Scripture: Ezekiel 33 v 1 - 16
Verse 6: "But if the watchman see the sword come,
and blow not the trumpet, and the people be not warned: if the sword come, and
take any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his
blood will I require at the watchman's hand."
In 1979 the Lord called me to be a Watchman, which I had
no idea about. I had never heard of a Watchman or an Intercessor but I accepted
the call. I asked some more knowledgeable Christians who sort of smirked and
said, "You'll find out!"
I discovered the writings of Watchman Nee who was a
Chinese Christian who was martyred in the 1950's. He majored in submission,
meekness and brokenness. I have discovered through much trial and many errors
that it is not possible to achieve these desirable states by force of will.
Submission means yielding to God in All Things. Not just
the things you have negotiated but in those things you wish not to discuss with
Him.
Submission to God's will means being willing to trust Him
when every nerve is screaming "run the other way!"
The first few hundred times you do run but turn around
eventually. When you break through to the Lord in this area of your will
against God's will and stop resisting there is an enormous victory. Instead of
trying to manoeuvre a car with locked brakes you are freewheeling along the
highway. That jerky unstable ride becomes so smooth and pleasant.
Your relationship with the Lord moves to a new level of
intimacy and understanding. The thought of going back to the unyielding
stubborn self is unthinkable. Now you and the Lord are working together and you
get shown new things. The Lord loves shortcuts. He quickly teaches you to read
his signals. He guides you with His eyes.
No longer do you wonder what on earth you are doing. Now
you do have a clue and it grows into a pattern into which He guides you as you
pray about difficult situations. He can alert me by a change in the sound of
the wind; by an odour that is in my face and not made by anything visible; by a
feeling of icy coldness etc. Once I pick up the thread we roar off at top speed
to bring light into the darkness of someone's life. All these prompts are
initiated by Jesus and if you are not in submission you will surely miss them.
Brokenness is likened to the breaking in of a wild pony.
Our stubborn pride and will behaves like that unbridled pony - very difficult
to control. We buck and shout and rear up full of resistance until Jesus deals
a blow to all that and we stand trembling as He gently leads us beside the
still waters.
When we are broken by Jesus we find ourselves in a new
quiet relationship with Him. The hype has changed and we have changed, matured,
and we immediately can discern the spirit of others. We can easily see those
who are wild ponies and those who are broken in.
Humble is a strange word. When you are yielded and broken
in you reach the profound knowledge that without Jesus you can do nothing.
Without Jesus you are nothing. All self-sufficiency has been eliminated. Your
former selfish, self-centred lifestyle has undergone a revolution. You are now
humble before God, showing Him gratitude and appreciation.
Jesus in your heart shows you your faults and in your
humility you recognise them and bring them into the light. You argue less and
less and grow in wisdom and stature with God. Like-minded people draw near to
listen when you speak. You realise that those who are comfortable around you
are the true family of God.
Prayer: Father God how You love and value those who are
broken and submitted to Your will. You called me to be Watchman and an
Intercessor which is a very hard calling carrying much responsibility and
accountability. Please let me be found
worthy at the end of my journey of being true, fair and diligent in blowing the
warning horn. I pray that many will recognise Your desire to bring them closer
to Yourself. In Jesus' name. Amen.