The new year is coming, and as expected, the full range of self-proclaimed prophets will take the mic to declare their predictions for the year ahead. I believe in the prophetic and God’s desire to speak through His people to the church. However, in the last few years, it seems every wide-eyed spiritualist who can create a YouTube channel has taken to the stage to declare their pronouncements. From predictions of the world’s end to promises of “this will be your best year to come,” the gullible seem to find direction through popular prophetic words rather than being led by godly wisdom. their

Why does this happen? I believe many of Christ’s followers have abandoned hearing His voice through the disciplines of daily prayer, reading of scripture, and engaging in a church community. As a result, they piece together God’s will through the breadcrumbs of coincidences. This method of assuming God is speaking through random numbers, isolated symbols, and various social media avenues is a prime opportunity for deception.

Too often, friends have told me that God spoke to them with some erratic direction. Once, a young woman came to me saying that she felt it was God’s will to marry a man she had met. They had only known each other for a week. “He’s the one, I know it,” she declared with great delight. I asked her why she felt this way. She replied, “when I first saw him at church, he was passionately worshipping. He was singing in a way that I had always imagined my husband would. From that moment,” she continued, “I knew he was the one for me.” She went on to say how they had the same favorite color and a few similar prophetic words of affirmation about being together. All this had happened in a week. In response, I asked, “Did Jesus point you to any specific passages of scripture concerning this relationship?” She looked at me as if I had cussed her out. A bit startled, she blinked a few times and walked away with no response. Sadly, she moved forward with her plan, which ended horribly within a few months. It broke my heart to see the havoc that such a fragmented decision-making process produced. Yet, so many navigate week after week, making small and significant decisions in this haphazard way.

You cannot settle to be directed by spiritualized hunches, random symbols or numbers, or social media posts. When you need to hear God’s voice, don’t look for the mere breadcrumbs of affirmation. Instead, put a pause on your busy schedule. Find a place to worship. Open your Bible and read until God speaks. Then take your felt revelation to friends who are mature believers and let them hear the counsel you think God is giving you.

Avoid the merry-go-round of prophecy pundits this new year and go straight to Jesus. You’ll find that the true prophets will only affirm what God is speaking to you in your dialogue with Him.

StephenSamuel.org