A Word from God is a rhema (Holy Spirit-inspired Word from the Logos) instruction for your life. Paul tells Timothy in 1 Timothy 1:18 that it is according to the prophecies spoken over us, that we wage a good warfare. A Word from God may speak to your identity or it may speak to your calling. It is important that we treat these words as precious and steward them properly before the Lord, through the help of Holy Spirit. We are not held accountable for what He doestn’t tell us, but we are held accountable for what He does. As the Parable of the Talents instructs us in Matthew 25:14-30, may we be found good stewards of what our Master gives, not burrying our talents, but multiplying them.

Here are 10 ways to steward a word from God:

• Pick it up – Take that old word off the shelf, dust it off, look it over. A word of God is a precious gift. Don’t let it lie dormant. Create rhythms of engaging with His words for your life.

• Pray – Prayer is a two-way conversation. God wants you to ask Him questions about His words to you. He has answers! Proverbs 25:2 says, “it’s the glory of God to conceal a matter, and the glory of kings to search it out.”

• Meditate on His Word – If you are in Christ, you have the mind of Christ. Engage your God given imagination to begin to see His promises operating in your life.

• Write it – Habakkuk tells us to write the vision and make it plain. There’s something about writing a word from God that over time moves the word from pen and page deep into the epistle of your heart.

• Share it – Share it with someone you trust. You need encouragement and sound insight. Proverbs 11:14 says, “where no counsel is, the people fall: but in the multitude of counsellors there is safety.”

• Put your hands to the plow – There is something you can do in response to His word. However small or great the step, take it! If you don’t know what’s next, faithfully act on His previous instruction to you until you do. It’s vital to keep moving. It’s impossible to steer a parked car. 

• Keep an open hand – Remember you are fixed to the Lord not to the promise. He may (and often does) want to adjust the course you are on. Keep an open hand before Him, surrendering daily to His now instruction.

• Surrender the timing – This may be the hardest thing for most believers to do, to lay down their own timelines. A good thing at the wrong time is not a good thing. Remind yourself continually to trust His timing.

• Labor over it – When you have conceived a word of promise in your heart, carrying it may feel like a kind of labor. As you travail in prayer, you take often intimidating steps of faith in response to His call. It’s important to discern the difference between labor and warfare. Spiritual warfare is an attack we resist, but labor pains are a stretching we lean into. We understand that on the other side of labor pains is the birth of the promise.

• Rest – It seems contrary to ‘putting your hand to the plow’ and ‘labor’ to rest, but rest is the secret to the Kingdom life. Rest means becoming utterly dependent upon the Lord and trusting His guidance in the process of fulfilling your destiny.