City Appointed_Winning a City for God Page 11

  In recent years Shearman had received revelation on prayer. His prayer style had changed from offering up pleading kind of prayers to making declarations and proclamations instead. As he studied prayer, through reading the Bible, he received revelation that if he declared truth over a situation rather than pleading with God to change it, that it was more effective in partnering with God to achieve his purposes.

  “I declare victory over Tristan and Caden in Jesus name. I pray that you would use both these boys mightily in days to come. Fill them Holy Spirit with your power and equip them to be victorious over every challenge that they face. Let them see your glory, Lord. Open their eyes to see their situation as you see. Fill their mind with your Word. Fill their heart with faith. Fill them to overflowing so that the very atmosphere around them changes. I declare your kingdom to be established in the environment around them and also in their hearts. Grant them victory and an overcoming Spirit I pray. In Jesus Name, Amen.”

  Shearman’s prayer language, given by the Lord, was powerful and had authority. As Shearman prayed, he closed his eyes and tilted his head heavenward. The moment he raised his head, beams of glory shot straight up around him, unseen by him but perfectly visible in the spirit realm. The glory resembled solid shafts of ice that rose up from the ground and reached high into the sky. All around was like a growing and expanding glass castle, refracting the background light. The sound of ice and glass sliding against each other rang out into the sky like sharpening a sword before a battle. As Shearman continued to pray, from the sides of the shafts, icy wings protruded and stretched outwards and upwards. All was in motion around him. Shafts and wings raised to the heavens. Sharp contrasts of icy blue highlights and deep blue hues glided across surfaces as the structures reflected off each other and continued to move and grow. None of this was visible with the natural eye, but in the spirit, all was alive with the power of prayer.

  As the shafts reached cloud height, pieces broke off into sharp spear-like shards of glass. Each spear had a set of wings. The icy spears peeled off the main shaft and flew toward Razor Peak. A shower of spears and wings rushed toward their target. Icy trails blazed through the heavens like meteors forming blue trails of ice and dust.

  Caden yelled out, “Tristan, look to the sky!”

  As Tristan adjusted his gaze to look beyond the swoopers and into the distance, he saw a long thin cloud, glistening and glinting in the over the horizon. A strip of the sky appeared to have sprinkles of silver glitter. Whatever the sparkles were, they were coming nearer, and quickly. Then in no time at all, like a fleet of jet planes roaring past at low altitude, a shower of glass and ice slammed into the rock face. The whole rock face shuddered. It left both boys breathless. The shards penetrated deep into the rock and held fast. Shards pierced and sliced through the winged demons. Screeches and gurgling noises came from the throats of dying creatures. The thud of bodies slamming against the rock could be heard above and below them. Tristan closed his eyes tightly and hugged the side of the cliff, pressing his body as hard as he could into the rock. The pounding of ice smashing into the rock face vibrated his chest. The rock beneath his hands shuddered with the multiple impacts. Swoopers, which moments before had been preparing for an attack, were now pinned to the cliff face and slowly dissolving away into nothingness. None of the shards hit the boys, though some struck dangerously close.

  Eventually, the impacts stopped. High up on the cliff face, still stunned by what had happened, the boys opened their eyes and looked around. A gentle breeze cooled the sweat on their faces. Caden’s eyes began to sting as droplets of sweat soaked through his eyelashes. All was dead silent compared to the thunderous noise just moments ago. The onslaught of glass and ice had cleared the skies of all demons.

  The boys remained still for a while. Then Tristan reached out to his left hand to grasp a shard of ice. It was tightly lodged and would not budge. Calculating that it could hold his weight, he hoisted himself up onto it to relieve his aching limbs. Another shard was fixed a little above Caden’s head. Reaching out his right hand, then his left, he pulled himself up onto it. Both sat and looked at each other.

  “Ha. Someone is looking after us,” said Tristan with a smile and look of relief.

  “Yeah, and I’m glad whoever sent those killer ice spears is a good shot because they are deadly!” said Caden.

  “You know it!” Tristan agreed with a chuckle.

  After sitting and looking at each other for a minute or so, Tristan said, “We can make that shelter now, plenty of handholds. Let’s go.”

  As the two climbed, using the shards as handholds and footholds, they found the climbing much easier. Once they reached the shelter, they decided only to rest for a few minutes and then make the final push to the top. The highest concentration of shards was now below them, but a few had struck higher up and would help them get to the summit.

  The climb was long, and sweat was pouring off them by the time they were within reach of the top. At the summit was a ledge with an overhang where the boys could hide under to get some shelter. They rested for a while to catch their breath.

  “Hardest climb ever,” said Tristan.

  Caden, still recovering from their ordeal, remained silent.

  From their vantage point, Tristan looked across the city and realized he could see Grace Falls. “Lord, help the girls and help us,” he prayed.

  Eventually, Caden, who was thinking of Jack asked, “Do you think angels can die?”

  “No, they go on for eternity like us. Spirits can’t die, they are spiritual beings,” Tristan replied, “The question is where do they go? Death is not something that happens at the end of life, ‘Death’ is a place. Death has a location, and I can tell you confidently that Jack isn’t there.” There was a pause. “Just as death is not the end of life, life isn’t a beginning either, or even a ‘state.’ ‘Life’ in essence is a person. To be with him is to be in Life,” finished Tristan.

  “Where do you get that stuff!” said Caden with a smile, “You have got some sweet revelation going on. But I just wish I knew where Jack is now, and what it means when an angel falls in battle here. Do you know that too?”

  “If we are supposed to know, I guess we’ll find out eventually,” said Tristan thoughtfully.

  “OK, I’m taking a look over the edge to see what’s up there,” said Caden after a few more minutes. Caden wriggled his way up and into a viewing position and carefully peered over the top of the ledge to survey the summit of Razor Peak.

  23.

  Openings

  (Mission Liberty)

  Echoes of what had just happened to Liberty continued to influence her emotions. She felt lost in some dungeon, alone and forgotten about, far below the surface, untouched by sunlight. But she knew that she wasn’t alone. She knew that the Lord was watching her, that he loved her and that he was the one who had assigned her this mission. But, she still found the need to fight the feeling of isolation that welled up within her.

  ‘Why do I need to be alone God? Why can’t I do this with friends?’ The reply came, ‘Each person has a different journey to take. No one can take it for you. Do not compare your path to someone else’s. Everyone has personal battles to fight and victories to win.’ The response comforted Liberty a little because she knew this to be true, so she pressed on with renewed determination.

  Up ahead, the passageway ended at a wall. Rungs protruded from the wall, leading up to a circular hatch in the ceiling. There seemed to be no other option but climb the ladder and try to open the hatch. Once Liberty reached the top of the ladder, she braced herself against it and pressed her palm on the hatch above and pushed. The heavy lid was hinged on one edge and lifted slightly. As she pushed with all her strength, the rounded metal plate rose. The silence that she had got used to dissipated and her ears became filled with humming and rumbling sounds like engines and machinery in operation.

  ‘Better be alert,’ she said to herself. ‘Sounds like we have some action up here.’


  She pushed the hatch to open to its fullest extent, allowing it to fall away under its weight, and she hoisted herself up through the opening. Liberty found herself in amongst some metal boxes and machine parts, in the corner of a room. Remaining crouched, staying out of sight, she gently lowered the hatch into the closed position. She then slowly raised herself high enough to be able to see over the boxes. She saw what seemed to be a large service area as big as a warehouse. There were machines with pipes running through them, and lots of cabling ran along the walls and floor. The machines looked like they regulated whatever was flowing through the pipes.

  Liberty thought, ‘Seems like the water, electricity, and gas supply to the city runs through here.’ There were also tanks with dials and valves protruding from them. A humming noise reverberated around the instruments. Some of the valves were open, releasing pressure from the lines. The hissing of gas mingled with the sound of the humming.

  ‘Better stay away from that gas,’ she thought, not liking the idea of choking to death. The plumes of gas rose from vents like smoky trees rising from an underground landscape. Of all the places she had been so far, this room seemed the most alive. Sounds of creaking pipes could also be heard overhead as heated gas rushed through them.

  Liberty also noticed dull flickering lights in the room. These downlights illuminated what looked like control panels with screens displaying maps and information. Then she got a fright when one of the machines jerked. ‘That’s not a machine, that’s a demon!’

  To her horror, she realized these were workstations for demons. Demons were sitting in front of the screens, intent on what they were observing. She hadn’t noticed them before because they sat so still with minimal movement. They were bony and scaly creatures and their exo-skeletal bodies seemed to blend into their surroundings. The room which initially emanated a low friendly hum, now took on a whole new evil as she realized it was a demon control room. As she gazed out from her vantage point, she saw the network of workstations with various instruments, with many demons sitting at them. She could just make out one of the screens. It looked like it was connected to surveillance equipment.

  ‘They’re probably spying on people, then communicating with other demons, helping them do their dirty work,’ she thought. The thought of being watched made her angry, and she wished she could jump out and start relieving the demons of their posts, but Liberty knew that there were too many and that it was best to lower herself down through the hatch and leave as quietly as she had come.

  As she reached for the hatch, she heard the Holy Spirit say, ‘Liberty.’

  “What!” she whispered in a frustrated tone. She had already decided it was no good trying to get through such a populated environment and was intent on getting back down to the quieter tunnel before being discovered. But she got the feeling that God was directing her to do just the opposite.

  “God, if you want me to get through here, I’m going to need a little help!” She rose again and took another look at her surroundings.

  She realized that she had only been looking at eye level and had neglected to lift her gaze. As she looked up for the first time, she saw gangways above her. She had far more chance of getting to the other side of this busy hub from up there. There were many demons scattered over the floor with no real clear path through. But from above, only a few demons were operating the elevated stations. There was also a central gangway that the others merged into which made a clear path to the other side of the room. But from up there she would be seen for sure.

  “What do I do?”

  ‘You can’t do this alone. You will need to trust my leading.’

  It seemed like God had a plan, which was reassuring.

  “OK, if you say so. Show me where to go.”

  She looked for a way up to the top gangways. There were a few ladders situated around the room. Some were in the middle of the room, connecting the lower level to the upper level. The closest one to her wasn’t far away, but she would need to get past two or three demon stations to get there.

  She was about to make her way to the closest one on her hands and knees, when she heard someone beside her say, “Wait!”

  In fright, she immediately rolled away and kicked in the direction of the voice.

  “Careful!” the voice whispered.

  “You be careful! I’ll slash you in half if you sneak up on me like that!” she hissed, realizing it was an angel who had come to her aid.

  Liberty calmed down, and found her manners, “Sorry, thanks. Look, I need to get out of here, it’s not safe. How do I get out?”

  The angel smiled, “OK, OK, don’t get too excited. We have been dispatched to get you through the control centre of Riverdale. There are many of us here. We can jump you short distances, but won’t be able to get you to all the way up a ladder to the top level, so you will need to climb. Even though the distance is too big to jump, you should still be fine to get to the top unseen. Watch that ladder over there.”

  The angel pointed to one of the freestanding ladders not far from where she was. As she looked, she saw a jet of gas shoot out from one of the valves, completely engulfing the ladder.

  ‘Great! Now I have to climb through gas? Might conceal me long enough for the climb though, as long as I don’t suffocate half way up!’ she thought.

  “Over here,” the angel said. Liberty crawled over to where the angel was indicating. “I can give you a clear jump between here and that alcove over there. The angel drew out his sword and slashed it through the air, slicing that fabric of the atmosphere and opening up a tunnel to jump through.

  “Go,” the angel said. Liberty readied herself into a crouch position and then dived through the opening and immediately found herself rolling into the alcove. She looked back. The opening had closed, and the angel was about ten metres behind her, where she had been.

  ‘Wow! That was incredible! A series of jumps like this could get me through,’ she thought. She looked ahead to where she might jump to next. Another angel appeared beside her.

  “Ready?” he said.

  “Yes, ready to go again.”

  “Over there, see where those three pipes are coming out of the ground? You won’t be able to stay there long before your next jump.” The angel was right. There was a demon sitting right at her landing spot with its back turned, intent on its work.

  “We are going to open up two jumps for you at the same time.”

  Again Liberty got herself ready. The angel slashed an opening. Liberty braced herself, then pushed off with her legs and leaped through the opening. As she rolled onto the floor space in front of her, she bumped the chair which had a demon perched on it, busily working away. She immediately got up and dived through the other opening that another angel had already made for her. The creature broke its attention away from its work. It spun around on the chair. Angry red eyes looked around the floor and the immediate vicinity.

  Another demon that was standing off to the side yelled, “Get back to it! Stop slacking off.” Seeing nothing out of the ordinary, it returned to its work, mumbling something under its breath.

  ‘That was close,’ Liberty thought. ‘One more jump should do it to get to that ladder. Where’s my next angel?’

  “Here,” said a deep voice beside her.

  “What do I do when I get to the top of the ladder? It looks pretty exposed up there.”

  “We haven’t figured that out yet. I suggest you run for it and we will do what we can.”

  Liberty composed herself and got ready. The angel slashed an opening, and she dived through. Liberty found herself at the base of the ladder. She waited in a crouch position until the next release of gas. A burst of gas hissed out above her, and she quickly scaled the ladder. Liberty held her breath as she climbed. There was no point having her eyes open either. She wouldn’t have been able to see anything in the midst of the cloud anyway. Liberty anticipated where the rungs would be and climbed blindly as fast as she could.

  The ga
s was cold and filled her ears with hissing. She finally grasped at nothing and realized she had made it to the top of the ladder. She lifted herself up and rolled over onto the metal grate suspended above the many working demons. No one had seen her, so she picked herself up and started to walk quickly along the gangway. With so much noise around there was no need to be silent, so she maintained her quick pace. Liberty saw a demon walking along another gangway parallel to hers with a clipboard in hand looking at the details on it. It glanced up and spotted her.

  “Ahhh!” it yelled out. Another couple of demons looked up and stood to their feet as they saw Liberty hurrying.

  “Go, go, go!” said an angel beside her. As she ran, the suspended walkway trembled. Other angels were dispatched and appeared at various points along the gangway.

  Demons started to occupy other walkways that connected to hers. The demons rushed towards Liberty, clambering over each other, trying to get to her first. As she ran, she heard a series of slams behind her getting closer to where she was. A series of barricades had been activated and were falling from the ceiling. A barrier started to fall in front of her. ‘I’m trapped!’ her mind yelled. But an angel appeared in front of her with raised arms to keep it open for a moment longer as she rolled under it.