Simple tests…His Thoughts, versus ours. How to tell the difference.

  One way to discern our best thoughts from His is their tone. The words of God always lead into the Ways of God! Does this idea lead into His Ways? This is one key. Another is, His thoughts are higher than ours, so often surprise even our most enlightened thoughts. There is an inner shock of sorts, when we hear God’s words. They surprise even our highest intelligence. And they lead into His Tone of Being, the architecture of Him. They have His patterns in them.

 We often are not aware or unable to divide or discern between our soul’s thoughts and His Spirit’s thoughts. It’s a helpful practice to notice the difference. His thoughts are higher than ours, so look for where we are surprised by an idea, and if it leads us into Him and His Ways. There are very enlightened soul thoughts, which are still not His Thoughts. In Jeremiah’s time, many struggled to hear the voice of the Lord, because what He was saying was contradictory to what they felt was best to do. God told them to surrender to the babylonians, for instance, and many felt that was wrong, or even sacrilegious. Still, God told them His thoughts, and that they would be spared, if they did.

 Being able to differentiate our best thoughts, from His, is a crucial skill these days. For God always communicates clearly in times of great change. So, we must be able to tell the difference between our thoughts and what He is communicating. He likes our thoughts, but they are not His. Seek His, they will inform and enlighten ours.

 Also, there are teacherly voices and there are prophetic voices. Being able to tell the difference allows you to plant the seeds they each carry in a wiser way. When someone is teaching, they are instructing and bringing clarity around and issue. When someone is prophesying, they are imparting and expressing an idea of God; usually one He is speaking now, or into the future.

  These are unique modalities in the Spirit, and it is helpful to discern which is which. Especially in our times, when information is sped up. We need to discern the mode of communication, so we know how to receive it, interpret it, and act on it.

 There are, what I could call, prophets of the soul. They are proclaiming their own best ideas. But true prophets, are concerned with the thoughts of God, and downloading those. You can sense the difference. God enjoys our soul’s thoughts, but they are not as high as His.

Teacherly voices versus prophetic voices are an important distinction for our times. His sheep hear His Voice, and can tell whether He is teaching or prophesying because they know the Good Shepherd who never leaves His sheep.

  As an example, I hear Him saying three things in our times: don’t be afraid, draw near to God, and pray for those who are being prepared in Him. These three all lead into His Ways of caring for His People, preparing for His Future, and our humility required in and by the act of prayer etc. Now, if I were to teach you how to not be afraid, draw near, and pray; i would need to break each down. To not fear, is to practice faith, and claim the truths into each area; to draw near requires spiritual disciplines or prayer, study, fellowship etc; to pray for others, requires us being with the part of Jesus which ever lives to make intercession, we get to be little co-priest, and in this case pray specifically for those leaders He is preparing Himself in, for the next chapters…

  So, there is a difference between teaching and prophecy. It’s good to know which is which in Him. This is especially true in times of great interpretive confusion. God is not the author of confusion! So we can hear Him clearly and let His Spirit both teach, or lead us into all truth; and prophecy, to instruct, comfort and warn us directly. Let us grow in this discernment for His Name’s sake, in our day. God’s thoughts and ways are always a little shocking to us. But they are knowable to the degree we are getting to know Him.

  Know again the difference between prophecy and teaching. Know when you are doing each. Teaching tends to clarify and put things in order; prophecy cuts and imparts. They are unique ministries of God. Both are needed; but we also need to know when we are doing each.