Trust in Jesus and His finished work

We are living in prophetic times. What we’re seeing unfold in the world today are not random—they are signs of our Lord’s coming. While the world retreats in fear, as children of God, we can look forward with hope—a blessed hope—to our Lord’s return for us.

Just like how David stepped boldly onto the battlefield against Goliath, we are called to stand against the enemy, not in fear but in complete confidence that God is with us and fighting for us.

Our heavenly Father does not expect us to face these times with our natural strength or human solutions. Instead, He wants us to put our trust in Him—our covenant-keeping God—and Jesus—our greater David—who has already conquered the greatest enemy at the cross. Our Lord has won the victory, crushed the serpent’s head, and now He is coming back to bring us to where He is.

This is our blessed hope. Because He has overcome, we can live with courage, knowing the battle is the Lord’s and that the victory is already ours.

You are called to shine in these dark times

While the world is covered in confusion, heaviness, and despair, our inheritance as sons and daughters of God is to walk in the visible light of His presence, favor, and protection.

Isaiah 60:1–5 reveals what this looks like. This passage of Scripture is not a promise of what will happen in the future—it’s a prophetic word for the church right now. In the midst of growing darkness, God is calling on us to arise, to shine, and to expect His glory to be seen on us.

Notice that the glory is already here because of Jesus and His finished work at the cross. As believers, when we arise and shine, we are simply responding to and declaring what He has already accomplished for us.

This darkness mentioned in verse 2 is real and can be observed in the world as depression, anxiety, confusion, and fear. But the Word says, “the LORD will arise over you, and His glory will be seen upon you,” meaning that His presence and protection that is upon you will be visible and obvious to the people around you.

So what, in particular, can you expect when the glory of the Lord is upon you?

1. You can expect people to be drawn to you. This favor and influence come because of the Lord’s glory resting upon you.

2. You can expect family restoration. Children who have wandered—spiritually or physically—will be drawn back by the light that’s on you.

3. You can expect joy. The Lord did not mean for this season to be one of heaviness, nor does it mean that believers will not face trials. But we’re not called to just survive and live in doom and gloom. God’s Word says that His glory produces deep, unshakable, and radiant joy.

It’s not our heavenly Father’s desire for His children to be victims of the times. He has marked us with His glory. And in these last days, His call on us is simple: Arise and shine.

Arise and shine by praying in the Spirit!

If Isaiah 60 tells us what happens, then Isaiah 59 tells us how it happens.

God doesn’t just call us to shine—He gives us the means to do it. Scripture tells us that the Lord has placed His Spirit upon us and His words in our mouths, denoting praying in the Spirit.

When you pray in tongues, you’re not just uttering sounds. You’re yielding to the Holy Spirit—allowing Him to pray through you, strengthen you, and guide you. It’s how the Spirit and God’s Word flow together in your life. And the Bible tells us that it’s how we are to shine.

David relied not on visible, human weapons to defeat Goliath but on his covenant-keeping God. He understood that “the battle is the Lord’s.” In the same way, we are not to put our confidence in natural strategies or human wisdom. “The weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds” (2 Cor. 10:4), and praying in tongues is one such weapon.

As parents, when you pray in tongues, you’re setting a spiritual rhythm in the house. You’re planting a hunger in your children for the things of God. They will grow up knowing what it means to be filled with the Spirit and to walk in the Spirit.

And all of this flows from one powerful truth that the Holy Spirit Himself highlights in the New Testament: We can shine only because we have been completely forgiven.

Pray in the Spirit and boldly declare you have been forgiven

In Isaiah 59:21, the Lord declares that by covenant, His Spirit and His Word in our mouths will work together to allow us to shine. Then in Romans 11:26–27, the apostle Paul quotes Isaiah 59:21 and reveals more of what this covenant is about:

Notice that the covenant is tied up with the removal of sins?

That is the key. The Spirit and the Word can only flow in our lives because our sins have been fully removed. There can be no Spirit-filled life without the assurance of total forgiveness.

This is why the gift of tongues is so important. It’s not a spiritual bonus or a charismatic preference like some believers think. It’s a Spirit-born confession of your righteousness in Christ, and every time you pray in tongues, the Spirit within you is testifying: “You have been washed whiter than snow. Your sins have been fully paid for. You are, right now, the righteousness of God in Christ!”

And praying in tongues has many benefits for believers that will allow you to arise and shine. It builds you up, releases peace into your life and situations, and is a means of praying for people and circumstances beyond your knowledge.

Because it doesn’t flow from effort but from grace, praying in the Spirit is not something you have to strive to do, nor something you can take credit for. And the more you pray in tongues, the more you will shine. Not with your own light, but with the light of the One who has forgiven you, filled you, and now shines through you.

You can pray in the Spirit anytime, anywhere

One of the enemy’s main strategies is to silence believers through condemnation. The answer to that is to pray in the Spirit, because by that very act is a confession that you’ve been fully forgiven.

So even when you feel weak, and especially when you feel unworthy, that’s the best time to pray. By doing so, you’re turning to the Lord and receiving everything He has already purchased for you.

First Peter 3:10 tells us that our lips are the key to long life and joyful days. Praying in the Spirit helps you keep your mouth aligned with heaven—speaking truth, not fear; life, not death.

We don’t have to wait to be in a church setting or for a special moment to pray in tongues. We can do so throughout the day! In the car, on our way to work, while doing chores, even in between meetings.

The more you pray in the Spirit, the more sensitive you become to His leading. You’ll find yourself strengthened, at peace, and edified (1 Cor. 14:4). So step into the flow today and watch how the Spirit causes you to arise and shine—no matter what’s happening around you.