Bad News is Everywhere, but the King is Coming!

"Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is yours.  Yours, O Lord, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all.  Wealth and honor come from you; you are the ruler of all things.  In your hands are strength and power to exalt and give strength to all (1 Chronicles 29:11-12).

"Bad news!" We hear it continuously. The economic crisis, the crime rate, the frightening weather conditions, presidential elections, the problems with cancer and heart disease, the increase of gas prices and the cost of living, crime in the cities and shootings in the schools, drought conditions, tornadoes and earthquakes, murders - all bad news! Does anyone on Planet Earth have any good news?

God's Word tells us in Psalms 112 that we are not to fear bad news, but what do we do with everything we hear? Tuck it away in our subconscious? Hope that we will wake and find it nothing more than a bad dream? Should we get gloomy, discouraged, and helpless like those who are without hope? No!

There is good news even if the days are getting darker. The King is coming! All of this bad news will one day cease. Our King is coming soon! And He will turn everything around for our good and His glory. This should be a time where we really begin to live victoriously for Jesus. It's true -- it certainly does look like evil is winning out. But don't forget the unshakable truth is that Our God Reigns! He has already won the battle at the Cross. Satan is a defeated foe, and we are on the winning side in spite of how things may look. Let's look at the promise in Psalms 112:6-8 for those who walk in righteousness and trust in the Lord:

"Surely he will never be shaken; a righteous man will be remembered forever.  He will have no fear of bad news; his heart is steadfast, trusting in the Lord.  His heart is secure, he will have no fear; in the end he will look in triumph on his foes."

Last year my husband and I went for a free vision exam. The advertisement said the doctors were skilled with extensive experience in advanced diagnostic equipment, the procedure rooms were specially designed for optimal results, the technology used was the best, with complete follow-up care, and affordable prices! We had thought we were going for a normal eye exam only to discover that the doctor was examining us for laser surgery. Because of the fancy advertisement, the place was packed with people wanting to improve their vision through laser surgery.

While we were waiting, I noticed a group of patients gathered around a big window intently watching something very interesting in the next room. I walked over and to my surprise they were watching a live laser surgery being done on one of the patients! It took only about ten minutes to complete this surgery that provided a vast improvement of one's vision, even with those who had been wearing bifocal glasses for years and years!

I was fascinated as I watched the doctor wash the eye with a solution and know exactly how to do what seemed like a simple surgery on the eye. I am sure it was much more complex than I imagined. Then he would wash the eye again, and I would see magnified a beautifully colored and designed eye so unique and carefully created by God. It was an amazing surgery that impressed me greatly.

God is doing eye surgery right now on the body of Christ. He wants us to see with His vision. He is a skilled physician with the very best equipment, and He has the greatest experience of anyone in the entire world! His technology is supernatural, and He provides daily follow-up and personal care. God wants to remove our short-sightedness and the cataracts that fog our vision. He wants us to see through eyes of faith what He can do in our cities and nations. He wants to put his own eye salve on our eyes so we can see brilliantly what is before us and how we are to pray and prepare for His second coming. Rhonda Hughey in her book Desperate for His Presence emphasizes our need for vision that comes from the heart of God:   

"Without a vision, people are doomed to live mediocre lives, carried along by social influences and self-centered interests.  The Bible says, 'Where there is no vision, the people perish' (Proverbs 28:18 KJV). Our own vision for our lives cannot sustain us; we must have a vision that originates from the heart of God, from His very throne room. His vision is life-giving, life-changing, and worth abandoning our hearts and lives to."

While on a prayer journey in the Biblical city of Laodicea in Turkey, I was reminded of God's message to the Laodicean church. God wants us to be willing to go through His refinement so that we are not lukewarm and naked like the Laodicean church but, instead, are on fire for Him. He says to that church in Revelation 3:18, "I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see."

Although the world is filled with trouble, God is working it all out for His purposes. We need to see this with eyes of faith. History is being shaped, and prayer is the key. It is vital that we move into a higher realm of His Kingdom purposes. We must begin to understand even our problems in light of His purposes. God's purpose is to bring glory to His name and establish His Kingdom. Everything is moving towards the purposes of God. God is enlarging us. We must be purposeful in all that we do.

How should we then live? How can we live joyfully in light of all of the bad news that we hear day after day? Let's look at some ways we can cultivate Kingdom living while we are still living on planet earth. As the end-times roll on, we will need to hold onto these points with a firm grip.

Ways to Cultivate Kingdom Living

"From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and violent men take it by force. If we truly hunger to see God's government birthed and functioning, we must unwaveringly take our post of duty and appropriate the Lord's authority through anointed prayer.  That is His strategy for this season."

• Worship God as King, and give Him extravagant praise - Enlarge your vision of God. See the greatness, power and majesty of Christ as King. Know in your heart the sovereignty and greatness of God (Philippians 2:9-11).
• Develop intimacy and know your identity in Christ - Depend on His wisdom and ways. Learn to abide in Him daily (John 15:7, 1 Corinthians 2:3-7).
• Prayerfully study God's Kingdom and attributes in Scripture - Study the Sermon on the Mount because it is the description and instruction about kingdom living. There are 160 verses in Scripture about the Kingdom of God (Matthew 5). 
• Concentrate on the positive aspects of His kingdom - Try to lift people's perspective as the days grow darker. Be aware of morbid end-time concentration or a doom-and-gloom mentality. Keep a balanced perspective, and at the same time be alert to the counterfeit. When darkness is covering the earth, the glory of the Lord will arise (Isaiah 60:1-3).
• Realize that you have a part in bringing in God's kingdom rule on earth - Proclaim God's kingdom rule over the territory God has assigned to you. Prayerfully proclaim God's kingdom in your personal and corporate prayer times. Pray God's scriptural promises over your city, neighborhood, and nation (Revelation 15:3-4).
• Devote yourself to extended seasons of prayer - Know its power. This is God's strategy for success in the end times (2 Chronicles 7:14).

Prayer is such a great privilege and is a life-long pursuit. It is a blessing beyond imagination, a compelling opportunity for a deeper and deeper relationship with God, a joy that knows no limits. In spite of the world situation, let's see with vision what God is doing at this hour. Let's participate in His worldwide plan for a worldwide harvest. Let's have prayer permeate all that we do. Are bad things happening? Yes. Can we live above them as God's Kingdom people? Yes, but only if we stay close to His heart (intimacy) and live for His Kingdom alone (surrender). Let's abandon our life to the King. Let's learn to build our lives on these Kingdom principles. Let's get ready for our King's soon return.

"The primary truth that any government will be able to stand on is that God is King, not man.  The Lord created this world for His purpose, and only those who are aligned with His purpose will have the authority that can stand any pressures of the times we are entering.  We can build our lives on this kingdom and nothing that happens will shake us." ~Rick Joyner

Together in the Harvest,

Debbie Przybylski is the founder and director of Intercessors Arise International, a part of the ministry of the Elijah Company, Inc. The vision of Intercessors Arise International is to see thousands of intercessors from every nation released in strategic prayer for the furtherance of the Gospel worldwide. Contact Deb at deb@intercessorsarise.org .