August 28, 2026
- 6 hours ago
- 6 min read
President Trump Issues An Important Alert
“President Trump declared a national emergency on Wednesday, August 26, [2026] to secure the national power grid, citing unusual and extraordinary foreign cyber and security threats. The order prohibits certain foreign-made bulk-power system electric equipment, including software that poses cybersecurity or operational risks, from being purchased or installed in the U.S. ‘Certain foreign actors are increasingly creating and exploiting vulnerabilities in the United States bulk-power system, which provides the electricity that supports our national defense, vital emergency services, critical infrastructure, and economy,’ Trump said in the order.
“Experts say vulnerabilities in the national power grid present an attractive target for sabotage. China has been studying how to hack and crash the system, even conducting simulations to trigger a large-scale outage or systemic collapse, according to one study. ‘We were alarmed by recent reports indicating that Communist China has already compromised the integrity of power inverters connecting our power grid,’ Senators Rick Scott (R-FL) and Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) write in a letter to the Department of Commerce. ‘We are concerned about recent reports indicating these CCP-manufactured parts and systems allow for remote access, unauthorized data exfiltration, and even operational disruption.’ Foreign cyber hackers have already attacked public utilities this year, according to the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA). ‘Iranian cyber actors continue to target U.S. critical infrastructure,’ said Asst. Director Brett Leatherman of the FBI’s cyber division.”(1)
In light of this information, today’s post is on the “watchman” concept of prayer.
“Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” (1Peter 5:8 NASB)
“With every prayer and request, pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be alert with all perseverance and every request for all the saints.” (Ephesians 6:18 NASB)
In Ephesians 6:18, the King James Version uses the word “watching” instead of the phrase “be alert.” Both translations are good. We are called to be alert in prayer, watching for our family, friends, leaders, cities, and nations.
In Scripture, the term “watchmen” comes from the Old Testament and describes what we would today call “sentries,” “guards,” or “lookouts.” In biblical times, these individuals protected vineyards or fields (crops) from thieves and animals, and cities from invading forces.
“For thus the Lord says to me, ‘Go, station the lookout, let him report what he sees. When he sees riders, horsemen in pairs, a train of donkeys, a train of camels, let him pay close attention, very close attention.’ Then the lookout called, ‘O Lord, I stand continually by day on the watchtower, and I am stationed every night at my guard post.’” (Isaiah 21:6-8)
Three Hebrew words are translated as “watchman” in Scripture: natsar,(2) shamar,(3) and tsaphah.(4) In a broad sense, they all mean to guard or protect by watching over. One interesting meaning of tsaphah is “to lean forward and peer into the distance.” This is a great physical picture of prophetic intercession. Discerning intercessors look ahead, into the future – “peering into the distance” – discerning attacks of the enemy sometimes before they occur. He or she is proactive, not reactive. This is prophetic intercession.
The Law of First Mention
Theologians have what is known as “the law of first mention,” which I talked about in yesterday’s post. This refers to the general rule that the first time a major subject is mentioned in the Bible, it is “introduced”; significant facts are given concerning it, just as we might do when introducing a person.
The first mention of a watchman in Scripture is in Genesis 2:15: “Then the Lord God took the man and put him into the garden of Eden to cultivate it and keep it.” This verse introduces one of our primary responsibilities as watchmen. Adam was told to “keep” or protect the garden (shamar). The only entity the garden of Eden needed protection from at that point in history was the serpent! Adam was told to protect the garden from the devil. Therefore, applying the “law of first mention” to watchmen would mean their foremost responsibility is to keep the serpent out of their “garden”: their home, family, church, city, nation! KEEP HIM OUT!
Expanded Meanings
Here are several ways Scripture translates these 3 words for watchman. These uses will help expand our understanding of this important assignment:
Keep/Keeper - This is by far the most frequent usage of these words — at least 250 times. Watchmen keep things, places, and individuals safe, ensuring against loss, theft, or damage. They keep things intact and in possession.
Guard/Bodyguard - Watchmen shield or guard individuals and places, protecting them from danger and harm. They are the Kingdom’s secret service agents.
Doorkeeper/Gatekeeper - Watchmen have the ability, through prayer, to determine who or what comes into their homes, families, churches, cities, etc. As sentries, they discern by the Spirit what to allow in and, through prayer, open and close the doors (Isaiah 22:22). They pray IN the work of Holy Spirit and REJECT the works of darkness, keeping the serpent out.
Preserve/Preserver - Watchmen preserve, keeping things from ruin and destruction. They preserve lives, anointings, moves of God, and a host of other things by covering them in prayer.
Pay Attention - Watchmen must be alert and always paying attention. In Scripture, we are compared to soldiers; as good sentries, God tells us to “pay attention!"
Observe/Behold - Don’t just look – see! Discern. Be observant. Watchmen observe what others fail to see. We can observe much in the place of prayer, often even before it happens!
Beware - Watchmen must be vigilant, aware, and on the alert. First Peter 5:8 warns us to be of sober spirit, watching for the devouring lion. When we see him at work, we must enforce Calvary’s victory - stop him! Jesus saw satan’s attack coming against Peter and prayed that his faith would survive the test. The prayer was effective! (Luke 22:31-32).
Protect - In the same sense as guarding and keeping, watchmen protect by building walls or boundaries against the devil’s attacks.
Maintain - Watchmen maintain things for the Lord and for people. They are the maintenance crew. Though they often don’t set vision, build ministries, or oversee congregations, intercessors maintain them, keeping things working well and preventing breakdowns. Watchmen help maintain the anointing, unity, health, purity, truth, and many other important things in the church.
Watchmen, it’s time to be on the wall. Let’s keep watch for our families, communities, and our great nation.
Pray with me:
Father, we are painfully aware that the devourer has been given great access to our “garden,” America. The church was not alert and did not function as the gatekeepers of our nation. As a result, he who seeks to steal, kill, and destroy has been doing so almost at will. He has devoured families, elements of our government, our schools, and even many of our churches. We thank You for supplying supernatural ability to reverse this.
Increase revelation in the body of Christ regarding this amazing force we call prayer. Increase our understanding of watchmen intercession, revealing how to be shields, sentries, gatekeepers, preservers, and maintainers.
We take up this mantle now for our families, homes, possessions, leaders, cities, and nations. We ask for supernatural protection over our children’s minds and bodies. We ask for protection over our leaders and their families. And we ask for protection over our nation – except You keep the city, the watchman wakes in vain (Psalm 127:1). Protect us from these cyber attacks. Give our government and protection agencies help as they work to find and stop their plans. Uncover and expose the plans of evil leaders in China, Russia, Iran, and elsewhere. We declare, according to Psalm 21:11, that the plans of the wicked will fail! We pray all of this in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Our decree:
We declare Job 5:12 regarding these cyberattacks: “He frustrates the plans of the crafty, so that they cannot perform their exercise.”
Portions of today’s post were taken from my book Intercessory Prayer, published by Baker Books.
Click on the link below to watch the full video.
James Strong, The New Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1990), ref. no. 5341.
Ibid., ref. no. 8104.
Ibid., ref. no. 6822.
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