This message was shared by Apostle Kathryn Krick Lead Pastor/ Apostle of 5F Church in Los Angeles, CA on September 7, 2025. To watch the full video, scroll to the bottom of this post. We pray this teaching blesses you and equips you to walk as a powerful vessel of God.   

Luke 22:24-27 

Then they began to argue among themselves about who would be the greatest among them. Jesus told them, “In this world the kings and great men lord it over their people, yet they are called ‘friends of the people.’ But among you it will be different. Those who are the greatest among you should take the lowest rank, and the leader should be like a servant. Who is more important, the one who sits at the table or the one who serves? The one who sits at the table of course. But not here! For I am among you as one who serves.

Luke 22:25-27

The kings and men of authority in this world rule oppressively over their subjects, claiming that they do it for the good of the people. They are obsessed with how others see them. But this is not your calling. You will lead by a different model. The greatest one among you will live as one called to serve others without honor. The greatest honor and authority is reserved for the one who has a servant heart. The leaders who are served are the most important in your eyes, but in the kingdom, it is the servants who lead.

Mark 9:33-35

Jesus said to the disciples, “What were you arguing about on the way here?” No one said a word, because they had been arguing about which one of them was the greatest. Jesus sat down, called the twelve disciples to come around him, and said to them, “If anyone wants to be first, he must be content to be last and become a servant to all.”

The greatest in the kingdom, the absolute greatest in the kingdom, are those who are servants, who have servant hearts, who put others before them, who live selfless lives, humble lives: those are the greatest. And you can not fool God! God sees your motives. God sees your heart. He sees servant hearts and the Bible says that He will exalt those who humble themselves.

Matthew 23:11-12

The greatest among you must be a servant. But those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.

How are they exalted? By God. God sees, when your heart is pure, is humble, is a servant heart, and He will lift you for His glory. He will lift you in a place of leadership, where you can be an example for others to imitate as you imitate Jesus. That’s the meaning of being exalted: that you were exalted into a place of leadership to lead people to Christ. You may be exalted into a place of more influence for the purpose of leading people to Christ. Because God sees, you do not care about yourself. You only care about God. You have a servant heart through and through, so now He can entrust you with His people. He knows, He can count on you to not do things in a selfish manner, to do things for your own gain, but because your heart is a servant heart through and through, He can trust you. So He lifts you, and He leads more people to look at you, to see your example, to learn from you, to receive the anointing through you.

There are many believers that really want to be a minister, they want to start a church. They really want to be a worship leader, they really want to have a leadership position in the church, in ministry in some way. They feel this deep in their heart. For a lot of people there’s a mixture: they love God and they really are excited about serving Him. They may have a gifting, they may have a teaching gifting, they may have what they think is a leadership gifting, a natural inclination to lead, they may have a musical gifting, they may have whatever kind of gifting, and they feel very zealous to use that gifting, and to serve God. But a lot of believers, I would say probably the majority that are having these feelings, these passions, this excitement, also have some selfish ambitions mixed in. You have to be sanctified and transformed into the image of God to get rid of your old self completely. And one of the big components every person has before they give their life to Jesus, is selfishness. 

You can’t not be selfish without Jesus, without surrendering your life to Jesus. When you give your life to Jesus, there are parts of the soul that have to be transformed. There are certain weaknesses. Some people have an inclination to be angry, they may not have the spirit of anger, but maybe that’s a weak part of their flesh where they get angry. Or they get anxious, or they get sad easily. There’s components in your soul that simply need to be transformed by God. You do that by soaking in His anointing, soaking in His word, renewing your mind and applying all of the principles that God has given. As you continually do these things such as being a true disciple by planting yourself where God has called you to be planted, valuing the teachings, valuing the word of God, written and spoken with all of your heart, serving wherever the need is, and contributing to the kingdom of God, sowing, this is the main way that transformation comes. 

As you continually obey God, deny your flesh and make sacrifices, God transforms you to be less selfish, until you are selfless. But that doesn’t come overnight. Many people carry that selfishness that they had in their past life, into their life as a believer. It’s so important that you all are aware of this, that you don’t look the other way. But it’s important you are real with yourself about your motives, because if you’re not, you can be led by the angel of light. 

I’ll tell you a big scheme of the devil: he loves to hijack believers that have such great potential to be used mightily by God. He loves to hijack them in the middle of their pride and selfishness. For people that are not patient, but they just want to quickly serve God in a high level way and have their own ministry, this is a big scheme of the devil to speak sounding like God, “Go start a ministry now. Or, get mad when you are not being promoted into a leadership position and leave the church. Or, be jealous of the leader, because you want leadership and you’re not getting it, so be jealous of them and then start being a Pharisee towards them.”

Most of the persecution that happens is jealousy, that’s what happened with the Pharisees. The Pharisees were the religious leaders, they were the top dogs in the church world back then. They had the big congregations. There was no competition. Jesus comes and He’s walking in the mighty anointing. People’s lives are being transformed, people are left in awe and wonder. People are being healed and delivered and that’s not happening in their services: their services are dry. And, this is literally in the Bible where I believe it’s Pilate that recognizes the jealousy, he says, “They want to kill Jesus, but it’s really just jealousy.” (Matthew 27:18)

He saw it for what it was. So that’s the main reason for persecution today. The main persecution of Jesus was the Pharisees, the religious leaders. Today it tends to be people who are ministers or who want to be ministers or who want power in the church world in some way. Maybe a worship leader or something like that, they want some leadership position. And then there’s jealousy towards ministers called by God who are walking in anointing. That comes from the devil. That’s why I say, this is a big scheme of the devil to hijack people with great potential to be mighty vessels of God. The devil sees their precious gifting God gave them in their mother’s womb and the anointing that will come upon that.

So the easiest thing for the devil to do to try to hijack them away from God’s plan for their life, is by pretending to be God. “Oh yeah, your gifting is so great. You need to use it. Time’s wasting. Go, start a ministry,” before God’s time. Before you have been transformed. I’m telling you, for you to be exalted by God, exalted to the place of leadership, exalted to the place of being a minister, where lives are entrusted to you, you have to have a servant heart through and through. Now, there’s a lot of self appointed ministers, there’s a lot of people who aren’t actually called by God. But I’m talking about God’s true ways. If you want to be truly called by God, in God’s will, a true minister of God, you have to be transformed so greatly, your heart has to be molded to be a servant heart through and through, and guess what, that does not happen overnight, no matter what. Maybe your past wasn’t that bad, you grew up in the church, you think you can just excel faster. You have to go through a process, no matter what, to have this servant heart transformed in you. And if your past wasn’t that bad, there can be pride. Sometimes it might take that person longer to be transformed to have a servant heart, rather than someone like Paul, who sees how much he needed God’s grace and is living in that revelation, “Who am I to be chosen by God? Jesus, I need you.” 

Jesus appeared to my spiritual father, Prophet GeorDavie, in the early 2000’s. In 2004, Jesus appeared to my spiritual father. Before that time he had been pastoring a church of Masai tribal people, more than a hundred people in his living room, and I believe it then expanded outside. For about four years he was being faithful to minister to them. And before that, he had been faithful to God for many many years, serving God in music ministry, serving God at YWAM as well. And then in 2004, right before he was about to minister at a conference, Jesus appeared to him in the early hours of the morning. He saw Him from the waist up, and Jesus was holding a bunch of keys. He shook the keys, and He said to Prophet GeorDavie, “I’m giving you the keys to unlock my people from bondage, from religious bondage.” These keys represented religion, the chains of religion. These keys had different names on them, many of them were different denominations. Other names on these keys Prophet GeorDavie had never seen before. But they represented all these different ways people had been held back from religious doctrines from the devil. Then, with the biggest smile that exuded the most love that Prophet GeorDavie had ever seen in his life, Jesus vanished. And he went to minister at that conference that day and all of a sudden the spiritual realm opened up. He could see, this person, God wants him to get up out of the wheelchair and walk right now. “Get out of your wheelchair,” and he got up and walked. And it was just like popcorn. He could suddenly see so much in the spiritual realm, and so many miracles were happening instantly. 

Prophets are called by birth, like Jeremiah. “I knew you in your mother’s womb; I have called you to be a prophet to the nations.” (Jeremiah 1:5) That’s still how God moves today. When Prophet GeorDavie was a young child, he would speak things and they would happen. He said to a bus driver one time when he was very young, “There’s something coming up ahead,” like a car coming in the wrong lane or something like that. He spoke this and you couldn’t see it at all, and then all of a sudden it came and the bus driver was able to veer out of the way. Other things like that happened as well. When Jesus opened his eyes and said, “I have called you to be a prophet,” and now he could see all of this in the spiritual realm, his mother reminded him of when he was a young child–these instances that confirmed he was a prophet. From that day, the revival broke out at his church and in Tanzania. His church grew from 120 to 1,000 in one month, because of the fruits, because of all the miracles happening. And now his church has several thousand people every Sunday. 

The president of Tanzania speaks with him very frequently seeking spiritual advice, respecting him as a true prophet of God. The country receives him as a prophet of God, honors him, and, recognizing the wisdom in seeking his spiritual counsel, enjoys peace. Glory to God. But I say all that to say, there were years when God was molding his servant heart before all this happened. 

I remember, he told me this story about how he went to YWAM (Youth with a Mission). He was young at that time, it was in the 1980’s, and I think he was probably a teenager at that time. He said all these ministers came there. They came to be trained in ministry, but they were already ministers, they were already bishops, they were worship leaders. The rule at YWAM, he said he remembers to this day, was that you must lay down everything and become a servant. Lay down your position and learn, you are here to learn. He said, a lot of people left because they wanted recognition, they wanted honor, they were used to getting that recognition as a minister but they would go there and they couldn’t take it. They would be assigned to wash dishes, they would be assigned to clean, to cook, and they would get offended, “How come they can’t give me a chance to preach just one time?” They would get offended and leave. But he said, “I had no problem with it, because I wanted to be transformed. I wanted to be transformed by God’s word.” He was very gifted in music, he was a worship leader at that time, but he said, “I just laid it down, I didn’t play guitar for a year. I didn’t touch it. I focused completely on being a servant. That’s what they told me to do.”

For me, God called me to be an apostle. But God did not entrust me to be a shepherd of more than a handful of people for four and a half years, similar timing as my spiritual father before his eyes opened up and revival broke out and thousands started coming to his ministry. It took years for me to be transformed, and a servant heart to be molded in me, before God could entrust me to this high-level place of leadership. It didn’t happen overnight and I had been a Christian my whole life. I remember, when my spiritual father came here to minister, I hosted him at a conference and this was the conference where he prophesied that “Revival is now. God has heard America’s prayers for revival and He has answered them.” I didn’t know he was going to prophesy that there, but I knew a true prophet of God was coming to my city. I was so in awe and was like, “The world has to know! There is a true prophet of God that I haven’t seen before. I haven’t ever encountered God’s love and power like this in my life. The world needs to know! I want the world to experience what I’ve experienced because it set me on fire for Jesus like never before.Through the prophetic ministry of a prophet, my eyes opened up to God’s love and nearness for my life like NEVER BEFORE.” 

I was a believer my whole life, the earliest memory is giving my life to Jesus at age four. I’ve always loved God. I always believed God loved me. I believed it. But I was like, “Yes, I believe. I believe because people tell me”. But when I encountered the prophetic ministry, the prophetic words spoken to me through a prophet, through my spiritual father Prophet GeorDavie, I NOW KNEW, God loves me so much! I now knew God was always close to me. I now knew God cared about every detail of my life. I now knew God had perfect, beautiful plans for my life. It was this intense knowing. 

For example, maybe somebody tells you, “Oh, you have this family member and they love you so much”. This person tells you all about them, so you believe. You have no reason to doubt and even love them for hearing, “Oh, they love me”.

If you can imagine that. If you have a family member you never met and the other family member tells you this, just imagine. But then when you meet them and all that they said was true but their words did no justice, that’s what it’s like meeting Jesus through the power of God, through the prophetic ministry. And so I was like, “I know God is so good! I know God is so faithful! I know God loves me! I know His plans for me are so good!” 

And I was just that way through a simple prophetic ministry, but I went my whole life as a believer not experiencing that. That’s why I had so much zeal for the body of Christ. 

I share this also to help our eyes open up to see why we need prophets, why we need apostles, and why we need the prophetic ministry. We are missing so much without it. 

When I hosted my spiritual father here in Los Angeles, the conference where he prophesied that “Revival is Now”, God started speaking to me the importance of serving God and what that looks like, being a servant to all. This means, putting people before you. How this looks so much, is serving the work of God. Being a servant looks like putting people before you in your own life. 

It doesn’t mean opening up doors to the wrong people and letting them abuse you. No. I mean, to the people that God has called you to, friendships and family members and even maybe just having a conversation with somebody in the hair salon or in the airplane seat next to you, you would be a servant to them in that moment. You wouldn’t think about your plans, your ambitions, what you planned to do that day, but you would recognize God in this divine appointment that’s happening right now. “God is calling me to serve them by loving them”, loving them in different ways such as actively through your words and smiling, just shining the love of Jesus. Sometimes that means just practically helping someone, when you see a stranger that needs help, you go run, “I’m a servant, this is who I am.” 

You know, when God started speaking this to me, I would try to find practical ways that I could serve others, that I could deny myself, that I could be selfless. And so, I would say, “Where do you want to go to eat for dinner, for lunch?” Practical ways where I’m denying myself and practicing being a servant because that’s what I’m called to, to be a servant. So if I want to be a servant, I have to act like it. I have to practice it. I have to make the intention. I have to see others, that they matter more than me. I have to see others, that they need to know the love of God through the service here right now. That’s one of the ways we’re called to be servants.

But another way we’re called to be a servant is by serving the work of God like Elisha who served Elijah. 

1 Kings 19:19 

Elijah went from there and found Elisha, son of Shaphat. He was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen, and he himself was driving the twelfth pair. Elijah went up to him and threw his cloak around him.

1 Kings 19:21

So Elisha left him and went back. He took his yoke of oxen and slaughtered them. He burned the plowing equipment to cook the meat and gave it to the people, and they ate. Then he set out to follow Elijah and became his servant.

This is a picture of him leaving behind his old life and committing to follow Elijah, because Elijah had just called him prophetically. “You are called to be my servant, follow me and be a spiritual son”. This is what God is saying through a prophet. “I speak this to you”, is what Elijah was doing by throwing a cloak on Elisha. It says, Elisha then burned the plowing equipment to cook the meat and gave it to the people, and they ate. Then he set out to follow Elijah and became his servant.

He became his servant. 

Elijah was a prophet of God. Elijah was doing the most mighty works for God at the time. He was this major prophet, high level prophet. God had chosen him and was doing such wonders through him. But we are called to be the body of Christ. We need to all contribute to the work of God and God has order. He doesn’t assign us all to do our works, but He calls us to be united and to work together towards the same vision, towards the same assignment. 

So God didn’t call Elisha and say, “Elisha, you’re going to be a powerful prophet like Elijah, so now just start trying to do what Elijah does. Just start ministering.”

No! That’s not what happened.

God said, “You’re going to be like Elijah. This is the calling for your life, so in order for you to step into that calling, you have to learn how to be a servant”. Because, every believer, every servant of God, their role is a servant. My role is a servant. Right now, I am serving you. 

I’m writing a new book, glory to God. I'm so excited for what God’s going to do with this book. Yesterday, amidst deadlines and busyness of other works of God, I am sacrificing and denying myself to prepare this message, to hear from the Holy Spirit for your life, for you to be fed this word. As I pray for you, I am serving you. Everything that I do for the work of God, I am serving you through. 

I don’t do anything for my own gain. I don’t do anything out of selfish ambition, for the grace and glory of God. I’m doing it because God has asked me to serve you. To be a minister, to be a leader in any capacity in ministry, you have to be a servant. A real servant. Glory to God. 

This servant heart is shaped, for example like Elijah, he was serving God’s people. And Elisha also has the calling to serve God’s people like Elijah, but he first has to learn how to serve. And Elijah was doing great things for God, he needed help. 

There was a time I was editing all the videos that were posted. But I couldn’t put out many videos because it was all me doing it. Now we have a whole editing team, glory to God, and I’m doing no editing now. I would not be able to write the book that I’m writing right now. I would not be able to do the e-course that I just did that will be coming out in the fall. I wouldn’t be able to do that or the other things that I’m doing for the work of God that God is calling me to, without people having servant hearts like Elisha and becoming a servant to the work of God, serving the anointing. 

There are tons of people who serve in all these different areas, from the worship to the media team to the ushers to behind the scenes. There are so many people who are serving here. And because they are serving, more work of God goes forth. But they’re all aligned, they’re not like “Oh, I’m going to start my own ministry”. Because that’s what people feel like so much, but it’s not God’s calling. Maybe it’s God's calling for them to be a minister in God’s timing, to be a branch leader of that church where they’re a part of or maybe to start their own ministry in God’s timing. Maybe. But what He’s calling everyone to first, is to focus on serving the work of God. Serving where you are planted, where you have received from, because God is about unity and the same vision. Hallelujah! We cannot be scattered, doing our own things. We have to come together and we have to come in order. We have to see what we can do to take off the loads of the work of God, of the servants of God. 

When God started giving me this revelation and my spiritual father was coming here for the conference that I’m telling you about, where he prophesied that “Revival is Now” and when I was preparing for him to come, I just treated it so seriously. “This is how God is calling me to be a servant right now, I need to just make sure everything is smooth and I serve him with excellence”. I took care of booking the right hotel, making sure it was good, clean, and nice. I picked him up in the airport, took care of the car, all of these different arrangements. Also the preparation of the conference, I would go out and hand out flyers so many nights, and I put a magnet for the conference on my car.

When he came, I was trying to serve with such excellence because I knew this is what God had called me to. I knew, he was doing such important work and my role in this time was to try to alleviate any possible heaviness, stress, unnecessary burdens and just do what I can to make sure everything goes smoothly and peacefully.  

Little did I know he was carrying a word like Moses that would change the world, "Revival is Now”. 

I had this heart of, “What he’s doing is so powerful! I want to protect this anointing. I want to protect the peace. I just want him to be able to focus on doing the work of God, because it is so important what he’s doing. I am going to do anything I can to help in that, to help him do that with peace, with strength”. 

God is saying to you right now, “Many of you, you have great potential to be used powerfully by me but you have to become a servant. Drop it. Drop your ambitions. Drop your good ambitions, because you have to be a servant first. It is not going to be overnight. Stop thinking so much of your ambitions, of your ministry ambitions and lay them down, so I can start to transform you, to be this servant that you are called to”. 

To have this servant heart, you have to be devoted to be a servant. You don’t see Elisha going to Elijah, constantly asking, “So, um, am I going to get to receive your anointing? Am I going to receive your mantle? Are you going to release me yet?” He’s just focused on serving. He’s focused on serving and that’s how it should be. When it’s your time to be lifted, it’s going to be God that lifts you. You don’t need to remind God. You don’t need to remind people or your leaders. You don’t need to remind Elijah of today. It will be God Himself who lifts you divinely. 

If He wants to lift you, promote you, anoint you to now go into ministry, and you are planted at a place like here, a place like Five-Fold Church, He will speak to your spiritual leader who carries prophetic anointing, for my case here whose spiritual father is a prophet, and will prophesy to you, "It is time. You are called to be an apostle, a prophet, an evangelist, pastor, teacher, a worship leader, whatever, a leader in this way; I anoint you, go out now!” It will be clear. It will be God’s timing. That’s how it’s supposed to be. God is lifting you. It won’t happen through you rushing the lifting. It won’t happen through you trying to lift yourself because of impatience. Slow down and become a servant. That is your calling. Whether you're called to be a leader in ministry or not, the calling is the same, to be a servant.

So focus fully on being a servant and God will unfold everything else. He will lift you. He will reward you. He will pour out blessings through the lifting as you continue to humble yourself.