I sense the Lord saying to many of us in transition: “Watch for the exit signs this season along major highways.” This could mean a significant change of direction or a minor adjustment in our lives and ministry.
Major highways speed up our traveling, but exits take us to our destination. Could it be that the Lord is calling many of us off of the highways to the byways, to take our hands off the steering wheels of our ministry to get our hands on the harvest?
The Next Great Move of God Will Be Off the Beaten Path of Ministry
Why are so many people hearing a Lion roar at this time? When the Lion of Judah roars, His call is not tame. I believe He is roaring many of His people off the beaten path of ministry to forge their own trail to reach a chaotic world.
These so called “crazy” ones will be accused of going too far to reach the lost, too far into darkness to be the light, having too many friends that are sinners, all because of God’s compelling love. Aren’t you thankful that He went too far for you?
There’s a Time to Exit
I saw many of God’s people driving down a major highway as their lives and ministries were seemingly going wonderful. All of a sudden, I heard the Lord say to them, “Take the next exit!” They appeared shocked for they were certain they were well on their way to fulfill their God-given calling. Doubts and questions flooded their minds until the Lord spoke straight into their unaware fainting lives: “There’s power off the next exit.” Hearts began turning steering wheels as a strong witness surged through their weary souls, confirming that it was God’s voice. They hadn’t noticed their gas gauge was resting on empty.
I will never forget what a young adventurous entrepreneur said to me three weeks into his God-given passion: “We already know the day will come when we will exit this ministry. It will become so successful and in demand that it will be real easy to pass it on to someone else so we can create and grow something new unlike the world has ever seen to touch millions.” I was astounded at this young man’s faith. I have never heard such faith spoken in ministry. To date their ministry is like a wildfire blazing the earth, without my divine wisdom.
To exit means success to this young man—not failure. He plans on that day and looks forward to it. He told me, “As sure as there’s a time to start, there’s a time to exit.”
We have a tendency thinking the word exit represents something less when getting off a major road or ministry. But it’s actually God’s way of promoting us into something more important on His calendar. It’s not the end of the road; it’s the bend in the road. Study the routes taken by God’s chosen vessels and you will find exits in their callings.
I saw one exit sign flashing, “There’s been a change in plans.”
The byways tend to be places where we are not familiar with like barnyards. Recently I heard the Lord say, “I’m releasing a ‘barnyard anointing’ to bring in the harvest. A barn and the harvest go together.”
You have to love a barn if you want to see a harvest. You have to love people who act like animals if you want a harvest. You have to love horses because we as His bride are going to ride some wild horses. And it’s time to get back on the broncos and bulls that threw us off. We better love donkeys (people we thought the Lord would never use) because the Lord is untying them again to ride them into cities and the nations of the earth.
Get used to the smell of barnyard manure if you want reap a harvest. The No. 1 spiritual fertilizer that helps us and everything else grow is manure. It’s the perfume of harvest. Turn to someone near you and tell them, “I got a whole lot of fertilizer around me and something good is about to happen!”
All Hands on Deck
Don’t be afraid to get your hands dirty in the harvest fields. The “barnyard anointing” will get your hands dirty. Recently I had a word for the body of Christ: “All Hands On Deck.” Now it’s time to get our hands dirty.
I saw the hand of the Lord reaching down and scraping the bottom of an old barrel. The bottom was filthy and slimy. That’s where He focused on reaching. I don’t know about you, but He got his hands dirty when He reached way down for me. I was lost and undone without God and His Son when He reached way down for me. Remember where He found us and where He is now finding others.
The Lord is coming to set our harvest fields on fire. The fire of God will be seen in your own back yard and afar off. We will discover the true fire is in the Harvest. We will catch on fire as souls are born again. It’s the fire in the harvest fields that will ignite our churches again.
It’s in the harvest fields where we will get our power back, for we will find nourishment and sustenance there. Jesus told His disciples when they brought food back to Him when He was ministering to the woman at the well, “I have meat that you don’t know about.”
I believe He wants to take many of us off of some main roads into the byways. Watch for those exit signs that will take us there. {eoa}
Bill Yount has been a member of Bridge of Life in Hagerstown, Maryland, for the past 36 years where he is now an elder and a home missionary. He is currently an adviser at large for Aglow International. Bill faithfully served in prison ministry at Mount Hope for 23 years and now travels full-time, both in the U.S. and internationally, ministering in churches and Aglow circles. “Humility and humor” characterize his ministry as he brings forth a fresh word that is “in season,” proclaiming the word of the Lord! The shofar (or ram’s horn) is often used in his meetings, breaking the powers of darkness over regions, churches and households. The shofar represents God’s breath blowing into the nostrils of His people, reviving them and awakening the lost. Many of God’s messages, which Bill ministers prophetically, come out of his everyday life with his family and friends.
