Cindy Powell

It was a Sunday afternoon about six years ago, but I remember it like it was yesterday. I had the afternoon free and allowed myself the luxury of lying down to take little nap. I never went to sleep. Instead, the presence of God surrounded me and enveloped me like a cloud. I didn’t know it at the time, but I was about to embark upon a journey that would forever change the course of my life.

The familiar surroundings of my bedroom faded, as I had the sensation of being propelled into another dimension. I soon realized Jesus had literally taken me deep into the center of his own heart. I could actually hear and feel the heartbeat of heaven. All of creation, every living thing, beat in perfect unity to a single rhythm—the rhythm of his heart. 

I don’t possess language to adequately express what I saw and heard that day. Even carefully chosen words are able to convey only a shadow of the beauty and wonder I was privileged to glimpse. I can only hope his Spirit will somehow communicate what my own words fail to capture.

In harmony with the beating of his heart, I heard the Lord’s voice resounding throughout creation. His cry contained inexpressible depths of joy, passion, and anguish all at the same time, as he exclaimed over and over again: That they may be one!  That they may be one!  

As he declared his heart’s desire, I saw the Bride of Christ emerge in the reflection of his glory. She began walking toward him and as she did, she grew in strength and beauty with each step. Somehow, a map of the globe—every tribe, every tongue, and every nation represented—was superimposed upon her. She was radiant! I could feel the joy and anticipation in his heart as she approached him. His heart was literally bursting with love and longing.

It ended too quickly. But while I was still, as the Apostle John would say, “in the spirit” the Lord had one more thing to impart. He asked me to stretch out my hand. As I did, he placed a key in the center of my palm. When I asked him what it was, his response was simple:  It’s the key to my heart.

God often speaks very simply, but even when he does, the depth of what he is communicating tends to lie beyond our current comprehension. He loves it when we pursue him for greater revelation. Personally, I think he likes the thrill of the chase! From the moment the Lord gave me the precious gift of this encounter, I set my heart toward gaining greater wisdom and revelation in its application. It has taken me these past several years of praying and pondering to gain greater insight into understanding the profound simplicity of what he shared: The key to his heart lies in grasping the depth of his longing for one “pure spotless bride.” We are that bride—made pure and spotless by the cleansing of his blood—but we are not yet one.

Long before the Lord revealed this glimpse of his heart, the strange subject of “unity” in the Church had frequently perplexed and saddened me. For the most part we can’t even agree on what it should look like, let alone how to walk it out. The words I heard the Lord speak, “That they may be one” are from Jesus’ prayer in John 17. He recently drew my attention back to this amazing passage of Scripture to consider his words further. I believe this chapter holds not only the key to his heart, but also the keys the Church must apprehend in order to ultimately “be brought to complete unity” (John 17:23).

I am convinced it is only within the context of “oneness” with Jesus that we will begin to understand an authentic expression of unity with each other. Paul expresses this concept in his letter to the Ephesians:  From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work (Eph 4:16). Paul describes a healthy body, rightly related to the Head (to Christ), functioning properly with each part doing its own assigned work, growing and being built up in love. Sadly, I have not known this to describe the reality of the Church. I’m not okay with that and you shouldn’t be either.

Starting nearly two decades ago, when I organized a small prayer group at my place of employment that reached across multiple denominational lines and church traditions, I have participated in various non-denominational and cross-denominational ministries and prayer groups. I have been in partnership with churches that have differed dramatically in their vision and values. I have been privileged to visit churches of almost every shape, size and variety—literally around the globe—and I have worked for large ministries that have served both the local and global Church. All of these experiences have given me a fairly broad glimpse into the heartbeat of the mysterious organism we call the Body of Christ. Although there have been many glorious glimmers of love, life, and hope, far too often I have been deeply grieved by what I’ve witnessed and experienced. We are many things, but we are not yet one—not with him, not within ourselves, and certainly not with each other.

In many areas—particularly in the West—the body is sleepy, sick, and broken. There are “parts” that seem to function better than others, but we are not even close to functioning in the whole as the healthy, mutually supportive system that Paul describes in Ephesians 4. And without the whole, even the parts that seem to function better are only functioning at a fraction of their intended purpose and potential. I suspect it is similar to being sick your entire life—you become so used to being sick that you don’t have any idea what it would feel like to be healthy and whole.

I believe God is highlighting this issue in this hour because he is positioning us for healing and change. We were created and designed to function as one Church, one body, and, ultimately, one bride. We need each other. Far more importantly, it is Jesus’ own desire that we be “brought to complete unity.” It’s what he prayed for and it’s what he bought with his own blood. I, for one, want him to have what it cost him so dearly to purchase. My fervent prayer and heart’s desire is that a fire will be stirred within the hearts of God’s people that will take us one step closer to that reality, until, at last, our cry echo’s his own:

That we may be one! That we may be one!