If we are bold enough to stand up and proclaim heaven’s message, we can exert our influence, call forth our nation’s destiny, and lead her back to the heart of the Father.
Entering the 2016 presidential election, mainstream media was the single greatest thought influencer in our nation. They wielded their influence to sway public opinion and control narratives through topics like John Podesta’s emails, Wikileaks, “fake news,” the Alt-Right, liberal bias, George Soros’ billions, and “the Russians.”
But by the time election night came to a close, they had been exposed not only as uncredible, but manipulative and deceitful. Voters across all political spectrums saw through their lies, rejected their distortions of truth, and abandoned them in droves.
Meanwhile, political parties and media outlets—on both the left and the right—seem to still be unaware that they have lost their influence. They haven’t yet learned this crucial truth: If the only people listening to you are the ones who already agree with you, then you have no influence.
In response to the media’s biased rhetoric and perspectives, people on the left shot further left and people on the right moved further right. We now have both the “far left” and the “far right,” leaving a gaping hole in the middle that no one is speaking into right now. This space in the middle represents an incredible opportunity for the people of God. It issues a screaming invitation for Christians to step in and lead the world into a brand new conversation, to exert a level of influence we have never before claimed.
Our problem is that even though Christians are the single largest demographic in America, we’ve more or less abdicated our positions of influence and stand irrelevant as cultural change agents.
It’s time for change. A kind of change that can only come from Jesus, our one true hope. As it has been said, “Whoever has the most hope, has the most influence.”
Carriers of Hope
Influence is the capacity to have an effect on the character, development, thoughts or behavior of someone. This is our kairos moment where, like Ezra in Nehemiah 8, if we are bold enough to stand up and proclaim heaven’s message, we can exert our influence, call forth our nation’s destiny, and lead her back to the heart of the Father.
In prophetic circles, the hot topic these days is how we’ve come to the end of the “Church Era” and have entered into the “Kingdom Era.” It is a time when the people of God are stepping outside the four walls of the church and are moving past denominational divisions. We are entering into a unified movement that is stewarding and carrying more of what God wants to accomplish on earth.
The body of Christ has recognized the limitations of working merely through the church sphere and we are finding innovative ways of advancing the Kingdom through the marketplace and our own spheres of influence.
Any Christian who has been transformed by the power of Jesus carries the very reality of hope itself. It is a hope that does not disappoint (Romans 5:5). If we want influence in society right now, it is time for us to bring that message. Hope is the very thing the world is most craving. We have an enemy who is actively trying to steal, kill and destroy (John 10:10), and his favorite target is our hope. He wants nothing more than to make those around us feel hopeless, to taunt them to give up on their dreams, and to deny there might be any calling on their lives.
The more we speak hope into people’s lives the more our influence expands. We overcome by the blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony (Revelation 12:11). We have an opportunity to change the narrative by telling God’s stories of how He’s transforming lives right now around the globe.
WE MUST CHOOSE TO BE EITHER HOT OR COLD, AND IT’S CLEAR THAT NOW IS OUR TIME TO BURN HOT AS WE MAKE FAMOUS THE NAME OF JESUS CHRIST.
Telling God’s Stories
I believe the Lord is doing something new and it’s going to catch many by surprise. He is moving in the marketplace as never before, mobilizing Christians across all spheres of society. Salvations, healings, miracles, and the supernatural power of God are being released in full measure. Hope is being released, and we are again finding our voice and our courage.
While our nation is waking from a deep sleep, hungry for truth, I hear the Lord beckoning in the Spirit, “Tell My stories!” As moral relativism is being exposed by the wreckage it has caused in people’s lives, the space in the middle—between the far left and the far right—is up for grabs. It’s expanding in order that a Kingdom perspective, one not personally or politically motivated, will be made known. In this space we cannot be passively lukewarm. We must choose to be either hot or cold, and it’s clear that now is our time to burn hot as we make famous the name of Jesus Christ.
We are entering into a unified movement that is stewarding and carrying more of what God wants to accomplish on earth.
Any media outlet that continues to distort the truth, promulgate fear, manipulate minds, or oppose God’s agenda will find their influence waning. Meanwhile, a Kingdom-driven, united voice in media will pierce the hearts and minds of entire nations. As Christians broadcast the name, knowledge and glory of Jesus Christ, all the earth experiences the very hope of heaven. It’s a tremendous atmospheric shift unlike anything anyone has ever heard or seen.
Until now.
