Discernment..& Intercession

So, how do you discern something?

First and foremost it is a process of sifting, a process of separating. You must be willing to separate between what is of the soul, and what is of the spirit (Heb 4:12). To separate between the precious and the worthless (Eze 44:23), this means sifting the word or the revelation you are receiving to crystallize the most clear, purified nugget of what God is showing you. It also involves waiting if it is not clear, rather than trying to make it come together by adding your thoughts into the gaps.

We Have Glasses!
Lastly it is the continual sifting out of “us” (Jn 3:30). We all wear “glasses”- our worldview through which we interpret life. Even Christians have a great variety of interpretations about what is happening as life unfolds. These “glasses” will always limit our discernment unless we can hear each other and work together.

So we must make a commitment to pursue and love the TRUTH, not just the truth we like, feel comfortable or familiar with. We must in fact love the truth MORE than our desire to be right. A humility and commitment to seek out the truth, is the posture that will open up to us true discernment and understanding.

It is this posture that will allow us to walk together and discern corporately. This is where the safety is (Pro 11:14).

Corporate Discernment
In order to be used of the Lord in this corporate setting, we must be able to submit our “glasses” to the overarching sense that is coming from the Body. This is never easy! We especially must be careful to surrender our perspective if we have been hurt or offended. These emotions often cloud our discernment.

When we are in these corporate settings of discernment we need to listen carefully for the oil. Weigh what impacts and resonates in your spirit, listen for complementary words, which confirm the discernment or direction.

When seeking to gain discernment the stature and number of those that discern together should correspond to the scope of what is being discerned. For example if I am seeking to discern what God is saying to the intercessors of my city, I should inquire with perhaps a dozen or more of the key leaders of intercession, who come from different denominations and streams to get a sense of the big picture. Bring together four or five intercessors from my home church won’t give me the same breadth of perspective and discernment.

As we seek to discern we need to understand the nature of the prophetic sounds that people hear.

Prophetic Sounds
There are Many Sounds: We need to be aware that the Lord is not confined to speaking or doing only one thing at a time. He can be speaking at a variety of levels at the same time. He can be speaking to some about joy, others about healing, still others about taking responsibility for social action in our neighbourhoods. We may pick up one of these sounds and feel we have the “word of the Lord”.

This is why it is critical that we discern corporately, and that we are willing to wait for the weight, rather than always being “trigger happy” and settling with what first comes to mind. In this example, all of these sounds that are being heard are true words, yet we want to go for the deepest, the most encompassing and most significant sound.

Sounds Travel: It is the nature of sounds to travel. They get louder as we get closer to them. This is often the case with prophetic sounds as well, the closer they get (time wise) the clearer and more distinct they are. For example, consider John the Baptist, the true forerunner, a lone voice crying in the wilderness. His message was “repent because the Kingdom of God is near”!! The sound got louder and louder as Jesus emerges on the scene, proclaiming that the Spirit of the Lord was upon him to preach the gospel, bring liberty to the bound, healing to the brokenhearted… the kingdom in our midst! This is a pattern that is often repeated. You can have a forerunning prophetic sound preparing the way and then the fullness comes at a later time.

It is often very hard to distinguish between the two. It takes experience to discern between the forerunning expression and the “fullness of time” expression.

This is also why it is often difficult to discern the timing of words. They will frequently come with an intensity that makes them seem like they are imminent, but in fact they may be well into the future.

Sounds from the Lord Create Life: Prophetic sounds from the Lord will sound like him. They carry the quality of his voice. His voice carries a sense of grace, revelation, freedom, mercy and life. You feel the character of God through his voice, even if he says very little. Remember Mary in the garden did not recognize the resurrected Jesus, but when he said her name- “Mary” she knew that voice! (Jhn 20:16) That one word changed her life forever!

Sounds are Sent to Different Hearers: Prophetic sounds will have different applications. Sometimes they are just a general word, but other times they are for someone in particular. They may be for you, your family, a friend, your church, your city, a people group, a nation or even the whole Body. Discerning the level that the word is applying to involves a) discerning the weight of the word (the greater the weight the broader the application).
b) does the word indicate a specific hearer.

Training to Discern:
As we set ourselves to grow in discernment, we can train ourselves to be much sharper. Yes, there are some that naturally have this gift, but anyone can become discerning and grow in this.

Here are some ways you can develop more discernment:
 Stay alert! Be asking the Lord about what you see, what you sense and how it is impacting you and others. Falling into a place of dullness will rob you of much the Lord would want to show you and say to you.
 Look for the “Burning Bush”- Moses saw something odd, (a bush that burnt and was not consumed) and turned aside to “inquire of this strange sight”. If you come across unusual events and situations, inquire of the Lord to gain understanding.
 Listen for the Lord to Speak Through Anything- he can speak through the evening news, through billboards, through the names of satellites that are being launched, through sporting events, movies, pronouncements from civic government, sounds, weather, etc, etc… Listen for the sounds that are reinforcing and confirming the word of the Lord. The broader and more pervasive the confirmations, the more important the word or the more expansive it’s application.
 Inquire of Others- (especially those that are mature and discerning) what they are hearing, what they are discerning. This will give you a sense of proportion for what you are hearing. If everyone else is hearing the same thing, or something similar- this is good! If not, you might need to consider that your “glasses” could be obscuring your sight.
 Value the Prophetic-even the baby-steps taken by a beginner in the prophetic gifting can carry great revelation. Weigh and consider each piece. (But be careful to protect your prayer meetings from everyone just sharing prophetic words. It’s always easier to share than to pray.) Keep your ear open to what the senior prophets are releasing at any given time.
 If there is Fruit, there is a Root! As the Lord to show you the root cause of both good and bad fruit in various situations. Learn from this without becoming judgmental or critical. If the Lord is showing you something in someone else’s life or in a church setting, He is expecting that you will cover it in love and intercession.
 Stay Humble! We always see through a glass darkly, all of our discernment is flawed and incomplete. Jesus alone sees all. Always maintain the posture that what you have discerned could be off, or you could be missing a very important part. Love truth, and be willing to be corrected.
 Stay Grounded! Remember, everything will line up with scriptural principles. Don’t pursue revelation to the point of getting flakey and bordering on fantasy.

So what does this have to do with intercession?
Discernment and accurately discerning what God is saying, what is hindering the advancement of the Kingdom, the times and seasons we are in are so critically important for knowing what to pray for, how intensely to pray and if additional steps might need to be taken, such as fasting, corporate focused times of prayer etc.