God Protects His People
This is good news for believers today: in seasons of divine judgment, one way God shows Himself to be God is by protecting His people! During the plagues, the Egyptians saw it happen again and again: Swarms of blood-sucking gadflies filled their houses, but not the houses of the Israelites. Hail and fire fell on their livestock and their crops, but in the land of Goshen where the Israelites lived, the weather was fine.
In Egypt, locusts descended, lice plagued, and darkness shrouded the nation for days. But God “put a division and a sign of deliverance” between the Egyptians and His people (Ex. 8:23). So Goshen remained locust-free, lice-free, and during the days of darkness, the Israelites’ houses were lit not with candles or manmade lamps, but natural light!
What was God’s intention? Why did He separate His people from the Egyptians that way? Because He wanted Egypt to know that “I am the Lord in the midst of the earth” ( v. 22).
Which brings me to the second thing I learned when I studied judgments: in addition to bringing signs, wonders, and miracles on the scene, they separate light and darkness.
God is an expert at that! He knows just how to separate His people from the world. Like a skilled surgeon with a knife, He cuts them out and sets them apart with care, attending to every detail. All through the Bible, we can see examples of how He does it:
- How He brought Noah and his family safely through the flood that destroyed the entire world.
- How He rescued Lot from destruction even though he lived in a city that had been “condemned to ruin and extinction” and was reduced to ashes “as an example to those who would be ungodly” (2 Peter 2: 6-8).
- How He was able to protect Rahab and her family when the walls of Jericho fell. Even though her house was built on that wall (talk about a dangerous place to live!), she “did not die with all the others in her city who refused to obey God” (Heb. 11:31 NLT).
God will work the same kind of wonders for us today! As we reach the end of the age and He moves in judgment to separate the wheat from the chaff, He will keep us safe and show an unbelieving world that He is God in the midst of us.
Exciting Times to Walk by Faith
For those of us who are living by faith, this is an exciting time! The dark is getting darker and the light is getting brighter. Not all that long ago, darkness and light blended together more. You couldn’t easily tell which was which. But these days, the lines have become more distinct. You know who is on the Lord’s side and who is on the Devil’s side. It’s getting clearer every single day.
The separation is taking place. Everyone is getting a chance to choose.
As we believe God and look to Him, He will use whatever sign, wonder, and miracle that He needs to bring this nation to Himself. As we pray and hold by faith to His plan for this nation, He’ll deliver her just as surely as He delivered Israel from Egypt. He will separate America unto Himself, and she will bring Him glory!
I don’t care how impossible it might look right now, God is able to do it—political parties and elections notwithstanding. He is far greater than those things. So let’s believe it and keep working with Him. Let’s be His sound system and say what He says about this country until it comes to pass.
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On the chilly March night in 1972 when Lynne Hammond took her first step into a life of Spirit-led prayer, she had no idea what was about to happen. All she knew was the hunger in her heart for God wouldn’t let her sleep. In the few short months she’d been born again, her desire to fellowship with Him had grown so strong she could hardly contain it. “Help me, God!” she cried. “I want to know you. I want to be able to talk to you. Please, teach me to pray!”
Suddenly, a heavenly presence flooded the room. Lynne sensed waves of spiritual fire sweeping over her and a beautiful language began to flow like a river from within her. Although she’d never heard of the baptism of the Holy Spirit, she knew instantly, without a doubt—this was God!
What began that night soon blossomed into a life of prayer that ultimately became a ministry of prayer when, in 1980, Lynne and her husband, Mac, founded Living Word Christian Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Under Lynne’s leadership, the prayer ministry at Living Word has become an internationally recognized model for developing effective pray-ers in the local church.
A teacher and an author, Lynne publishes a newsletter called Prayer Notes, has written numerous books, and currently serves as the national prayer director for Daughters for Zion. Her passion for inspiring and leading others into the life of Spirit-led prayer continues to take her around the world to minister to believers whose heart cry, like hers, is “Lord, teach me to pray!”