“LORD, I have heard of your fame; I stand in awe of your deeds, LORD. Repeat them in our day, in our time make them known; in wrath remember mercy.”
Habakkuk 3:2
The word of God came to the prophet Habakkuk and stirred his heart, making a great impact on his life. Consequently he recognized not only his own sins, but also the iniquity that was blatant among the people of Israel. He understood that a true spiritual awakening was the only thing that could counteract the evil in his nation. He was also made aware of the impending judgment of God. In response, he interceded by appealing to God’s mercy, pleading for a spiritual dawning of true repentance. I believe that Habakkuk’s prayer to the Lord may have been like this: Revive Your work, send Your revival, a spiritual awakening that would cause men to not be legalistic and religious, but to be genuine believers, having the fire of Your Spirit in them so that they can reproduce life in others.
Jesus told us of the best way to bring the presence of God into our cities and nations. He gave his disciples these last instructions before He ascended into Heaven, ”‘Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit’” (Acts 1:4-5).
These instructions led the disciples to persevere in prayer. After ten days the most extraordinary thing happened: the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. This was the most wonderful event ever to be experienced by mankind after the death and resurrection of Jesus. The disciples prepared themselves during ten days of prayer. They quietly and patiently waited in faith. It was the same for Mary, who learned to be still in order to be able to hear God’s voice. She waited in faith because she believed the promise. When we practice intercession in stillness and quiet, our spiritual ears are opened so that the impossible can happen: we are able to conceive the dream of God. Mary not only obtained grace and favor in the eyes of the Lord, but she was also able to conceive the dream of God for her life through her time of closeness with the Holy Spirit. The disciples of Jesus went through the same process.
The Father’s dream became a reality afor all of these men and women as the result of their determination to remain still, faithful and to persevere in the presence of God.
SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT
A while ago, while we were taking some time out tgether as a family, our son, who was three years old, was making us laugh a lot. At that moment my wife told me, “This is the dream of God made a reality.” We remembered how fourteen years earlier, we had been in Houston, Texas, recuperating from the emotional impact and pain we had suffered due to the assassination attempt on our lives. As we entered a small church my wife heard the voice of the Lord say, “You will have a son.” She heard it so clearly that there was not a shadow of doubt in her. When she shared with me what the Lord had told her I replied, “May it be.” Of course, logically this was not possible. However, ten yearsafter this, our precious Mathias came into our lives in a supernatural way. As we remembered all of this, we looked at our granddaughter Shailoh, who was also there playing. I turned to my wife and said, “This is another dream of God made a reality,” because my daughter Johanna had been unable to have children for seven years.
TODAY’S DECLARATION
“I have the anointing of intercession, and the authority to pray into existence God’s dream for my generation.”
Today’s post is an excerpt from Pastor Cesar Castellanos’ book, Declarations of Power for 365 Days of the Year: Volume One.
TODAY’S BIBLE READING
- Old Testament: Numbers 9-11; Psalms 52
- New Testament: Matthew 22:34-46; Romans 4
