God showed me the exact room where He’s keeping them: young, diverse, brokenhearted leaders lying on ice—waiting for the moment He launches them to gather and heal His scattered sheep.
Five Things We Will Learn
- Struggles and difficulties are often the very training ground God uses to prepare those He will raise up as true shepherds.
- God is deeply grieved over worthless shepherds who desert, scatter, or exploit His flock and has already declared judgment on them.
- The Lord is personally preserving and setting apart a new generation of pastors “on ice” who will shepherd with His own heart of loyalty and sacrificial love.
- True pastoring is not a stage performance or a title; it is lifelong commitment to a specific flock, loving people even when love hurts.
- In the coming days, stadiums will not be filled with crowds but with faithful shepherds and the small flocks they have wept over, eaten with, and refused to abandon.
God’s Heart for His People in Turbulent Times
We are entering turbulent, difficult days. If you are walking through struggle right now, it may be evidence that you are exactly the person God intends to use. Difficulty is often the forge where true shepherds are shaped.
God is grieved—His heart is broken—over the way many have mishandled His people. He is saying, “I’m sick of it. I don’t want to hear it anymore.” It is time to stop playing church and finally be the church.
Judgment on Worthless Shepherds
Scripture is clear and severe:
“Woe to my worthless shepherd, who deserts the flock! May the sword strike his arm and his right eye! Let his arm be wholly withered, his right eye utterly blinded.” (Zechariah 11:17)
“Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture!” declares the Lord… “Behold, I will attend to you for your evil deeds,” declares the Lord. (Jeremiah 23:1-2)
God removed the anointing from Saul and placed it on David because David carried God’s heart for the flock. He is doing it again.
A Prophetic Dream: Pastors Preserved on Ice
On January 30th, the Lord spoke Jeremiah 3:15 over us: “I will give you shepherds after My own heart, who will feed you with knowledge and understanding.”
In a prophetic encounter, I saw a diverse gathering of young men and women, 20s and 30s, who had just come through a hard season together. I asked, “Who here is willing to be a shepherd?” Hands went up—some boldly, some hesitantly—because the enemy had beaten many down and stolen their sense of worthiness.
Suddenly the scene shifted. I was in a large barracks made entirely of thick ice—walls, floors, bunk beds, everything frozen. Every person who had raised their hand was lying on those ice beds, perfectly preserved.
As I began to speak to them about the cost of true shepherding—laying down your life, loving when it hurts, staying loyal when no one loves you back—my heart broke open. I wept inside as I told them:
- Ministry is not about what you get; it is about loving God by loving His people.
- Pastors after God’s heart do not hop from flock to flock; they commit to the people God entrusts to them for life.
- Mega-flocks you cannot truly pasture; you can only perform in front of them while sheep die unnoticed.
The Lord spoke clearly: “I heard the cry of your heart. I have preserved these pastors on ice for what is about to happen. They will come forth with My heart.”
The Coming Picture of True Church
In the days ahead, when we gather in stadiums, it will not look like one big crowd under one celebrity leader. Zoom in and you will see hundreds of faithful shepherds, each surrounded by the small flock they have cried over, celebrated with, eaten with, and refused to abandon—like David with his few sheep.
That is the church Jesus is building.
The High Cost and Deep Reward of David’s Heart
David took every blow meant for the sheep. Saul took blows at the sheep. God is looking for men and women who will say, “I choose David’s heart. I will stand in the gap. I will love difficult people with free will because I love the God who loved me first.”
Success is not a bigger platform. Success is faithfulness to the end—even if, like Jesus on the cross, everyone walks away.
A Call to the Preserved Ones
If the Holy Spirit is stirring you—if you are willing to be one of those preserved on ice, ready to shepherd a flock with loyalty and tears—go to greglancaster.org and let us know. Let us know at Vine Fellowship Network – Why Relate!
The training, the brokenness, the mentoring—it all begins with a raised hand that says, “Here am I. Send me.”
And if you have never made Jesus the Lord of your life, these coming days are urgent. Pray with me now:
“Dear Jesus, I believe You are the Son of God. You lived a sinless life, died on the cross for my sins, and rose again. I choose You today as my Lord and Savior. Wash me, forgive me, make me new. I am Yours. In Jesus’ name, amen.”
Welcome to the family. Find out more at GregLancaster.org/KnowGod or Text “Jesus” to 850-786-4GLM (4456).