Prophecy is a treasured gift according to Paul (1 Cor 14:1). It allows the receiver to benefit from hearing directly from God, and when shared with others, brings the same benefit to them. By hearing God speak we learn about His nature and His will. We also receive personal ministry from God through prophecy.
If we learn how to separate our thoughts from God’s thoughts we will gain faith and be able to receive from God all He wants to share with us. Today I want to speak about our hearts. Since God created Man in His image, we have the potential of having a very good heart. We also are aware of sins that can or have lived in our hearts. It is not difficult for a Christian to identify when he desires good things from when he desires bad things. But there is another area that is more difficult to discern. It is our desire to do good. We were born with a desire to do good, and when we are born again by the Holy Spirit the desire to do good multiplies as our love for Man grows. Sometimes our hearts feel like they will burst with all the good thoughts we have towards others.
You might wonder how wanting to do good could interfere with hearing and discerning God’s voice. Logically, doing good seems right. It is our desire, or will to do good. And here is issue with hearing God’s word; our thoughts are not God’s thoughts, and our desires do not always line up with God’s will. Here are some points that the Lord has taught me concerning prophecy and my desire to see good come to the person I minister to;
1. First determine what I want to have happen, then share that in a prayer with the Lord, waiting on Him for His answer. It is not wrong to pray for what we want to happen; that is called a petition. It is wrong to prophesy what we want to have happen because, in this case, the word originates from our will and not from the Lord’s will.
2. Giving a word of encouragement is good. However, do not confuse the word of encouragement with prophecy. When the Lord leads you to scriptures and encouragement for someone, if you have no insight as to what else the Lord would say, simply state what you have and do not guess about God’s further leading. In 1 Cor 4:6b Paul writes “Do not go beyond what is written.” In other words, do not add to what the Lord has imparted to you, and then you will not go wrong.
3. Though we may want to make a declaration over someone for good to come into their life, a prophetic declaration originates in God and is imparted to us through the Spirit of Revelation (Eph 1;17b). We often call the Spirit of Revelation “insight”, and Paul talks about this in Ephesians as having the “eyes of (our) hearts opened,” (1:18). God can give insight in one word, in a sentence, in a simile, in a vision with its interpretation . . . there are many ways that God stirs our mind by His Spirit of Revelation. It seems like a light bulb is turned on in our mind when this happens, and we have just the right words to say to the person we are ministering to. What we say may become a Word of Knowledge, increasing the listener’s awareness that God is speaking personally to him. Paul talks about this as “laying the secrets of . . .the heart . . . bare.” (1 Cor 14:25).
4. Set aside what you want the person you’re ministering to to feel, or how they should react. If you can’t be impartial to their feelings then you will find yourself tailoring the message to fit the feelings you want them to express. God knows that it is hard to be rejected. However, He also knows that many who have rejected His words later on remember them and give God the glory for the words you have spoken to them. Let the “stream” of water be pure . . . the pure word from God.
Application - Take time now to pray for those whom you would like God to bless. Tell the Lord just how you would like Him to bless that person or people. Then write each name down with the blessing or intervention you prayed for across from their names. Be sure you have blank space so that you can write what you hear the Lord saying. If you do not sense He is saying anything, listen for scriptures that will rumble around in your spirit. Look them up and write them down across from the names. Wait on Him at least 5 minutes, then set the paper aside. Do not feel discouraged if you did not receive a prophecy for someone on your paper. The paper is a way of you coming before the Lord, and an indication that you will be available for His input concerning the people whose names you have written down. Later, come before the Lord and mention the blank spaces. Tell Him you are available and listening, should He have something to talk about. Sometimes He “readies the vessel” first. In other words, He moves things around in our own heart so that we can receive what He has to say about someone else. Be patient, and never go beyond the word, spoken or written. Amen.
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