It's about angelic warfare over a small town and the changed lives and exposed secrets that develop, and all because of one man. He's a preacher that is new to the town and takes on the task of straightening out his congregation and shepherding them back to God. Relevant much? Oh, too much. Oh, much too much.
Now, as much as I do love a good UFC-type throwdown between good and evil, the part of the story that makes me read it once or twice a year is that it portrays not only the unseen things of battle in the spiritual realm, but it shows the causes and results of those battles.
In the story, the forces of evil refer to the small church preacher as, "the praying man." His name is Hank and his prayers and humility, love and devotion are the source of all the unrest for Satan and his fallen angels. They try to discredit him, orchestrate his ruin, and even get him thrown in jail. In each situation, he prays. Several times, the angels of God are being overpowered by the fallen angels but the prayers of Hank and his faithful congregation go up to God and cause the heavenly warriors to gain strength and victory. Oooohhh... chills, man.
But what gets me choked up every time is what happens when one of the lost souls or one of the troubled characters in the story finds God. The angels gather, swords raised in victory, and sing praises to God. The greatest victories in the story aren't the engagements between the armies, they're the engagements between Savior and man.
And the praying man keeps praying. His passion and faithfulness cause others to join in the fight against the evil in the town (even a newspaper journalist, if you can believe that), and eventually...
No spoiled endings, here. Just read it. It's considered a Christian classic and should have been made into a movie years ago. But fictional stories aside, I can't help but think of what could happen if one pastor, one man, uttered heartfelt, agonizing prayers to God in intercession for his flock. Sound uncommon? I know this is the way it should be but is it really that way?
When is the last time you spent time with God in anguish? Have you ever agonized over your prayers, over someone? Have you ever spent considerable time with God that had you broken-hearted for someone other than yourself? Maybe for your church or your "flock", such as your circle of friends?
I think it's way past time for us to start drawing together the way the Bible commands. It's time we started bearing burdens, confessing sins, praying fervently, and loving each other. If you want a real eye-opening experience, go back through everyone's blog archives and read what we were all writing one year ago.
I think we're easily distracted.
