The following is an excerpt from our daily devotional Fellowship With the Father, written by IFA contributing writer Remco Brommet.

I’m sure you’ve heard the term “be woke.” In today’s vernacular, it refers to political and social awareness, but to us it means something entirely different. “Therefore stay awake, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming” (Matthew 24:42). Jesus gives this admonishment in the context of the end times, and it is repeated many times in different expressions throughout the New Testament as an important mindset for believers. Christians have to be woke to God’s hand behind world events, and we have the indwelling Holy Spirit to give insight whenever needed.

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I find that it helps me in my prayers to zoom out from time to time and get a broader perspective on what’s happening. It tends to move the scope of my prayers — from my own areas of direct affinity, to praying for worldwide happenings; from me-size prayers, to kingdom-size prayers.

God has been speaking into our current global crises for a while now through the voice of a variety of Christian leaders who have the gift of prophecy. I am normally very, very cautious with prophetic messages, because the lines between prediction and speculation are often blurred. One has to be especially careful when it comes to trying to relate specific historic events to symbolic depictions of the signs of the end age.

But in a number of prophetic insights that have been shared around, I see a remarkable consistency. Not only that, but every day the news updates from across the globe seem to confirm those insights. Here is a sampling:

• The global stand-still of 2020 has contributed to a political and economic realignment of world powers.
• The Passover of 2020 was remarkable, marking the first time in history that no one congregated in churches or synagogues to observe it. But God has given the sense that it is the launching point of a major move of people turning to faith in Christ as the crisis peaks, setting up what may be one of the last great global revivals. And sure enough, major prayer movements erupted all over!
• For the U.S., revival means a return to our true identity (yep, the prophetic voices said that!), and the coming into the spiritual soul of our nation having been established as “one nation under God.”
• Satan is angry and is roaring his loudest, in particular through the nations that have set themselves up against God’s people. Several prophetic voices gave a stern warning about what will happen if God’s people fail in their duty to pray. There is particular concern about China. This confirms reports by the U.S. government that China is trying to use the current crisis to extend its world influence. I myself immediately received a prayer assignment to pray over China long before I heard these prophetic insights.

What I see here is the outcome of a prediction that was made by consensus at a conference for national prayer leaders around the turn of the millennium: that our next spiritual awakening would come in the wake of great suffering. Perhaps that ball has started to roll.

The good news is that, while the world only has common sense to rely on to attain a new normal, the people of God can count on not only the light of the Holy Spirit to expose what God wants to change in us, but also the power of the Holy Spirit to bring about that change.

Today’s Prayer Assignment

Ask the Lord for His perspective on what is going on in the nation and the world, and to clarify your role as you listen and pray. We are part of a growing army of prayer warriors He aims to use in this crisis — Zerubbabel’s remnant, if you like (see Haggai 1:12–15). Pray that God would give you courage and wisdom to offer hope in Christ when friends, relatives, and neighbors grapple with fear. Your worth and strategic importance in God’s action plans for the world cannot be overstated. Marvel at this truth: God has ordained to work mightily through the prayers of His people.

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What do you think of this article? Are you “woke?”

Remco Brommet is a pastor, spiritual-growth teacher, and prayer leader with over 40 years of experience in Europe, Southeast Asia, Africa, and the U.S. He was born and raised in the Netherlands and pastored his first church in Amsterdam. He moved to the U.S. in 1986. He and his wife, Jennifer, live north of Atlanta. When not writing books, he blogs at www.deeperlifeblog.com and assists his wife as a content developer and prayer coordinator for True Identity Ministries. Jennifer and Remco are passionate about bringing people into a deeper relationship with Christ. Photo Credit: zbindere/Getty Images Signature via Canva Pro.