Victory or Defeat. It's up to us! Kingdom of Power, Part 9

"Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them, ‘Every kingdom divided against itself will be ruined, and every city or household divided against itself will not stand.’" (Matt 12:25 NIV)

"My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me." (John 17:20-21)

Do we truly believe in the Kingdom of God?  Are we willing to sacrifice for the sake of this Kingdom? Are we completely geared for victory?

I wonder if we are willing at all. After all, those of us who believe in the Most High, are we truly willing to be united in proclaiming God’s message of love?  Setting aside any of our denominational differences?  By our example the world will know if we are real or not. Division is a sign that we are not taking God seriously.  We are either of God’s family or we are not. United we stand, divided we fall.

When Russia was invaded by 3.2 million Nazis on June 22, 1941, the Russians had to make some real sacrifices to safe their nation.  On July 3^rd, Stalin ordered everyone to burn all crops and dwellings from the imminent threat of the invading army.  The Russians were going to suffer, for they truly depended on that food.  Still, any food left for the enemy would give the enemy the upper hand. Better suffer than be defeated! The Russians had to be united in this or face the stark reality of defeat. The rest, however, is history.

Is unity even plausible in our day and age?

Humanly speaking, no!  After all, everyone think about themselves first!

However if we were to start hungering for God and depend on Him solely, it is absolutely, definitively possible.

Take this ministry for example.  Answers2Prayer began amidst stark adversity.  No one I ever encountered, believers or non, believed that this ministry would stand. To many, an army of prayer warriors was completely ridiculous. It would never work.

It was a discouraging time of my life as I tried to hang on to what God urged me to start.  But I needed a kick in the backside to take the first steps, for it is hard to do something that makes your fellow believers think you have gone mad!

God shone through.  He filled my heart with His love. I finally took a step in faith, His faith, and I have never been the same since. Wow!  His grace is really out of this world!

So Answers2Prayer came into existence.  In the beginning, it was just a one man show.   Six months later, my Heavenly Father began trying to convince me that it was time to raise up an army of prayer warriors, and He urged me to take on volunteers.  This was a hard concept for me.  How would this even be possible? I didn’t know anyone who was eager to become a prayer warrior, and even if I did, how could this be organized over the Internet? It was truly impossible!

God’s answer?

Trust me!

Eighteen years later, we now officially have sixty-four volunteers, belonging to different denominations and living in different corners of this world. We are culturally different as well as denominational different. Still we are united in our mission.  After all, we all serve the same God. He is our passion and His message of love is what motivates us. It is the indwelling of His Holy Spirit that unites us.  Anything else is secondary! 

His message now reaches countries where no missionaries are allowed, for how can one stop the Internet?

If a simple ministry like this one could live in unity, so could the large, mainline ones! After all, our Father will unite us as a powerful prayer warrior army, if we will just let Him.  Victory or defeat is truly in our hands, and just like the people in Russia during World War II, it’s up to us to make that choice.

Rob Chaffart