Visual Reminders for Prophesying

Over the last fortnight I have taught the teenagers (ages 13-15) in our church’s Teen Leadership Academy. Some of these teenagers have grown up in our church and have had numerous teaching on the prophetic before and have also been involved in giving numerous prophetic words to people. Others were brand new to hearing God’s voice.

Our aim was to help these teens not only hear God for themselves but also for others. A secondary aim was to invite these teens to release prophetic words to individuals after our church service along with the adult prophetic team.

After we had looked at hearing God’s voice for ourselves, I concentrated on hearing God’s voice for others. To help introduce the purpose and aims of prophesying to others, I gave each teen a ‘goodies’ bag. These bags had eight items in them. They were a huge hit!! Visual cues help reinforce our teaching point so much more effectively.

These items were:

  1. Heart shaped sunglasses

So important to have love as the basis for communicating God’s heart to others.

  1. Packet of very sour & very sweet lollies

When we are prophesying to others, we want to leave a ‘sweet’ taste in their mouth. We do not want to leave a sour taste.

  1. Candle

When we prophesy, we want to light a fire within them that burns for what we have communicated.

  1. Gold medal

Each person has their own race to run and must run their race. The medal symbolised us enabling them to see, through our prophesying, what their race is that they are called to run and finish.

  1. Water pistol

When we prophesy, we are called to hit the target that God has placed on their life.

  1. Australian Tattoo

We are Australian. That is who we are. An Australian tattoo symbolises our identity.  Part of prophesying is calling people into their full identity as sons and daughters of God.

  1. Ring

Another part of prophesying is helping people to realise their full authority. The ring symbolises the ring the Father placed on the prodigal son. This means having full identity and authority as the Father’s child.

  1. Key attached to a (photocopied) computer ESC key

(This was a stretch but all I could think of that communicated the acronym ‘ESC’). 1 Corinthians 14:3 says that all prophecy should be encouraging, strengthening and comforting.

The teens loved it and the following week could remember all the objects they had received in their bag.

What are your thoughts?

What are some other items you may have included to help them remember what prophesying over others is about?

I would love to hear your thoughts. Please feel free to comment or let me know.

 

Prophetic Activations / Exercises to incorporate into your week:

Every week I list 5 prophetic activations/exercises under children/family, group, beginner, intermediate and advanced. The purpose of these exercises is to practice to help us hear God’s voice in a clearer manner. They sharpen our senses to hear and see and sense God and His way of communicating with us. This enables us to grow in our relationship with God and also to impart to others what God tells us for them. Feel free to use as many of these activations each week as you can. The more you practice, the sharper you become at hearing God’s voice. Enjoy! Remember that whenever you give another person a prophetic word or picture etc, please make sure that it is encouraging, edifying (strengthening) and comforting (1 Corinthians 14:3) and that it comes from a place of love.

1. Children / Families Activation: Have gold/yellow cardboard precut to look like a medal. Punch a hole in it and thread cord through it so that it looks like a winners medal. Have pens/pencils handy. Ask each person to make a medal for themself about what God says that they are the winner for in Heaven and here on earth. If time, ask them to make one for someone else, asking God what that person’s purpose is here on earth or the race they will win at running.

2. Group Activation: Have sheets of A4 paper and pens/textas handy. Distribute a sheet of paper to everyone. Ask them to place their name in the middle of the page followed by the word ‘is’. eg ‘Jane is’. Then ask everyone to give their paper to the person on their left. This person will write one sentence that they sense, hear or see from God about who that person is. Then ask everyone to keep passing the paper around to the people on their left until at least everyone’s sheet of paper has at least ten sentences on it about who they are, their identity. Return the sheets to their owners. Maybe even have someone speak the sentences over each person as the papers are returned to their rightful owner.

3. Beginner Activation: Spend some time with God asking Him to show or tell you how He sees you dressedAs you begin to hear or see or sense what it is, then ask God further questions. Eg Why am I dressed that way? Is this how I am seen in Heaven? What is on my head? What would you like to put in my right hand God? etc

4. Intermediate Activation: Find a community group that is struggling in its identity. Ask God for a prophetic word about this group’s identity. Ask God how to most effectively release that word to the group.

5. Advanced Activation: Ask God for a prophetic word for your nation’s first people and their future. Ask God what He would like you to then do with that prophetic word. Then do it.