If you are nearing retirement age, or are older, this word is for you.

If you are not, pay close attention. It is vital that those of us who are younger hear what the Father is saying to those who are further on in life’s journey than we are.

Viewing our seniors through the eyeglasses of our culture, we mistakenly see a winter season, a period of life where fruitfulness lies behind.

Our God, however—the God of Abraham and Sarah, and Zechariah and Elizabeth—sees spring, and a season of fruitfulness yet ahead.

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Three Women, One Message

It started around 8 weeks ago when I was sitting in our church reception area with a woman in our congregation who is 73 years old.

She told me of how she had recently had a prophetic dream and described it to me in detail. It was a remarkable dream—in it she met the Lord. She also saw an unusual fruit tree.

It was clear that the dream spoke of a new season of fruitfulness in her life.

Several weeks later, she attended Healing Rooms training for the first time at our church. God is breaking open new ministry opportunities to her.

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Three days after this encounter, I was speaking at a women’s breakfast, which was being held at a church over the other side of our city.

I happened to sit with a woman who was around eighty years of age.

She is a gifted artist, who in earlier years had been an art teacher and held exhibitions of her work. However, because of eyesight problems and unsteadiness of hand she had given up her art.

That is until one day recently, when the Lord gave her a prophetic dream in the night. She described the dream to me in detail.

It was clear that the Father was instructing her to pick up her gift of art again, which she has done. She said to me, “I am not sure how it is going to turn out, but I know that the artwork I am doing is prophetic.”

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Days after this, I was in Sydney at a healing conference. A group of us, including an older couple, chatted as we waited for a lift at our accommodation. The husband said to his wife, “Tell them what God has done for you.”

She held out her hand, explaining, “My finger was bent and crippled, but now it is straight.” She said, “I should have known.” The night before in the worship she was worshipping and found herself making a motion with her hands as though she was playing the piano.

She hadn’t played in years because of her crippled hand, but God gave her a prophetic sign that the next day was fulfilled—SHE IS HEALED!

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A New Lease On Life

‘They will still bear fruit in old age; they will stay fresh and green. Ps 92:14

Just as Moses, encountered the burning bush of God’s Presence at 80 years old and received a fresh commissioning, THIS IS GOD’S TIME TO VISIT HIS OLDER SONS AND DAUGHTERS.

What have been considered the twilight years of life are becoming the highlight years of life, as the Father awakens dormant callings, revives gifts and bestows new ministries upon His people.

God is holding out the sceptre of His favour to His older children. They will become the ‘unexpected army’ of God’s Kingdom and be a sign and witness to this generation of His grace and power.

Depression and weariness will lift off and gifts of healing will be released as they experiences prophetic encounters and receive from their heavenly Father a ‘new lease on life.’

‘In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams.” (Acts 2:17)

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*Do you have any similar experiences or responses to share with us on this topic? I would love to hear from you. Leave a comment in the box below. If the comment box is not visible, click on this link and scroll down.

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Related Posts:

Prophetic Word for 2010: How You Can Receive Your Own Prophecy

© Helen Calder 2010 Enliven Publishing

Now on team with David McCracken Ministries

This is the fourth in a series of posts on the topic of the spiritual gift of discernment.

The gift of discernment of spirits is a powerful weapon in times of spiritual warfare in church life, and of great assistance when breakthrough is needed.

Is it any wonder, then, that the activation of this gift is highly contested?

Many discerners struggle when it comes to communicating an insight they have received concerning what is taking place in the spiritual realm to leaders in their church.

Here are some tips to help you establish trust with your leaders and to maximise the effectiveness of your gift of discernment in church life. Note: these keys also apply to exercising the gift of discernment in any Christian organisation.

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1. Make Prayer your First Response

Whenever we have an insight as to something taking place in the spiritual realm, our first response should always be prayer. As we pray, we are:

• Confirming that our insight is based on something we have received from a place of intimacy with God and not from our personal feelings
• If the discernment relates to spiritual warfare, we are beginning to pray for God’s intervention
• Asking for further insight relating to the bigger picture of what we are perceiving

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2. Discern What the Spirit of God is doing

A fallacy about the gift of discernment (and the watchman ministry) is that it exists solely to identify demonic attack.

Actually, the highest use of the gift of discernment is to see what the Spirit of God is doing.

Someone with a gift of discernment of spirits has the ability to perceive:

• What the Spirit of God is doing, i.e. where His anointing is
• Angelic activity
• Demonic activity, and to describe it by name and nature for the purpose of waging spiritual warfare
• What is sourced in human desire or nature (not necessarily negative unless it is presented as being of the Holy Spirit but isn’t)

In other words, a discerner has a Spirit-given ability to distinguish between what is from the human soul, what is of the Spirit of God, and what of a demonic source.

If a discerner is only ever seeing and relaying reports on demonic activity, there is an unhealthy imbalance, which needs to be corrected.

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3. Seek God for His Redemptive Plan

Related to the above point, it is vital that we form the habit of looking for what God is doing, not just reporting on what the enemy is doing.

Leaders get enough negative reports coming their way without it continually coming from intercessors and their prophetic team as well!

Even when there is warfare happening and the church is under spiritual pressure (attack) our Father is up to something good. He has plans to overturn demonic strategies and to grow the church.

So don’t just bring a negative report to your leaders. Go back to God and ask Him – what is HE up to?

Something that’s especially helpful if you have the gift of discernment is to activate the gift of prophecy as well (even if this is at a basic level of encouragement) and team the two gifts up.

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4. Find out the Preferred Means for Delivering Discernment and Prophetic Words in Your Church

Every church has its own practices for sharing revelatory insights. And within a larger church, individual leaders or pastors may prefer different approaches.

It is important if you are unsure, especially if you have changed churches, to ascertain what this protocol is. If your leader has not considered this before, give them a few options and find out which they prefer.

If public sharing in your church meeting is encouraged, I recommend running your insight past a leader before presenting it before others. Prayer meetings may have different practices to other public meetings or services.

Some examples of avenues to report a revelatory insight to a leader are:

• Speaking to the leader personally
• Report directly via email or other means
• Report via a secretary or PA
• Share via a designated leader or prayer coordinator

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5. Share your Discernment Appropriately

One thing we must never do is ‘gossip’ revelatory insights. We do that when we share with others who are not in leadership the discernment we are receiving about leaders or the church.

The reason I make a special note of this is that it can happen unintentionally, in the guise of seeking advice, confirmation, help or prayer support from our peers.

Discernment received in a prayer meeting may be prayed through at that time, but should be relayed immediately to the church oversight.

Sometimes we do need a SAFE PLACE to process what we are receiving—especially when we are starting out and we lack confidence.

This may be the leader (minister or pastor) directly. However, our leaders may be too busy, or have a limited understanding of developing the ministry of discernment. They need the benefits of receiving it, but it is not necessarily their job to develop it.

In many cases, a trusted prophetic leader or intercessor may have delegated authority to assist a discerner with processing what he or she is receiving before presenting it to the oversight.

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6. Other Tips for Sharing Discernment with Leaders

Use Prophetic Jargon Sparingly

Many church leaders are not themselves prophetically gifted. Even if they are, we should, as far as possible, use straightforward language and expression when communicating issues of discernment.

Be aware of Differences Between your Values and those of your Leaders

We need to be aware of differences between our own priorities and those of our leaders, because these are often reflected in the content or way we present a word of prophecy or discernment (this is a vital issue and I will discuss it further in a later post).

Submit your Discernment Without Strings Attached

When we share an insight concerning discernment that we have received, we naturally want to know whether it has been acted upon.

However, as with words of prophecy, we need to release our discernment and not place any expectation that our insight be acted upon or responded to.

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*Do you have any questions or experiences to share with us on this topic? I would love to hear from you. Leave a comment in the box below. If the comment box is not visible, click on this link and scroll down.

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UNLOCKING THE GIFT OF DISCERNMENT E-BOOK – *NEW!*

$5.95 e-Book*

Are you sensitive to what is taking place in the spiritual realm? Have you ever been adversely affected by a negative atmosphere?

You may have the spiritual gift of discernment.

The gift of discernment of spirits is a powerful weapon in times of spiritual warfare, and can be of great assistance when ministering freedom to individuals.

And yet many who have the gift of discernment have difficulty knowing what to do with what they are feeling or sensing.

(More details …)

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Related Posts:

8 Signs You May Have The Spiritual Gift Of Discernment

The Heart Of A Discerner

8 Ways To Grow Your Spiritual Gift Of Discernment

© Helen Calder  2010   Enliven Publishing

Now on team with David McCracken Ministries

‘Do not neglect your gift…’
(1 Tim 4:14)

‘A prophet visited our church in Auckland, New Zealand. He pointed me out in the congregation and said, “You have a gift of discernment.”

A few years later when we were living in another city, the same prophet visited our church there. He again pointed me out and said, “Has anyone ever told you that you have a gift of discernment of spirits?” I said, “Yes, you did several years ago.”

We all had a good laugh—but he remembered neither the earlier prophecy nor me. He ministered throughout New Zealand and overseas and had prophesied over hundreds of people in the interim.’[1]

It is one thing to know that you have a spiritual gift of discernment—it is quite another thing to know what to do with it, and how to use it.

A short time after this prophetic confirmation, I began to struggle in church life. I had not been taught the principle of honouring leaders and accountability in the use of my revelatory gifts.

I thank God that He allowed a time of trial to teach me and bring me through repentance to a place of fruitfulness in the use of my gifts. [2]

Through good stewardship we can reach our potential and our gifts can be used to bless and grow the church.

The gift of discernment is a powerful weapon in times of spiritual warfare and of great assistance when breakthrough is needed in our personal or church life.

Here are 8 ways that you can grow your spiritual gift of discernment of spirits. And yes, some of these I have learned the hard way—through trial and error.

1. Source It

True discernment comes from intimacy with the Father.

It is vital that we understand the difference between discernment that is from the Holy Spirit and suspicion, which can masquerade as discernment, but is actually sourced in our own human nature. This is a danger that can trip even mature discerners up. The best means of preventing this is our intimate relationship with God. Other ways we can keep our gift on track are below:

2. Plant It

‘Planted in the house of the LORD, they will flourish in the courts of our God.’ Ps 92:13

The Biblical context for growing in our gifts is the community of a church (1 Cor 12).

As with all prophetic people, discerners need to be cared for and pastored in a church environment.

When we are planted in the life of a healthy church, we can flourish and grow in our gift. However, we must remember that it will not always be smooth sailing in community life—even in the healthiest of churches.

3. Submit It

It is vital, and a matter of protection for others and ourselves, that we operate in our spiritual gift of discernment with accountability, and under God-given leadership.

It is important that we encourage our insights to be weighed up (1 Cor 14:29). As the Apostle Paul said, ‘For we know in part and we prophesy in part.’ (1 Cor 13:9)

The discernment that we receive is incomplete without the insights of others, who will have different pieces of the puzzle and complementary gifts. (1 Cor 12:12-27)

Feedback is also a great tool to help us grow in our discernment.

4. Purify It

It is possible for the expression of a discernment gift to be affected by our response to negative experiences that we have had in our lives.

I had prayer ministry to help me break free of fear associated with early experiences of demonic encounters. I also received ministry in relation to difficulties with authority. As a result, I have a much more useful gift.

I have also had to grow a great deal in my character—a journey that is ongoing!

5. Study It

Find out what the Bible has to say about the gift of discernment:

• Read examples of people who encountered unseen spiritual realities—how did they respond? What did they do as a result of their experiences?

• How and when did Jesus use the gift of discernment to minister to people?

• What does the Apostle Paul say in his epistles about how spiritual gifts operate in the context of church life and ministry?

6. Develop It

As with other gifts, discernment can be developed and strengthened.

The ability to receive a revelation from God is only one aspect of this spiritual gift. Other aspects include:

• Having the wisdom to know what to do once you have received the discernment,
• How and when to share your insight
• How to weigh up what you have received against scripture
• Procedures for submitting an insight, and so on.

Seek to be trained or mentored in the context of Christian community, where you have safe people who can give you feedback and encourage you on the journey.

Look for good training, along with books and other resources on the topic of spiritual warfare and related areas.

7. Use It

Don’t hold back. Even if you are starting out and tentative, God can use you powerfully. Use your gift of discernment to help guard and grow your church.

If you discern warfare or have a warning, remember that God’s heart is always to redeem and restore. Seek the Father for a promise and His outcome.

The gift of discernment can also help give you insight as to how to respond and pray for breakthrough in any situation.

8. Persevere With It

In the development of every spiritual gift there are times of trial.

In some testing times, God may be allowing us to lose confidence in our own ability to perform in our gift. For example, we may have a period when our discernment becomes cloudy, or we may make an assumption that turns out to be in error.

During these times He is calling us to become more dependent upon Him, and to grow in humility.

You may have true discernment but have been misunderstood or feel as though you have been set aside for a season.

These are times to persevere, and not to allow offense or discouragement to divert you from your calling.

Wilderness seasons are allowed by our Heavenly Father to help us grow in our character or to direct us into new areas of fruitfulness.

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*Do you have any questions or experiences to share with us on this topic? I would love to hear from you. Leave a comment in the box below. If the comment box is not visible, click on this link and scroll down.

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UNLOCKING THE GIFT OF DISCERNMENT E-BOOK – *NEW!*

$5.95 e-Book*

Are you sensitive to what is taking place in the spiritual realm? Have you ever been adversely affected by a negative atmosphere?

You may have the spiritual gift of discernment.

The gift of discernment of spirits is a powerful weapon in times of spiritual warfare, and can be of great assistance when ministering freedom to individuals.

And yet many who have the gift of discernment have difficulty knowing what to do with what they are feeling or sensing.

(More details …)

---

Would you like to develop your prophetic gift?
Here are 3 things that can help you:

1. Prophetic Teaching:
Enter your email address in the subscribe box at the top right hand side of this page to receive:

• regular blog posts containing teaching that will help you grow in your gift of prophecy, as well as articles on spiritual gifts, prayer, spiritual renewal and supernatural Christian living
• notifications about online prophetic training opportunities

2. Prophetic Training:

Check here for prophetic training resources and information

3. E-books to Help you Develop Your Gifts:

‘Grow Your Prophetic And Prayer Gifts’ is a high-value e-book specifically written to help you grow in your prophetic gifts – at whatever stage or season you are on the journey.

Check out our e-books page for more e-books related to prophetic and prayer ministry.

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Related posts:

8 Signs You May Have The Spiritual Gift Of Discernment

The Heart Of A Discerner

Prophetic People In Testing Times: The Reason For The Season

6 Tips For Exercising The Gift Of Discernment In Church Life

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Notes:
[1] This is quoted from my book, ‘Grow Your Prophetic And Prayer Gifts’
[2]I tell the full story in ‘Prophetic People In A Changing Church.’ For a brief testimony check out the Enliven Publishing ‘About’ page.

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© Helen Calder 2010    Enliven Publishing

Now on team with David McCracken Ministries

Fathers Day (Australia & New Zealand) Sunday 5th September 2010

‘Are You the God I am afraid You are—or the God I want You to be?’

My crisis of burnout in early 2009 could be summed up in this question that I asked at that time.

‘Are You the God I am afraid that You are—a task-master whose approval I can never win? Or the Father I have longed for—a God of grace and joy?’

How can it be that a Christian of 33 years could have such a crisis of faith?

The Orphan Spirit

‘I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.’ John 14:18

As Christians, we are beloved children—sons and daughters—of a loving Father. And yet for many of us, this truth is negated by a deep-rooted belief that we need to prove our worth in order to be loved.

We are born again as sons and daughters, a relationship so valued by God that Jesus paid the price of His life-blood for it, and yet many of us live as spiritual orphans. Why?

I first came across teaching about the ‘orphan spirit’ by Jack Frost in 2002 [1]. I read his articles with interest and agreement, little knowing that at least one statement would prove prophetic:

‘Often within the church it is difficult to tell whether a person walks in the heart attitude of an orphan or a son (this includes daughters).  Outwardly, a person may have a pattern of service, sacrifice,discipline, and apparent loyalty,but you do not know what is inside a person until he or she gets bumped. Then the attitude of the heart overflows at a time when they feel they are not getting the recognition or favor they deserve.’ Jack Frost [1]

My loving Father arranged for the year 2008 to be the year I was ‘bumped.’ Due to transition in the ministry I served in, I had 5 responsibilities, and could do none of them well. It seemed that no matter how hard I worked, the approval I craved was withheld.

I emerged in 2009 free of all but one of the ministry roles, but burnt out and exhausted. It was in the ensuing crisis of faith that I asked the question, ‘Are You the God I am afraid You are—or the God I want You to be?’

Discovering the Father’s Heart.

It was in this year of brokenness, devoid of the ability to achieve, that I discovered the grace of my Heavenly Father.

This was chiefly expressed through my husband, who bravely bore the burden of providing for our household, giving me as much time as I needed to recover.

I also discovered grace through friends who encouraged me to find and express my own voice, resulting in this blog.

I discovered grace through the presence and patience of my pastors and church family.

I discovered grace through reconnecting with the Father and allowing Him to peel back the layers of my need to perform, replacing them with His love.

Living as Sons and Daughters

“This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” Matt 3:17

Two weeks ago I listened as Lief Hetland [3] taught on ‘The Orphan Spirit.’ An orphan, he said,

• Sees God as a master
• Lives by love of the law
• Is always insecure
• Needs to be noticed
• Is one for whom discipline is a duty

Whereas a son and daughter:

• Sees God as a loving Father
• Lives by the law of love
• Has security, rest, peace
• Has total acceptance
• Is one for whom discipline is a delight

He went on to share five truths associated with this—the revelation of belonging, of being wanted and valued, of favour, of being seen and watched over by God, and of being approved.

It was a great message, and when he gave the call for those who needed to respond to stand, I actually stayed seated—a testimony to the work God has done in my life over the past year.

Kingdom Citizenship

Leif then asked the worship leader, Steve Swanson, to sing a song of the Father’s love over us. As I opened my heart to God in that tender moment, I had a vision:

‘I was looking at a secured metal briefcase. It immediately reminded me of the movie ‘The Bourne Identity,’ when Jason Bourne went into the secure bank deposit and came away with a briefcase that contained passports, weapons and a wealth of money.

Down the right-hand side of the briefcase was a combination lock. It was very long—a set of numbers that would be impossible to remember. At the moment I noticed it, the Father said, ‘Don’t worry, I’ve got this covered.’ He opened the case.

To my surprise, the case contained no wealth—in fact, it was relatively empty.

All it contained was a single passport.

I knew that it was a Kingdom passport, and that it was mine because I was a daughter of the King. The front cover was embossed with a large crown, along with the face of a lion. ‘The Lion of the Tribe of Judah.’

God in His grace chose a revelation that had personal meaning to me. You see, my family and I are not citizens of the country we are now living in. This has been an ongoing source of frustration to us, as there are rights and privileges we do not have access to here in Australia.

Now, He was showing me that I am a citizen of His Kingdom, belonging to His Tribe, fully qualified, with all the rights and privileges attached to being a daughter of His Kingdom. There are no places in His will I cannot go to—every door my Father opens I can pass through.

I did not realise that there was a wound attached to my citizenship status until God chose at that moment to reveal and heal it.

But better than that—the truth of sonship has, once and for all, dropped from my head to my heart. I no longer need to live as a spiritual orphan. I am a daughter of the King.

And the answer to my question?

‘I am the God you want Me to be. I am the Father you have longed for—the God of grace and joy.’

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If this article has spoken to you, you may be interested in the following resources that I have referred to:

[1] Here are the links to download Jack and Trisha frost’s PDF articles on the orphan spirit:

(Note when you click on these links it will download the PDF files immediately. You can check out Shiloh Place Ministries website here: http://www.shilohplace.org/ )

Slavery To Sonship (1) Exposing The Roots Of The Spiritual Orphan

Slavery to Sonship (2)

[2] Leif Hetland – Healing The Orphan Spirit (Teaching CD)

Do you know of any resources on this subject that could help others who are on this journey? I would love you to share them with us in the comments section of this post. (If the comments box is not visible, click on this link and scroll down).

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Orphan V Sonship Message on MP3:

We need a Kingdom Perspective if we are going to fulfil our destiny. Is your perspective that of being a child of a loving Father—or is an orphan mindset affecting your response to God? Identifying the difference will change your life!
To listen to my message on ‘Kingdom Perspective,’ visit the Podcasts page or click here.

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Related Posts:

For a prayer to help you break free from an orphan mindset, read the first of the following posts:

Breaking Free From An Orphan Mindset

8 Signs Your Devotional Life is Caught in a Performance Trap

How Your Perspective Can Impact Your Destiny

Spiritual Renewal: How To Receive An Impartation Of The Holy Spirit

© Enliven Publishing 2010 Helen Calder

Now on team with David McCracken Ministries