Proving Grounds (Prophetic Word)

This morning I heard the Holy Spirit whisper the words “proving grounds” to me. What I feel He is unfolding to me is that WE are His proving grounds. Think of say a plane that is produced for the United States army. There are stages the plane takes before it is assembled and is ready to fly. The first step is the development stage. This is where the many parts are put together, tested, etc. Before the plane can be certified to fly there is a proving grounds of sorts. The plane is tested in flights to test for safety.

I feel many of us right now are in the spiritual proving grounds. What is being tested is the Word that God has put within our spirits. Jesus was in the proving grounds when He was tested in the wilderness by the devil. Now, I do have some scripture to balance out this prophetic word. First, take note of Romans 8:18-19

“For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God.”

The “revealing” is the unveiling of those that have come out of the proving grounds.

Now, lets turn to the true, actual event of David and Goliath. You know the story well. Goliath, nearly 10 feet tall, stood on the battlefield taunting all of Israel. David, the shepherd boy, heard Goliath and something rose up in his spirit and he said: “Your servant has killed both lion and bear; and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, seeing he has defied the armies of the living God.” (1 Sam 17:36)

You see, David had been in quite a few proving grounds defending sheep before he took on Goliath. God often works the same with us. He gives us smaller proving grounds (lion, bear) and then bigger proving grounds (giants!).

Something very interesting to note is that David refused the armor that was offered to him. His reason: “I cannot walk with these, for I have not tested them.” (v.38) David did not use the armor because he hadn’t “tested” them. In the same way we cannot use the full armor of God (see Eph 6) without first testing (proving) them.

Friends, God has you right now in the proving grounds. He will be putting the Word to test that is in you. The purpose of the proving grounds is to get you off the hanger and into the air – into the battle. Goliath is still standing there waiting for you to rise up, grab a stone and throw it