Hunger for the Prophetic
As I am sitting in my office, talking to Papa, reading, listening to music, catching up on email, and a bunch of other stuff, I decided to listen to some words spoken over me prophetically through the last year or so. To say the least it is very refreshing to hear these words of encouragement and exhortation. They all hit me right where I was at at that time..and incredibly they still each have chords throughout that are good words for me today too! God is good like that, ya know? LOL!
Anyway, while listening to two of the three of them, I was struck by the background noises. The third had no background noise because it was given in a more intimate setting. But the first two had background noise. The first was at IHOP-KC and the second at Metro South, a non-denominational independent Christian church. In both cases there was other ministry, mostly prophetic, going on around me. The setting at IHOP was a time where there were teams of people prepared to pray prophetically over those who wished to be prayed for. At Metro, it was much the same. At IHOP we (a group of three of us and about five on the prayer team) went into a little side room. At Metro, it was after a Sunday service and it was me alone being prayed over by three others, surrounded by other little groups only a few steps away engaging the same way.
Seeing the response to the opportunity to be spoken over by…Ok, side note time: I hesitate to use the word “Prophet” in describing these people. Not because what they do isn’t totally prophecy, but because to call them each a Prophet would be giving them a title. Much like in Eph. 4:11 where Paul is referring to an “office” or “title” given to leaders in the church. These people where exercising the gift of prophecy as in 1 Cor. 12-14. So it is more fitting to call them saints praying for another, exercising the gift of the Spirit for the time at hand. Or, just people praying for other people! LOL
Back on track…the response of the people desiring this kind of ministry upon themselves is astonishing. I ask the question, why is there such a desire to engage in this way. Is it because we are lacking in hearing from the Lord for ourself? Or maybe its because we need confirmation. Or maybe its because we doubt our own ability to hear. Or maybe we believe like old testament believer that only certain or special people can hear from the Lord, so we have to seek them out. I don’t think we truly believe this one, but we do come out of a church culture that promotes the hierarchy of the church…i.e. only the people up front can “get it.” It really is an “old testament” thought. It being Easter this coming Sunday, I am reminded that on that day the veil was torn in two. We can enter the Holy of Holies on our own…we CAN hear from the Lord directly! I know this…and I’m sure most of those seeking prophetic ministry did too. But does the Church as a whole? The burden of teaching this concept, hearing from the Lord for yourself, has been brought to a brighten place for me now. Next step – begin to explore it, and maybe just maybe write something and teach it…uh, that’s a thought I didn’t think would come from the beginning of all of this.
