I remember when I first learned to prophesy in prayer a few years ago.
I was listening to a preacher online, and he said something to the effect of,
"No matter what negative situation you are facing, declare the opposite outcome! Prophesy the opposite!"
A light went on inside of me. It made total sense to me ! I ran and grabbed my journal and began to prophesy the opposite of every difficult situation I saw around me. I wrote it down. For my friend running away from God, I declare he is a man of God. For my family member who is dealing with pain, I declare she is healed.
The list went on.
As I joined my faith to my prayers, I mean really believed what I was praying and prophetically declaring, it felt like my prayers broke through to heaven. That's the best way I know how to describe it. Many times, I felt like my prayers were hitting a wall and not getting anywhere. I know God hears us every time, but this time, the difference was that I believed he heard me. I believed that God had good plans and he had given me the authority to call those things into motion like Romans 4:17.
That week, several things began to change as an answer to prayer. My friend came over to my house and said something, "I'm glad I have Jesus!"
My family member dealing with sickness received a huge breakthrough.
A new new passion and curiosity for prayer sparked in my life.
Prophesy to Dry Bones
This example is one way to prophesy and "call dry bones to life."
Chances are you have heard the song by All Sons and Daughters, Great Are You Lord. "And all the earth will shout Your praise
Our hearts will cry, these bones will sing
Great are You, Lord"
I always think about Ezekiel and the Valley of Dry Bones when I hear this song. Sometimes I wonder what it would look like if we really believed and lived out words like this that we sing so passionately in worship songs. Everything would change.
Let's take a look at this story.
"Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to it, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Come, breath, from the four winds and breathe into these slain, that they may live.’” So I prophesied as he commanded me, and breath entered them; they came to life and stood up on their feet—a vast army." Ezekiel 37:9-10
It was an impossible situation, but God commanded the prophet to speak LIFE to dry bones.
God was teaching Ezekiel something about the power and authority the prophet carried.
Ezekiel didn't turn around and say, "God I can't change this situation! YOU do something!"
Nope, God was expecting Ezekiel to DO SOMETHING with Him.
The situation turned around, and through Ezekiel's prophetic word to command something to happen with God's backing, the dead came to life.
As believers in Jesus under a new and better Covenant with unlimited access to the Holy Spirit, what can we do with the authority God has given us to speak LIFE to situations to see them turn around? IF the Body of Christ can catch wind of this truth, we would be an unstoppable force to expand the kingdom of God.
I love that so many of the supernatural encounters between God and the prophets are recorded in the Old Testament. What strikes me the most, is that these people had actual conversations with God.
They didn't only speak to God. God responded.
He answered.
Isn't this the heart of relationship? If these prophets had access to speak with God, how much more access do we have as sons and daughters of Jesus to come to him expectant that He will speak with us? We no longer need to rely on prophets to hear God for us. We have direct access to the Father.
"My sheep hear my voice." John 10:27
What if we lived in the expectation that God will answer us when we call to Him? Jesus said we can ask him for daily bread. Bread represents His words to us. He wants to speak to us through the Bible, through our situations, and through the world around us. We can live with that expectation and meet him in our every day lives in astounding ways.
Hitting the Mark
Have you ever faced a tough situation that needed God to intervene...but you didn't know how to pray? It's moments like this that we need a word from God. He is, after all, the Wonderful Counselor. What is He saying about that situation you're worried about?
The word intercession has a root word, paga, that means "to strike the target." When we pray according to the will of God, according to the power at work within us, we "hit the target" in prayer.
Prophetic intercession is when we tune into God's heart to see what He is saying about a situation, and then we pray His will be done.
To operate in the power of the prophetic intercession, we must first get a solid, biblical understanding of the nature of Jesus as revealed by the Scriptures. We see his character in how he deals with sin, with enemies, with sickness, with injustice, with lack, with storms, etc. Through His words, we see the heart of God. When we begin to have true understanding of who Jesus is, we can begin to pray with more understanding and authority. For example, he declared power over sickness and all authority of the enemy in Luke 10:19. When I am assured of this truth because of what the Bible says, I can pray confidently against any attacks coming my way because I know that it is His will that I live an overcoming life. In John 5:19, Jesus says,"Very truly I tell you, the Son can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does."
In the same way that Jesus saw what the Father was doing to be able to operate in power and authority, we too, can ask the Father to show us what he is doing about a situation. When we catch God's heart, we begin to "hit the target" in prayer.
6 Keys to Praying Prophetically
How do we apply this practically? Here are 6 simple keys to praying prophetically.
1. Get out your bible, a journal, and a pen. 2. Faith Believe that God wants to speak with you, and open your heart to hearing from him. Be expectant. Be open and willing to risk the vulnerability of trusting you are hearing His voice.
3. Ask
Ask God simple questions, "Lord, what are you saying about this situation? About this person? About this thing I am worried about? Will you show me what YOU are saying/doing?
4. Be still
Pay attention to the thoughts, Bible verses, and images that come to mind. Is God revealing something to you?
5. Write it Down
Write down what is coming to mind. God often speaks in a still small voice, so familiar it can feel like our own thoughts at times. Do not judge what you are hearing at first. Keep writing for a few minutes. Afterward, reread what you have written and see if it aligns with God's heart. 6. Research relevant Bible verses
Look for Bible verses that align with the things that you feel God has shown you. If God is declaring peace over yourself, a neighbor, or your city, find Bible verses about peace and write them down.
7. Pray and declare
Begin to pray the things you feel that God has shown you with the solution and Bible verses. If you are picking up on something negative, for example, someone you know is struggling with anxiety, begin to pray the opposite over them. "This person is filled with peace and power."
Many battles are won in the secret place of prayer. If you accept the invitation to prophetic intercession, you will experience the heart of God in a new way and see him move powerfully.
Power of Prayer
Have you ever seen God answer your prayers pretty dramatically? Or so subtly that He wove the solution into your life?
Let me know your testimonies in the comments!
Thank you for your article, I was researching this topic when i came across your blog and it has helped me.
That’s so beautifully written I’ve read it over and over. Please I would love to get in touch. Thank you.