Toward Understanding God’s Power of Prophecy
Shirin McArthur • February 18, 2026
Seeing the gift of prophecy in a new light.
We tend to think about prophecy as “speaking truth to power,” but social criticism isn’t all that God cares about. In a Center for Action and Contemplation meditation, Mike Petrow pointed out the incompleteness of that notion. In his words, “Prophecy is speaking truth to power on behalf of a divine vision of wholeness.”
Yes, the prophets in Hebrew Scripture rant against Israel’s shortcomings (as Hosea does here). God grieves over the people’s lack of “faithfulness or loyalty.” God is angry that Israel’s leaders have pursued other gods and don’t care for the people they are supposed to lead and guide. Speaking truth to power is a valuable element of the gift of prophecy.
God also acts through the prophets as a means to communicate God’s vision for a world that we, in our frailty and sin-blindedness, cannot imagine on our own. They share enticing promises of a future filled with healing, safety, and plenty (as Isaiah does here). This divine vision of wholeness is both individual and communal. Feeble knees are made firm, and the eyes of the blind are “opened.” People travel safely upon a highway called the “Holy Way.” Water will flow in the desert.
This all reminds me of a question I once asked in a past conversation: “Is it finally time for you to stop running away from this call?” It shocked both myself and the person to whom I was speaking. But this unexpected inquiry prompted deeper conversation that revealed a clear invitation from Spirit for this individual to embrace an opportunity for further training in leadership. For me, this felt like a moment of prophecy.
But how? Since we are colleagues, I didn’t feel as though I was speaking truth to someone more powerful than I am. Instead, I believe that Spirit spoke through me to someone who has power they are not using. God used my mouth to open their eyes to see more about how they fit into God’s vision of wholeness.
As I noted above, prophecy has both individual and communal components. Evidently, the Spirit wants this person to use their God-given gifts and situational opportunities more fully. This person has some (spiritual) power. Perhaps there will be opportunities to use this new training in ways that none of us can yet envision.
Many times, we believe we aren’t good or righteous enough to be used by God. I beg to disagree. God can, and will, use every one of us. Sometimes the Holy Spirit even takes over our mouths and uses them in ways we could not have imagined.
Many times, we think we don’t have the right platform or connections or enough chutzpah to speak truth to power. But we don’t all need to be preaching to those at the top of the political food chain. Instead, God might be calling us to share invitations to those we know and love who aren’t fully using their gifts “on behalf of a divine vision of wholeness.”
When has the Spirit used you in some prophetic way? How might you view some incident in your life differently if you ponder it through this prophetic lens?
A version of this article originally appeared on Shirin McArthur's website.
Shirin McArthur has been a clergy spouse and is a spiritual guide, retreat leader, writer, and editor who ponders the sacred through prayer, poetry, dance, photography, nature, and contemplation. Her mission is to cultivate deep spiritual roots in others so that we all may spread our wings and fly freely in pursuit of our particular lives and callings. Shirin lives in Tucson, Arizona and has been leading retreats for 30 years. You can learn more about Shirin on her website and reach her via email.
