Podcast Summary: The Power Gifts Of The Spirit Pt. 8 – Pastor Craig Field

Promise of Life Church Podcast
Date: May 14, 2025
Speaker: Pastor Craig Field
Episode Focus: Deepening understanding of the power gifts of the Spirit, specifically the distinction between promptings, leadings, and the role of compassion in healing ministry.

Episode Overview

Main Theme:
Pastor Craig Field continues his teaching series on the power gifts of the Spirit, focusing on how believers discern when and how to minister healing. He intricately distinguishes between promptings and leadings of the Holy Spirit, emphasizing how these experiences relate to the operation of gifts, particularly healing. A significant portion of the teaching explores the biblical role of compassion in facilitating the supernatural gifts, drawing on both scriptural analysis and practical examples.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Promptings vs. Leadings – Definitions and Impact

• Prompting is described as an inspiration that rises up with force, authority, and often the element of surprise. It is usually a precursor to the operation of the gifts of the Spirit.
  • Quote [07:00]: “Promptings and leadings are in your spirit because they're by the Spirit, but they operate differently... Prompting equals inspiration. Leading does not equal inspiration.”
• Leading is a quieter, gentler inward knowing or instruction – less dramatic, more common, and typically not followed by a move of the gifts, but by acting in faith.
  • Quote [10:30]: “A leading, it still comes out of your spirit, but it’s not dramatic like a prompting is. It instructs you.”

Takeaway:
Promptings are rarer and usually occur when God wants to manifest His gifts suddenly. Leadings are more frequent and the main way most believers will minister to others—especially in day-to-day evangelism.

2. How Do Gifts of Healing Function?

• At times, healing is by anointing of healing power, which requires faith (from the one ministering or receiving).
• At other times, God sovereignly chooses to manifest the gifts of healings or other power gifts, which do not require the recipient’s faith.
  • Quote [04:30]: “If there are gifts operating, faith [of the recipient] is not required to receive healing.”

Example:
At the pool of Bethesda, Jesus only healed one man, not the many, explaining to Kenneth Hagin (in a vision) that He was “inspired or prompted by the Spirit... I was sent basically to one.” ([03:00])

• If prompted, teaching, preaching, and even laying on of hands are unnecessary—the gift will operate instantly and sovereignly.
• In the normal “Great Commission” context of Mark 16, the laying on of hands involves a transfer of healing power, which must connect to faith in the recipient.

3. Being Practical in Ministry

• When witnessing or ministering, don’t waste effort with those who are determinedly unbelieving.

  • Quote [13:30]: “If you've got somebody you're witnessing to and they outright tell you, ‘I don't believe,’ don't waste your hands and lay hands. There's not going to be any power that goes in.”

• There are exceptions led by the Holy Spirit—sometimes your own faith (as a minister) or a manifestation of gifts can override the lack of faith in others, especially if the Spirit prompts you.

4. Personal Story: Missed Opportunity and God’s Grace

• Pastor Craig shares a regretful story of missing a prompting to minister healing in a hospital because he was distracted by his son’s behavior ([54:45]).

  • Quote [57:00]: “If I'd known as much as I know now, I probably would have gone, ‘Well, this is going to be quick...’ But I thought I'd have to sit and engage.”

• God told him afterward that He had already “factored in” the challenge, and when the gifts are prompting you, they take precedence over everything else.

5. Compassion vs. Sympathy – A Key for the Gifts

• True Compassion: Rises up “from the belly”—a deep yearning of the spirit, not just a feeling of pity (sympathy), and is always accompanied by an overwhelming, compelling urge to act.
  • Quote [01:09:00]: “Compassion is out of the spirit realm...When compassion is happening, you almost can’t miss it... It compels you to act.”
• Compassion, unlike sympathy, is the indicator that God is about to move sovereignly—almost always with the gifts (not just power for healing that requires faith).
• Every instance in the Gospels where Jesus operated in compassion, gifts of healing or miracles followed—no need for the recipient to have faith, nor for teaching/preaching.

6. Scriptural Survey: Compassion in the Gospels

Pastor Craig surveys the 7 moments “compassion” is recorded in Jesus’s ministry, showing:

• Every case is paired with a miracle or healing, not simple acts of kindness.
• Examples include feeding the 5,000 & 4,000, raising the dead, healing the leper, healing the blind, and delivering the Gadarene demoniac ([~1:20:00] to [~1:50:00])
• Example: The leper in Mark 1:41 says, “If you will, you can make me clean.” Jesus, “moved with compassion,” heals him—though the man has no faith.

7. Modern Application & Testimony

• Story of “Danzo,” an Uber driver, illustrates responding to a leading (not prompting) to share healing scriptures with a passenger; the woman experiences the power of God in her knee but is distracted by upcoming surgery ([1:58:00]).
  • The presence of God “fills the car,” but this is not the gifts—it is power responding to faith generated by the Word.
• Pastor Craig clarifies:
  • Presence ≠ Gifts
  • Prompting or compassion is the indicator for gifts.
  • Leading + faith is the “standard” mode for most believers in daily life.

Notable Quotes & Moments (with Timestamps)

• Prompting & Inspiration ([07:00]):

  “Prompting equals inspiration... It's something moves you, something rises. I'm inspired to do this... There's an inspiration quality attached to it.”

• Gifts Don't Require Faith ([04:30]):

  “You don't need to get them to believe, you don't need to teach or preach... Gifts don't require faith.”

• Compassion vs Sympathy Explained ([01:09:00]):

  “Compassion is out of the spirit realm... It is unmistakable. The second thing: compassion compels you. If you don't act, you feel like you're going to die.”

• Scriptural Evidence: Compassion Connected to Gifts ([01:39:00]):

  “Every time the word compassion is used in the ministry of Jesus Christ without fail, gifts are associated with it.”

• Ministry Advice ([14:30]):

  “If you've got somebody you're witnessing to and they outright, outright tell you outright, I don’t want it… Don’t waste your hands and lay hands. Because there’s not going to be any power that goes in.”

• Personal Missed Prompting ([56:20]):

  “If I'd known what I know today, I was ignorant. With ignorance you lack; you perish for lack of knowledge.”

Important Timestamps

| Timestamp | Segment Description | |-----------|-----------------------------------------------------------------| | 00:00 | Introduction to promptings vs leadings; faith vs gifts | | 07:00 | Detailed distinction: prompting (inspiration) vs leading | | 13:30 | When not to minister; lessons in practical ministry | | 54:45 | Pastor Craig's missed hospital opportunity | | 01:09:00 | Comprehensive teaching: compassion versus sympathy | | 01:39:00 | Bible study: Every occurrence of ‘compassion’ and the gifts | | 01:58:00 | Modern testimony: Uber driver and healing ministry | | 02:15:00 | Conclusion and encouragement to discern compassion & prompting |

Tone & Style

• Pastor Craig’s teaching is warm, humorous, and highly practical.
• He doesn’t shy away from admitting past mistakes and encourages listeners to grow by revelation, not just information.
• The tone is conversational, sometimes playful (e.g., "three gold stars", “Jenny, you’ll be covered in stars”), but always deeply scriptural and earnest about equipping believers for Spirit-led ministry.

Final Insights

• Skill with the Gifts: Learning to distinguish between promptings, leadings, and the movement of compassion is critical for effective, scripturally-sound healing ministry.
• Compassion as God’s Signal: When supernatural compassion rises, gifts are about to operate—act quickly, don’t overthink.
• Evangelism: Most believers will function through leadings plus faith, but should remain sensitive and ready for promptings and compassion-driven moments of God’s sovereign intervention.
• Practicality: Always seek testimony/follow-up, and don’t be discouraged if responses aren’t immediate or if you miss it—God is patient and desires to teach His people.

Recommended For:
Anyone seeking a practical, biblically-grounded approach to healing ministry, who wants to become more sensitive to the Holy Spirit’s operation—whether layperson or preacher.