Slinging Stones Part 3: A Time for Mountains

I started this series on intercession because I believe the church is standing in a gap between heaven and earth. She always is. This is not news. In this place, we must stand with the heart of Jesus. He is the mediator of our faith, and we can’t mediate between heaven and earth without him. Our role as intercessors is to connect people to his heart. Period. Sometimes we do that in our prayer closets with tears. Sometimes we do that in relationship. Other times we do that by taking big, risky stands. Intercession looks different at times, but the objective should always be the same—after God’s heart.

This past spring, this verse from Ecclesiastes stuck to my spirit like honey. There is a time to gather stones and a time cast (sling) stones. I added sling for emphasis. As I meditated on the verse, I could easily see a connection between it and how David killed Goliath. In that process, some thoughts on intercession for today developed. It’s not just thoughts on intercession, but also thoughts on discipleship for today. I hope I never forget that we are called to pray and connect with God’s heart at all times.

The life of an intercessor includes times to gather and times to cast. Slinging stones and watching the enemy fall is exciting, but that’s only one part of our mission. The other part, and longer part quite honestly, is gathering the stones—connecting to the heart of God. Showdowns don’t last long. What are we doing in the meanwhile? We are gathering stones; we are becoming men and women after his heart. I’ll admit that it’s tempting to go looking for more battles. It’s easy to become battle junkies. I’m learning, though, we should be more in love with the gathering process than we are with the fight. Gathering stones is how we learn God’s heart, and it is not a time that we should despise.

(Need to catch up? Click to read PART ONE or PART TWO.)

Part Three: A Time for Mountains

The last post focused on the things we learn in the silence and solitude of the fields. Part 3 continues our look at intercession in A Time for Mountains. Our seasons of fields and mountains serve two different purposes. We are called out of the silence onto mountains where perspective is everything. Both are necessary to appreciate and fulfill what we are called to do.

Perspective is a point of view and the capacity to view things in their true relation or relevance. A.W. Tozer touches on this in his book The Pursuit of God. He ties together the external act of looking to the internal act of believing. When we choose to look at God instead of the way things appear, our hearts are gazing on him in belief and we are able to see what is true. He concludes, “…faith is the gaze of the soul upon a saving God.” We can find this truth throughout Scripture. Solomon wrote in Proverbs 29:18, without a prophetic vision [perspective] the people cast off restraint. Another is from King Jehoshaphat in 2 Chronicles 20. When a great multitude was coming against Judah, he set his face to seek the Lord—to get perspective. Jehoshaphat prays words that I often resound to the Lord, “We do not know what to do, but our eyes are on you.” (vs.12)

In the fields, we are gathering knowledge of and confidence in the heart of God. When we find ourselves on the mountain, we will see many things. It’s our choice to keep the gaze of our soul on Jesus. In doing so, we will have a right point of view, a way to see what is relevant and what is not. Heaven’s perspective helps us sort through the noise of our day-to-day lives.

3 Necessary Things that Happen on Mountains

In the case of David, he walked out of the silence and solitude of the fields onto mountains where the army of Israel was stricken with fear. He didn’t waste any time pointing out what he saw: a bully spewing threats and the name of God being mocked. Here are 3 necessary things that happen on the mountains. (1 Samuel 17:17-39)

No. 1 We See from a Different Perspective \\ If fields are silence and solitude, then mountains are placement and perspective. When David took lunch to his brothers, he found them, along with the rest of the army, standing afraid of the valley and the thing in the valley. (1 Samuel 17) They were scared of the Philistines who were shouting threats of destruction and defying the God of Israel. Instead of connecting with God’s heart, they were listening to the enemy.

David came on the scene fresh from a lion kill in the fields. What he saw on the mountain was very different from what the rest of the army was seeing. It may have gone something like this, total paraphrase, by the way.

“Hold up! You chickens! (Astonished at their fear) You believe this guy? His threats are in vain. He doesn’t know who we are. This giant doesn’t know the power of God! He splits seas open, causes cities to fall with only a shout, created the universe. Can I get an amen? (Pause) Anyone? (Crickets) Bueller? Ah, come on, guys! Alright then, let me at ‘em. All I need is one shot.”

As children of God, we are going to face threats from the enemy. We’ve been warned that he prowls around like a roaring lion seeking to devour. (1 Peter 5:8) He is the father of lies. (John 8:44) But there’s good news! Satan is already defeated, and we can overcome his threatening lies. Perspective as intercessors is essential. We must see the matter from the victorious heart of God.

No. 2 We Raise Our Voice and Find Our Place \\ You can rest assured that everything we learn in the fields will be under the microscope of disbelief. Whether it’s our own or other’s, at some point we will come face to face with doubt. In this case, the army of Israel had been taunted for 40 days by Goliath. They had grown accustomed to being scared, and disbelief was the only thing they could see.

Fearful people have a hard time seeing from a different perspective. I have first-hand knowledge that this true as a former scaredy-cat. Disbelief and fear have quite a grip. At times, we have to pry them off finger by finger. It’s helpful to be aware of this kind of resistance so that we can persevere. David’s brothers weren’t listening to him. The army wasn’t listening either, so David kept approaching people until word got back to the king. King Saul then summoned David. (1 Samuel 17:28-32)

I want to be a little preemptive here to lessen the chance of misunderstanding. There is a big difference between being summoned by a king and cutting your own path to the king. Earlier in this series, I pointed out that the most common obstacles we face as intercessors are selfish ambition and control. David was not trying to control the army. He wanted to silence the God-defying giant. Plus, it’s important to remember that David had already been anointed by Samuel at this point. It was right that he found his place before the king.

Letting God determine our reach as an intercessor and trusting his wisdom is huge. We may never be in front of earthly kings or “important” people as intercessors and disciples. Please know, however, that the tears and prayers you release in the secret place of intercession are powerful. We may never fully understand the effectiveness of our prayers until we are on the other side of eternity. But know that they are spoken before the King of Kings — name above every name to be exact.

David’s perspective of the Philistine was not welcomed at first. He had to keep raising his voice until he found the place God called him to. For David, it was in front of King Saul. For you and me, it is wherever God calls us to be. Our objective is to silence the enemy and take off his head so he can’t speak again. And, sorry if this is too repetitive, it’s to connect the people around us to the heart of God.

No. 3 We Decline Untested the Armor \\ The perspective of disbelief is one-sided. When hope rises, efforts to squash it will unfurl by projecting fears on it. The courage-less army of Israel only saw the appearance of Goliath and David. The giant was an intimidating 9 feet tall, approximately. David was a little shepherd boy, a little brother, just a kid. From the army’s perspective, the only way to approach Goliath was to inflate and try to be as big as he was.

David was able to see something different. A weakness in the giant’s armor. He didn’t need the puffed-up armor made for King Saul. He couldn’t move in it. David argues, “I can’t fight in something I haven’t tested.”(1 Samuel 17:39) David’s experience was talking. I’ve tested this slingshot. I’ve used my hands in the fields with lions and bears. This armor is unapproved. Oh, to have that kind of confidence.

Let me draw a clear connection back to unmediated encounters with God from part two. If we read all the books on prayer and how to intercede but forget what we heard in our unmediated times with God, we’re fighting with someone else’s armor. Don’t fall into the trap of comparing yourself to someone else. Yes, we learn from each other. Absolutely. But carbon copies are messy and quickly lose their potency.

I’m convinced comparison is a ploy from the enemy to distract us. The enemy is lassoing our brothers and sister with fear. What are we going to do about it? Trying to fight in the fearfully bloated armor of others isn’t going to get the job done. BUT! The gaze of the soul keeps our eyes on THE champion. It keeps our eyes on the heart of God instead of fear, lies, and the giant in the valley. Don’t be afraid to fight like you.

Okay, I’ll be honest. The balance between raising your voice, sticking to your convictions, and honoring the people around you isn’t always easy. Offense and misunderstanding run rapid in our world today, even in the Church—especially in the Church. Again, distractions. But there is a way to do it that is right, honoring, beneficial, wise, commendable. The Bible gives us instructions on how to handle conflict with each other. I implore you, brother and sisters in Christ, remember who the enemy is and that we are victorious together in Christ.

Recap

A great deal happens on the mountains. It’s a time to raise your voice and find your place. It’s a time to stand in the confidence gained in the solitude of the fields. And, it’s a time to rightly see the victory waiting for us in the valley.