Prophecy is a wonderful gift from the Holy Spirit that brings life to people and connects us with the heart of our heavenly Father. Through prophecy we can hear his voice, know his guidance and be empowered to step into our destinies.
When a prophetic culture is combined with missional passion then communities can be radically transformed. For this to happen and to engage with the prophetic in our missional communities we must institute a culture of best practise within the community. In doing this it might be helpful to consider the following; pray, permission, accountability, listening and testimony.
It is essential that when you meet together you always allow time for prayer and prophecy. Listening to God and expecting him to speak must be a natural and regular part of our missional community life. Acknowledge the prophetic words that have already had an impact in your community and encourage testimony from everyone.Good practise will be copied. Encourage and expect everyone who is a member of the community to be involved. Some will bring words of prophecy very frequently, as the gift comes very naturally to them. Others may be reluctant to speak, or they may only rarely have a prophetic word, so ensure that you make room for them to speak too. Always expect those bringing a prophecy to check it out with the leader first, before speaking it out. We are accountable before God and our leaders for what is spoken out.
As the leader you should listen and carefully weigh what is brought. It may need to be tested before being spoken out to the whole community. Sometimes you will want to weigh it amongst the leadership team before sharing it more widely. We are all human and sometimes we get things wrong! Always be gentle and affirming to those who have brought that word.
Appoint someone as ‘the recorder’ who will keep a record of the prophetic words spoken. It is good to note the date, who gave the word, when and where. This will ensure clarity when the words are weighed and tested. It provides a record for review as well as for testimony in the future.
Prophecy is birthed in prayer, inspired by the Holy Spirit, confirmed by the word.
When considering all of this I was drawn to Acts 10. You may want to reflect on this too.
Jenny Rosser lives in Durham with her husband David. They have been involved in the development and implementation of Missional Communities for the past 19 years.
