Caged Gifts

The prophetic gift loses its edge when it simply parrots what people want to hear.

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The prophetic gift can disturb people. That should never be the goal, but it is the reality of the gift. Those who speak in God’s name and offer prophetic insight and direction are not called to be parrots. Parrots are taught to mimic words. They are amusing to listen to for a moment, but after a while, the repletion of their limited vocabulary becomes an annoyance.

The prophetic gift loses its edge when it simply parrots what people want to hear. The incisive edge of a prophetic gift can become dull because of fear or when it remains silent when the Lord has asked someone to speak a word that may appear out of sequence with chronological time or when there is no supporting evidence provided by the Lord to validate its content.

Those who minister prophetic words are often considered disrupters of the protected status quo when they awaken people to aspects of life they might not have seen or even consider without prophetic insight. The great challenge of possessing this gift is keeping our hearts tender and moldable in God’s hands when criticism or rejection takes place. Without those two elements at work in our lives, we will become a caged prophetic voice repeating only what is safe and offering a word without the risk of offense.

 

This is an updated edition of a post originally published on Garris Elkins

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About the Author

Garris Elkins is a Kingdom Winds Contributor. He and his wife, Jan, serve the global Church through writing, speaking, and mentoring. They live in southern Oregon, tucked away in the foothills of the Rogue Valley. Their shared desire is to have each person learn how to hear the heart of God and become a transforming voice in their culture.

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