Thus sayeth the Lord

I'll be honest, when I hear the word "prophet," I want to run. It's not because I'm afraid they will expose something hidden or chastise me in public. It's because I've experienced too much hype and emotion from others overly excited about what has turned out to be nothing more than just that...hype and emotion. So, you can imagine my response when I heard "prophets" were coming to our staff conference. (ugh!)

Nevertheless, because I trust leadership and because I do believe we as God's children can hear from God, I tried to go into it with a good attitude and humble heart. Their teaching was okay at best, honestly. Really, we already knew everything they had to share and I felt like they should be teaching in a DTS. But, when they began praying for people, I knew they indeed had something to offer us. The words they heard from the Lord were not only fitting for the individuals they were praying for, they were specific and detailed. I, as all of us, knew...there was NO WAY they could have known some of the things they said. It was truly a bit creepy...in a good way, if that makes sense.

One thing they said to me was that I knew from the time I was a little girl what God wanted for my life. That's true...since I was six I've known I wanted to be a missionary. No one has been able to tell me otherwise. To Ben, they asked if he had ever seen an angel as a boy- a fact he had since forgotten. They then proceeded to give us details to a vision for the future we have had in our hearts for years.

Though I will continue to use wisdom and discernment when it comes to prophesy and other gifts of the Spirit, though this week, God has reminded me that He does use these gifts to encourage and exhort His people. Oh, and by the way, they never once used the phrase in my title, "thus sayeth the Lord."