The Reign of Love

[Prayer-Soldier]

The Lord said, Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Sion, shout for joy, O daughter of Jerusalem: Behold, your King will come to you, one who is just and a savior: he is poor, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass. And I will destroy the chariot out of Ephraim, and the horse out of Jerusalem, and the bow for war shall be broken: and he shall speak peace to the Gentiles, and his power shall be from sea to sea, and from the rivers even to the end of the earth. (Zechariah 9:9-10)

In books of old the prophesy was written of the Savior to come, but many years would pass before what was written would be seen. Many would have expectations because they did not understand what was prophesied. As years passed, some would share among themselves what they envisioned as the coming of a savior who would raise up armies of great power to destroy the enemies of the oppressed as the path to peace. It was not understood that He who is love would deliver a better way than yielding to the conflicts of men. It was not understood that salvation was not of this world, but despite this world; that salvation was found in forgiveness of the ways of this world and the invitation to the ways of the kingdom of heaven.

It is true that chariots may be destroyed by conquest, but the desire for conflict will cause the instruments of war to be rebuilt. For the chariot to be destroyed, the bow to be broken, the horse turned to freedom as the final step to peace; the stand of conquest will only be temporary as long as hate brews in the heart, rather, lasting peace can only be achieved through love; for if love consumes the hearts of men, no war can follow. When love reigns; there is no need for the chariot of war, the bow turns to hunting, there is no purveyor of war for the horse to carry. Love destroys the need for conflict and through it, the purest power spreads across the land.

As long as evil walks, the defending soldier must stand to protect the innocent; but if we open our hearts to love, evil will have no place. If we listen to the Word, we will pass love from heart to heart. If we follow the commandments of love, we will do no wrong to one another and the misery of conflict will fade away. If we turn our lives over to God, we will be guided away from evil and the divisions upon which it thrives.

But you are not in the flesh, but in the spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to God. And if Christ be in you, the body indeed is dead, because of sin; but the spirit lives, because of justification. And if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead, dwell in you; he that raised up Jesus Christ from the dead, shall quicken also your mortal bodies, because of his Spirit that dwells in you. Therefore, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. For if you live according to the flesh, you shall die: but if by the Spirit you mortify the deeds of the flesh, you shall live. (Romans 8:9-13)

We choose how we are guided. It is the freewill He granted us as part of our creation. If we seek to be guided by the Holy Spirit, we will be led by the Word and the ways of the Lord. If we seek other ways, we open ourselves to the ways of sin and the ravages of evil. As we invite the Holy Spirit within us, so too do we invite the love of our Savior.

In prayer, we open our hearts to the Holy Spirit, but it does not live in us through one prayer alone. Just as we do not keep friends by saying, you are my friend, then, proceeding to ignore them for other pursuits, we cannot expect to keep a relationship with the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit remains within us as we spend time with Him. We are moved by the Holy Spirit as we open ourselves to Him in prayer. The Holy Spirit works through us as we allow ourselves to be guided by Him.

Blessed are those who open their hearts in prayer, for they shall know love. Blessed are those who come to worship Him, for they will know His grace and glory. Blessed are those who invite Him always, for He will respond. There is no greater love we can receive than His.

At that time Jesus answered and said: I confess to you, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you hid these things from the wise and prudent, and have revealed them to the little ones. Yea, Father; for so has it seemed good in your sight. All things are delivered to me by my Father. And no one knows the Son, but the Father: neither does any one know the Father, but the Son, and he to whom it shall please the Son to reveal him. Come to me, all you that labor, and are burdened, and I will refresh you. Take up my yoke upon you, and learn of me, because I am meek, and humble of heart: and you shall find rest to your souls. For my yoke is sweet and my burden light. (Matthew 11:25-30)

There are those who are so certain as to what they believe they know, but because they have failed to open their hearts in prayer, they have closed off the true path to understanding and wisdom. We can make ourselves wise about the ways of this world, but remain blind to the kingdom of eternity. We can count the petals of flowers and believe we understand their construction, but only He knows all behind the creation of the universe.

We may believe that what we observe is also possible to comprehend, but only He can fathom the results of all variables. We may believe that because we can manipulate that we have power, but only He who set the laws of the universe has true power over them. In our arrogance, we believe we control the world, but is only those who bow in humility to their Lord who understand that we only have the power to choose how we interact.

God leaves the haughty to their own devices, but He reveals Himself to the humble who open their hearts in prayer. If we are tired in the ways of the world, we may seek Him in prayer and He will replenish us. He knows our needs before we ask, but it is through prayer that we let Him know we are willing to listen. He knows when we are challenged, but through prayer, He will carry us.

It is not always easy to do His work. To confess our faith to the world is a lightening rod for persecution, but let us reflect for a moment upon what He withstood. If He was able to conquer death, then, there is nothing through which He cannot sustain us. What we try to endure by ourselves may destroy us, but what we seek to endure with Him in our hearts cannot defeat us, for whatever we may be deprived of in this world will mean nothing compared to the joy we will have in His kingdom. As we turn ourselves to Him, what seems heavy will suddenly become light. Blessed be the Lord, for when He is our way, He provides for the path of salvation and everlasting life in the kingdom of love.

May the peace and blessings of the Lord be with you always,
Prayer Soldier