This week . . . a word on the conflict with North Korea.
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When dictators fall…

We live in an age when dictators are falling more than ever before. Between the uniting force of social media and the increase of education throughout the world (and let’s not forget the hopeful, advancing Kingdom of God), this is bound to continue. Unfortunately however, this doesn’t always mean “good news” right away. Dictators often help contain certain forms of evil within their power structures, and when they fall, new forms of evil appear to emerge (even though they were already there, just kept hidden a little bit).

So the fall of dictators is like breaking down a wall, which leaves a giant mess behind. The real work comes in cleaning up afterward, and sometimes the mess is an incredibly daunting task. Whole nations within Africa and in the Middle East are engaging in this daunting task right now, and the interim has been incredibly difficult (i.e. Iraq).

Where will the bricks land?

The fall of the North Korean dictatorship is on the horizon. The Gospel struck the Korean Peninsula in the 20th Century and has been spreading like wildfire ever since. Jesus said that His Kingdom is unstoppable, and eventually it becomes the largest tree in the garden. The growth of the Gospel is creeping over the walls of North Korea, like vines from a vineyard, and a spiritual victory is slowly being accomplished.

The wall in North Korea will eventually fall; however, our prayer is that this will happen in such a way that the destroyed bricks will not injure too many people along the way. And so we must pray for a Jericho-like fall, where the walls miraculously crumble straight down, and do not explode outward — thus peacefully opening up a path of freedom. It MUST be a miracle, because all of man’s wall-breaking tactics cannot do it in such a way.

The wall in North Korea could blow at any time, and millions of people can be hurt in the cross-fire. God’s intention is for the wall to fall, and for the least amount of people to be hurt. In His good sovereignty (key word there is “good,” as some people’s theologies have a twisted version of God’s sovereignty), God wants to work within man’s free-will to bring the best possible outcome to every single individual. We need to understand this. His will is always for life to be preserved and to prosper, and for the hearts of those in power (on all sides of the table) to “repent” and turn to the way of peace, so that the people under their power can live in peace as well. See 1 Timothy 2:1-4 for a quick refresher on this.

Right now, walls are shaking all around, and the shaking can be scary, but it’s leading to more peace and victory. (In our national neck of the woods, racial walls have been shaking with greater fervor over the last few years, especially last Friday, but this too is only a sign of breakthrough that’s coming — and so again, we continue to pray that people would yield to that peaceful work of racial healing and that the damage along the way would be minimal . . . but either way, those walls are coming down too!)

Prophecy

There have been a number of prophetic words over the years from different leaders in the Body of Christ declaring a time when the North Korean people would be set free from the intense bondage happening behind its literal closed doors. Many have spoken of a united Korea and others have even spoken of a radical salvation of the North Korean leader, much like the apostle Paul.

Regardless of what plays out, we want to believe in the miracle-working power of God and declare that the walls will fall one way or another. Our prayer is for wisdom to come to the hearts of those in leadership who are tasked with the burden of dealing with these issues. It’s incredibly easy for people to rattle off commentary and quote Bible verses from the comfort of their homes without being in the place of appointed leadership. But real power will emerge when those sitting in their homes would be slow to speak and quick to listen to the heart of heaven, and extend their voice to actually pray heartfelt words of faith for those in leadership, whether Trump, Mattis, Xi, or Jong-Un.

So let the Jericho shout of freedom and peace be released! God is deeply at work in creating a miraculous and peaceful solution. Let’s join in with heaven and pray with confident authority for all those in power to open up and submit to this work! And let’s be examples of peace who do not let any wall of hatred or control rise up in our own lives. The Kingdom always begins within, and we should never forget the power of that Kingdom to extend out of us and even affect whole nations.

There’s a vineyard within you and it’s vines are reaching out even now!

(Yes, you resisting slandering someone in your heart or manipulating another person in some way can actually shift the atmosphere of the earth and create more of the peace of heaven all around. So when you pray for North Korea, take some time to pray for the peace of Christ to light up your own path as well.)

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