Prophecy can restore people’s dignity and self-respect. It can give them hope again. But to do this, we must be immersed in God’s love. We are either living in the present /past or the present /future in our relationship with the Lord and one another. Some relationships are stuck in the past because they are connected to memories and encounters that were either traumatic or eventful.
Our mind and emotions play the same tapes over and over until it becomes a normal part of our background conversation. Current mindsets have been overcome by memory. It is our head noise that ruins the present. Some of our memories can be wonderful and yet can still keep our relationships in the past if we have not upgraded them for some time. The phrase “we much catch up one day” is one that we all used to signify that our relationship needs to become more current.
The best relationships have a present to future application. A “now” and “not yet” feel that provides the sense of a shared journey, an exploration of life. We live in the present with a strong sense of our own and others’ potential. We are all a mix of visible traits and hidden capabilities. The latter may only emerge when the proper circumstances arise. Until then they are dormant and may only be recognized by the prophetic.
The father lives with us and occupies a space between the potential we have and the actual that he views in our future. A prophecy is spoken from the future back to the present. That does not yet make it real or substantial. Free will is involved. Prophecy relates to the possibility not the inevitability of fulfillment because the will of the individual/group has to be engaged in cooperation with the Lord for the word to come to pass. Be it unto me according to your word is a sure sign that Mary fully intended to cooperate with the father regarding the birth of Jesus.
Sometimes people are trapped into reliving or reenacting their past in current relationships. Prophetic ministry needs to enter that place gently, lovingly, and firmly to disconnect the individual from a present/past lifestyle. Prophecy in this context has an objective to restore people’s dignity and self-respect.
The best way to disconnect people from the past is firstly to show them their future. Everyone must have something to reach out for in life.
Philippians 3: 12- not that I have already obtained it or have already become perfect, but I press on so that I may lay hold of that for which also I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus. Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on towards the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Let us therefore, as many as are perfect, have this attitude; And in anything you have a different attitude, God will reveal that also to you; However, let us keep living by the same standard to which we have attained.
Pressing on is made more possible through the inflow of prophecy. People need to forget the past. The former things have passed away, now I declare new things. Before they spring forth, I proclaim them to you (Isaiah 42: 9).
Prophecy is the language of promise revealed. The prophetic must put us in mind of a future time regarding our present. When our mind can cover the ground between our present and the future then we are free to move on in the things of God. If our mind is only backtracking to the past there can be no momentum.
Isaiah 43: 18- do not call the mind the former things or ponder things of the past. Behold I do something new, now it will spring forth. Will you not be aware of it?
Prophecy makes us aware of the future and it therefore has the capacity to call us up and out of something.
Prophecy can put us in touch with the romantic part of God’s nature regarding his love for his bride who is the beloved of his heart. Prophecy calls us to the next stage of life and the next phase of relationship with Jesus.
Song of Solomon 2: 10- my beloved responded and said to me, arise, my darling, my beautiful one, and come with me. For behold, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone. The flowers have already appeared in the land; the time has arrived for pruning the vines, and the voice of the turtle dove has been heard in our land. The fig tree has ripened its figs, and the vines in blossom have given forth their fragrance. Arise, my darling, my beautiful one, and come with me!
It carries the language of promise. Love moving to the next chapter of experience. Hard times are over and new things are appearing. The Lord leaves us no doubt of his affection for us. This is the heart of all true prophecy. The restoring of dignity and self-respect is essential to the individual moving into a stronger relationship as the beloved of God. Prophecy causes us to arise and come away into a deep relationship as the beloved. The Lord wears his heart on his sleeve, always visible, always tangible. He is so strategic in his affection for us.
When people have been damaged, it is the future that can release them from the past. The present is merely rerunning memory tapes and is therefore more prone to repeating scenarios from the past. The future alone calls people up to a new beginning. Prophecy tells us that God is with us (present) and moving in advance of us (future). He will help us. He will deliver us. He will not fail us.
Deuteronomy 31: 8- the Lord is the one who goes ahead of you; he will be with you he will not fail you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.
There is always a new you- emerging! The father loves to change us from one degree of glory to another. His love for us is transformational. He loves to create new from old. He is astonishingly brilliant at the process of transformation. He uses prophecy to create momentum and momentum to take us out of the Egypt of our current circumstances into the Canaan of his promise and affection.
Prophetic people have the same affection and excitement in their heart. It shows- in how they view people; the message of hope they carry; and in the way they present that message and deliver the heart of the Lord. What an amazing gift-prophecy! What an amazing burden the Lord wants to give us. It is a burden, a passion for freedom and to see God’s beloved becoming more captivated by his deep love and longing for them.
Only the future can release us from the past! Prophetic input is an invaluable aid in the development of our identity. What is emerging in you right now? Who are you becoming? We all change. Prophecy provides us with the means to connect ourselves to the heart of God regarding our future and our destiny. It provides continuousness in the affection of God. I’m with you always. No matter how the road ahead may challenge the journey, the Lord is unchangeable towards us. He is a constant, our NorthStar.