Divided Kingdom

Part Two

Entering into the Fray

A small trailer sits on a few acres of land. Bison from the mountain Manitoba herd and the Theodore Roosevelt Bad Lands herd graze quietly in the pasture. The rooster crows, birds sing, and dogs bark outside. After the small talk about plants, gardening, and the latest family news, we pray, read scripture, and Marcelino leads us in Praise and Worship songs.

We are the remnants of a small parish of six to sometimes ten souls united in fellowship. We gather every two weeks on Sunday in the Turtle Mountain Reservation Belcourt, North Dakota. We each bring two weeks of testimonies to share. We celebrate the testimonies of afflictions, answered prayer, beautiful things, success, and failures. It is a mystery who may wander in on any given Sunday. Last week Mary Kay walked in unannounced; she had walked nearly barefoot for hours. Dressed in a light jacket lockless in worn shoes, it was thirty-five degrees. Mary’s feet were black as coal dust, and she had open sores on her toes. Nile asked her name and if her feet were sore and offered to care for them. Mary answered, “They don’t hurt.”

Nile said, “Can I wash your feet and some them in some warm water and Epsom salts?” Mary said, “You don’t have to do that.” Nile responded, “Nonsense, I will be right back.” We were all blessed to see God’s love in action. Nile washed her feet, soaked them in soothing warm water, applied antibiotic salve to her wounds, and found her some warm socks to wear. Mary asked, “What are we doing?” We responded, “We were about to praise God in worship songs. Mary stayed for the entire gathering. Nile loaded her with two bags of food, and we drove her the four miles home.

The miracle of Mary’s visit is before she arrived, we were discussing Matthew 25:42-45 where Jesus said to the disciples:

 42 For I was hungry, and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty, and you gave me nothing to drink, 43 I was a stranger, and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes, and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison, and you did not look after me.

44 “They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?”

45 “He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.”

That day Jesus allowed us to bless Him, our Lord; what an honor.

The conversation took us to part one of the ‘Divided Kingdom.’ We discussed what to do in this cataclysmic spiritual War. God asks us to enter and join the fight, suited in God’s armor: The belt of truth, Breastplate of righteousness, Shoes of the gospel, Shield of faith, Helmet of salvation, and the Sword of the spirit. God wants us engaged and always ready for the second coming of Jesus.

We never plan our fellowship gatherings; nothing is coordinated. But after discussing Joel 3:9-16:

Proclaim this among the nations:

 Consecrate for War;

   stir up the mighty men.

 Let all the men of War draw near;

   let them come up.

10 

Beat your plowshares into swords,

   and your pruning hooks into spears;

   let the weak say, “I am a warrior.”

11 

Hasten and come,

   all you surrounding nations,

   and gather yourselves there.

 Bring down your warriors, O Lord.

12 

Let the nations stir themselves up

   and come up to the Valley of Jehoshaphat;

 for there, I will sit to judge

   all the surrounding nations.

13 

Put in the sickle,

   for the harvest is ripe.

 Go in, tread,

   for the winepress is full.

 The vats overflow,

   for their evil is great.

14 

Multitudes, multitudes,

   in the valley of decision!

 For the Day of the Lord is near

   in the valley of decision.

Then Psalm 91:

 

 

 

 

Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High

    will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.[a]

2 

I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress,

    my God, in whom I trust.”

3 

Surely he will save you

    from the fowler’s snare

    and from the deadly pestilence.

4 

He will cover you with his feathers,

    and under his wings you will find refuge;

    his faithfulness will be your Shield and rampart.

5 

You will not fear the terror of night,

    nor the arrow that flies by day,

6 

nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness,

    nor the plague that destroys at midday.

7 

A thousand may fall at your side,

    ten thousand at your right hand,

    but it will not come near you.

8 

You will only observe with your eyes

    and see the punishment of the wicked.

9 

If you say, “The Lord is my refuge,”

    and you make the Most High your dwelling,

10 

no harm will overtake you,

    no disaster will come near your tent.

11 

For he will command his angels concerning you

    to guard you in all your ways;

12 

they will lift you up in their hands,

    so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.

13 

You will tread on the lion and the cobra;

    you will trample the great lion and the serpent.

Suddenly Marcelino started playing, then joyously singing, For The Lord Is Marching On And His Army Is Ever Strong—

For the Lord Is Marching On

Kent Henry

For the Lord is marching on

And His army is ever strong

And His glory shall be seen upon our land

Raise the anthem, sing the victory song

Praise the Lord for the battles won

No weapon formed against us shall stand

The Captain of the host is Jesus

We’re following in His footsteps

No foe can stand against us in the Fray

The Captain of the host is Jesus

We’re following in His footsteps

No foe can stand against us in the Fray

We are marching in Messiah’s band

The keys of victory in his mighty hand

Let us march on to take our promised land

For the Lord is marching on

And His army is ever strong

And His glory shall be seen upon our land

The Captain of the host is Jesus

We’re following in His footsteps

No foe can stand against us in the Fray (in the Fray)

The Captain of the host is Jesus (his name is Jesus)

We’re following in His footsteps

No foe can stand against us in the Fray (in the Fray)

The Captain of the host is Jesus

We’re following in His footsteps

No foe can stand against us in the Fray (stand against us in the Fray)

No foe can stand against us in the Fray

Let’s give him praise, Hallelujah.

Come on, let’s sing together for his glory.

The Captain of the host is Jesus

We’re following in His footsteps

No foe can stand against us in the Fray

The Captain of the host is Jesus

We’re following in His footsteps

No foe can stand against us in the Fray

The Captain of the host is Jesus

We’re following in His footsteps

No foe can stand against us in the Fray

The Captain of the host is Jesus

We’re following in His footsteps

I am grateful for every day in service to another, to Jesus. Some days stand out as last Sunday!

Thank You, Lord! Hallelujah! Time to enter into the Fray.