Trust The Gift
Deana Barnes

I was working on a craft to give to my daughter for her new house, a few years ago. The artwork was pre-cut and I spent a significant amount of time putting it together. What was required to finish it was some free hand drawings right in the middle of the piece. I realized that there was no room for error, the hours I spent on this piece of art could be spoiled if I didn’t do it right the first time. Right away, I felt like my hand wasn’t as steady as it should be, so I took a break and came back, I studied upon it and thought there was no way that I was going to finish this project with a drawing in felt marker as I planned. It would have to be perfection at one strike of the pen, so to speak.

I looked at the piece on the craft table and began to wonder what I was thinking. That I could just waltz over there and free hand a drawing with no hesitation. Even though I inherited my mother’s ability to draw, having artistic talent of my own, this was a huge challenge. I remember staring at the work in front of me, and actually asking the Lord to help steady my hand, when I heard the Holy Spirit clearly speak three words to me. Trust The Gift.

It reminded me of what a gift truly is, something that did not originate from our own resources but was given to us so that we can accomplish something lovely and unusual. Not everyone has the same gift, and no gift is our own, they are released to us to give beyond ourselves, not just of ourselves. To steward a gift means to develop it in such away it will bring increase to the one who gave it. Even, the Father of Lights. To trust the gift is to not dependend on our own ability but knowing God has given us something beyond our own ability. The gift will rise up in its moment to perform, if we will set aside our fear of risk, and let it. After all, gifts are a piece of heaven. I believe they are spirit. Needless to say, I picked up the felt marker and finished the art work, everything turned out fine.

Proverbs 18:16 A man’s gift makes room for him and stands him before the great.

Responsibilities of The Gift

I carried this lesson over to another creative area in my life that I rarely have had time for until these last seven years. That would be writing. More accurately, this would be prophetic scribing which simply is an operative of the prophetic gift and seer anointing. Which means I write down what I see and hear the Spirit of the Lord telling me. What I hear HIM speaking and what I see HIM saying in visions and dreams. Most of what I publish of that is found on my website: NeWinePouring.com.

The art of scribing is learning the best way to convey what the Lord has shown you, or what you have heard him say.  We can straight out document it, or we can submit it allegorically. When I’m writing  I like to describe some of the visions and dreams as poetic as I can; as visual as they were when they came to me. Then I follow up with a direct prophetic word, drawn from the scene I was given. For the most part that has been how much of the work, published on the website, has been. Some of the articles were written over several months, as I sought meaning from the Lord, in some of the things I’ve seen. I worked so long on the article called JOURNEY, that by the time it was published much of what I saw in the vision was right on top of us, in world events.

This article is coming about because I know that as much as I have a responsibility to write down what I see and hear. I have a responsibility to teach what I know, and give what I have. My career in management taught me to replace myself, in order to move on to higher levels. Actually, that is a Kingdom principle. The world teaches us to hold everyone back and conceal what we know in order to maintain an upper hand. But, that is really called mediocre living. Kingdom life is the opposite of that, too many people fear being replaced, not understanding it is the circle of life in so many different ways. The circle of life God created, to go from glory to glory.

Trust The Gift Free Style

How I do what I do when I’m doing it? First of all, I don’t consider myself as a writer in the traditional sense. In fact, when I set up my face book page and marked the category the page would be under, I found it listed me as “a writer” to my surprise. I tried to fix it but to no avail, true I have a website and I write, apparently that qualifies me for the title, so according to facebook that makes me a writer. I am, more accurately, documenting for the prophetic gift, and seers anointing. The gift has to flow through my vessel, as visuals are captured on the screen of my mind, so I would more accurately describe myself as a reporter. Years ago when I had a prophetic news letter, the Lord provided for me a proof reader that had a bachelors degree in english. Now all I have is spell check, and the lenience given to one as a blogger. Still, being left to my own eye for grammatical accuracy, and puncutation, challenges my sense of pride. But, the Spirit compels me on.

“Lord, I feared you were a hard business man so I burried my talent …” Matt. 25.  It is better to fear God and be a good steward of our gifts, than to fear man and bury them. Using them at every stage they evolve, while seeking counsel, guidence, and training in perfecting them.

In this article I want to talk about what writers call, writers block.

Even prophetic reporters or scribes can experience the same thing. It happens when inspiration, energy, and then interest on a project flattens. Sometimes for days, weeks, and months. In scribing it often has to do with how to convey what was heard by the Spirit or seen. When no idea comes, I wait. The following is how I process through such a thing. Letting go of the anxiety I some times feel when I’m stuck, and remind myself to trust the gift. With no pressure on myself I’ve learned to just “lay it down.” Then I turn to my journals (at leisure) and begin to read through unfinished projects until I come across paragraphs, chapters, or lines, that compel me to write. I work on that project until it is completed, or until there is no more that I can add. I do it even though it’s not the item I’m trying to finish at that time. Having unfinished work means the inspiration has run out, for the moment. It may not be the thing you’re struggling to finish, but in prophetic scribing, the detail you have found to pick up again, may be the line, paragraph, or work that is suppose to be finished at the moment.

We think that all we do must be in linear time; yet, the world and everything in it cycles. Creativity, and spiritual giftings, belong to the flow of the SPIRIT, in circuits and seasons. Like the wind, like the earth, like life. An example would be how we pick up last winter’s knitting on a cold morning, after summer’s break, not thinking we are responding to our patterns in their seasons. It just feels right to do that kind of thing at that time. In prophetic scribing there has been many times when the moment seemed to have come and gone for the word to be “in its season” it is expecially challenging when something happens in the world the work seemed to be fortelling about, before it was fininshed. I have thought during those times that I missed God in timing. But, found that the Lord used that incident embedded in my writings to confirm his word, as the bible says, ” I will confirm my word with signs and wonders following.” Also, words that come from the Spirit of God are timeless classics, whether they are literally in their time or allegorically speaking, in your times and seasons, His word is always relevant. Isaiah describes the cycling nature of HIS word that returns not void but works in cycles and seasons continously watering the earth that in turn provides the eater with bread. This is why the passages in the BIBLE have been relevent for thousands of years.

Isaiah 55:8-11 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD, or as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.

Hebrew 2:4 And God confirmed the message by giving signs and wonders and various miracles and gifts of the Holy Spirit whenever he chose.

Demands and deadlines produce shallow offerings in prophetic scribing, and everything else for that matter. On the other hand, when God is in control we can begin a project while not understanding the impact it will have, say, a year from now when it gets completed right on time, to be a fresh word from the Lord though it was first written outside of its perceived relevancy. As for writing don’t get discouraged! As life unfolds the words will come, with greater perspectives. Sometimes growth and change is required to complete inspired works. If we could have a bird’s eye view of where we are sometimes, standing in this creative path, it would be something like the classic movie with Humphry Bogart and Kathrynn Hepburn bogged down in a shallow marsh, stuck in a boat called The African Queen; exhausted, just a few more yards away from the open sea, though it must have felt impossible to get out of, still, when the rains came they we’re freed up and launched out into open waters. Sometime, we just need to camp out until the inspired words come and we are launched back into the shipping lanes of creativity.

If we abandon the boat, or the fork in the road we will never know where it was suppose to take us, and our readers. If we wait on the Lord our road will rise up before us. They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength, they shall mount up with wings as eagles ...Isaiah 40:31  I have songs and poems that took years to finish. Others came to me in an hour. Or were given additional verses, later. I have  prophetic words that have been completed for decades, that had relevancy through the years; but, only now, really fit the times. Trust the gift. Trust God, and trust your intuition.

Those that delight in the Lord’s instruction … Psalm 1:3
shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth fruit in their season; their leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever they do shall prosper.