Divine
Deliverance
by Linda Cubbedge
When we pray for lost souls,
for those who are hopeless
without Christ, our prayers
allow the Spirit of God to
open their eyes to their
need for a Savior. We are
instruments in their divine
deliverance from the powers
of darkness.
A few months ago, I went to see Dunkirk, a
movie based on remarkable events at a key
turning point in World War II. The might of the
German forces had pushed more than 400,000
Allied troops into retreat, ultimately landing them
on the beaches at Dunkirk. The situation was
grim—Allied leaders estimated only 45,000 men
could be rescued before Hitler descended in full
force. And then the “miracle of Dunkirk” began.
Due to misinformation and other confusion,
Hitler ordered a halt for his troops. A storm
grounded most of his planes, yet the English
Channel—the only way of escape—remained
abnormally calm. Allied ships had suffered major
losses, and what was available was not nearly
enough to meet the need.
British commanders sent out a plea for any
seaworthy vessel to come to the aid of the
stranded men. And they came—large and small,
commercial and private. In fact, 850 private “little
ships” came to the rescue, and between May
26 and June 4, 1940, more than 338,000 troops
were lifted from the beaches at Dunkirk.
I had heard the story before, but as I drove
home, all I could think about was how helpless
those men must have felt, standing on the
beaches of Dunkirk, knowing they were easy
targets for German bombers. They had nowhere
to go, nowhere to take cover. The situation was
dire—it required divine deliverance.
And that’s where Rees Howells and the
students of the Bible College of Wales came in.
These men had spent hours on their knees in
prayer throughout the war, asking God to stop
Adolf Hitler and his Nazi regime. As Operation
Dynamo (the evacuation) commenced, the men
prayed day and night for God to intervene at
Dunkirk and save their men. The prayers of these
“hidden intercessors” may well have changed
the course of history.
As I considered the little ships—manned by
regular people—that sailed fearlessly to the
beaches of Dunkirk, God impressed upon me
that we, as believers in Jesus Christ, are also
like little ships in the battle. When we pray for
lost souls, for those who are hopeless without
Christ, our prayers allow the Spirit of God to
open their eyes to their need for a Savior. We are
instruments in their divine deliverance from the
powers of darkness.
Persistent and consistent prayer is vital. James
5:16 declares, “the earnest prayer of a righteous
person has great power and produces wonderful
results.”
Effective prayer does not beg or try to talk
God into something. Effective prayer activates
the angels of God and releases the power of
the Holy Spirit to drive back the darkness and
invade hearts and situations with His power and
deliverance. Ephesians 6:10–20 instructs us to
put on the whole armor of God so we can take
our stand against the devil’s strategies. Paul calls
this the good fight of faith.
We are in a fight, a spiritual battle. I pray daily
that God will make me armed and dangerous,
filled with His Word and His power, so that I can
be effective in defeating the powers of darkness
with faith-filled words. I ask for a divine hunger
for Him and His Word that will draw me closer
to Him.
You can do the same. Ask God to give you
the desire to pray, to declare His Word over the
lost and those who are battling strongholds. Ask
for a burden for lost souls. We don’t naturally
care for the lost. We don’t naturally want to pray,
nor do we naturally yearn to just spend time in
fellowship with the Lord. These desires come
from Him. Join me in asking our God for a fresh
desire to see others come to Him.
Heavenly Father, deliver us from the apathy
and the passivity that has invaded your people.
We need Your Spirit of prayer to invade our
hearts in these last days. Help us to carve out
specific times of prayer for the lost, every day.
Calling them by name out of darkness and into
Your glorious light! In Jesus’ name, amen.
kojministries.org Issue 1 2018 7
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