A Prophetic Letter to New-Era Pioneers

Haggai cried out to his generation, “Is it time for you to live in luxurious houses while the house of the Lord lies in ruins?” (see Hag. 1:4)

The prophet’s passion and plea with the people around him could have only come from God Himself, because the call to pioneer will cost you everything. We live in a time and period in the earth when many take their liberty to point out what’s wrong with the house of God, its leaders, and all of its shortcomings. In fact, the truth is that I have never met more people who could accurately identify what’s wrong with the Church and who are also simultaneously unwilling to do anything about it than now. However, I believe you are called to be an activist, critical thinker, and revolutionary pioneer as we enter this new era.

Over a decade ago I was apprehended by the Spirit of God sitting in the back of a church conference on the last row. “You are going to plant a church called, “Heart of the Father Ministry.” Like a lightning bolt shot from the sky, I fell out of my chair during worship and began to weep in agony. I remember so clearly saying, “Oh God, I will do anything, anything, just please do not ask me to plant a church.” My deep groans and travail came from a sincere heart who was not naïve to the price that is required to actually build a house of glory for the Lord. As a father in the faith once said to me, “Any donkey can kick down a barn, but it takes a wise master builder to establish one.” In other words, it takes no skill or prophetic gift to call out the sin and shortcomings of the house of God, but it does take wisdom, grace, and tremendous sacrifice to pioneer a house of glory.

We learn from the Old Testament that when the work of the Lord is suspended, delayed, or perhaps even going in the wrong direction, God raises up prophets like Haggai and Zechariah to prophesy and stir up the spirit of Zerubbabel in the land. We are at a very critical time in history when I believe God is raising up prophets to actually call upon apostles and pioneers to build houses of glory in the earth that can thrive in the midst of global shaking. Prophetic strategies are being released to the end-time Church that will assist us in fulfilling this precious mandate. This is why so many of you are reading this. God is calling you right now to begin to either build a house of glory or actively assist a group of people in doing so in your city. We can no longer just offer our opinions or even accusations from the sidelines of our various comforts and conveniences. We must begin to act, support, and even finance the work of the Lord in our midst.

The Attacks on Pioneers

As a pioneer, you cannot do the will of God without challenging the way things have always been and causing catalytic changes in the body of Christ. This will inevitably cause many to stumble, scoff, criticize, and falsely accuse you.

There is a demonic strategy set up against every pioneer in their generation that is not only aimed at destroying them, but also scattering the followers. If satan’s attack is successful, everyone involved will come out of the battle hurt and wounded. Remember, satan uses people to attack, criticize, and question pioneers so that those who are getting set free, refreshed, and empowered by their life and ministry will become confused, disoriented, and altogether stop listening to the emerging pioneers.

Pioneers, you cannot allow yourself to become so easily manipulated by people’s criticisms and attacks. Do not try to maintain peace in your heart and life based on whether people accept or reject you. From my own personal experiences, most of the time God will not deliver you from your accusers, but rather He will actually save you by killing the part of you that is vulnerable to the devil by using the accusations themselves.

As a pioneer, you must recognize that both God and the devil want you to die, but for different reasons. Satan wants to destroy you through attacks and criticisms and then drain you by your unwavering need to explain yourself and your side of the story. (Please stop wasting your time and energy doing this!) On the other hand, God wants to crucify that part in you that was so easily exploited by the devil to begin with. The rest and peace that you are so desiring in your life and ministry will only come when you finally die to what people say and think about you.

Pioneers, in order to deliver you from the praise of men, God will baptize you in their criticisms and attacks. It is painful. You will lose many friendships along the way and the misunderstandings will be many. You will pay a price that most around you will never see nor understand. You are speaking a language of reform and awakening that many in the body of Christ just don’t have an eye or ear for yet. Do not grow discouraged and, most of all, do not be surprised when the attacks and criticisms come. Rather than rushing to defend or explain yourself, my advice would be to go before the Lord and ask Him, “What inside of me are You exposing through the accusation and attacks of others that needs to die?”

I admit as an emerging pioneer in this generation that I have not always responded well to the attacks and criticisms of many. The loss of friendships and the misunderstandings have been very painful over the years. I was truly unprepared for what lay ahead of me when God began to open major doors in the body of Christ some years ago on a national level. My sincere hope and prayer is that my mistakes and revelation might benefit other pioneers. Your perspective and response to the attacks and criticisms of others will define and shape you far more than you will ever realize. I’m eternally grateful for several spiritual fathers who have walked me through these pioneering years, and I apologize to those whom I might have unnecessarily offended along my journey pursuing the mandate God has given me. Who knew that God is so good that He chooses to use even the accusations and attacks of our enemies to conform us into the image and likeness of Jesus Christ. May God grant us His grace to remain broken, humbled, and ultimately delivered from both the praise and criticism of men.

A Prophetic Word to Pioneers

Killing Goliath was both the best and worst event that ever happened to young David! (See 1 Samuel 17.) Be warned, emerging pioneers—that big open door, that promotion, that spotlight, that book signing, that revival, that TV interview you know you were born for will unleash the greatest jealousy, insecurity, and slander from fathers/mothers and brothers/sisters that you have ever known, but will also set the stage for you to fulfill your destiny in the earth. A generation of fathers (Saul) could only celebrate David so long as he would wear his armor. Once David became more successful than Saul by killing Goliath and defeating the Philistines, his jealousy would hunt David the rest of his life.

Be warned, emerging pioneers—some of those fathers/mothers who once cheered you on in your earlier years when you were in their shadow will despise you, slander you, and try to kill your influence as you surpass them in anointing and grace. Their words will sting you, try to poison and confuse you, and derail you from pursuing God with all your might! A generation of peers (Eliab and Abinadab) could only see David as their baby brother and the insignificant one who tended to the little sheep. Once David knew he was ready to cut the head off Goliath and he did, the jealousy and insecurity of David’s brothers soared!

Be warned, emerging pioneers—some of those brothers/sisters you once ran with and were even constantly overlooked with because of their talents and skills will writhe in anger, jealousy, and insecurity as they watch you fulfill your destiny. They will stir up gossip, slander, and false accusations among brothers/sisters around your own age simply because they cannot stand that God chose you to fulfill this assignment and not them!

To the emerging pioneers, I say—keep praying, keep dreaming, and keep pressing, but do not disregard this prophetic warning of the days that lie ahead of you! Count the cost. Recognize the spiritual warfare that is about to be unleashed against you and yours. You will lose some good fathers and mothers who once encouraged you as a rookie and will not be able to stand you as an emerging pioneer. Pray for them and honor them the best you know how. They just can’t see you the way God sees you. Don’t become distracted or disappointed with the Eliabs and Abinadabs (brothers and sisters) around you. They once ran with you and spoke well of you and now their insecurity will cause them to want to see your downfall. When they spread rumors about you, choose to speak good of them. God will bless you.

Finally, emerging pioneers, be warned, but also be encouraged! Your Jonathans are coming to your rescue! You maybe once had fathers/mothers who no longer pour into you and maybe even brothers/sisters whom you were once close with and no longer talk with, but a company of Jonathans is quickly come to your side! They will get you and the assignment on your life. They will celebrate what God has put in you and called you to do. They are willing to run with you, but really they just want to be your friend! They will defend you to the death to the Sauls and whispering voices all around you. As you emerge, grow in your calling, and navigate the wilderness, they will be with you every step of the way. The days ahead will be great for you emerging pioneers, but they will also be full of testing and trials. Keep your eyes on Jesus and you will run your race!

The Power of Accountable Relationships

Pioneering can be a very lonely journey. It is oftentimes filled with rejection, disappointment, and heartache. One of the primary ways I have learned to keep my heart clean before the Lord is understanding and embracing the power of true fathering. Not every church, ministry, or leader is out to get you. In fact, if pioneers are not careful to guard their hearts from bitterness and resentment, they will end up rejecting the very individuals God has sent to help them.

I believe it is so important for pioneers to walk in true accountable relationships with fathers that the devil will do everything he can to try to sabotage that process. In early 2015, I stood on a stage with thousands of people in attendance at a national conference in the United States. I preached a message on our most urgent national need—for God to raise up true prophets in the land.

As corporate intercession and travail broke out in the masses, weeping hit me so hard that I fell to my knees in the middle of the message and cried out, “The prophets in America have dined at Jezebel’s table for too long and a new breed of Micaiahs is coming forth.” As the intensity of the intercession and travail picked up, suddenly a father in the nation came to the stage and took the microphone and asked me to sit down. He did it graciously, but proceeded to shut down the meeting and spent the next 30 minutes apologizing for what just happened. I sat in the front row with tears in my eyes. I was embarrassed, stunned, and incredibly shamed in front of so many people.

In the back room after the service, the national father in the faith told me I was just too intense, too zealous, and the intercession and travail that took place was too much to steward at the conference. I left that weekend totally stabbed to my core. I spent the next 6 months in professional counseling, fasting, and considering shutting down my travel ministry. Because I considered this man a spiritual father and forerunner, the wounds and insecurity it created in me ran deep—real deep!

By God’s sovereign grace, I was able to forgive after a period of deep inner healing, and some personal soul-searching, to take any responsibility for what I might have done wrong as a son. It wasn’t until 2018 that I found myself speaking at yet another national conference with thousands of people, and the father who had wounded me so deeply in 2015 was also a speaker! The day he flew in for the conference, I received a text from him (we had not spoken in almost three years). He asked to meet with me. To my great surprise and astonishment, he got down on his knees with tears and repented to me at the meeting. I was stunned! But it brought yet another wave of healing and forgiveness over my soul.

Through my own tears and sobs, I heard the voice of God speak so clearly that day. He said, “Jeremiah, the devil intended to rob you of your inheritance as a son to many fathers in this nation, but his strategy has been thwarted today as a more excellent way has been established. The path of forgiveness and love has delivered you from the cancer of bitterness and resentment. I have called you to minister to the sons and daughters who have been wounded by the fathers. Great bitterness has filled their souls and will become poison to their destinies.”

If God is speaking to your heart right now, I encourage you to do some serious soul-searching. Are you wounded and bitter toward the Church or a leader in the body of Christ? Is a spirit of rejection operating in your life to the point where you do not trust any type of authority? I encourage you to write a letter to that church leader who hurt you and release them to God. Send a financial offering to someone who has hurt you on your spiritual journey and watch God promote you to new levels in His Sprit. Like David, let us pray this powerful prayer together as we pioneer the way forward into this new era: “Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: and see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting” (Ps. 139:23-24 KJV).