Here in Melbourne, Australia, we are welcoming the first signs of Autumn rain, after several dry months. Growth in our garden—halted due to the extreme Summer heat—is about to explode.
It reminds me of how a refreshing move of the Holy Spirit can bring a change of spiritual season to our lives and ministries.
Whilst we may enjoy a time of refreshing, other Biblical seasons do not appear so pleasant. (Heb 12:11) In His love and tender care, our Father also ordains seasons of pruning, testing, or wilderness times, to grow us in our call, gifts and character.
Spiritual seasons apply to the overall call of God in our lives—and also to the development of individual spiritual gifts, such as prophecy.
6 Stages of Growth in Your Prophetic Gift
In my book, ‘Grow Your Prophetic and Prayer Gifts,’ I identify 6 stages of growth in the development of spiritual gifts. [1] These are:
1. The Beginning Stage
Spiritual gifts are imparted to us at our new birth in Christ. (1 Peter 4:10)
2. The Desiring Stage
We may experience a God-given hunger that leads us, either to an area of ministry where the gift of prophecy can be tested and used, or to further study or training in the use of the prophetic gift. (1 Cor 14:1)
3. The Emerging Stage
There are visible signs that we have a spiritual gift of prophecy, and that it is anointed by God. We are seeing fruit—results that honour God, help people, and build the church. Our spiritual oversight are now acknowledging our gift. (Acts 19:6)
4. The Developing Stage
The growth of our prophetic gift is accelerated as we embrace opportunities such as prophetic training, mentoring, putting prophecy into practice and other forms of learning or study. (1 Tim 4:14-15)
5. The Testing Stage
We undergo a season of trial, or wilderness season, in the area of our giftedness. Our sense of confidence in ourselves is being stripped away but will be replaced by a new sense of dependency upon God. We gain wisdom and humility and are prepared for greater fruitfulness in prophetic ministry. (Acts 9:28-30)
6. The Maturing Stage
Having grown in wisdom as well as our gift, we are experiencing fruitfulness in the use of our spiritual gift of prophecy and may have the opportunity to lead, encourage or invest (reproduce) in others who are growing in the same area of ministry. (1 Cor 14:20)
Although I have placed these stages in order for the convenience of communication, God may lead us through them multiple times, as we mature in our gifts and calling. [2]
4 Benefits of Understanding the Growth Stage of Your Prophetic Gift
There are several advantages to being aware of which stage we are experiencing in our prophetic gift and ministry call:
1. We can make the most of our Current Season
For example, in a ‘desiring’ phase, we can overcome discouragement that a prophetic gift has not yet manifested or been acknowledged and continue to respond to the hunger that Holy Spirit has placed within us.
2. We can see the Bigger Picture
We can appreciate God’s faithfulness as we can look back at the journey that we have been on. This can be especially encouraging if we are undergoing a ‘testing’ season.
3. We can Break through Barriers
In a ‘testing’ season, for example, we realise that our response and the condition of our heart is of vital importance to the fulfilment of God’s call upon our lives—and can choose to respond well. We can also identify when the enemy’s strategy is to keep us stuck in a wilderness time and take steps to break free.
In an ‘emerging’ season, we can be encouraged to steward the gift God has given to us by not taking it for granted—and investing in further training and development.
4. We can lift the Ceiling on our Prophetic Gift
Understanding the stages of growth in our gift of prophecy can help us grow even further, for each stage contains ongoing lessons.
We can prayerfully identify which attributes of each season that we should revisit on an ongoing basis. For example, God may prompt us to:
- Stir up desire for a gift or ministry (desiring stage),
- Step out and try new things (emerging stage)
- Continue to seek opportunities for training and development (developing stage), and
- Continue to respond well to trials or hurts as they occur (testing stage)
Notes
[1]
Grow Your Prophetic And Prayer Gifts‘ is written to help you grow in your prophetic gifts and break through stuck places – at whatever stage or season you are on the journey. Visit our eStore for this eBook and more resources to empower you in your gifts and ministry, or our Prophetic Training page to learn about prophetic training opportunities with Helen Calder.
[2] Can you tell which season you may be experiencing? For a more comprehensive checklist of signs related to each season, see this article:
How to Develop Your Prophetic Gift by Understanding Your Season
Related Posts:
6 Reasons Why You Should Develop Your Prophetic Gift
11 Signs that Your Prophetic Gift is Being Held Back
Break Out and Grow Your Prophetic Gift: The Parable of the Bonsai
© Helen Calder Enliven Blog – Prophetic Teaching
Enliven Ministries: In the David McCracken Ministries family
Helen Calder is a prophetic minister and writer, and founder of Enliven Ministries. Helen has a unique gift of equipping in prophetic ministry and prayer. She is known for Enliven Blog (est. 2009), an online resource that reaches thousands of people globally.
First And Foremost I Would Like To Thank God For The Work You Are Doing, Am A Beginer In Prophecy God Uses Me In Dreams May You Continue To Send Emails To Me So That I Grow. God Bless You.
Thanks Helen, your prayers would be appreciated, mainly in the area of connecting with the right company of people.
Will do, David.
Hi Helen, I have been going to another church, being led by God; also has been using me. At first I would stand back of the person while they’re getting prayer, now she is using to open up in prayer; at the end have me pray for people. I know for a fact that my home church wouldn’t do this. At home, I can pray to God and have conversation and whole a lot, when I’m at church I clam up. I see other people pray a long prayer. I see it as being trained but using the Pastor that I spiritually connected with from another church. The most difficult is waiting on God, to open one door & shut the other; here’s why I find it hard because God gives a heads up on He’s going to do. You can say so it won’t be overwhelming for me & so I can process it.
Hi Ruthie,
Sorry I haven’t replied for a few days, we had to go out of town last week for a funeral, and I’m just getting back to comments now.
It is good for you to gain confidence in praying out loud in church situations, it’s a way that your prayers and relationship with God can help and bless others.
Do you mean by your question that you are not sure whether God is leading you to change churches?
Hi Helen, my condolences . I’m still not sure if that’s what He is leading to do, in changing churches. I know that I’m also getting trained at the new church and my home church I was not getting this training, I feel like God is getting me ready for my purpose. When I wake up, He sure let’s me know where He wants me to be, it’s at the new church I’ve been going to .
Helen,
I pray you still read these messages. I just came across this site tonight, I have been desperately searching, begging, praying for some direction, training, activating and cultivating of my gifts. Since I was a child (keep in mind I was NEVER raised in a church and never understood what or why things happened to me nor had anyone to help guide me or even voice them to) I have been considered ‘extra sensitive.’ I was only able to relate it to being an empath, now I am being told it is most likely prophetic. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Feel free to reach out to me privately as well, I’ll take any and all suggestions.
I have always seen and known things that I couldn’t possibly have known had I not known the person intimately. I have been able to regularly/daily sometimes all day long walk into rooms, stores, situations and know what was happening. I originally thought it was just excess energy, now I believe it’s more. I have been in stores/parking lots etc and seen people while out with my children and friends and said, watch out for this person or that thing, they’re up to no good, possessed, doing a drug deal, running from their calling, whatever the situation is. I have strangers walk up and confess things, people approach and fall out in seizures and strangely enough I have a daughter who used to have them, but when you approach and you’re blind with a cane and fall out with no one else around and I am equipped and able to help without panic, judgement, and calm enough to get help, then you calmly get up and walk away refusing medical help. I walk through work and it’s like walking in someone else’s wind tunnel/like drafting on the interstate, feeling their feelings, experiences, energy, struggles. Knowing who needs to be talked to and who’s battling something and needs to be left alone, with no one speaking a word. Oh, I know this is all muddled…it’s just so much…I need to harness this, know when to use a filter or silence myself from reacting, guard myself, and cultivate my gifts for His Glory. I am ONLY a messenger and I know this, I don’t seek any acknowledgement, I just want to be a good messenger/vessel, whatever God needs me to be. I just want to do His work to Honor him. I just don’t know how to identify what’s going on, what the name/word is for it, how to activate it properly, train in it, cultivate it and best serve Him. There is so much more I could share, this is only one of my many gifts, however it’s the one that has been a constant source of worry, pain, strife, and concern in being more efficient in and taking it to the next level to make a difference in the Kingdom.
Thank you for your time and again, ANY suggestions are welcomed and greatly appreciated. I apologize this is so long, I prayed all day about this and when I searched for answers, I found this site…