Chapter 5: Broken Arrow
The term “broken arrow” is a military term that was used during the Vietnam war. Broken arrow was a code word that was used in dire circumstances; it was used by American troops to call for help in a certain emergency.
This certain emergency was whenever an American unit that was on the ground had been separated from the rest of the military, was facing imminent danger, and was about to be overrun and destroyed by enemy forces that were closing in from every direction.
The unit facing the attack had become a “broken arrow” that was outside of the quiver and couldn’t fight on its own anymore.
Whenever this happened the unit that had been separated and was facing the attack would get on their radio and quickly call in the code word “broken arrow.” They would call for help and give the area in which they needed support to be brought to and given in.
Whenever this code word was heard coming in over the radio, it was a signal that a friendly unit was facing a very serious situation and needed immediate support from the air. The term “broken arrow” called for immediate and unrelenting fire power to be rained down from above until all of the surrounding enemy forces had been destroyed and the unit that was under attack had been liberated.
Have you ever been separated from God? Have you ever been facing an attack from the enemy? What about even to the point of being on the verge of defeat and facing a certain loss? Even death?
All of us have at one time or another been this “broken arrow.” We have all been outside of the quiver of God at one point or another and unable to fight anymore on our own. Some of us have been outside of the quiver longer than others, some of us still are. All of us have been facing imminent destruction, even death; needing help from a force stronger than ourselves to overcome this serious situation.
Let me show you what I mean. Look at Romans chapter three and verse twenty-three.
“for all have sinned, and come short of the Glory of God;” Romans 3:23 KJV
Also look at Romans chapter six and verse twenty-three.
“For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Romans 6:23 KJV
What this means is that until we call in as a “broken arrow” we are most certainly well on our way to death. Have you called in yet? Or are you still waiting to see if the enemy that hates you more than anything else will spare your life? Even though it has vowed that it will not. Look here at John chapter ten and verse ten.
“The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.” John 10:10 KJV
Are you still wanting to try and battle the enemy on your own? Look at this in John chapter fifteen and verse five.
“I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.” John 15:5
It looks like to fight on our own would be foolish. In fact there is nothing that we can do except for to call in as a “broken arrow” seeking help and deliverance from a higher power, a stronger force that can deliver us from our certain destruction.
This higher power’s name is Jesus Christ. If we want to survive we have absolutely no other choice but to call for Him and His help. Check this out in Romans chapter ten and verse thirteen.
“For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.” Romans 10:13 KJV
Looks like we have a chance after all, we have a savior in which we can find comfort. We can call upon Jesus to send us His help. But what is His help? I’m glad you asked; the help that Jesus sends us is His Holy Spirit. Look here at John chapter fifteen and verse twenty-six.
“But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me:” John 15:26 KJV
This means that when we call in to Jesus, that He will send us the Comforter, the Spirit of Truth, which is the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit comes from God the Father and is sent to us by his Son Jesus Christ. To bring us comfort in our time of trouble and to show us a way out of it; which is by using the Word of God to fight our battles for us. Look here at John chapter fourteen and verse twenty-six.
“But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.” John 14:26 KJV
Let’s break down this analogy real quick. The military that is on our side is the Kingdom of God. The leader of this military is The King Jesus Christ. We are the unit that is on the ground that should be fighting the good fight of faith. See here in First Timothy chapter six and verse twelve.
“Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses.” 1 Timothy 6:12 KJV
The enemy against us is Satan (which means adversary) and his evil forces that seek to destroy us. See here in Ephesians chapter six and verse twelve and First Peter chapter five and verse eight.
“For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” Ephesians 6:12 KJV
“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:” 1 Peter 5:8 KJV
When we call in to Jesus Christ, He will immediately send us help through the Holy Spirit; who brings to us the Word of God. The Holy Spirit is our air support that comes directly to where we are, to aid us in our fight for the victory. The Words that He gives us from Jesus Christ are the bombs that are to be dropped onto the enemy’s head.
This is how we win every battle. This is how we defeat every evil situation that is brought against us. By simply calling to Jesus for help, pinpointing the area that needs to be bombed, and waiting for the Holy Spirit to show up with the bombs. Then all we have to do is call for the right bomb to be dropped in the right area. That’s it. The awesome, unmatchable, unbeatable forces of God Almighty take care of the rest.
But one question remains, how do we make this call? That’s a good question you asked, and the answer can be found in the Bible, as the answer is always found, right there in the Word of God. The answer is that through prayer this call is made.
Remember the three meanings of the name Samuel? Let’s break these down and walk through them one at a time.
Let’s start with the first one which is “name of God.” Whenever we pray we must first acknowledge who we are calling and also acknowledge the authority in which we are calling under. Jesus showed us a perfect example of how this call is made and the template and order in which we are to make every call. Look here at Matthew chapter six and verses nine through thirteen.
“After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.” Matthew 6:9-13 KJV
This is the model in which we are to form every prayer after. We first acknowledge who we are praying to, which is God Our Father which is in Heaven. We are to acknowledge His Holiness and his reputation for always being Holy.
Then we can move to the next meaning of Samuel; which is “to ask God.” Look at John chapter fourteen and verses thirteen and fourteen.
“And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.” John 14:13-14 KJV
It is very important to remember that anything that we ask God for is to be asked in the name of Jesus Christ. This is the authority that we are calling a request in under.
We then ask Him to give us our daily bread, which is His Word that we are needing for the present moment. See here in Matthew chapter four and verse four.
“But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.” Matthew 4:4 KJV
God knows exactly which Words of His we are needing in that exact moment. He knows exactly which bombs are needed to defeat the enemy. This is why we call in seeking His Will from Heaven to be done here on the ground and not our own will. Remember without Him we can do nothing. Our will got us into this mess: His Will will get us out of it.
We are then to acknowledge that we need forgiveness from Him for our sin, which is how we got separated from Him to start with. Before we ask for forgiveness from Him, we are first to acknowledge anyone who we have not forgiven, and we are to forgive them for whatever they have done to us. Then we can proceed with asking Him to forgive us. See here in Mark chapter eleven and verses twenty-five and twenty-six.
“And when ye stand praying, forgive, if ye have ought against any: that your Father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses. But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses.” Mark 11:25-26 KJV
Then we ask Him to help keep us away from doing any more sin, which is what got us in this battle to start with; and to then deliver us from the evil that we are currently facing.
Finally, we are to again acknowledge His supreme authority over every situation and His power to handle every situation for us and thank Him for doing all of this for us in the name of His Son Jesus Christ. This gives Him all the glory for our deliverance and our success in any battle. We then sign off of every call with a code word of His own, which is “amen.” Amen means “so be it.” So be what? So be it that His Will be done here in this situation and not ours. This is why we are calling on Him, we don’t have any bombs to drop remember?
Moving right along we are now at the third meaning of Samuel, which is “God has heard.”
We know that God has heard our call and that His help is on the way, look here in First John chapter five and verses fourteen and fifteen.
“And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us: and if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him.” 1 John 5:14-15 KJV
This is where the Comforter, which is the Holy Spirit comes into play. If we have done all of this with a true heart that is, remember the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Truth. If we have been true in our call to Him, then He is truly on His way to deliver us out of our situation. All we have to do from this point is simply believe in Him. Look here at Mark chapter eleven and verse twenty-four.
“Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.” Mark 11:24 KJV
That’s all there is to it. This is how any and every battle is won in the spiritual world. All we have to do is make that call to God and ask for His help in the name of His Son Jesus Christ. If we don’t ask Him, He can’t help us. It’s that simple. We have to ask Him the right way though, which is in truth and in righteousness. Look here at James chapter four and verses one through three.
“From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members? Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not. Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.” James 4:1-3 KJV
The reason we are in the middle of a war to start with is because of our lust for sin. Lust means: “to feel a strong desire for something.”
We will get into this topic in the next chapter. For now I leave you with three bombs.
“Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.” Isaiah 41:10 KJV
“But when Jesus heard it, he answered him, saying, Fear not: believe only, and she shall be made whole.” Luke 8:50 KJV
“As soon as Jesus heard the word that was spoken, he saith unto the ruler of the synagogue, Be not afraid, only believe.” Mark 5:36 KJV
In the name that is above every name, which is Jesus Christ the Son of God. Amen.