I was sleeping and then I wasn’t. I felt as if I was to get up and do something. It is 11:30 at night. And then I began to see it. The transition. And then I saw this. The HERO’S JOURNEY. What? What is that?

I found there was truly such a thing. A story written by a man, Joseph Campbell. It appears like this.

Its stages are:

1.    THE ORDINARY WORLD.  The hero, uneasy, uncomfortable or unaware, is introduced sympathetically so the audience can identify with the situation or dilemma.  The hero is shown against a background of environment, heredity, and personal history.  Some kind of polarity in the hero’s life is pulling in different directions and causing stress.

2.    THE CALL TO ADVENTURE.  Something shakes up the situation, either from external pressures or from something rising up from deep within, so the hero must face the beginnings of change.

3.    REFUSAL OF THE CALL.  The hero feels the fear of the unknown and tries to turn away from the adventure, however briefly.  Alternately, another character may express the uncertainty and danger ahead.

4.     MEETING WITH THE MENTOR.  The hero comes across a seasoned traveler of the worlds who gives him or her training, equipment, or advice that will help on the journey.  Or the hero reaches within to a source of courage and wisdom.

5.     CROSSING THE THRESHOLD.  At the end of Act One, the hero commits to leaving the Ordinary World and entering a new region or condition with unfamiliar rules and values.

6.     TESTS, ALLIES AND ENEMIES.  The hero is tested and sorts out allegiances in the Special World.

7.    APPROACH.  The hero and newfound allies prepare for the major challenge in the Special world.

8.    THE ORDEAL.  Near the middle of the story, the hero enters a central space in the Special World and confronts death or faces his or her greatest fear.  Out of the moment of death comes a new life.

9.    THE REWARD.  The hero takes possession of the treasure won by facing death.  There may be celebration, but there is also danger of losing the treasure again.

10.  THE ROAD BACK.  About three-fourths of the way through the story, the hero is driven to complete the adventure, leaving the Special World to be sure the treasure is brought home.  Often a chase scene signals the urgency and danger of the mission.

11.  THE RESURRECTION.  At the climax, the hero is severely tested once more on the threshold of home.  He or she is purified by a last sacrifice, another moment of death and rebirth, but on a higher and more complete level.  By the hero’s action, the polarities that were in conflict at the beginning are finally resolved.

12. RETURN WITH THE ELIXIR.  The hero returns home or continues the journey, bearing some element of the treasure that has the power to transform the world as the hero has been transformed.

Folks, as goofy as it may sound it resonates with me. We are in a season of transition (What again?) and I sense the travail is coming to a climax. The crescendo of right speaking, Godly action is about to shift our nation. A few years ago, I felt we were “about” 10 years out. That was 3 years ago this November. But I am sensing we are in the middle of something. Pockets of goodness will prevail. You may feel shaken, you may feel shook, but I believe that something monumental is about to happen.

I believe we are to shake off the stupor, shake off the hurt and simply keep our eyes on Him. We say it all the time, He is the “author and finisher” of our faith. If that is truth then He must be the “middler” of our faith too, to get there.

I feel as though I am to spend tonight (It is 12:30) to release something in prayer. Before I went to sleep, I felt myself declaring two things. One was in the area of restoration and return. The other was in the area of provision and production. I fell asleep with those being repeated.

I “feel” like there is something to occur in 3 days. I feel like there is a 10 day number as well. Last night I saw the Eiffel Tower in our Wednesday prayer time. “Built in less than two years as the centerpiece of the 1889 World’s Fair”, I add that anything can happen in 2 years. Gustave Eiffel himself “fervently believed that the Tower was made by everyone and for everyone”, causing me to believe that we are on the entrance to something that people will get behind.

I know that one of the things that will be required will be the laying down of various things. For some it will be ministries, jobs, relationships (I am not talking about “go and get a divorce!”) and geographies.

I wrote this this morning.

Grateful for people of Village. Our best is yet to come!

As I am sitting here working on some I will share on Sunday, I am stuck with a tremendous thought. Potential must be released. The atom bomb has potential. It has the vehicle or method of transportation. But until it is targeted, released and detonated, it is nothing more than a shell with potential. God has given you a target (the world), released (you through Jesus) and is awaiting the detonation. When you allow contact with the world, the detonation will come. It is not enough to know you carry dunamis power, but it must come in contact.

Bombs away!

You do not lack potential. He has not withheld any good thing.  “For by these He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises…”

It is time. I just heard some of the lyrics from the Zombies, “Time Of The Season.”
It’s the time of the season
When love runs high In this time…