To raise up revivalists through a school of supernatural ministry, we as school leaders must first embrace our own call to live as revivalists! To see our students grow, it is our responsibility to first model the lifestyle of risk-taking and accountability that we desire to see cultivated in our students’ lives. By cultivating our personal connection to Holy Spirit, we are able to freely share the abundant fruit of our supernatural lifestyles corporately.
We want to share how your school can be a safe, nurturing place for students to exercise new spiritual muscles. Below, you will find ideas on how to create an environment that invites students to partner with the Holy Spirit. We also want to provide ways you can activate your students inside and outside the classroom. As you continue reading, may you be filled with expectancy to see God use your school to raise up fearless risk-takers that expand the kingdom!
Be the First to Take Risk and Even Fail
A school culture that celebrates risk-taking will catalyze your students’ growth and intimacy with the Lord! When you celebrate risk as a school leader, it removes the fear of failure from your students, which often prevents them from stepping out in the first place. Show your students that it’s okay to take risk (and even make mistakes) by being willing to live that out in your own life. We cannot lead others to a place that we have never been! Therefore, we as leaders must be willing to take risk and even make mistakes in front of our students if we want them to do the same. By practicing such authentic vulnerability, you will create freedom for your students to take risk without the fear of having to always get it right.
It is equally important to create a school culture where feedback and accountability are normal and safe. A risk-taking culture works when there are leaders that will provide honest feedback, guiding students in the right direction. We encourage you to give your students honest and loving feedback as they step out and take risk. This combination of risk-taking and healthy accountability is a powerful force that will activate your students in the supernatural!
At BSSM, we attribute our supernatural environment to our leaders’ value and willingness to demonstrate risk-taking, even if it leads to failure. We know our students cannot fulfill their destinies if they remain in their comfort zones, and so we first model and encourage them to take risks, even if it is extremely uncomfortable. BSSM Director, Kris Vallotton, shared more about this aspect of our school’s environment:
In our school of supernatural ministry, we require our students to fail three times before they can graduate. If someone is not failing, then it is obvious that they are not taking risk. Robert F. Kennedy once said, “Only those who dare to fail greatly can achieve greatly.” Making mistakes requires risk. Taking risk mandates mistakes—failure. Paul gave similar instruction to the leaders of the Corinthian Church when he advised them to carefully weigh/evaluate/judge each prophetic word, implying that mistakes were expected (1 Corinthians 14:29). Interestingly, Paul didn’t advise to discontinue the use of the gifts because of the potential mistakes that would inevitably be made. Rather, he hoped that everyone would prophesy (1 Corinthians 14:1,31). We must be willing to make mistakes if we are going to reach our God-given destiny as world changers and history makers.
To encourage and inspire our students to step out in risk, we model risk-taking during class times or Revival Group meetings (a connection group). For example, our leaders have shared words of knowledge connected to our students (e.g. names, cities of origin, phone numbers, etc.). Several times, they received accurate words that led to healing or emotional breakthrough in students’ lives. On the other hand, there were instances when students’ didn’t respond to their words of knowledge.
When our leaders step out in risk, we celebrate their willingness to partner with the Holy Spirit no matter the outcome. This communicates to our students that we value risk-taking that leads to spiritual growth! We also use these moments as opportunities to offer feedback and help our leaders to grow. In our environment, we make sure to partner accountability and risk-taking to help both leaders and students grow in their spiritual maturity.
Activate, Activate, Activate
Teaching partnered with activation is a powerful catalyst for transformation in students’ lives. Studies have shown that if students can practice or apply what you teach, they will retain 98% of the content you share. When you are helping students develop a revivalist lifestyle, they need opportunities to put truth and revelation into action. With that being said, activate, activate, activate your students!
As you prepare for the launch of your school, we encourage you to think about how you can create opportunities for students to take action daily and apply what they are learning. As you activate them in kingdom principles and spiritual gifts, remember how important it is to first model what you are teaching! To help you activate your students in the supernatural, here is a great step-by-step model you can use:
- Provide teaching and training on a spiritual gift.
- Ask an experienced leader to demonstrate the gift.
- Invite students to ask any questions.
- Ask a bold student to take risk to demonstrate the gift in front of the class.
- Ask the entire class to demonstrate the gift with a partner or small group.
- Provide time to hear testimonies and feedback.
- Ask questions that encourage further reflection and learning.
- Celebrate what God did through the activation.
As you lead your school, keep in mind what Kris Vallotton says, “If you try something new there is a chance you could fail. But if you don’t try it, there is a 100% chance that you will fail.” Cultivate a culture of risk-taking in your school by first being willing to take risk in your personal life. Moreover, allow the Holy Spirit to lead you into greater encounters with His presence and power as you live out your identity as a revivalist. The result has the potential to spark growth in your students’ lives!
ACTIVATION
Read through the list of activations from 10 Ways to Be Activated in the Supernatural. Take time to think about the personal breakthroughs you have received through activations and how you can impart those to students. With your leadership team, brainstorm creative ways your students can be activated in the supernatural through your school! Below are some reflection questions to help get your creative juices going:
- What are some of your favorite activations?
- What activations would you like to try or invite students to practice?
- How can you incorporate those in classroom sessions or outreach? Could you assign them as homework?
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