All posts tagged: Gift of Tongues

When in ‘doubt’ pray in ‘tongues’

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In an article on Charisma News, Ruth Zschomler shared the amazing story on how the gift of tongues saved a woman’s life. On August 9, 2011, Kathi and David Byker were abruptly awakened from their sleep in Grandville, Michigan by two men wearing hoods and brandishing knives. The pair quickly bound Kathi with duct tape on her ankles and wrists and demanded that David pay a ransom for her release. One of the assailants put a knife to Kathi’s throat saying she would be killed if David didn’t provide the money. After blindfolding Kathi and gagging her mouth with duct tape, Kathi was dragged into the family’s SUV and driven away. David was then given a cell phone number to call once he had gotten the money. The message was clear without payment, Kathi would die. As she was lying in the back of the SUV and being driven away, Kathi was terrified as the driver repeatedly warned her he would kill her if she tried to sit up. Terrified, Kathi stated she wanted to …

Peer-reviewed medical study reveals that God heals even if you don’t believe in divine healing

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ESPAÑOL: Revisado por especialistas, estudio médico revela que Dios sana, incluso si usted no cree en la sanidad divina A study published in a peer-reviewed medical journal, Complementary Therapies in Medicine, reports on the miraculous healing of a 16-year-old Christian boy. Even the title, Case Report of gastroparesis healing: 16 years of a chronic syndrome resolved after proximal intercessory prayer, reveals the key role that prayer played in this Divine healing. It is interesting to note, that though his Christian parents believed Jesus healed people in the Bible, they did not believe God still healed today. So what happened? Within a couple of weeks of his birth, the unnamed boy was diagnosed with gastroparesis. This is a condition where food is not properly moved out of the stomach and through the intestinal tract and as a results stays inside the stomach for an extended period. This can result in a number of symptoms such as nausea and vomiting, abdominal pain and bloating, lack of appetite because your stomach feels full after eating little food, and malnutrition. …

Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury World Economic Forum/Flickr/Creative Commons

Church of England Archbishop Justin Welby says he speaks with the gift of tongues every day

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It was a shocking admission by the head of one of the largest liberal denominations not only in England, but the world. In an interview with the Christian radio station, Premier Radio, Justin Welby, who as the Archbishop of Canterbury heads the Church of England and world-wide Anglican Church, stated that he prays in Tongues everyday. Welby said: “In my own prayer life, and as part of my daily discipline, I pray in tongues every day — not an occasional thing, but as part of my daily prayer.” Welby is part of the Evangelical wing of the Church of England that believes the Bible is the inerrant word of God. (Note: Not everyone in the Church of England holds this view.) Because of this belief, Welby also believes that the spiritual gifts of the Holy Spirit mentioned in the Bible are for today and available to all who believe in Christ. According to an interview Welby had with The Guardian, he received the Gift of Tongues at 19 after being filled with the Holy Spirit. …

Credit: Mussi Katz/Flickr/Creative Commons

The Breath of God, the Breath of Life

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Whenever I get that ‘lost’ feeling where life seems out of control and I am overwhelmed, I remember these words spoken by God at creation. “The Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils, the breath of life, and the man became a living creature.” I recognize the signals that are warning me to slow down and when all else fails and I am really desperate I go back to the beginning, to the “breath of life.” I often take a deep breath and allow the breath of God (life) to flow through me. The Hebrew word for spirit in the Old Testament is “ruach” and it means “air in motion.” The same word is translated “breath” and “life.” When talking about the Holy Spirit, Jesus said He is like wind or “pneuma,” which means “a current of air, breeze or breath.” “That which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows where …

Morgan Freeman Credit: Nathan Congleton/Flickr/Creative Commons

Morgan Freeman on the Gift of Tongues

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The Christian Broadcasting Network published an article on comments actor Morgan Freeman recently made on his encounter with the Gift of Tongues at Newlife Pentecostal Church in Albuquerque, New Mexico. It was part of a documentary series Freeman is doing called “The Story of God.” In a recent episode he describes this charismatic gift as “powerful.” Freeman said: “All around me people have been swept up by an invisible force. And now they speak what they believe is the language of Heaven. I can see on their faces that they are genuinely somewhere else. “Now, whatever it is, they felt that power; they are not the same. Experience changes them, how they see themselves, how they relate to others, how they change their lives. “That was a powerful experience. I could feel the energy in that space. Normal people suddenly transformed by some power and then just suddenly return to normal. But Pentecostals believe they are bringing heaven down to earth.” These are interesting statements as the experience seems to have genuinely impacted Freeman. The …

Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary Credit: Wikipedia/Michael-David Bradford

Coincidence or is this the reason why membership in the Southern Baptist church shrunk?

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On May 13, 2016, the missionary arm of the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) announced that it will now allow its missionaries to speak in tongues privately. This ended a policy initiated in November 2005, when the board said it would no longer accept missionaries who spoke in tongues. Originally the board allowed missionaries to speak in tongues in their personal prayer life, but forbid any public expression. On its application form one of the first questions asked was if the person spoke in tongues. The question will remain but will not impact a person’s ability to work as a missionary with SBC. The Southern Baptist church, the largest protestant denomination in North America, believes the gift of tongues, also called glossolalia, ended with the age of the apostles and is no longer valid today. Then the very next year, 2006, in a nearly unanimous vote (36-1) trustees of the Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary announced they will no longer allow anyone to promote speaking in tongues on campus and will not hire any person who knowingly …

Mural of a dam construction by William Gropper (1939). Photo: James Vaughan/Flickr/Creative Commons

A secret purpose for the ‘gift of tongues’

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With King Saul trying to kill him, David and his army had developed an uneasy alliance with the Philistines. For a few days, David and his army had joined the Philistines for some battles, but the Philistine commanders were wary of David’s loyalties and eventually asked him to return home. But while David and his men were gone, scouts for the Amalekite army had discovered that other than for a few old men and young boys, David’s base at Ziklag was unguarded and launched a raid on the base. When David and his men returned from what had turned into an utterly useless venture they found Ziklag burning and empty. Their wives and children hauled off into captivity. David’s men immediately turned their anger and frustration on David. It was his dumb decision to join the Philistines that caused this mess. David had made a huge mistake. But there was one thing that set King David apart — during times of stress and adversity he purposefully strengthened himself in the Lord. 6 Moreover David was greatly …

Pentecostal camp meeting in Colorado. Photo: Masonerecycleicious/Flickr/Creative Commons

Why Paul wishes we all spoke in tongues

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Back in the early 70s, I was saved in a church belonging to a denomination with a strong evangelistic, missionary emphasis. Though the church was not charismatic, it was not opposed to  the gift of tongues. Its semi official position was “seek not, forbid not” with more of an emphasis on “seek not.” However, the particular church that I had been saved in had formed out of the Jesus’ people movement and over time fully embraced the charismatic. Speaking in tongues was as controversial back then as it is today. As a result of the denominational influence, I had started to develop a negative attitude towards the gift and was looking down upon those who practiced it in the church I attended. But at a Bible study group, I felt the Lord speak to me of my need to be filled with the Holy Spirit. I asked some of the people in attendance to pray with me for the in filling. It was a dramatic moment as I was instantly filled with God’s Spirit. I can …

Small Pentecostal church service in Liberia. Photo: Multimedia Photography/Flickr/Creative Commons

What happens when you do a neuroimage scan of a person’s brain as they speak in tongues?

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ESPAÑOL: ¿Qué pasa cuando se hace una exploración de neuroimagen del cerebro en una persona que habla en lenguas? In some ways it’s odd how Speaking in Tongues has become the lightening rod of dissension in the church. According to the Bible, it is one of the supernatural gifts given a person when they are filled with the Holy Spirit. On one side of the spectrum you have those who believe Speaking in Tongues and most of the other charismatic gifts ended with the writing of the New Testament, while those of a Pentecostal/Charismatic persuasion believe it is a gift still needed today with some believing it is a sign of the filling of the Holy Spirit — meaning all people filled with Holy Spirit will speak in tongues. According to the Bible, speaking in tongues also called glossolalia occurs when the Holy Spirit moves on a person and initiates this language. In his letter to the Corinthians, Paul described it this way: 15 What is the outcome then? I will pray with the spirit and …

New Head of Anglican church “Speaks in Tongues”

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On March 21, 2013, Justin Welby – 57 – was appointed the 105th Archbishop of Canterbury replacing Rowan Williams as head of the 77-million strong Anglican church. In an interview with Charles Moore of the Daily Telegraph, Justin who is an evangelical, admitted he spoke in tongues. Tongues is a gift of the Holy Spirit first manifested on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2:2-4). Today, it is part of the spiritual life of those in pentecostal churches and the charismatic movement. Describing his experience, the Archbishop said, “It’s just a routine part of spiritual discipline – you choose to speak and you speak a language that you don’t know. It just comes.” The Archbishop became a Christian while attending Trinity College. He even remembered the day — October 12, 1975.  He was praying with a Christian friend when he felt “a clear sense of something changing, a presence of something that had not been there before in my life.”  Up to this point, the Archbishop said was “vaguely” aware of God. He was so embarrassed …