Dominionist Watch: Prayers for the Arts and Entertainment Mountain
The focus of yesterday's "United States Reformation Prayer Network," a Christian dominionist 40-day "Pray and Fast" project from Mike and Cindy Jacobs, was the arts and entertainmentmountain. For those not familiar with dominionist theology, the Christian dominionists preach a "7 Mountains Mandate" in which Christians take over seven spheres of culture to unleash a Christly kingdom that will inspire Jesus to return and rule over the earth.
Yesterday's email alert described the mountain:
The arts and entertainment mountain includes comedy, movies, theatre, actors, producers, directors, writers, musicians, singers, dancers, visual art and design, sports, games, modeling, makeup artists, fashion, costume and set designers, craftsmen, and the like, all of which should celebrate life and reflect God's creativity.Our worldview and culture-all of what we love, hate, and aspire to be- is shaped by the arts and entertainment industry. Art and entertainment are mechanisms by which we communicate what human beings perceive as "truth." Entire nations can be discipled for noble purposes or indoctrinated for ignoble purposes through the cultural content released through art and entertainment.Rather than shaping American worldview through wholesome entertainment and God-honoring artistic expression, however, our nation is being saturated with extreme violence, infidelity, witchcraft and sexual perversion and promiscuity emphasized within the arts and entertainment industry. The majority of what is being communicated through art and entertainment is godless worldview, liberal ideology, unprincipled actions and immoral behaviors. Technological advances are driving the entertainment culture and magnifying the influence and speed of delivery of this depraved cultural content. Entertainment culture is dominating our time and attention so it is imperative that we recognize the role of the church in this societal sphere.We cannot blame the meat for rotting, however, if we keep the salt in the salt shaker. We cannot blame the culture if the church remains on the church/religion mountain. It is the responsibility of those who possess a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ to create visual and narrative content, such as paintings, graphic design, songs, books, poetry, movie and play scripts, etc. to communicate what is good, true, beautiful and eternal, thereby drawing all men unto God. We are called to preserve that which in it's natural state is decaying, displace the bad with the good and shape the arts and entertainment culture to transform minds and reform the nation.There is a righteous remnant currently working within the arts and entertainment industry who are co-laboring with the Creator in producing and promoting wholesome art and entertainment. These precious ones truly desire to see Jesus exalted, the good news brought to the poor and the Bride prepared. More often than not, however, this task for them seems daunting. They need to be lifted up in prayer for God's favor and protection. There is yet so much more that the church must do to achieve God's desired end for the arts and entertainmentmountain. For starters, the church must repent for abdicating her role on the arts and entertainment mountain and for the silence, indifference and tolerance which has caused a moral decline in the industry. We must also repent for neglecting the arts as Biblical forms of worship and warfare, and for not welcoming, blessing, covering, equipping and releasing those with creative gifts to function within the church as well as outside the walls of the church. We have allowed the spirit of religion to bind this magnificent part of bringing glory to our King.God's treasures His people and delights in their talents being discovered and released. All of creation worships the Creator, and gives Him glory and so must we-through every form of art and entertainment. It is time for a radical move of holiness to pervade the arts and entertainment mountain, such that it will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of God. May a new, God-honoring, renaissance and revival of the arts come forth!
Some of the prayers and covenants to be invoked include:
- Make covenant with your eyes to not look upon any ungodly thing.
- Make covenant with your ears to not listen to any ungodly thing.
- Art is one of many lost forms of worship and warfare presented in scripture. Pray for the restoration and empowerment of the various forms of artistic expression that the world has perverted and the church has neglected.
- Pray for increased favor, visibility, influence and strategic relational connections for believers within thearts and entertainment industry.
- Pray for the transfer of wealth to come into the hands of Godly Christians who have been prepared in the secret place, and are now ready to arise in this mountain.
- Pray that God would raise up men and women of prayer to intercede for holiness in "Hollywood".
- Pray that Christians would become increasingly active in this arena by boycotting ungodly forms and sources of art and entertainment and strongly supporting Godly movies, music, television shows, plays, etc.
- Release the fear of the Lord upon those in the entertainment industry, such that righteousness and integrity-especially among believers-would be brought back to this mountain and once again we would see Biblical, family values set in place and honored.
- Pray for a powerful cultural upstream within the arts and entertainment mountain to come forth, especially through the political arena.
