Introduction
I feel it is appropriate today to follow yesterday’s post with an encouraging word regarding what God is planning. It comes to us from our friend Gina Gholston. The title is:
The Unexpected
I recently heard someone spontaneously singing over and over: “When the glory is in the room, nothing else is needed.” Those words were simple yet profoundly gripping! I instantly thought of Isaiah chapter six, where Isaiah had entered the temple and unexpectedly encountered God. He saw “the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of His robe filled the temple.” He saw seraphim and heard them crying, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts!” The power of their worship and the tangible weight of God’s presence were so overwhelming that the doorposts of the temple literally shook, and the house filled with smoke.
In that moment, Isaiah, along with everything else in that place, reverently surrendered to the undeniable presence of Yahweh! Nothing else mattered. Routine expectations were swallowed by holy awe and honor. There was no rush to move on to the next item on the agenda. That would have been unthinkable! Captured in the swirl of the manifested glory of God, Isaiah could only do one thing, and that was to bow before the Lord and cry out from the depths of a humbled, surrendered heart, “You are here! My eyes behold You, and I am undone.”
Isaiah was in a moment of historical transition. The nation was in a crisis, and there was serious uncertainty about its future. The only hope for change was an awakening to an awareness of God and a submission to His guidance. For Isaiah, that encounter with God brought everything into proper perspective. Every emotion he carried into the temple that day melted away when He saw the Lord. His eyes were opened to see beyond the crisis. His ears were opened to hear above the uncertainty, and he was launched from that encounter with a fresh assignment and purpose that would impact the nation.
Today, America is in a crisis, and we, too, are suspended in a moment of transition. Naturally speaking, the nation’s future could tip in either direction, but its ultimate prophetic destiny is one of salvation, and the Ekklesia is being called to attention. The only thing that will tip the scales toward the fulfillment of that prophetic destiny is an awakening to God. And I sense that, as with Isaiah, the church is stepping into a time of Holy interruption. Our familiar routines and agendas are about to collide with the raw presence of Yahweh. Under the weight of His glory, previous distractions, emotional entanglements, and routine agendas and expectations will be dissolved. An acute awareness of Him and of our desperate need for renewed surrender to Him will change us. He is humbling us and drawing us into a place of undivided focus, enabling us to see beyond our circumstances and hear His wisdom and instructions. And from those holy encounters, He will launch us with fresh power to accomplish His purposes for our time.
Some may remember the dream the Lord gave me in 2023, in which He summoned the Ekklesia to gather at a certain location. Thousands had responded to His call. On an overhead screen, we were shown evidence that a great move of God was happening all across America. As thunderous applause and celebration broke out in response to what we were seeing, the voice of the Lord then thundered, “Celebrate the movement, but do not become distracted by it. Work while you celebrate.”
In that moment, we realized this was not an ordinary gathering; it was an urgent call to attention. At one point in the dream, the place where we gathered began to vibrate with what felt like an electrical current. A wind began blowing, and fire just dropped down out of the heavens onto every one of us. The fiery presence of the Lord filled the room in a visible, tangible demonstration, and we were being transformed. Our expectations for a typical gathering were abruptly changed by a sudden invasion of God's glory! His radiant presence completely reoriented our hearts and reshaped our entire perspective.
Everything changes when God is present; when He is in the room, nothing else matters!
Recently, the Lord has also been reminding me of the word He gave me at the beginning of this year. “My glory is coming in unexpected and unusual ways, and in unexpected and unusual places beginning this year.”
He also reminded me of a word Holy Spirit released through me several years ago during a time of intense intercession. “Lift up your heads because the King of Glory is coming in. There is a divine interruption in the works, and it will be a moment holding the power and ability to change everything. He’s going to show up . . . unexpectedly.”
Unexpected. This word carries the implication of an unforeseen surprise, an interruption of the ordinary. It’s so easy just to follow the routine, do what we do, release our prayers and decrees, sing our songs, preach our sermons. Yet, the truth is, many are not truly expecting Him to come. But I hear Him saying, “There is a divine interruption in the works. My glory is coming.” He is going to show up in our prayer times, our gatherings, our churches, our homes; and in the light of His radiant glory, the routine will fade away. Captured in the swirl of His glory, we will be jolted into the realization that He is all that matters, and all that we can do will be to cry out from the depths of our humbled hearts, “O Lord, You are here! We see You, and we are undone.”
Awakening to an awareness of Him changes everything!
I believe the fear of the Lord is about to be reestablished in the church as we are visited by Him in His glory. If we humble ourselves before Him and align with His leading, He will launch us from those transforming encounters with the ability to walk in a greater purpose and expression of Him more than we ever thought possible…just like Isaiah. Transformed by His glory, we will be empowered to work with Him as He brings transformation to the world around us.
Pray with me:
Father, we welcome Your divine interruptions. Come, Lord, and make Yourself known! Come in the fire of Your Spirit and reignite within us a deepened awe and reverence for You! May our familiar routines and our expectations for only the ordinary fade away as we encounter You. Remove every emotional entanglement that distracts us. Capture us in the swirl of Your manifested glory and jolt us back into the realization that You are all that we need.
And Father, the bowls in heaven containing the prayers of Your people are being filled daily by millions of people around the world. You use those prayers to accomplish Your purposes, mixing them with fire from Your altar and pouring them onto the earth at just the right time. These prayers are precious to You – You referred to them as incense (Revelation chapters 5 and 8). They represent to You the cherished partnership You have with Your family.
We add to these accumulating prayers today regarding the Middle East. There are millions of “pre-saved” people there, more of Your great worldwide family waiting to be born again. We bind the powers of darkness that war against this, declaring in the name of Jesus that their authority to rule that region was broken at Calvary.
And once again, we ask that wisdom and understanding come to our President and his team. Give them a daily reminder to ask for Your help, clothing themselves in the garment of humility. As they do, provide them with unbeatable strategies and divinely inspired timing. And unleash Your powerful message of Jesus and his salvation to the entire Middle East region.
In His name we pray!
Our decree:
The glory of the Lord is rising throughout the world, transforming the church and bringing light to the nations.
Click on the link below to watch the full video.
You can find out more about Gina at GinaGholston.com.