When I was younger, I grew up in a church where occasionally someone would speak out in tongues and another person would interpret… then the pastor would explain to the rest of the church what just happened.
I remember the first time I heard it happen. I was 7-8 years old and my eyes got big, I started laughing quietly and I was unsure of what was happening. I looked around the church and everyone was pin drop quiet intent on hearing what was being said. I thought the people were crazy. Then it happened more and more so it became normal and my response to it was ‘Here we go again’ or ‘Yeah, sometimes they do that.’
Even though the pastor would explain, it would be something to the effect of ‘God gave us the Holy Spirit and sometimes the Spirit gives the church a word to edify the body. Today he has given us a word.’ However, nothing else was taught on Sundays about the Holy Spirit that I remember.
What I knew at 18:
* I knew Holy Spirit was the 3rd part of the trinity (Father, Son, Holy Spirit).
* I knew some people could speak in tongues.
* I knew some people could interpret.
* I knew sometimes the Holy Spirit spoke to people.
That was all I knew.
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Then when I was 19, I felt nudging in my spirit when I recommitted my life to Christ. I genuinely wanted to make different decisions in my life. I believe nudging is one way the Holy Spirit speaks to people.
Then again when I was 20 on the day I was water baptized. I knew without a doubt that I could not leave church that day without being baptized.
These were both lessons in obedience.
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Then when I was 20-21, I learned about the gift of discernment of spirits – the ability to see the spirit world (angels, demons, etc), so I knew there was much more to learn.
However, in my mind I placed people with these Holy Spirit gifts on a pedestal as closer to God than myself or someone God deemed as more special or chosen than myself.
I had also seen videos of people falling down in the spirit, or laughing or crying. This is what scared me. I did not believe it was real and contemplated on how that could be God.
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Then at 24, I am at World Race training camp surrounded by believers from all church backgrounds and there I heard tongues again, but this time it was different, it wasn’t being spoken loud but under the breath as a prayer language by people all around me.
Then, month one in Australia we had a worship night that included healings and praying louder in tongues without an interpreter. Some of us lost it… upset, confused, uncomfortable, leaving worship for various reasons. Looking back, our whole squad knew just how oppressed the city of Byron Bay and Nimbin was and how angry the enemy was we were there… but yet in our ignorance we allowed him power over that space to divide us that night in worship just as he divides the church today. One minute the church worships together, then the moment someone feels uncomfortable or another makes a misstep being immature in their gifts, believers leave and scatter forming their own belief of what is biblical and what is right or wrong… just like the enemy wanted. He knows the church is weaker when there is division.
“Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” – Ephesians 6:11-12
“…that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgement.” – 1 Corinthians 1:10
The truth is, God is still the same… yesterday, today and forever.
The purpose of gifts is for the common good and to edify the church – to bring life to the church. We are the church. We are meant to encourage and refine each other to build the church up and make it stronger. If we are walking with the spirit then all this should be done with kindness and upmost importance so that no one may fall.
“For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food, for everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is a child. But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil.” – Hebrews 5:12-14
Every new believer is a newborn in faith and needs someone with experience to disciple them… to teach them, help them gain experience and learn to discern between God’s voice, their own voice and the enemy’s voice. Even someone like myself being brought up in the church my entire life, but having never been discipled still consider myself a child in the faith. I am having to relearn some things and how to discern between who’s voice I am hearing.
I wholeheartedly believe there should be space in the church to practice gifts and grace given to those who are learning… without testing the spirits, how will they know who’s voice is who? How would someone know they have the gift of interpretation if they are never exposed to any tongues to interpret? If no one is being discipled, how will people really grow in faith? If the spiritual gifts are meant for edification of the church and believers are not operating in them, how then is the church being edified- by our own power? What are we missing out on?
These are questions I went into India asking.
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My second week in India, month four, we had the opportunity to join another World Race squad at an event called “The Awakening.”
This was a time for us as world racers to lead sessions on whatever God was laying on our hearts and to be stirred up a bit… to throw a bit more ignition on our flames… to come away feeling encouraged and on fire for the Lord in a new way.
This week was a good one for me! Two things stand out:
1. My friend Liz’s teaching on the marriage of the church.
She taught the importance of Holy Spirit in the church and the importance of knowing God’s word and how scripture backs up that they are both designed to work together. The church needs the Spirit to remain alive, encouraged and operate as a full functioning body. And Spirit needs the Word so that it can be brought to remembrance in times of opposition or sharing truth with others.
2. Receiving the baptism of Holy Spirit.
Just before this event I started reading Acts and was confused when I reached Acts 8:14-17 where the church calls for Peter and John to come and pray for these people who were water baptized in the name of Jesus but have not received the Holy Spirit. I was greatly confused that it was two different things because I had never once been taught about this. At the end of the week I stood in a room with 40-50 people all praying over each other to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit and immediately I received the gift of tongues as did many others in the room. Since then, it has been incredibly edifying to pray where is was difficult before and I have been so hungry to learn more about the true design and function of the church body!
