This was written weeks ago, but it is still just as important, maybe more important, now. Let us know what you think in the comments.

It was a simple prayer on the roadside marquee of a country church I drove by the other day. I had asked the Lord to show me how to pray for the runoff election in Georgia and the events unfolding in Washington surrounding the certification of the presidential electoral vote. In my weakness, I do not know what I ought to pray for (Romans 8:24) and need the Holy Spirit to help me.

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Then I saw this sign. I immediately sensed God saying: that is what I want you to pray.

The prayer is drawn from 1 Corinthians 4:5: “Therefore do not pronounce judgement before the Lord comes, who will bring to light the things now hidden in darkness and will disclose the purposes of the heart.”

Of course the verse itself refers to the Day of Judgement when Jesus comes to disclose all that is hidden to judge it. But when God’s children are confronted with darkness in the here and now and need His light, it is a relevant prayer.

So I prayed it into the final battles surrounding the presidential election and control of the Senate, with urgency and emphasis . Above all I prayed it into the Body of Christ here in the US as I sensed the Holy Spirit was leading me there.

What was lurking in the darkness that needed to come to light, then?

I believe we witnessed a spiritual battle in three realms: politics, society and the church. Let me explain and come up with a sense of direction in our walk with Christ moving forward.

1. The realm of politics. We saw like never before deceit and corruption hijack an election and we saw a historic eruption of anger from a large number of people who felt betrayed by their congress and by the election process. The number of people around the Capitol most likely represent a much higher number of Americans who are losing, or have lost, their trust in our government and are angry. A recent McLaughlin poll found that 43% of voters on both sides of the aisle believed that widespread fraud had tainted the 2020 presidential election.
2. The realm of society. I believe that the Democratic control of House and Senate and the election of a Democratic president, by legitimate means or not, signals the inauguration of a slide towards a post-Christian mindset with liberal moral values that are diametrically opposite to what the Bible teaches. Europe has been there for some time. Our time has come. The church will be increasingly seen as irrelevant, an impediment to progress and personal liberty, and hateful because of what we dare to say about sin. We will further see more racial, political and ideological tension and infighting as God’s hand of restraint is being lifted. It is the direction of the entire world as it moves toward the coming of the anti-Christ. Though our nation was founded on Christian principles, it has not lived up to them, is increasingly rejecting them, and will follow the ways of the rest of the world.Why, you may ask? Because the world is occupied territory. By God’s permission, it is dominated by Satan, the prince of the power of the air, the father of lies, until all evil has come to full fruition and he meets his final doom at the hands of Christ (see Matthew 13:37-43). Satan hates Christ, darkens the minds on unbelievers to do the same, and infuses society with lies, deception and division. All of which have come to light in a
   disturbingly clear way over the last year or two. Lies and deception have surrounded
   the COVID-19 pandemic and have begun to dominate the way news is being presented; they permeate the internet and social media, and they have corrupted our democratic election process and the way our elected officials are seeking to extend their power and exercise control over the American people.
   As Christians we would not want that. We would want our nation to follow Christian morals. But it should not surprise us. These are the human, “flesh and blood” manifestations of
   the powers of darkness. “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” (Ephesians 6:12)
3. The realm of the church. Both the pandemic and the political unrest have exposed the weaknesses of the church in a big way. Weaknesses that lurked in the darkness of our comfort zones. The pandemic chased us out of our comfy campuses and forced us to consider our ways, repent, seek God’s face and return to the basics of a daily walk with Him and with each other. The political unrest exposed our divisions and an unhealthy preoccupation with politics at the expense of our main mission: making disciples of all nations and preaching the gospel to the ends of the earth.I agree with the voices that have arisen in the midst of the chaos that are calling us to narrow our focus back to the Great Commission, to living out of a daily intimate walk with Christ, and to strengthen our faith so that when persecution comes we will have the courage and steadfastness to withstand.As I mentioned above, part of what has been brought to light is the stark difference between lies and truth. There is no truth in the world – it is conformed to the father of lies who occupies it.
   Undefiled, pure truth only comes from God. He is Truth (John 14:6). His Word is truth (John 17:7). God’s truth has been given to us in the Scriptures and is being taught to us by the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 2:10-13). But God’s truths have become fuzzy to many believers because we have moved away from personal Bible study and made ourselves dependent on the interpretations and explanations of others. Our laziness about knowing and studying God’s Word has made it hard for us to discern what is happening around us, to get God’s perspective on it, and to respond accordingly.

But there is hope. All of this is part of God’s process to purify and strengthen His people, draw them closer to Him, deepen their faith, and prepare His Bride for the return of the Groom.

I believe that the shock of this political and global unrest is the beginning of our wake up call. Most of the time when I asked God what I should pray for our nation, He lead me to pray for a new awakening in the church. The rude awakening, if met by a proper response of repentant, earnest prayer on our part (see 2 Chronicles 7:14), will always lead to a great awakening.

• An awakening to the need to restore God to His place of preeminence in our hearts, our homes, our churches, and order our lives around it.

• An awakening to the centrality and power of prayer in our closets, our homes and our churches.

• An awakening to the transforming power and infallibility of His Word as the only truth that exists in the world.

• An awakening to dependence on the Holy Spirit for impartation of God’s truth (John 16:12-15), equipping for ministry (2 Timothy 2:16,17) , empowerment and boldness in proclamation (Acts 4:31), bearing fruit in Christlike character. (Galatians 5:22-25)

• An awakening to our true identity: that we are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people of God’s own possession to proclaim the excellencies of Him who called us out of darkness into light, as well as sojourners and exiles – citizens of heaven, rather than citizens of this world. (1 Peter 2:9-12)

• An awakening to the need to step over our divisions, love one another from the heart, and depend on one another for the fulfillment of or spiritual, emotional and physical needs so that the world may see that we are His disciples by our love. (Acts 4:32)

• An awakening to the Great Commission – the rescuing of people from the dominion of darkness to bring them into the Kingdom of Light – the only mission of the church. (Matthew 28:19)

Pray with me that the Holy Spirit will collectively awaken us so we may leave our dismay over what is happening in occupied territory behind and focus on the business of His Kingdom, the realm to which we belong. An awakened, powerful, loving church shines its light brightly in a nation that has lost its way. A Great Revival may well still come, but not until God’s people are ready to proclaim with power, welcome with love, and disciple with consistency those who who seek Him.

Get in the Word. Use an online Bible Study if you must. Prayerfully read and meditate and get to know God’s Truth. “Let the Word of Christ dwell in your richly” (Colossians 3:16).

Then work on your daily walk with Him at all costs. Worship, pray, give thanks, listen to Him. Have no fear – He will guide you, and fill you with His joy and peace and cause you to sine brightly in the midst of our crumbling world.

Remco Brommet holds dual citizenship in the US and The Netherlands, and is a pastor, chaplain, speaker, prayer mobilizer and intercessor with a passion for spiritual awakening and revival. Above all he is a Christ-follower, devoted husband to Jennifer and father to adult daughters Carina and Sophia. Photo Credit: Unsplash.)

Share your prayers in the comments below that the Holy Spirit will collectively awaken us!