Melissa Nordell is a graduate of Wagner Institute and Founder of Strategic Prayer Command Ministry. She is an ordained Teacher of Intercession who teaches and speaks on the prophetic and intercession. She was the former Lead Intercessor of The Dwelling Place Church in Hemet, the “Transformations Church,” featured in George Otis Jr.’s first “Transformations” video and has continued to teach intercession, spiritual warfare, and transformational intercession ever since. She is also a writer and editor who has written articles for Elijah List, Breaking Christian News and God Reports.com. Melissa has a hunger to see the world transformed for God, more souls to reach heaven, and more cities and lives transformed through Jesus Christ. Website: strategicprayercomman
Synergy of the Ages and Passing of Mantles – A Word by Melissa Nordell
Melissa Nordell
Email: strategicprayercommandmin@
Many years ago, I was called to intercede for our church worship team who was part of a big event in Northern California, so I flew to Oakland airport, rented a car and while driving north the Lord pointed out that on my right was the church where my parents met and married. I wondered exactly why He was pointing this out as I was intent on interceding. Suddenly, the Lord said: “Ask for the mantles of your relatives who have gone on before.”
Of course, if the Lord tells you to do something, it is alright to do so but I had to wrap my head around this, feeling selfish somehow. Immediately, the Lord said: “Go ahead, they are already with me and have no use now for the mantles I gave them. And some of their gifts went unused.”
In the Bible, a mantle is a covering of a specified sort, or an important role or responsibility that passes from one person to another; a task or gifting that is specific to the person it is put upon. I pondered the service my parents and grandparents did for God’s kingdom. My Father was adopted but I knew that the giftings in that family were passed on to us children. But for some reason I could only see in my mind’s eye as far back as my great-grandparents.
Mantles are mentioned in the biblical account of Elisha asking for the mantle of Elijah in 2 Kings 2. After Elisha received the double anointing that he had requested from Elijah when Elijah ascended to heaven, Elisha had similar miracles as his mentor. In fact, the Bible records twice as many miracles performed by Elisha than Elijah. Soon after, there was an amazing expansion and authority I felt in my ministry.
Fast forward years later, many more events occurred like this regarding synergy of the ages and there is a reason to explain. First, I was asked by a cousin to help her downsize her house. In this adventure, we found several copies of a book written by a relative describing how he was sent by the Southern Baptist Churches as a “missionary” from Texas to the Central Valley of California to establish churches during the mass migration of people in the 1930’s Dust Bowl incident. We also found more information on our maternal ancestors who sailed to America to help establish this new land based on Godly principles beginning in 1611.
Then, shortly after helping my cousin downsize, a woman we did not know contacted my family about the genealogy of my father’s adoptive parents and had proven her late husband was related to us.
To add to this, next I happened to find a magazine I had put aside and saw a full-page ad for “Sally Sledge, Harpist”. Since “Sledge” is an unusual name (my maternal grandfather’s last name) and the fact that her ministry address is Ft. Worth, Texas near where he was born, I was curious. We later found out that we are 5th cousins. Sally is an anointed worshipper and harpist who has ministered around the world. When she plays her anointed harp, people are saved and healed.
There is a reason I am explaining all this, as of course I wondered what God was trying to speak to me. How could these three latest encounters regarding my Godly heritage in only two months (none of which I sought myself) have happened by chance?
Next, I heard Dutch Sheets speak his “Synergy of the Ages’ message in which he explains how it is time for the importance of honoring past generations and synergizing the work of kingdom believers throughout the ages. In short, He says that synergy of the ages means “multiplied power through generational agreement and honor.” This was another piece of this ancestry puzzle and what we need to activate today.
The Lord further explained that in the previous directive from Him years prior, I had only asked for the mantles as far back as my great-grandparents. He was now giving me permission to ask for the impartation of mantles and unused gifts from further back. From age to age, the Bible shows us that each generation builds on another to bring God’s kingdom plan together, just like Elijah and Elisha.
The Lord is saying it is time for us to ask our Heavenly Father for the mantles and prayers, synergistically, of our heritage so we can better fulfill the Great Commission. Every Christian who has preceded us most likely did not fulfill all God planned for them, so it is alright to ask for what our relatives left unfulfilled. It is the passing of the baton. It is our DNA. Of course, we do not worship or idolize our ancestors, which is unbiblical. Being given mantles by the Lord in His timing is biblical.
It does not matter if we do not know the giftings and callings that our relatives were given and does not matter if our relatives were serving the Lord. Everyone is given God-ordained gifts before birth, but some gifts are perverted by the enemy and bad choices. To explain, psychics have prophetic gifts but are led by Satan in his army. Even though some relatives may have served the enemy or even acted with pagan practices, they still had Godly gifts. No matter what your family has done, it does not change what God can do in you. You still can redeem Godly gifts, purposes, callings, and prayers that have been gathered in heaven, as that is your spiritual inheritance. Do not have a poverty mentality by thinking this is stifled by a heathen background or sins of your ancestors.
Mantles do not just mean mantles of preaching or the 5-fold ministry. Some are mantles of art, dance, compassion, missions, healing, intercession, writing, servanthood, to name a few. Be not concerned if your relatives did not have a huge ministry, were not founding fathers, or did not make any huge impact religiously. In fact, you do not even need to know the history of your ancestors – God knows. Jer 1:5 says: “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you; Before you were born I sanctified you; I ordained you a prophet to the nations.”
In addition, it does not matter if there is adoption in your bloodline. The legal generational inheritance of mantles is the same for those adopted, just as we are adopted into the family of God legally when we accept Christ as Savior. My adoptive grandmother prayed incessantly for her children and grandchildren to be ministers and I am reaping those prayers. Sometimes He imparts giftings and mantles from ministers we are not related to as He wills.
We also build on past moves of God and prayers of the saints. Prayers and intercession of multiple generations have been put in the bowls of heaven and we can ask for the manifestation of these from our heritage as well. Rev 5:8 says: “Now when He had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each having a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints” (NKJV).
This is also about re-digging the wells of revival, transformation, and past moves of God. Heb 11:13 says: “These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them, embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth” (NKJV). Even though these believers mentioned in Hebrews 11 did not see the promises while on the earth, the generations that came later continued fulfilling those promises, building the kingdom by faith.
The synergy of this passing of gifts and mantles also means that it is an important time to impart blessings to the young ones. There are many instances in the Bible of fathers blessing the children. It is imperative that we pray for younger ones, bless them, and call in Godly mantles and giftings for them. The Bible says in Malachi 4:6, ”And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.” Churches die if they do not relate, bless, and teach younger generations. Successful churches and families know that they need to pass on gifts to the younger. Each generation can learn so much from the other: young, old, and in-between.
In this important era in God’s timeline, we need all the strength we can through blessings and impartations, building on the work of forefathers, re-digging the wells of intercession, revival, and transformation. Deut 7:9 records: “Therefore know that the Lord your God, He is God, the faithful God who keeps covenant and mercy for a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep His commandments…”
I desire that all reading this can join with me in the following prayer: Dear Lord, we thank you and praise you for all you are and all you have done. We repent for the sins of our ancestors and break down and destroy all curses from generations past. We ask for the Godly gifts and mantles they did not use so that we can prepare the way of the Lord as Jesus directed us to do. We also ask for the prayers of our ancestors that have gone on before to fully manifest on earth. We bless the younger generations, and we thank you for what you are going to impart to us and our younger generations. We re-dig and build on the wells of revival, transformation, and past moves of God in blessed synergy of the ages. All in Jesus’ all-powerful and all-Glorious name!
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