As many of you have been launching into the new recently, you may have experience unexpected setbacks or challenges.
If that's you, you are not alone! AND you're going to be really encouraged by this in Helen Calder's recent article:
Now read on and be encouraged in their great turnaround as they stepped into the new. If God did it for them, He'll do it for you too! (To Subscribe to the Elijah List subscribe here.)
"See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?" (Isa. 43:19a NIV)
When God says, "I am doing a new thing," He is saying this: "I have a new normal for you; life as you know it is going to change."
A Problem and an Unusual Coincidence
As February 1st, 2017 approached, my husband Malcolm and I were facing a crisis. We had just launched Enliven Ministries, and I had opened the new bank account with a deposit of $50.
The new ministry came with a lot of monthly website-related expenses. Then, completely unforeseen by us, Malcolm's work contract came to an end and his pay ceased on the same day my former salary stopped!
When an unusual "coincidence" intersects with the timing of God, or a message from Him, the Holy Spirit is at work. It is a "God-incidence" that heralds a miracle, or divine intervention.
Even though it was a tough time, we knew that somehow, our Father was going to provide for us.
Vision of a Silver Shoehorn
A few days before the end of January 2017, we were attending our home church, Planetshakers. During the worship I had a clear impression from the Holy Spirit. I saw a silver shoehorn. It was an object I'd never seen before in a vision, and it mystified me.
So, as I was looking at the shoehorn and thinking, "Lord, what is this all about? What are You saying?" I sensed Him say to me, "What I have for you in this season is going to be such a good fit, that you are going to need the shoehorn to get into it. And it is not going to be something you can do in your own strength. This is a gift of My grace."
After church, we walked into our home and sat in our front room chatting. Malcolm started to talk about the suit and shoes he was going to wear to a job interview the following morning. Then He went to get the shoes, which were a birthday gift from our son that he hadn't worn before. (Photo via Unsplash)
As Malcolm opened the box to retrieve the brand-new shoes, I suddenly remembered the prophetic picture of the silver shoehorn I had that morning. So I told Malcolm about the vision of the shoehorn and what the Holy Spirit was saying.
After loosening the laces, he reached into the box for the second shoe, and pulled out...a dark gray, metallic shoehorn.
We were utterly astounded and knew we were in a moment of confirmation of the Lord's word to us: "What is about to take place is a gift of My grace."
More "Coincidences" and a Breakthrough
The next morning, in Melbourne, Malcolm was in the boardroom of a company making a PowerPoint presentation. I was also in a boardroom, but of a different company, sharing the Word of the Lord with them. (Melbourne is a huge city, but we happened to be in exactly the same suburb at the same time.)
On the laptop Malcolm was using, the image of a lion appeared on the overhead screen of the desktop wallpaper. Then, that same morning, I walked into another boardroom, where a painting in the room depicted a magnificent lion.
Within two weeks, Malcolm had a new job and I had sufficient funds in the Enliven Ministries account to pay for my first month's expenses.
Since the silver shoehorn incident, we have experienced many similar "coincidences" that have clearly been "God-incidences," divine appointments, and unusual events.
By January this year, these signs were accelerating. God was doing something in our lives that we had no frame of reference for; not just every now and then, but we were walking in it (or into it) constantly. And one of the unusual things about this, is that these encounters are happening to Malcolm and I both, simultaneously (even if we're on opposite sides of the world), or as 2 connecting pieces we each have.
Now, I have to be honest, I have been way out of my prophetic "comfort zone." As Prophet David McCracken said recently: "God wants to gate-crash our momentum with an encounter."
Novices in the New
If you're like me, and are prophetic, you love to hear about major encounters and heavenly visitations, but what if God simply wanted to take you into a lifestyle of walking with Him in a new way—encountering Him in a different way than you had before? You discover God has a "new normal" for you in your journey of intimacy with Him.
One evening a few months back, Malcolm and I phoned our brother-in-law, Stuart Allan, and just had to say, "HELP! We don't know what God's doing!" (Stuart and his wife Lynley both pastor at CTF Auckland, and are not only family to us, but we've been journeying together in the move of the Spirit for 25 years.)
Stuart, in his wise way, shared a word the Lord had spoken to him and Lynley once: "I want you to be novices in the new, not experts in the old."
Stuart went on to explain, "The Kingdom's always advancing...and our Father wants us to live in dependency upon Him, so that what we minister is of Him."
"I want you to be novices in the new, not experts in the old." This word struck me like a thunderbolt, because every week, I have thousands of visitors seeking answers to questions on discernment and prophecy. (Photo via Unsplash)
I've been journeying in the prophetic for over 40 years, and Enliven Blog is nearly ten years old. Yet, right now, when it comes to the realm of hearing from God, I'm feeling like a child starting school.
Be a Learner in God's Kingdom
Novices in the new. What does this mean for you today? This not about a particular gift, or type of prophetic encounter. This is about an attitude of being a learner and a child in God's Kingdom, having room to grow.
"And He said: 'Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven.'" (Matt. 18:3 NIV)
It's going to cost us our comfort, because to be a "novice in the new" means admitting we don't know much and that we don't have it all together. It's about having a relationship with Jesus. It's about growing in intimacy with God.
What Malcolm and I have been experiencing has been like a "spontaneous combustion." We find ourselves in a move of God we longed for, and yet at the same time, never expected. It's spilling over onto people around us. Our conversation every day—even through tough times—is about what God is doing and saying. Countless times, we look at each other and say, "Did that just happen?" We're living in a sense of wonder.
Your Own Awakening and Encounters
If what I've shared stirs you, I want to agree with and believe with you for your own awakening and encounters.
Right now, the Holy Spirit may be bringing something to mind for you, and He's saying, "Surrender your life; your gifts, skills, ministry and work over to Me. Give Me your family and relationships."
Whatever your personal area of "expertise" is, take off the lid. Be a novice in the new. And remember, you have your own personal relationship with God, and your encounters with Him will be unique to you. (To Subscribe to the Elijah List subscribe here.)
Helen Calder
Enliven Ministries
Email:Â helen@enlivenpublishing.com
Website:Â www.enlivenministries.net
Helen Calder is a prophetic minister and writer, and founder of Enliven Ministries, a part of the David McCracken Ministries family. Helen has a unique gift of equipping in the areas of hearing God's voice, prophetic ministry and prayer. She is known for Enliven Blog, an online prophetic training and mentoring resource that reaches thousands of people globally. Helen and Malcolm have been married for 36 years.
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