Turn down the volume and listen!
Tuning into the prophetic whisper of God can potentially transform you, your church and your community.
I love books on leadership, I am committed to training leaders, and I have a desire to be the best leader I can be! I have heard phrases such as ‘organisations are only as good as their leaders’ and have attended conferences that celebrated leadership, presented by leaders who challenge us to pursue better leadership. And yet whilst I have attended sessions on communicating vision, clarifying mission and mobilising volunteers, I have rarely heard leaders exhort those attending to be great listeners.
Listening sounds so passive, laid back, lacking action or intent. Yet listening to others and more importantly in Christian leadership, listening to God, is the most essential and occasionally neglected leadership task.
Samuel the Old Testament prophet, was taught and encouraged from a very young age the necessity of listening to the voice of God. Eli encouraged him to actively listen with a full expectation that God would speak. In fact, it was his ability to listen attentively and obey relentlessly that set him apart as a prophet of his time.
As a Pentecostal movement, we are convinced that tuning into the prophetic whisper of God has the potential to transform you, your church and your community. That is why at Elim Training we are launching a brand new training academy called Pastoring in the Prophetic.
This academy, which is led by Simon Foster, will seek to achieve three things:
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Provide greater confidence in following the lead of the Holy Spirit in the life of the leader.
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Provide insight into the power and purpose of the gift of prophecy in our ministry.
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Access principles of leadership taught by our heavenly strategist Himself.
Simon Foster say, “In times of uncertainty, change and disruption, true navigation has to come from the whisper of the father to bring revelation to his people. Like the men of Issachar we must be people who ‘understand the times and know what action to take'".
As Christian leaders the busy-ness of life and ministry can drown out the whisper of the one we are seeking to serve. Perhaps to hear God’s voice, it’s time to turn down the volume of our own lives! It is vital that as pastors and leaders we ensure that people are not simply following us, but rather that they are tuned into and following the voice of God?
Pastoring in the Prophetic will help us develop prophetic ministries that not only challenge ourselves to the core, impact those in our churches but also bring transformation to our towns and communities?
The learning journey will include four areas:
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Hearing God in our own lives
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Hearing God for others
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Hearing God for the church
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Hearing God to bring transformation.
I am still committed to being a better leader but am convinced that if listening to the voice of God is my starting point, then who knows what route that will take, not to mention the exciting potential destination!
For more information on Pastoring in the Prophetic visit elim.training/prophetic.
The dates of the two residentials in Malvern are 6–7 December 2016 and 23–24 May 2017. To book on the academy contact Rebekah Marshall on email elimtraining@elim.org.uk.
Question: In what ways are you encouraging others to hear from God? Leave a comment below.