“Earnestly pursue love and eagerly desire spiritual gifts, especially the gift of prophecy. For he who speaks in a tongue does not speak to men, but to God. Indeed, no one understands him; he utters mysteries in the Spirit. But he who prophesies speaks to men for their edification, encouragement, and comfort. The one who speaks in a tongue edifies himself, but the one who prophesies edifies the church.” -1 Corinthians 14:1-4
Well, here I am back on the field again. At the moment I am in Bogota, Colombia with my coleader, Teagan, and one of our all girls teams. We’ve been here for a week now and it already feels like I have known these girls for years. It’s amazing to me how quickly they have gotten to vulnerability. It was a little intimidating coming into the first week of the race and being the only man with seven women. I have served with all women teams before, but I had more relationship with them before we started. It’s been cool getting to know this team right out of the gate. Sadly, men have had a negative effect on a lot of their stories, so I have been honored that they have accepted me as a part of the group and been willing to go to deep places with me there.
A few nights ago at team time, one of the girls asked us each how we would like to grow this year. My answer to that question was prophecy. It is a gift that I know I carry. I know I hear from the Lord. Honestly he speaks to me pretty loudly a lot of the time. It’s not one of my gifts that I’m comfortable walking in though. I pray in tongues daily to stir up my spirit and give myself strength; I’ll cast out demons and pray for healing all day, but when it comes time to tell someone what the Lord is saying to them, I often freeze up. There is a lie that comes that says that I don’t actually hear from the Lord and that what I’m hearing is just my own thoughts. Very often when I freeze up someone else will come along and speak the exact same thing the Lord was speaking to me. The Lord will always get his message out, but I am walking in disobedience when I shy away and don’t let him speak through me. It’s a problem.
The next question she asked was, “What steps will you take this year to grow in this area?” Immediately my answer was, “I don’t know what my long term growth plan is, but I’m going to start by prophesying over each of you when we have our one on ones this Sunday.” In my head: “Crap! Did that really just come out of my mouth? How do I get out of this? I can’t! I guess I’m locked in to this now.”
Fast forward to Sunday (yesterday). We all spent our sabbath day in a mall in Bogotá. Teagan and I set up times for 5 of the 6 girls to meet with each of us one on one to check in and get to know each of them better. (The 6th girl is scheduled to hang out with each of us today.) It was time to ask the Lord what he wanted to say to each of them. I was tempted to pray in advance and write down notes because that’s easier for me that shooting from the hip. The Lord said “nope”. He said “Do you trust me?” That’s always the question he asks when he is about to take me way out of my comfort zone. Of course I had to comply. So I went for it. I spent almost an hour with each of the 5 girls hearing their stories, sharing wisdom, and telling them what I was hearing the Lord say for them. It went great! The Lord spoke healing into their pasts. He spoke into their identities. He even spoke about what he has for them in this season. There was joy. There were tears. There was love. The Holy Spirit showed up and didn’t leave me hanging. It was really awesome!
I know we all have fears and doubts, but the Lord says “Do not fear! Trust me! I’ve got this!” I don’t know why it’s so hard for us to do just that, but it really is sometimes. I find that the hardest step is the first step. After that trust comes a little easier. I have that 6th one on one in a couple of hours. This time I am way more confident that he is going to show up and I’m excited to hear what he has to say. I now know what I’m going to do this year to grow in my prophetic gifting. I’m going to prophesy. Y Squad get ready! The Lord has some stuff to say!
What is the Lord calling you to do that makes you uncomfortable? I’d like to challenge you to just take that first step and marvel at the ways he shows up.
As a squad leader I must raise $6,500 to cover expenses on the field and two debriefs later in the year after I have returned home. I would be honored if you would pray about supporting me financially. There is a link to my support account at the top of this page. There are options for one time donations or monthly recurring donations. All donations to this account are tax deductible in the United States. As always I would appreciate your prayers for myself and for Y Squad as we take this journey this year. Thank you for taking the time to read my blog. Love Y’all!!!
