Following the Thread of the Holy Spirit

One of cornerstone principles in our journey comes from a covenant the leadership team of Watchmen made when we began: we will never initiate anything. But instead we commit to listen, hear and obey, as the Lord helps us, what the Holy Spirit is saying to His church in Canada.

As I shared with you in August, immediately after the Homecoming we had a debriefing meeting with the Shield and the Cluster. Many prayers and prophetic words came forth (you can hear and read many of them by clicking here) and we could see clearly the Lord was calling the intercessors of the nation to rise up. As we prayed more into this in the following weeks, the Holy Spirit made it clear we should do two national gatherings, one in Montreal, the other in Edmonton.

We had no idea that in the natural Montreal is a major boot camp training site for our military forces, while Edmonton is a place of advanced training. We had no idea that even as God would call forth His army of intercessors in Canada to arise first in Montreal, that at this exact moment, the "sleeping giant" of Mt. St. Helens would erupt, giving a visible sign in the natural of what was happening in the spirit realm.

For months now, many people have been praying and submitting words/dreams/visions to us about the Edmonton gathering. From these many and varied "threads", we are beginning to see a prophetic tapestry emerge of what the Lord has on His heart. We share with you this summary and prayer directives prepared by the Shield that we might contend together for His full purposes to be accomplished.

I look forward to seeing many of you in Edmonton - if you have not registered yet, you can find all the information you need at http://www.watchmen.org/gathering/riseup. Also, please check the prayer watch calendar for Edmonton for regular prayer directives from the Shield and to sign up for prayer before and during the gathering.

All my love

David

Discerned Themes for Prayer - Rise Up Gathering, Edmonton, November 25-27

1) Releasing a new sound
Different members of the Shield have been hearing about God wanting to release a new sound in the worship in Edmonton. For example, James Arreak from Iqualuit had a dream of a national gathering and wrote "There was a new sound of heaven that was being played by the worship leaders. God some how took a hold of their hands and fingers and became one with them. The creativity of the worshippers was beyond this world. God was in total control of every part of the meeting."

Another intercessor wrote about a vision in which the Lord said to her, "It is an ancient sound. It's not a new sound. It's just a new sound to this generation. But it's been lost - it's been buried a very long time. But it's a sound that's been reserved for this time. And it is the sound that ushers in the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. We worship but we worship from our own sounds. And He accepts them as an honorable sacrifice because of the obedience of our hearts. But there is a sound that He has ordained in heaven that is His sound. And it is the very sound of heaven that is the sound that ushers in His presence.

We also discovered that during the Latter Rain movement it was known that

"One of the outstanding features of the Edmonton meetings (Oct 1948) was the "heavenly choir", described by James Watt as follows: "Heaven's very strains filled the whole church. It was like a mighty organ, with great swelling chords, and solo parts weaving in and out, yet with perfect harmony. Those who heard it some blocks away said that it did something to their souls that no power on earth had previously touched. Special healings were wrought: deaf head, blind saw, cancers were healed, and sick bodies made whole. Sinners were saved and the precious blood of Jesus availed in it all." (Richard Riss, Latter Rain, p.82)

A few weeks after these words and dreams, we found that James Goll had also recently prophesied, during a prophetic roundtable in Abbotsford, BC in April 2004 about a new sound. (This is an excerpt, the complete word can be found by clicking here).

Lightning and New Music - (The Lord says,) "I am going to be moving in the heavens. I am going to be moving in the skies that are literally above your eyes. I am going to be releasing amber light. I am going to be releasing displays of My brilliant presence…For the Lord says, "It is My angels that are appearing on the scene. It will not be as it was when Lucifer fell from the sky and they said, 'We saw him fall like lightning.' But it will rather be that the angels of the Lord are coming to encamp. There shall be new encampments of the angels of the Lord of Hosts where the sounds of the orchestra of heaven are going to be released into the earth realm. There is going to be music that has not been heard in the earth realm for generations, and it is going to be heard because Jacob's ladder is going to be coming down again."

2) Increased manifestation of the Presence of the Lord In Jim's word he also talks about how we are entering a new era that will be known as the "days of His glorious presence." Different shield members have been seeing visions of fire and amber light. One prominent scripture has been "He makes his ministers flames of fire" (Hebrews 1, Psalm 104).

Also, amber light in scripture represents the presence and glory of God in judgment.

Then I looked, and behold, a whirlwind was coming out of the north, a great cloud with raging fire engulfing itself; and brightness was all around it and radiating out of its midst like the color of amber, out of the midst of the fire. (Ezekiel 1:4)

We believe that the Lord wants to give us more and more glimpses of His glory that we might be one. In John 17:22 Jesus said, " I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one". As we behold Him, more and more, we are being transformed into His likeness and into unity as His body.

3) A call to a battle array Many on the Shield felt as the Lord brought the army together in a new level of unity in Montreal that in Edmonton there would be a new sending forth of the army with a new level of authority. (It seems in the natural Edmonton is a place from which military forces are deployed to "hotspots".)

As a confirmation to this, we came across this word from Patricia King that she gave in March 2002. (This is an excerpt, the complete word can be found by clicking here.)

I was asking [the Lord] specifically about Edmonton, and I have been seeing for two days now a vision of like a military post. It's like a pillar post, and it's right here in this area and tonight as we were worshipping I actually saw like that portal of glory coming down upon this, and then I started seeing that out of that military post was coming armies of soldiers... And I saw that on the top of this military post, there was almost like a lighthouse and it was turning around with light going out into all the regions around you. And the Lord wants to use the Edmonton region to have significant impact on all the areas around you, to the north, the south, the east and the west where there will be a releasing of the light and the glory of God but it's going to come through a warrior posture. A warrior posture: standing and saying, "Jesus, You are the King of Glory, the Lord mighty in battle, the Lord of Hosts". He's the Captain of the armies of heaven…, and I believe that Psalm 24 is going to be a significant scripture for Edmonton. That is, all the earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof, all it contains and all that dwell therein. It says, "Open up ye gates, open up ye gates, and let the King of Glory come in. Who is the King of Glory? The Lord of Hosts. He is the King of Glory. The Lord mighty in battle."

I also felt very strongly that you need to contend in your prayers for a spirit of unity, because the Lord showed me that the strength of an army is in its unity, and in its placement before the Commander-in-Chief...

And so get ready because there's going to be battle array, and battle garments coming on you, and the sword of the Spirit, the word of God, will become sharper and sharper as the days go on if you will birth the plan and the purpose of God in this area. And so just continue to pray into this area of unity. It's very important. You know, when God was describing in Joel an army in the end days that was actually going to bring judgment, and I believe that God is raising up a people in this land that is going to proclaim the judgments of God against the enemy...

But when God described the army in Joel that was going to bring forth His judgments, He described a ferocious army. But one of the things about them was that they were all in their place, each in their rank. No-one was pushing or shoving each other. They all knew their placement. And you know we have to appreciate each other, know each other after the Spirit , and humble ourselves before the mighty hand of God, so that in that humility we can see the strength and the majesty and the authority of Jesus go out in to the land and settle issues.

4) Humility and the Sword of the Lord Even as Patricia's word stressed the importance of humility, many have been hearing the Lord speaking about the need for new levels of humility and brokenness and commitment to the Lord.

There was a deep impartation of the anointing of the "Warrior Bride" that came in Montreal. This is a new breed of warrior that is arising from such a deep revelation of His passionate love, her heart so inflamed for her Bridegroom, that she is fearless in battle, "loving not her life even unto death." It's the heart of the martyr being birthed in the Bride.

Let us, in these weeks preceding Edmonton, take time to consecrate ourselves at even a deeper level to the Lord. Let us draw close to Him, ask Him to examine our hearts and to remove anything that might hinder us from fully experiencing the glory He spoke about in John 17.

As we do this, we believe we will come more and more into a corporate unity that will birth a new level of corporate authority. In closing we want to share with you this encouraging word we received from Emile Abadir on October 10, 2004.

The Lord showed me a vision regarding the Edmonton Gathering. It will witness the birth of a series of deliverances in many churches and I saw chains, curses will be broken.

And the Lord says, Until the end of the year, it is a time for the nation to be prepared in order to start something new in Edmonton Gathering, and the sword which was not in the hands of the warriors of the nation, I will bring it back and the nation will be having a double-edged sword and immorality will be rebuked in this nation and I have seen something new will happen.

I see that the young men and the younger generation are leading the nation after a time of refinement and purification. The Lord says, "Get ready, because you will see My Promises come to pass. Amen."

Intercessors of Canada let us arise and lay hold of our inheritance for such a time as this!