You Are a Prophet, Too

Have you ever imagined walking a mile in Elijah’s shoes? The story of Elijah in today’s first reading (1 Kings 18:20-39) illustrates so clearly this prophet’s complete faith and trust in the one true God. It got me thinking about how Elijah got to that place.

He must have had an intimate, deeply personal relationship with God. I imagine he must have spent countless hours in prayer with the Lord to be able to hear His voice so clearly. Elijah must have had many opportunities to grow in faith throughout his life to get to the level of trust he demonstrated in today’s reading. Ah, to be a prophet like Elijah! How wonderfully wild that would be!

Then the Holy Spirit reminds me: Each of us who has received the Sacrament of Baptism is a prophet. Just as Jesus came to fulfill what the prophets foretold, and as He was anointed priest, prophet and king by the Holy Spirit, we are all anointed priest, prophet and king when we receive the sacrament of Baptism (Catechism of the Catholic Church §§ 783-86).

Elise, prophet. [Insert your name here], prophet. To be honest, I don’t know if I have ever stopped to consider myself as such.

All of a sudden I have so many questions for consideration: How do I prophesy to the world who God is? Is my life—the way I spend my time, the way I love—set apart? Does it bring glory to the Father? Are my desires pure, striving to glorify God through my witness?

Living as prophet will look different for each of us, but at the heart of it for all of us is a relationship with God. The Psalmist sings, “I set the Lord ever before me; with him at my right hand I shall not be disturbed.” (Psalm 16:8) This is how our lives will be transformed for His glory, sisters. This is the way to a life that bears witness to God’s goodness, to the fulfillment of all His promises in Christ.

This is how our lives will be transformed for His glory, sisters. // @inendlesssongClick to tweet

Spend some time in prayer today. Ask the Lord what it would like for you to enter more fully into your anointing as prophet. Ask Him to give you every grace you need to be a bold witness for the Kingdom. To God be all the glory.

Elise Howe is a devoted wife, momma, vocal artist and teacher. She currently resides in New York City, though she will always be a Midwestern gal at heart. Elise has a heart for ministry, dark chocolate (but not too dark) and coffee with a generous amount of cream + sugar. Find out more about her here.