Responding to a prophetic word: Are we to prepare for war?

It’s not often I feel too scared to read an article, but when an email landed in my inbox with the headline that Pete Greig was calling people to ‘prepare for war’, I felt queasy. Maybe you feel the same reading this, and I am sorry if you haven’t seen it yet. I don’t want to be the harbinger of gloom, but in my opinion it’s vital reading right now.

You can read the piece here.

A few days after reading the article, and frankly trying to put it out of my mind, a friend asked if I had listened to the original recording, as she wanted to speak with me about it. Once again, I fearfully clicked the link and listened to Pete Greig’s words. You can find them here.

Essentially, Pete Greig’s message is that Christians need to take the geopolitical situation seriously and ‘prepare for war’, whether that be spiritually, physically, or mentally. It’s a sobering message, and as an Army wife, it feels incredibly frightening. However, I also feel a sense of relief that the church is beginning to acknowledge what I see my husband dealing with through his work at a NATO headquarters.

We’re living in Gloucester right now, but we previously lived in Belgium at SHAPE (Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe – NATO’s military HQ). About 18 months ago, NATO was beginning to look shaky as the war in Ukraine waged on and Trump seemed uninterested in the alliance. I organised two prayer walks around the NATO base, and prepared some materials to inspire prayer. There was a good turnout. Now that I live next to another NATO headquarters, I hope to do something similar here in response to Pete Greig’s prophecy. I’d really appreciate your prayers for my husband and the soldiers he is responsible for, as well as the wider headquarters he is part of.

Amid all this worrying news and troubling warnings, I am reminded of words I authored almost a decade ago. I wrote a series of pieces about the Oxymoronic Names of God on my website, and later self-published them as a book (it’s lightly edited; please excuse any oversights). One entry is entitled Prince of Peace. This name is an oxymoron because, for most of history, princes have been warriors and fighters who lead others into battle. The title Prince has been synonymous with a military general, fighter, or hero; it is not normally associated with peace, which is why it is so extraordinary that Jesus is described as the Prince of Peace.

As I process the implications of Pete Greig’s (and others’) warning to prepare for war, it is comforting to remember that we follow the Prince of Peace. Jesus sees every evil act and doesn’t passively ignore them. He fights for justice, and we know that he has the ultimate victory.

In our messed-up world, peace can seem like a distant dream, but like Jesus, we too are not called to be passive. Now is the time to intercede, asking God to help us prepare for whatever comes next, and for peace to come. We know nefarious powers seek to harm us, but our God is mightier. My previous research in Pakistan, especially, has helped me understand just how real evil is. Yet, I have also seen the miraculous changes intercession can bring when Christians call out to God and allow God to use them. If you haven’t read Rees Howells Intercessor by Norman Grubb, you must; every page is an inspiration.

There is a reasonable chance this email has made you anxious, and I am sorry for that. I am sending it very reluctantly, but it also feels necessary. Please let me know how I can help you both prepare for war and pray for peace. If you would like to receive the materials I plan to put together to help local prayer walkers pray for NATO, please email me. You could use them to pray for military bases and government offices in your area. Similarly, if there is sufficient interest, I could organise a Zoom prayer meeting for NATO. There’s so much more I could share about preparing for war, but it doesn’t seem fair to throw it all at you in this email. As always, I am available to speak to churches and groups not only about my books but also about our calling to be Christ’s hands and feet in a troubled world. Email me at dislocatedchristians@gmail.com

Raye’s song Joy has lifted me up this week as I’ve been processing these thoughts. It’s a secular song, but it borrows heavily from the Bible. I pray her words encourage you,

anna

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