When I have trouble getting a prophetic word for someone

key to person's heart hiddenHas your mind ever gone blank when you have been faced with having to immediately give a prophetic word to someone? Mine has. Numerous times. I am on our church’s prophetic team and we are often involved in a prophetic presbytery. Our church sets it up with teams of 2 people who prophesy over a person for a maximum of 6-7 minutes. We have a line of people waiting to receive a prophetic word. As soon as you & your partner have finished prophesying over a person, that person leaves and the next person in line moves forward to come to an available team. We begin by introducing our names and ask if they have a recording device if they don’t already have it in front of them ready to go. I usually get a sense of something from God immediately for the person and, as I speak it out, more comes. I am also learning to wait for a minute before I speak so as to try to get more of the detail and a greater depth to it. There are some occasions where I don’t get anything and my mind is blank.

Usually I am teemed up with different people who don’t speak first but like to wait several minutes before they speak to more fully understand what they are seeing, especially if they are a seer. I may also be teemed up with a person who is relatively new to giving prophetic words and wants to hear what I have to say first or who is not 100% confident in giving prophetic words to people. Unfortunately, we are usually limited to 6-7 minutes so we don’t have the luxury of having a long pause before we start speaking the prophetic word. What do I do in those circumstances if my mind is blank and I don’t have ‘anything’ for them? How do I go about finding the ‘key’ from God to unlock something from God for this person standing in front of me?

The first thing I do is to turn my heart and affections to Jesus. I silently worship God. I then ask God how He sees this person and how He wants to show love to them right now? If I’m still finding it hard to connect, I ask God how He sees this person dressed, what their strengths are, if the person was a tree what sort of tree they would be and what sort of fruit they would be producing etc. I also ask God what this person’s identity in Heaven is ie how is this person known in Heaven?

If I’m still finding it hard to get a prophetic word for this person, I then picture them standing under a Holy Spirit waterfall. I imagine them standing there with the Holy Spirit flowing down over them and I ask the Holy Spirit what it is that the Holy Spirit is showering upon them.

Bear in mind, this usually occurs within 10-30 seconds. If I was at home writing a prophetic word out for someone, I take a lot longer. Thus, in situations like the Prophetic Presbytery’s, I find it invaluable to have a list of questions to ask God in my mind, ready to ‘pull on’ and get God’s perspective for the person.

To summarise and put it in a list format, the questions I have ready to ask God include:

  • How does God see this person?
  • How does God want to show love to them right now?
  • How does God see this person dressed?
  • What are their strengths?
  • If the person was a tree what sort of tree they would be and what sort of fruit they would be producing?
  • What this person’s identity is in Heaven ie how is this person known in Heaven?
  • If this person was standing under a Holy Spirit waterfall, what is it Holy Spirit that you are pouring over them and filling them with and why?

Upon reflection, the times I find hard, I need to take a further moment to not rush things. I also need to look at my preparation. How have I prepared and what have I done in the preparation for giving prophetic words? These questions challenge me and help me be ‘switched on’ immediately to release God’s word out of my mouth for these folk.

What do you find helps you when you have a ‘blank’ mind when you go to give someone a prophetic word? I would love to hear what you do that enables you to find the key to giving a prophetic word to others when your mind goes blank.

Prophetic Activations / Exercises to incorporate into your week:

The purpose of these exercises is to help us hear God’s voice in a clearer manner. They sharpen our senses to hear and recognise God’s voice 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: Find up a lot of matchbox cars/vehicles and place in the centre of you all. Get everyone to ask God which sort of car/vehicle the person on your left is. Take it in turn and pick up that particular car and give it to that person and explain why that vehicle.

2. Group Activation: Have a selection of fruit and nuts on a table. Get everyone to pair up. Ask God to highlight to you which fruit or nut represents your partner. Pick up 2 pieces of that particular fruit or nut for your partner that you feel speaks of them. Smell the fruit/nut. Feel the fruit/nut. Put one piece in your mouth and taste it. Really lean into the flavour and savour everything about the fruit or nut. Let the smell, taste, feel add to the substance and weightiness of your prophetic word for your partner. Give them the item plus share with them why that fruit or nut represents them and the prophetic word concerning them and the fruit/nut.

3. Beginner Activation: Turn on the radio and the first person you hear, practice writing a prophetic word for. You don’t have to send this prophetic word to that person, just practice hearing from God for something for that person.

4. Intermediate Activation: Find a magazine. Open it and find 3 pictures that stand out to you. Ask God to bring a suitable person to mind. Craft/write a prophetic word for this person using those 3 pictures as a starting point.

5. Advanced Activation: Choose a local community group. Ask God for a prophetic word for this group. Write them a letter, using non christian language, to encourage them and spur this group on for the best of the community.