A Finger in the Dike

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Shirley Weaver wants to take you there. And now, here's today's episode. Hello, everyone, and welcome.

I am so glad you are here. Our podcast title today is A Finger in the Dyke, an expression you may have heard. It's an idiom, actually, and here's the meaning. The meaning is to try to stop an approaching problem or to try to stop a small problem from becoming a large problem. The origin of the expression goes back to a legend about a young Dutch boy, which would be the setting in the Netherlands in a country where much of the land is below sea level. Therefore, there's a series and a system of dams that are set up to protect the people in the Netherlands from the obvious flooding that can occur. In the story, a little boy sees a small crack in one of the dams and knows that if no one fixes the leak, the crack will grow bigger and the dam will break, causing, of course, many people to die. So he decides to stop the leak by putting his finger in the hole that is in the dam.

Despite the cold weather, he stays there all night. And then finally, adults find him and they repair the hole. So that's the story.

That's the legend. When people reference this expression and reference the story, what they're talking about is plugging a leak or stopping a problem before it grows unstoppable. And if you're using this expression figuratively, you might be trying to say one of several things. You might want to say there is only one person standing between salvation and complete disaster or another application might be that you are you are referring to someone who is plugging a leak.

Maybe a leak of information or crime or something else, or you could be referring to someone that is stopping something despite the danger, despite the difficulty. And as you know, in this podcast, Running With Horses, we are intentional to reach beyond the norm. And we use as an example for that reach. First Kings 18, where the hand of the Lord came upon Elijah. And what followed was clearly no question supernatural. It just was the reality of the supernatural occurrence that took place when God's hand came upon Elijah and he received a download of God's power. This is so so powerful an example for us. And so the supernatural element is our focus here at Running With Horses. My name is Shirley Weaver. As I said, I'm so glad you're here because I want to talk to you about this expression.

A finger in the dyke, because I believe that you are the one whose finger is in the dyke. You have right now such a critical role, such a salvation role. And of course, Jesus is our savior. God is the originator of salvation. I'm not saying that.

I'm not saying anything different than that. I am saying that you are his instrument. You are his representative. You are the agent of deliverance that God intends. And right now, at this particular time in history, as the unfolding of end time events undeniably is occurring, you have a dual role. You are both occupying until he comes and you are also looking up expecting his return. So you're doing both.

You are occupying fully and also looking for his return. So like the role of the boy in the story, you have your finger in the dyke. This is important. It's a critical assignment, specifically, as I said, an end time assignment. And this dual role actually presents, creates a tension between occupying and looking up. A couple of scriptures here, Ephesians 1-11, it is Jesus who works all things according to the counsel of his will. Colossians 1-17, and he, that is Jesus, is before all things and in him all things hold together. Two more, Luke 19-13, as we said from the parable, occupy until I come.

One translation says it this way, engage in business until I come. And lastly, Luke 21-28, but when these things begin to come to pass, look up, lift up your heads because your redemption draws nigh, speaking of the return of the Lord. So bottom line, what you are experiencing in the body now will be over when Jesus returns.

Right now, your assignment is so important, your role is so important because you're standing between these two dimensions, between occupying and looking up. In New Testament scripture, just to give you an idea here of why this is so important, only salvation is mentioned more than the return of Jesus. 216 chapters of the New Testament containing 318 references to the return of Jesus means that one out of every 30 verses in the New Testament is referring to talking about the return of Jesus. There are only four New Testament books that do not mention the return of our Lord at all. Do not mention that.

Every other book in the New Testament, 216 chapters, 318 references, meaning one out of every 30 verses, directs our attention to the return of Jesus. This valid position that you and I have right now. So I said all of that to say, you as an individual are so important. You cannot overemphasize individual importance right now. The individual believer, the role that you play is so important. And the more I learn about the time that we're living in, the more I realize its culmination is closer than we realize. The more I'm certain that this generation is completely unique.

Born for this time, uniquely gifted and called. And also, the more I learn about this time, the more I see the individual believer's role as a catalyst for biblical proportional outcomes. Now we've thought it was the congregation. And let me just add, this is what I believe.

This is what I'm saying. I am saying that the individual role is so important and where we have thought and emphasized that the role of the congregation, the corporate body is so important. I want to say, don't miss, don't overlook and push past that the corporate is only as strong as the weakest link.

The weakest individual. So our takeaway here is that as you are believing God for things that you never thought possible, your role is to consider the signs of the times, things that must take place, and your response is action on multiple levels. Because the Word says that we will give an account. We are accountable to the Lord in these things. So basically, with your finger in the dyke, Jesus is holding it all together. He is working everything according to the counsel of His will. And He is doing it through you.

You are the agent of this outworking. And you engage fully, occupy fully, and you do business until He comes while you are watching for His soon return. This is the personal level, personal responsibility, the responsibility to show up even if no one else does.

Hey, you have your finger in the dyke. If no one else shows up, you do. The individual responsibility, I believe, underline, I believe.

This is what I've seen. This is what I sense the Lord saying always comes first. The individual responsibility always is before. A constituency cannot be formed. A group movement cannot come together until the individual is in place.

And why is this so important in our day? You know, things are pretty sinister. You sense it, right?

I do. And on so many levels, in so many ways, we see demonstrations of pure evil. I don't know how else to describe it. Pure evil.

No question. So our response to that darkness must be in proportion a response with the light. You must do something. You can't sit there.

You cannot sit on the sidelines. You cannot think to sit this out. You cannot continue in a routine that's doable, manageable, where everything is fine. Because, see, everything is not fine. On an individual level, your responsibility to act and to show up, it will cost you something.

You will not consider it manageable at all. But you can do it, and you can do it by faith. And to approach our individual responsibility at this crucial time any other way, I would just say we would be missing it. I believe that. I believe, let me say this again, our role is to show up, to come fully engaged, to be prepared to do whatever it takes, to pay the price that will be required, to do the works that we read in the Word, these biblical proportion outcomes that we say we are believing for, we must engage on that level, on a biblical proportion, in faith, fully engaged, fully present.

So, again, you have your finger in the dike. And if you, as I am, are intentional about the supernatural element that you pray to see, desire to see, you ask God for a miracle, you pray for signs and wonders, you are looking for Bible-sized, big-prayer answers. If that's you, then this is for you as well. Your responsibility is dual, to occupy until He comes and to look up and anticipate His return. You are important. Your role is the linchpin. It's the deciding factor that will determine the effectiveness of the corporate setting, the combined, or the coming together, the combination of all individuals who have shown up. That way, the corporate body can show up. That way, the congregation can show up.

That way, the congregation can confront the sinister, evil generation that is trying to take over our family and our nation. That's the stakes here. That is what is at hand.

That is what we are looking at. I pray for you, and I bless you today in the name of the Lord, that this role that God has for you will be so, so prioritized in your heart and mind. In Jesus' name, I pray that way right now. Amen. That's 365 Day Devotional, Running With Horses. Thanks again, and we'll see you next time. Amen.