of exhortations click here.