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Pastor Wayne Wilson was my pastor for a number of years, and even though I have traveled around the country and now live in another state, we have remained friends, and he continues to minister to my family and me. If I have any spiritual maturity, it has been influenced greatly by the ministry, wisdom, and pastoral care of Wayne Wilson.
I had recognized Pastor Wilson’s pastoral call and his deep devotion to the Lord Jesus for many years. He was known for being a man of prayer and always pointed people to Jesus and the Word of God. Although I knew there was something different about him, I did not really understand until about 10 years ago when God began opening my eyes and my understanding. Yes, he was a pastor, but he was also much more. I didn’t really know a lot about prophets at that time, except that they were serious-minded and saw beyond what most people see, as witnessed by the prophets in the Bible. That certainly described him. The prophet was also listed in the gifts Jesus gave to His Church (Eph. 4:11), so I knew they were for the New Testament Church. I started reading and studying because I was witnessing the power and anointing of God that was on him growing and becoming more bold and more urgent. As my belief that he was a called prophet grew, I realized that he was one of only a few whom I knew had paid the price in truly laying down his life, who really heard from the Spirit of the Lord on behalf of the Church, who knows the Word, who has godly personal character and integrity, and who has given himself to spending and being spent for the cause of maturing and restoring the Church before it is too late.
Today, I can say with all confidence, in my mind and spirit, that Pastor Wayne Wilson holds the office of a true prophet of God. I say this after many years of wondering, watching, listening, studying, weeping, praying, and crying out to God that I must hear from Him on the matter. I needed God’s confirmation that Wayne Wilson was a true prophet of God who was called to prepare the church for coming end time events as I believed he was. I needed to hear from God, first of all, because what he was saying was many times against the grain of what I was hearing from most other preachers and so-called "prophets," and second of all, whether I was really supposed to support him in ministry as I had been sensing the call to do.
On October 30, 2006, at about 9 PM, I had an encounter with God while reading an online book by the late Art Katz. I don’t know about some of his other teachings, but God used one of the chapters in that book to touch my heart profoundly. It was called The Prophetic Call: True and False Prophets. I sent Pastor Wayne the following email telling him of my experience.
God is faithful, and He has been so gracious to me! I have never seen a more clear portrait drawn of a man than what I experienced this evening while reading an ebook by Art Katz. Paragraph after paragraph, the picture came into focus as I recalled teachings, conversations, Scriptures, articles I had edited, and glimpses of a heart that only God can form. I saw the characteristics of a true prophet of our Lord, and I saw a man with a face that I recognized, with ALL of the characteristics identified in the article. By God’s grace, my heart is settled, and I am humbled that God would deal so gently with me to confirm His will and His man, and to ease any doubts that what I heard was the voice of God. I am also so very humbled that I have been permitted to be involved in what God is doing through you as a true prophet of God.For almost two years now, I have been using my God-given gifts to help Pastor Wayne with a website and getting his writings online, while trying to apply to myself and my own life all that he has been saying—repent, draw closer in intimate relationship with God, cry out to God in prayer, know the Word, love others, go the way of the cross, the Kingdom, deny self, take up your cross and follow after Jesus! I have glimpsed, in a very small way, what he sees ahead—the urgency, and what he feels—the rejection, the concern, the questioning about whether there is more that can be done so people will hear, in the same heart-felt spirit that Jesus had when He cried, Oh, Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how I have longed ... but you were not willing (Matt. 23:37).
I believe I understand now, as much as is possible, what this ministry is about— the true, prophetic move of God. God really opened my eyes to a lot this evening. God, please give me the ability now to write what is in my spirit [and perform it].
There are many people in our generation who are being called prophets who are, in reality, wolves in sheep’s clothing, false prophets who are out to fleece the sheep. There are also sincere and genuine, God-loving Christians being called prophets who are simply moving in the gift of prophecy; they are not prophets. This has brought great confusion and distraction to the body of Christ, especially in America. There is a world of difference between these three groups of people—1) the office of a true called-out prophet, 2) someone with the true gift of prophecy, and 3) the false prophet.
How does one tell the difference between these three groups of people?
True prophets, as Jesus said in Matthew 23, are often killed or stoned; they are not popular because they do not speak a popular message. Many of them live in relative obscurity because they do not like calling attention to themselves and are therefore, for the most part, unknown. They know Jesus intimately and His Word thoroughly. They are often crying out to God in tears for the Church. They are calling for repentance and a return to God’s way of doing things. They weep for a lost and dying world and for a Church that is lukewarm and divided. Their hearts and minds are on restoring to God all that is His.
The true gift of prophecy is a gift of the Holy Spirit to exhort, edify, and comfort the Church and will always line up with or lead one to the Word of God. The true word of prophecy is clear and concise, not disjointed and obscure. Its fruit is maturity.
The (self-appointed) false prophet (wolf in sheep’s clothing) will prophesy great swelling words that people want to hear, and they usually have a large following. Their appeal is often worldly (1 John 2:16). People practically throw their money at them, hoping that God will see and honor them with a fulfillment of the word that was spoken, usually for riches. My daughter and I attended a meeting with one of the well-known "prophets" not long ago. I whispered to her well into the service, When is he going to talk about repentance and the cross? Regretfully, it never happened, but the offering was taken up in buckets after he reminded everyone of the prophet’s reward!
I am sure that false prophet left the building in a limousine, while true called-out prophets are on their knees in the wilderness crying out to God to have mercy on us. True prophets are seeing people leave them or not even respond because of hard sayings of truth. They, the few true prophets, are in good company, for the Word says that many left Jesus because of His hard sayings and walked with Him no more.
When are we going to wake up and start hearing? What is it going to take? The warnings are coming forth, the enemy is at the door, but who is listening! Let's listen to the prophets while we sit at the feet of Jesus. Let’s not become prophet-followers, but remain always Jesus-followers; true prophets will always point us back to Jesus (that’s a clue to recognizing them). God has always spoken through His called-out prophets. Why are pastors not reaching out to them asking, What is God saying? What am I to do? Please teach me! Please prepare me for what is ahead so that I can help to prepare others! Why are we as individuals not doing the same thing?
Again, I ask: Instead of seeking out those ministers who will bring in people and their money, why are pastors of churches, the shepherds of God’s flocks, not seeking out the prophets to help them lead the Church? True prophets will help pastors build mature disciples.
It was [God] who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work. (Eph. 4:11-16 NIV) [brackets added]These are serious questions, and I could list many more that we should be asking ourselves, as the clock is ticking. I was often told by my mother when I was growing up that a word to the wise is sufficient. Those words carried a very subtle threat that if I did not listen, there would be consequences. I believe that is still a valid principle today.
Psalm 107:43 AMP: Whoso is wise [if there be any truly wise] will observe and heed these things; and they will diligently consider the mercy and loving-kindness of the Lord.
Nancy Williams
A servant of Jesus
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