We have spent the past week in a new level of intercessory prayer, and it is a call to an ongoing battle. A missionary friend was struck down by an illness last Monday and was in a coma most of the week. Doctors scrambled to diagnose the issue, but an ever widening circle of friends and acquaintances began lifting up the missionary and his family through Facebook and other means.

Yesterday I am sure churches around the world prayed for our friend, as our church did at the end of our service. As we prayed for healing, other prayers began to be lifted up. Prayers for the closed country they are going to, because we know this isn’t just a physical attack. It is the enemy firing a warning shot to any missionaries with any thought of going to that country. We prayed for new missionaries to be raised up that would sense a call to closed countries. Then a prophetic word came saying this was a time the Church needed to hear the call of Jesus at Lazarus’s tomb: “Come forth! Wake up!”

That afternoon, the missionary woke up. His wife posted the rest of the day about a progression that has been simply miraculous. What we know is that this is far from over and we simply can NOT give up in prayer. He is still needing major miracles as his body is fighting paralysis and he is in obvious pain as the physical attack continues to rage through his body. We can NOT give up in prayer.

Last night in our prayer group another prayer brought us to a new realization: the enemy made a tactical error. The enemy overreached. Thinking he could take down this one missionary and fire a warning shot to anyone thinking they could come into that closed country, something else happened. A Church that has been lazy in prayer has been activated in the last week. Along with that will come a sense of calling. There will be people who will become more aware of closed countries and ask the Spirit for the same boldness this couple has in their lives. More people could be called to closed countries as a result of this one attack. 

We need to wake up and stay awake in prayer. We have a fresh wave of missionaries from all over the world going into the hardest places on the planet and it’s not a cake walk. Physical and spiritual attacks are intense.

We need to ask the Lord how he wants us activated. We can be activated in prayer, in giving, in going. It is simply a call to awareness. Not everyone goes. But we need our lethargy shaken off and we need to be more active in prayer and more aware in the Spirit.

What was intended for harm will be used by God for good.

Do not let this battle be wasted.