How to Receive the Mantle God Has Destined for You

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How can we receive the mantle God has ordained for us?
As prophetic people, we are often drawn to the story of Elijah’s mantle.

Elijah’s mantle was more than the regular cloak that he wore. It represented his appointment as a Prophet of God. When he threw it over Elisha it was a prophetic act, declaring that the mantle—and the office of the Prophet it represented—was destined to be Elisha’s in the future. (1 Kings 19:19)

What is a Mantle?

A “mantle” is a Scriptural metaphor (symbol) for a calling, ministry, anointing, and—when applicable—office, given to individuals by God.

How to Receive God’s Destined Mantle for Your Life

Following are some significant lessons about receiving your God-ordained mantle, from the stories of Joseph and Elisha [1]:

1. Understand God Determines Your Mantle Ahead of Time

Your mantle from GodWe do not select a mantle; God is the One who establishes and destines it. 

Elisha didn’t just receive Elijah’s mantle because he happened to be at the right place and time. It was already his according to God’s word. (1 Kings 19:16)

Elisha needed to cooperate with the call of God on his life to receive the mantle that was his by God’s appointment. Elisha’s hunger and pursuit of Elijah were a sign of what God had placed in his heart.

Joseph knew at a young age, through prophetic dreams, that God had called him to rule.

A mantle is not ours for the choosing, it is determined ahead of time by God.

The desire God places in our hearts is just one indication, among other confirmations, of the calling that is ours.

2. Servanthood Positions you for the Mantle God has for you

For a long season, Elisha was a servant to Elijah. He supported him in a menial way and learned at his feet. (2 Kings 3:11)

Joseph practiced servanthood for years—first, he served his father, then Potiphar, then the prison warden—before he received the mantle of rulership God destined him for.

It can be tempting to go directly after a mantle, but just as with Elisha and Joseph, God has established His timeline for your life. God positions you with people and leaders that He wants you to serve now. Serving with faithfulness and a teachable heart is a powerful means of being positioned to attain your God-ordained destiny.

3. Realize you may Wear a Series of Mantles

Before he took up Elijah’s mantle, Elisha worked in his father’s fields. And then, he wore the garb of a servant. When God took Elijah, Elisha took his cloak—the one he had worn as a servant—and tore it in two. There was no turning back. (2 Kings 2:12-13)

Joseph had a series of physical mantles along the way. The “coat of many colors” his father gave him indicated favor, as well as his position as overseer to his brothers. Later, Potiphar gave him a cloak, as a head slave in Potiphar’s household.
Ultimately, Pharaoh robed Joseph in garments that represented his position as ruler next to Pharoah in Egypt. (Gen 41:42)

But he didn’t go directly from being a youngster with prophetic dreams to the palace.

Joseph wore a succession of mantles, being faithful with each, and so it is for us.

4. Wait for an Appointment to Establish your Mantle

God appointed Elisha as Prophet and successor to Elijah—but God used Elijah to recognize, prepare, and establish that appointment.

The Lord used Jacob, Potiphar, a prison warden, and ultimately Pharoah himself, to appoint Joseph to a position in Egypt that was already his through God’s intention. And it is the same today.

We do not ‘self-appoint’ to a mantle or ministry. God uses those in oversight and authority to recognize and establish us in that calling at the right time. (Acts 6:6, Acts 13:1-3)

5. Understand your Calling will be Tested Over Time

As Joseph received the royal robes over his shoulders, maybe he recalled the earlier mantles that he wore:

  • The richly ornamented coat of many colors his father gave Joseph as a young man became another reason his brothers hated him. And when his jealous brothers threw him in a pit and sold him to Egyptian slave traders, they wrenched the coat from him. That coat became the evidence the brothers used to ‘prove’ Joseph’s faked death to their father, Jacob.
  • Later, Joseph became a trusted slave, promoted and given charge over his master Potiphar’s estate. But then Potiphar’s wife approached Joseph, wanting to seduce him. However, he valued his master’s trust, his purity, and the call of God—so Joseph ran. But Potiphar’s wife grabbed his cloak—and used it to accuse him. Not only was that cloak taken from him, but it was also used as evidence against him of a crime he didn’t commit. And landed him in prison.

Have you had this happen to you? “God, I thought that coat was from you. That mantle had promise. It was colorful. It represented good things to come.

And now it has been lost, robbed. That role, that job, that ministry opportunity—why was it taken from me?”
But Father God is seeing the big picture, from Heaven’s perspective.

Your Father wants to reveal to you what He is up to, even if you are feeling today as though you are in the midst of a trial or a long period of waiting about your calling. He wants to show you how he is redeeming those trials, even the failures, and how He uses them for His purposes.

It is not too late. Like Joseph and Elisha, as you stay faithful and committed in the long haul, you will ultimately receive the mantle God has for you. And the ministry God has for you will be above and beyond anything you could ever have dreamed.

Notes:

[1] Read the full story of Joseph in Genesis chapters 37 to 41 and Elisha in 1 Kings 19 to 2 Kings 2.

Related Posts:

7 Ways to Prepare for Your Prophetic Calling

How to Make the Most of Your Mantle from God

© Helen Calder Enliven Blog – Prophetic Teaching

Enliven Ministries – Prophetic ministry for a revival generation

64 thoughts on “How to Receive the Mantle God Has Destined for You”

  1. Louise

    Hi Helen, does the mantle have to represent a ministry gift or can it refer to anything Eg. A talent or skill. I feel like I can relate to Joseph in some ways. I have grown up with a strong passion for horses but have never felt sure it was from God because its always been a struggle to move in it – never been encouraged in it, no finances, the industry and people it attracts are tough and it seems Godless. I’ve hit many brick walls and just as things have seemed to get going they come to an abrupt end. Despite that I have experience and a level of ability that I know God has grown through my short lived experiences. I’ve recently come out of a time where I felt like God had encouraged me to try again and it all blew up in my face to the point where I was being accused of all sorts of lies. I was so afraid I got to the point of feeling like a small bug about to be crushed. Over the years I’ve begged father to take my desire for moving in the area of horses and riding away. Despite the knock backs and asking God to take this from me I find my drive and desire stronger than ever. Father has worked healing but I wonder what I’m missing. What Is He saying that I’m not hearing? Have I misunderstood? Am I chasing something that isn’t from Him at all?

    You mentioned that desire can be a conformation of His plan among other things. What other confirmations should I look for?

    Sorry for spilling so much detail! Not very good at being succinct.
    Louise.

  2. Helen Calder

    Hi Louise, thank you SO much for sharing that – it’s a really important question that you have asked:
    ‘ does the mantle have to represent a ministry gift or can it refer to anything Eg. A talent or skill.’
    I think sometimes we put terms like ‘mantle’ in a box, when it is so much bigger than that, because God and His plans for our lives are so much bigger.
    When you look at Joseph, his mantle was in the area of leadership and stewardship in the secular realm! So our God-given gifts may also be for the marketplace and skill and talent is an important part of it.

    Your passion for horses reminds me of my sister. She grew up with a passion and love for dogs. Now, she works for the Guide Dog Association in NZ overseeing the development of puppies that will eventually be trained to assist sight-impaired people.
    Is that just as much a God-given mantle as what I am doing in prophetic ministry? Absolutely. It’s personal and unique to her, and anointed by God and I believe Father has the same ahead for you.

    It will eventually come together for you, even though there have been many trials. I would just encourage you to take some time to meditate and pray about God’s purpose for your life – how what you do will grow in such a way that people will be helped by your gifts.

    Hope that helps :-) Helen

  3. Tracey

    Thank you Helen!

    This was really an encouraging message for me. It has not been easy to accept and live out the calling the Lord has placed on my life. I can so relate to “wearing a series of mantles”…all in the process of how God prepares you for where He wants to ultimately take you. But how often we, in our limited understanding, get comfortable in one of the mantles along the way and think ‘this is it’. However, the Lord in His infinite wisdom comes and removes that ‘mantle’ and gives you another…it doesn’t make sense and we feel confused and even angry at God. I have learnt though that God always knows best, and as you said He sees the bigger picture and knows exactly what we all need to be equipped for both life and ministry. So I would like to encourage someone going through ‘a change in mantle’ – there’s a reason for it, and though it seems senseless and even painful, the Lord knows where He wants to take you and He is always working in and through us for His good purpose.

    God bless you Helen and may He continue to use you to impact lives for His Kingdom.

  5. uju

    Hi
    Helen!
    Just gone through your teachings about mantle but I know its not same with mentor but just want to tell you about someone telling me that he is my mentor and God has told him my mentor . But I told him I have not received that from God and that God would have shown me if really his my mentor but he said the case is not always like that , and that God did not reveal to timothy that him paul is his mentor , same to Elijah and Elisha, that all I need is to obey him and things will work out fine for me. So now my question is” can God reveal to him and not to me too. Is that how God choose mentors and is it God that choses mentor for one. Thanx and God bless. Uju

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