While attending a prayer gathering recently in which we were praying for our nation, I heard God speak that He wants to change the Christian leaders of America from Sauls into “smalls.” This is true particularly of those who have the call of being an apostle upon their lives (whether their church tradition recognizes the existence of modern-day apostles or not).
The Apostle Paul’s name was originally Saul, and he was aptly named. King Saul of the Old Testament was the epitome of zealously trying to accomplish God’s purposes in the power of man, and that’s what the New Testament Saul did, too — until His encounter with Jesus. He eventually was affectionately nicknamed Paul, which means “small.”
God wants to take today’s leaders in the Church and turn them from Sauls to “smalls” — humble, dependent on Him alone, making themselves of no reputation, deeply servant-hearted. The time is coming to an end when God will tolerate His leaders trying to fulfill the Great Commission through plans that they have devised from their own natural understanding or by trying to carbon copy someone else’s model of ministry. The time of ministry empires which have forgotten their original focus and have become self-perpetuating entities is also coming to an end.
What did Paul and the other early apostles have that many modern-day Christian leaders do not? They carried a wide-eyed expectancy for unlimited miracles, stemming from utter dependency on Jesus, fueled by intimacy with Him. They yielded themselves in obedience to whatever the Lord commanded them — whether their reputations and popularity were ruined in the process or not. They stayed small in their own eyes while keeping Jesus big in their gaze.
The power of the Lord will flow in America, with biblical signs, wonders, miracles, healings, deliverances, and even the raising of many from the dead. But for that to happen wholesale, God must have leaders who carry His glory without usurping any of it for themselves. That is going to take the turning of Sauls into smalls.
Out of the Fire 