Jonathan asked Sanjay and Johnson to come for prayer before the evening meeting.
“Mark, do you want to come with us while we warm up for the worship tonight?” asked Jasper, as Mark watched the other two go.
Mark nodded and they walked together to the meeting place.
Jasper showed him a keyboard that had been set up for him. The keys were coloured to identify the different notes.
“This screen will guide you in what to play,” he explained. “We have set it up to show colours so that you can play along, with some harmonies. We will set it for each song. We usually don’t know in advance exactly which songs we are going to play.”
The other band members arrived and they played some songs together. Mark followed as best he could.
Soon people were filling the area and it was time to open the meeting.
After Jonathan had welcomed everyone, he said, “let’s say the Lord’s prayer together.”
They followed the words on the screens but when they got to the words your kingdom come, they repeated it three times, with passion.
Jonathan nodded to Jasper as the signal to begin the music for worship.
“Mark, you choose the first song,” said Jasper.
Mark felt everyone looking his way.
He closed his eyes and prayed silently, “What should I say?”
The thought came like an arrow, What does your heart say?
“Please can we sing The Cross,” he replied, “and can we sing it out to the people who do not yet know who Jesus is and what he has done; people like my parents and the guys back in my unit.”
It was a song he had found in the Sick Bay. Everyone seemed to give him a smile and a nod.
One of the band started on a keyboard. The words came up on the screen and everyone joined with Mark, as Jasper played the beat on the drums. Mark played some of the bass line on his keyboard. The voices swelled with the words, “When will you see that he died for you?”
Imogen came up to join the band and pressed Mark’s shoulder as she passed him.
As Mark watched, he could see there was such oneness between Jasper and Imogen, as they led the assembly in the next songs. They only had to look at each other and they would know who was leading into the next song.
Imogen looked over to Mark then she spoke to the woman on one the guitars and she started to sing another song, “Who is there that loves me as I am, not demanding more than I can be?”
Mark remembered the song from one of the first meetings in the church back in the city.
Imogen sang like a child to their parent,
“He is God, He is good, He’s my Father…”
Mark turned his gaze to see how people were responding. Some were kneeling; many had their hands up high. It was beautiful.
“Who is there that wipes my tears away?” sang Imogen. “Giving me the strength to face today.”
He could feel the Spirit touching him, his chest around his heart felt sort of numb and tingly.
The noble looking lady, who spoke the night before, came forward as the song ended, with some of the other Intercessors.
“It is time to ask the Lord which nation he is going to send us to. Join me as I pray… Father, we ask you now to reveal what is in your heart. Which nation will you send us to?”
There was some din as different sounds combined: there were some people wailing, some calling out in tongues, and some calling out to the Lord.
After some minutes, the noble lady addressed the gathering again.
“I believe God is saying to us, it’s Iceland.”
There was a swell of response as many called out in agreement and many others just made a loud noise of approval.
“Let’s continue to worship and then we will ask for direction and detail later,” added the lady. She and the Intercessors withdrew.
Imogen closed her eyes, Jasper watched her intently. The din subsided and then she started to sing a song Mark did not recognise. Her voice was slow and gentle, like a mother to a child.
“Soften my heart, so I can know your love for me.”
As the words came up, the rest of the band and the voices of the gathered people joined her, “Enter in, come to rule and reign, as I worship you this day.”
Mark sang with them and played some notes on his keyboard. He caught sight of Sanjay and Johnson in the crowd. They had arms raised high, like most of the rest of the group, including the children. The song built to a gradual crescendo with the words, “I am yours, and you are mine.”
Mark felt something pass him, like a breath of air and looked around. The Holy Spirit was moving through the throng. Some people were keeling over, some were shaking on the spot, and some were laughing like drunkards. There was a clang near him, as one woman on guitar hit the deck and shook. Some of the children were hopping up and down like pogo sticks. Mark saw Jasper struggling to stay on his stool as the shaking hit him. Imogen was doubled up, her arms moving like pistons: it was comical. He was about to laugh when something like an invisible fist hit him on the breast and sent him backwards onto the floor. He lay there quaking and flailing. He felt like hands had reached into his body and were jerking his insides up and down. He wanted to laugh but his teeth were chattering. His arms seemed to be moving like a crazy conductor and now he could not hold in the laughter. It came up from deep down and erupted loudly. He could hear that there were many others affected with similar merriment. It seemed to move around the meeting like ripples, round and round, wave after wave. The few people still standing were bent over with their heads pressed down towards the floor, as they let out loud groans. The meeting looked like a mad house.
“What would my Unit Supervisors think of this?” thought Mark and another wave of laughter rose up within him.
Eventually the meeting calmed down and people bid each other good night. Mark, Sanjay and Johnson headed back with Pete and Stevie. Sanjay was limping. He said that he had felt like bolts of electricity were making his body shudder. Johnson said it was like someone had gripped his body and had turned him into a rattle. They all felt tired but elated. They were ready to fall into bed and see what tomorrow would bring.
They did not realise it yet, but God had worked into them peace and readiness to respond to his call for this next chapter. They slept like young children, feeling safe and content.
That night Mark dreamed of happy days during his childhood in the Nursery, watched over by Imogen and the other nurses.
22nd April 2035
DAY 11
The next morning, there was a buzz about the camp. They went to breakfast. Everyone was talking about the mission to Iceland. The three quizzed the others on what they knew about the country. No one in the camp had been there before, explained Pete. The word was there would be a morning meeting at nine-thirty.
Jasper came over to them with two men who looked different. He introduced the visitors.
“Franz and Joseph have just arrived from Germany.”
They stood and shook hands.
“Have you been here before?” asked Johnson.
“No, this is our first time,” replied Franz. “We are part of the church in New Hamburg. The Lord spoke to us yesterday and told us to come here. He said he is going to do something special and he wants us to be part of it.”
“We have many friends over there,” said Jasper. “For years, when my dad was young, the British and the Germans did not co-operate much, hindered with the memories of two ugly world wars. We have found that the Lord loves it when we move together in unity. It’s exciting that you guys are here. Come and meet the other leaders.”
He led them away with a friendly wave to go and meet Jonathan, Helena and Imogen.
“The meeting this morning is gonnay to be a good one, I can feel it,” said Stevie. He shook his clenched hands to express his excitement.
“Word is already getting around,” said Pete, nodding towards different groups that were talking animatedly.
Before nine-thirty
, the meeting area was filled up with the whole community. On the screens, the Comms guys played live messages from some of the other European churches. Mark was glad when he recognised John speaking from New Birmingham. John said that they were arranging prayer support from their whole group and were sending provisions and equipment on another train due to meet them over in Iceland.
Jasper stood up to explain how they would get organised. The train would be leaving tonight from Nairn at eight o’clock, with all the passengers. All the gear would be loaded at Inverness. He invited everyone to get involved, and to join one of the teams. Each team had a leader. They should register with that leader after the meeting. The Intercessor lady was compiling a list of the members who felt called to stay behind. The trains would arrive at eight the next morning in Reykjavik, the capital city. They planned to stay three nights. Images of Iceland were shown as he gave some background on the country. He explained that there was a population of around 260,000. Most of them lived in the area around Reykjavik.
The Intercessor lady addressed the gathering. She told them that Iceland had been a strong opposer to the New Order. They had been a peace-loving country in the past, but many of the Icelanders had taken up arms during the war. Some had made peaceful protests, refusing to fight the forces of the New Order, when they had arrived in heavy numbers in April 2017.
Mark looked at the images of resolute figures: they were digging their defences against a backdrop of dark mountains. He was impressed with their bravery and he was touched, feeling for their sacrifice, as they took on the might of the New Order.
The lady recounted how thousands had died fighting and many, including all their leaders, had been taken away to Level One camps after they had been overwhelmed by the ruthless campaign waged by the New Order. In the following years, many died in their homeland because, as a nation, they were treated in a similar way to Level One Refusers.
Jonathan joined her and told the assembly that the New Order extracted energy from the geothermal sources on Iceland and had developed some of their industry to give them more hard labour. Iceland had been shown to the rest of the world as an example of how fruitless it was to resist the New Order. The Executive ordered that propaganda films of Icelanders suffering hardship should be shown all around the world. When the films were shown, many lost hope of standing against the New Order.
Jonathan invited the lady to lead the community in prayer.
Mark watched her. She was lovely and a little frail, yet there was steel in the way she stood and lifted up her hands. There was passion in her voice as she prayed.
“Father, we commit our plans to you. Lead us by your Spirit in everything we do. Protect us from the Evil One. Your will be done. Your kingdom come to the Icelanders. Accomplish everything you have planned. I declare the Lord’s sovereignty over this mission. I release the goodness of God over every soul.”
Jonathan thanked her and encouraged everyone to find a team. He read a list with a location for each team meeting.
There was the excited sound of people talking about their next step.
Mark, Sanjay and Johnson went their ways to join a team. Sanjay headed to the Catering team meeting. Johnson joined the Logistics team, in the yard. Mark went over to the Worship and Media team. He found that Jasper was leading the team. They gathered around him.
“I believe worship is going to be central to how we help bring God’s love to the Icelanders. Let’s pray now and ask God how he wants to use us, then we can go and get prepared.”
They prayed in a circle. Jasper asked for God to reveal his plans.
Mark heard different voices sharing, like he had heard in the church back in the city.
“I see the Holy Spirit touching people during the worship,” said one.
“I have a picture of people raising their hands.”
“The picture I have is that it’s like a big party. A celebration.”
“I get the words, ‘he will come like rain to the dry places.’”
“We need to show images and film as the music plays,” said another. “God wants to touch them through their eyes, ears and hearts - all at the same time.”
Mark heard several others speak, and then he felt it was his turn to share the picture that was playing in his mind.
There was a pause. Taking a breath, he began to share.
“God is going to heal them through the music,” he said. “As we worship his name, people will turn to him. His love is going to flow, as we worship. I get the words: ‘many will see, many will hear, and many will trust in the Lord our God.’”
There was another pause.
No one spoke.
Mark opened his eyes to find Jasper looking at him. Jasper’s eyes were welling with tears.
“Can I ask you a question?” said Mark politely.
“Of course you can,” said Jasper, blinking and sniffing, then raising his eyebrows.
“Have you done this before?” asked Mark slowly, “I mean taking a mission to a whole country?”
Jasper held his gaze for a moment while he pondered.
“Hmm. In the past, the Lord has sent some of us to other countries, or teams of us to different cities, or to some of the other farming communes. This is the first time we are mobilising as an entire camp to go to whole country. This is definitely taking it up a level - a major level!”
There was a murmur of agreement from the others.
Mark glanced around at the faces, and then he asked another question.
“Are you afraid?”
“Afraid?” repeated Jasper. “A long time ago, I agreed with the Lord that my life is his. Whenever he calls, I listen. If he sends me, I do not question. Time and again, he has shown me that he loves it when I am obedient.”
Mark nodded, satisfied with his reply.
“Okay people, let’s go to it,” Jasper said, looking around to the team. “We need all our instruments. And all the media gear we can take. We need to let the Logistics team know what we plan to take. Let’s make a list and send it to them. I will contact the churches to ask what they can send us, what we can borrow. We need their support. Let’s have our ears open to the Spirit to show us more. We’ll have a get-together on the train. Imogen is not with us because she is sorting out medical supplies with Rachel. She will join us on the train. As we work together in love, God will command a blessing, you’ll see.”
They worked on the list as one group, and then they split up into smaller groups to pack everything, ready for the transport.
Everyone was very intent that morning.
There was a moment when Mark had climbed up a ladder near the meeting area to lift down a speaker. He stopped to survey the team below him as they worked together. He had another flash of deja vu. He had had a dream of this very scene: looking down on a group of people who were marked with purpose. He felt reassured that they were in God’s will and that he was part of it.
The buzz about camp continued through lunch.
Mark met up with Sanjay and Johnson. Sanjay told them that the Catering team had planned all of the food. They had already prepared the food and drinks for the journey. Johnson told them about the clever storage the Logistics team was using in the yard: boxes fitting into boxes fitting into containers that were to be lifted onto trucks.
The afternoon was spent completing the packing and the loading of the trucks to go to Inverness.
They watched them leave from the yard in late afternoon.
“Don’t we need to help unload the trucks at the railway station?” Sanjay enquired.
“No,” answered Pete, “the containers will be lifted with cranes straight onto the train. We can go for tea then we can go and get ready.”
They joined many others for tea and cakes in the canteen. They were weary and glad to sit down.
They had their devices and they played back some highlights of the day’s work for each other to see. They chatted over tea, then went and to shower and pack their things.
Ma
rk felt strange because he realised that this place had quickly become to feel like home. He had not left their room, yet he felt a yearning to return. He opened the window wide so that he could listen for birdsong. He remembered that first morning, waking up in the camp. He thought back to the song on the train: the call to the far away; this time it was for a whole group. They were a large family. This time he was ready to embrace the step into the unknown.
He slipped out and walked down the track and found the place by the stream. It was a peaceful place in the fading light.
In his heart, he said to God, “I am so glad to be alive. Thank you for bringing me here.”
A thought came like an arrow into his mind: The next three days are going to amaze you. Just you wait and see.
He strolled back to the room.
The others were ready so they made their way with their packs to the yard. There was a line of buses and many people were already taking their places. They helped with loading bags, and then took their seats.
Before long, the convoy of buses swung out onto the road to Nairn. It was dark now. The boy with the curls was in the row in front of them. He chatted to them about what he was bringing and he had lots of questions about what it would be like in Iceland.
“Have you been on the train before?” asked Mark.
“Oh yes, a few times,” said the boy. “But only in this country. Never so far.”
“Are all the children coming?” asked Johnson.
“Most of us,” said the boy, “our teachers are coming too.”
The train was waiting for them when they pulled into the station so they loaded and boarded without delay.
“Hi guys, I told you we’d see you again!” said a familiar voice. It was Matt.
He greeted them and showed them their berths.
This time, there was a line of sleeper carriages, one for women, one for men, two more carriages for families.
They had a three-bed berth next to Pete and Stevie. Jasper came along the corridor, checking the list on his device.
“We’ll meet in fifteen minutes in the lounge in the end carriage, okay?”
2035 Revelation Page 13