Mental Models for The Prophetic
How intentional mental models about the "prophetic" can help us best honor, increase and utilize the gift of prophecy in our lives.
The Prophetic. What a mess!! What even is it?
In simple terms prophesy is a spiritual gift for strengthening, encouraging and comfort of others (I Corinthians 14). Although there is an extremely wide spectrum of what is prophetic, I like to start there because it seems like it is in its purest form.
You can then run down the spectrum to the really spot on personal prophetic words and if you keep going, you will make it to the wild and crazy stuff about stolen elections, rewriting scripture and basic What the HECK sort of stuff.
Most of us do not apply Life Coaching principles like Mental Models to our spirituality; HOWEVER, I guarantee that when you think about what you are thinking about you will have so much more clarity in so many more areas of life.
What is a Mental Model? A mental model is a term that simplifies the concepts and beliefs we have created that helps us understand how life works.
You have a Money Mental Model.
You have a Marriage Mental Model.
You effortlessly run everything you see, hear and experience through your Mental Models. Unless you have done a lot of work in these areas then The Model you are currently using is most likely an Unintentional, Default Model.
Those Unintentional, Default out of date Mental Models get us into a lot of trouble when it comes to following God well!
I am not going to go into detail in this article but in The Journey Life with Les Herron Podcast I will give over a dozen or markers that I use in helping me scripturally navigate the prophetic.
Don’t Panic! It will be released tomorrow via this SubStack newsletter , Apple and Spotify.
I like Bill Johnson’s quote below, even though it seems to stir up a lot of controversy.
“The prophetic in its purest form is designed to find the gold in people’s lives and call it to the surface” (Bill Johnson)
The controversy is that people seem to INSIST…
On reading the New Testament with an Old Testament perspective
That their training/beliefs that prophecy died out with The Apostles is correct
We must use our energy to point out what is wrong with and wicked in people
I personally have worked through so many Default, Unintentional Mental Models that kept me from benefitting from and operating in the prophetic.
My hope is for two things to happen when I write or speak about the prophetic.
ONE, that I would Encourage those of you who are a bit Frigid towards the prophetic to reconsider, follow scripture and begin to earnestly desire spiritual gifts, especially that you may prophesy (I Corinthians 14). Even if it is messy.
TWO, that I would Challenge those of you who seem to believe that the prophetic is the wild west and anything goes. And, in being challenged you would begin to reconsider and start to view the prophetic through a new lens, creating healthier Mental Models.
Be sure to participate in The Poll below, to Like and to Share this content. Thanks for reading and I will see you tomorrow via The Podcast.