If you have the spiritual gift of prophecy, receiving prophetic training is one way in which you can develop your gift. [1]

‘Do not neglect your gift… Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress.’ (1 Tim 4:14-15)

No spiritual gifts, even revelatory gifts such as discernment and prophecy, come mature and fully developed. We have a responsibility to steward the gifts God has given to us, from the time we recognise the early signs that we have them. [2]

Training and mentoring is a Biblical concept. In the Old Testament, Elijah and Elisha had groups of prophets that looked to them for leadership (2 Kings 2:5-7, 4:1, 4:38).

In the New Testament, we learn that God has given leaders to the church to help equip people for ministry and bring the church body to maturity (Eph 4:11-13). Jesus trained His disciples, who in turn trained other leaders to do the work of ministry.

7 Reasons why Prophetic Training can help Develop Your Gift of Prophecy:

1. Training is Focused on Developing Your Prophetic Gift

The purpose of training is gift and ministry development. Training is an intensive, focused way in which you can grow your prophetic gift and take the next steps forward in your prophetic ministry. Good prophetic training will not limit, but rather enlarge your capacity, providing you with tools for ongoing growth.

2. In Training, You Learn from other People’s Experience and Knowledge

Prophetic training will give you knowledge and instruction in your gift of prophecy. Along with this, training should teach you how to apply what you have learned with wisdom. The best teachers are those who are not afraid to share their own experiences—even failures. It is wiser to learn from other people’s mistakes than make your own!

3. Training enables you to Receive Specialist Instruction in your Gift

When you receive prophetic training, you are learning from instructors who are gifted and experienced in your area of ministry. They have a wealth of knowledge, wisdom and experience to impart to you.

Each of us has a propensity for blind spots-in other words, we don’t know what we don’t know! Training is an opportunity to have others who are further along in the journey speak into our lives, broaden our horizons and teach us new insights about our prophetic gifts.

4. Training Provides an Environment in which you can Practice

Your prophetic gift is sharpened through being put to use. Training should provide a safe environment [1] in which you can practice using your gift of prophecy amongst other people who are on the same journey. A good teacher will coach you, encourage you to prophesy and provide advice on how you can become more accurate at using your prophetic gift.

5. Training Provides you with Opportunities to Obtain Feedback

Feedback is vital to growth, and training should take this into account. Training is not meant to be a comfortable process. One Hebrew word for training means ‘to goad!’ (1 Chron 25:6-7). Training requires personal discipline. It also calls us to be open to direction and correction from those who are training and leading us. In a training environment, we should be assured that we are in a safe place to give and receive feedback, as we practice using our prophetic gifts.

6. Training helps you Identify and Release Outdated Styles of Ministry

Training can help us recognise and release old or incorrect paradigms and styles of prophetic ministry. Training is a great way to bring unity into a ministry team, as those trained receive the same instruction and are grounded in the same values together. Some values that should be present in prophetic training are: the Bible as a basis for prophecy, a balanced approach to prophetic ministry, prophecy that reflects Jesus’ character, leadership accountability, natural expression of prophecy and participation in a local church.

7. Training Provides Community with Like-Minded People

Training brings you into contact with people who are on the same journey as you, learning to exercise their prophetic gifts. You can encourage each other, share ideas and experiences and provide a safe place to have a go and practice using your gifts of prophecy together. It is good to attend training sessions that directly relate to your gift. However, it will also benefit you to attend any sessions your own church runs on leadership, ministry and Bible teaching. This is because the outworking of your gift is going to be unique to the flavour, vision and values of your church.

Understanding the culture of your church will assist you in expressing your spiritual gift. For example, you wouldn’t use a flamboyant style of expressing a prophetic gift in a conservative-culture church, and vice versa. Good training should recognise and honour these differences.

Be prepared to adapt what you learn in a training session to your personal world and your own church environment. Take care not to become rigid or prideful about the knowledge you acquire in prophetic training. It is wise to be teachable in the use of your prophetic gift. Humility and flexibility are important keys to fruitfulness in your prophetic ministry. [3]

---

Notes:

[1] At David McCracken Ministries, we believe that a safe environment is one where there is accountability to leadership, and that the New Testament context for being activated in spiritual gifts is church life (1 Cor 12, 14). This is the reason why our prophetic training (that includes activation) is held in local churches. For information on our prophetic training, click here.

[2] I discuss the stages of gift development and how to make the most of each one in my e-book,  ‘Grow Your Prophetic And Prayer Gifts.’ 

See my article, ‘Signs You May Have A Prophetic Gift.’

[3] This post was originally published as an Ezine article.

---

Related Posts:
There are many free prophetic training articles on Enliven Blog. Following are a sample:
How to Develop Your Prophetic Gift Pt 1: Where to Begin
How to Exercise Your Prophetic Gift Pt 1: Understand the Process of Prophecy
How To Activate Your Prophetic Gift
Prophetic Ministry In Church Life: 3 Non-Negotiables

© Helen Calder Enliven Blog – Prophetic Teaching

On team with David McCracken Ministries: Prophetic Ministry That Empowers The Church