24-7 Prayer Gathering - Africa - A Poem

A reflection of all the sessions at the inaugural 24-7 Prayer South Africa National Gathering

“Lord Yahweh, the Holy One of Israel, says: “Come back to me! By returning and resting in me you will be saved. In quietness and trust you will be made strong. But you refused.”

Isaiah 30:15 TPT

Return to rest

You will be saved

Quiet

Trust

You will be made strong

Do not refuse

Return to:

Rest

Repentance

Abiding

Trust

Tevah - same word for Noah’s ark - Moses’s basket

INTRODUCTION

I remember when the passage between my throat and my belly was blocked

When the words in my spirit could not reach my tongue

Because my soul was tied up in an anxious knot

depression clot

But now the river of life flows freely from belly though chest to tongue, to parched ears and barren souls who yearn for Christ

SESSION 1

The weary ones gathered

From as far as Canada, Umlazi and Ireland

The arms of the Father, stretched, to fetch His sheep

Come, beckons the King,

Come lay in Africa’s womb

I left the tomb so you could rest with me in the present eternity

The weary ones responding with a burdened sigh

Groans growing, crawling towards Father’s healing light

When the Anthem of Holy is declared,

We often think it is a warfare cry

But today, Holy is a table set

And so we began, hunched over from too many seasons spent laying too many bricks

We lift weathered hands

We lay heavy crowns down

And pick up a collective cry, Come Holy Spirit, Move among us, Come Holy Spirit

Many of us don't know what it's like to be invited into a lounge, we only know lecterns or ledges

Pouring ourselves dry in echo chambers,

Lord, do you hear our prayers?

We wait...

Be still until you see a silhouette of a kind King,

He Waits

He calls

For us

For Reformation is the art of the ordinary

So He says come as you are, as you’ve been, come and see what I’m doing, come and join me

So we came

Clinging tightly to our Amen, for we do not want this wilderness to end

For it is in the wild where we will find our rest next to a saviour with blazing eyes and woolen hair

So our souls begin to churn, to burn to agitate an unending prayer

Until we start to join the Dot dot dots and realise that rest and revival were always connected

How will we win?

Return to joy

How will we reconcile?

Return to love

How will we continue the fight?

Return to the rhythms of a child

How will we bring the walls of bondage down?

Return to the original design

Father has decided to stop the hands of time, to look at you

To drink in the sight of your soul

Have you ever seen anything so beautiful?

He made you good

So come out from under there and play

You are no longer servant, you are friend, you are free

SESSION 2

Before we can go, our wounds must be exposed

Pried open for Father to pour a healing balm

Until from our throats a shaky Yes can escape, until hopeful praise can tumble out again

Until we bellow HOLY

But before His Kingdom can come, our self-made empires must GO

Let your seed fall

So the sovereignty of The Lord can stand tall

Sometimes, our YES is choked by a How?

How will I do this Lord?

When the blazing darts of doubt fly towards your face

We, your friends, will hold up a shield of faith

We will sing over you ‘Hallelujah’

Allow

Allow

Allow yourself to be cared for and carried

Through Manna and Mercy, He will sustain

SESSION 3

We all know, the call to go, we’ve heard it before

It’s urgent,

It’s public

It’s permanent

But what has wounded your hope?

Who has eclipsed The Lord’s Light in your life?

Have we conformed to the cosmetic?

Avoiding confrontation

Forfeiting transformation

R E T U R N

D I S R U P T

T R U S T

It is not enough to give your gifts.

The Lord of Heaven’s armies wants your life

SESSION 4

Get dressed. For where we are going, you will need the appropriate garments to wear

Clothe yourself in humility

Allow the blanket of love to wrap around you tightly

May the power that ignites yet doesn’t consume, be on you

May the prayers of our mother’s gird you

May the bold declarations of the youth embolden you

To discard bricks and search for stones

SESSION 5

But Lord,

My heart is tired.

You say Go and it’s not that I am saying NO

But day to week to month to year to decade I’ve been dragging my yes with weary and worn limbs

Heavy laden and lethargic

Soul sick.

You are calling us to repent and forgive

To reconcile

but I am just trying to survive

But my Child

Realise, that the greatest way to defy Pharaoh is to put down your tools and rest

Come

The way we will build one body is by breaking bread

Come

The way we will know one another is by kneeling at the same feet

Come, to me

All who are weary

And I will give you rest

Put down your sword

Learn from me

For I am gentle and humble, and lowly

Come Nkosinathi,

Come Ziyanda,

Come Valerie,

Come Ntsako,

Come Matt,

Come Puno,

Come Langa,

Come Karabo

Come Anneke

Come Mama

Come Papa,

Come South Africa

And find rest for your soul

Learn the Ebb and Flow

Come and Go

Reap and Sow

Burn and build

These are the rhythms of grace that will carry us until we see Christ’s face

The fragrance of your obedience is a sweet offering to our King

Come

Rest

And then,

Release your YES

AMEN.