I had a vision in worship last week, which I released on the night, that I felt was for my local corporate body on that night. However, the Holy Spirit has been prompting me to revisit a part of the vision and word that I released, as I feel the Spirit of the Lord say that it is also an encouragement for the global body of Christ.
What I saw in the vision was a group of desperate people crying out to God. Everyone had a different reason for crying out – and they all MATTERED to the Father. He heard, He saw their desperation, and He moved on their behalf.
I then saw that there were angels on assignment, and they scattered themselves throughout the people. It’s the Word of the Lord that puts angels to flight (Psalm 103:20), and they were moving in response to the faithful ones who had been fighting in the secret place with scripture and promises of God. These angels were beginning to scatter themselves all throughout the congregation of people, and I could see that many of these angels held arms FULL of glass jars that appeared at first to be filled with fireflies. They were finding people who were the most desperate, and were handing them these jars.
As I am watching this take place, I asked the Holy Spirit WHY FIREFLIES? What’s the significance of a jar full of fireflies, Lord? His response was a smile, and a nudge to look closer at the jars. I realised after a moment that these jars were actually filled up with bright and shining HOPE!
“You number my wanderings; Put my tears into Your bottle; Are they not in Your book?” – Psalm 56:8, NKJV
I heard the Spirit of God say that He has heard the desperate cries of His children, He has heard your declarations and the way that you have held on to scripture. He has collected all of your tears and He has sent angels on assignment to EXCHANGE every bottle of tears you have cried with a JAR OF HOPE! I felt His compassion for you, and I believe that for every tear-filled bottle you will receive a DOUBLE portion of HOPE.
“For His anger is but for a moment, His favor is for a lifetime; Weeping may last for the night, But a shout of joy comes in the morning.” – Psalm 30:5, NASB
I asked the Lord once again about the fireflies, and why I initially saw fireflies in the jars instead of hope. He reminded me that “fireflies light up the night,” and that it’s time for HOPE to outshine the darkness that has come against the people of God.
This is an invitation for the body of Christ to return, once again, to that place of desperation for Him. A deep, desperate groaning in the secret place that moves the heart of the Father. It is an invitation to begin to, once again, declare the promises of God and fight with scripture and the prophetic promises spoken over us (1 Timothy 1:18). For some, the invitation is as simple as holding out a bottle of tears and exchanging it for the jars of HOPE that the Father has promised. Even if it feels like we have nothing left, we must RISE from the ashes, return to the secret place, and cry out once more.
He HEARS, He SEES, and He is GOOD.
“Return to the stronghold, you prisoners who have the hope; This very day I am declaring that I will restore double to you.” – Zechariah 9:12, NASB
**Thanks to Krzysztof Maksimiuk for the photo (unsplash.com)