“Tricks” to praying in tongues that you probably haven’t used

Praying in tongues is one of the physical evidences of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in a believer according to Acts 2:4, And they were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues as the Spirit gave the utterance.” This also does not mean that tongue speaking is the only evidence.

When I received the Holy Spirit a few years ago, one of the most helpful books that I have used in my journey is Benny Hinn’s Good Morning Holy Spirit and I will always recommend it to anybody who wants to know more about the power of the Holy Spirit (I do have a copy and I won’t mind sharing it with anyone who wants it).

A lot of Christians in recent times use tongues speaking as a way of passing time. When we go to church and the prayer leader raises a topic, all you hear us do is to speak in tongues.  I know people who have shared with me how their minds wander when they pray in tongues. It has even happened to me on several occasions. Amazingly, I start planning my week or begin to think of other things not God–related immediately I begin praying in tongues. It is funny how the devil makes it more fun to do that while you are praying in tongues.

I know I am not the only one in this kind of situation but subjecting our minds on things of God and resisting every form of distraction while prayer is not that easy however, it is one of the few ways that anyone can reach the Father and that is according to 1 Corinthians 14:15, What am I to do? I will pray with my spirit, but I will pray with my mind also; I will sing praise with my spirit, but I will sing with my mind also.

Tongues’ speaking is also not an excuse to neglect the word of God. Most of us believers murmur intangible words to God in the name of praying in tongues while completely ignoring the scriptures but the Bible in 1 John 5: 14 says, this is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. How do you have any confidence in your prayer when you do not even know God’s will? The only way of knowing God’s will and His purpose is by reading His word and praying back to Him.

Do you have any experiences about tongues speaking that you wish to share with other believers? Remember you can always reach us through our email address, christianblogghana@gmail.com

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How He has empowered me…

In the previous post, I mentioned how I received the Holy Spirit and how my language changed because I believe in what Acts 2:4 say, “And they were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.” In this post, I wish to share my experience on how I have been empowered by the Holy Spirit ever since I gave him that authority over my life.

Before I received the Holy Spirit a few years back even though I been a Christian for all these years, I was easily swayed away by people in the world. Whenever someone confused me a little with logic about the existence of God and His power I followed them and doubted my belief.  For instance, there were Sundays that I refused to go to church simply because someone convinced me that church service wasn’t that important but the Bible says in Hebrews 10: 25, “Do not forsake the assembly of saint.”  And I can say to the glory of the Lord that since then I haven’t doubted the power of God in my life and the assembly.

In the book of Acts 1:8 which also says, “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” I am a living testimony to that because previously, I was shy to let people know I was a Christian. I found it very hard to even stand before anyone to tell them about the goodness of the Lord but now, I can stand in front of a class and witness to them.

The Holy Spirit empowers and your prayer life becomes better. Romans 8:26 which says, “The Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for but the Spirit Himself speaks to God for us with deep feeling that words cannot explain.” This scripture comes alive when you start speaking in the language of the Spirit. There have been periods in my prayer times that I have only wept not because I am sad but because my spirit is overwhelmed.

There are a lot of testimonies that I can share with you but I also want to give you an opportunity to share your testimony with other believers. Send your stories to christianblogghana@gmail.com

When I received the Holy Spirit…

Whenever I heard these stories, I began questioning if I really had the spirit like the people of old. I had been in church for over 20 years but I was not certain if I had the Spirit dwelling in me but I was told by new “teacher –friend” was that one way of being certain that the Spiirit dwelt in you was by speaking in tongues but at that time I was not doing that (Mark 16:17).

I grew up in the Catholic Church and through a number of family members; I got exposed to the teachings of the Methodist Church too.

Until I went to the Senior High, I had never had any other teaching but the two that mentioned above. I met a friend who introduced me to the Charismatic church and their way of worshiping.

Now, where am I heading to with all of these? Fast forward to college days, I was attending the Charismatic Church my friend introduced me to back in Senior High.

In my third year at the university, I met a friend who kept telling me about the Holy Spirit and the kind of power he gave believers.

He referred to Peter and the other disciples who were able to stand before Kings to defend the gospel in Acts 4: 8.

Not forgetting Paul who was persecuting other believers of the gospel until he encountered the spirit in Acts 9.

When I heard these stories, I began questioning if I really had the spirit like the people in the bible.

I had been in church for over 20 years but I was not certain if I had the Spirit dwelling in me but I was told by my new ‘teacher–friend’ was that one way of being certain that the Spirit dwelt in you was by speaking in tongues and at that time I was not doing that (Mark 16:17).

I started yearning for the Holy Spirit because I wanted to be as fearless as the church in the book of Acts.

I wanted to proclaim God’s word like the disciples and not be shy of my faith so when school went on recess, I started fasting and praying for the ability to speak in an unknown tongue.

I was all by myself and listening to a preacher who was speaking about this subject on the radio. He started praying for people to speak in other tongues and all I realised was that I was speaking in the language of the Spirit.

It came out only as a few words but I knew that was it. I was really excited to know I had received something I was really yearning for and I couldn’t wait to tell people about it.

How did you receive the Holy Spirit? What is your experience? Share them with us.

Do not forget we are accepting your testimonies on Twitter (@christianblogh) and Facebook (The Christian Blog Ghana).

You can also send us an email (christianblogghana@gmail.com) and share how you received the Holy Spirit. 

Stay Blessed!

How I Overcome Doubt in My Heart

The Bible in 2 Samuel 22:3 says,

“The God of my strength, in Him I will trust, my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold and my refuge, my Saviour, You save me from Violence.” 

If we read the entire chapter, we will realise how David spoke about God and how He has delivered him from the hands of his enemy. It is so beautiful. No wonder David was known as the man after God’s own heart.

Most times, we become selective about the things we decide to trust God with. There are certain situations that we think that we can practically solve by ourselves. And there are others that we decide to give to God.

Meanwhile, the Bible says in Proverbs 3: 5 that we should trust the Lord with all our hearts (not some of it) and lean not on our own understanding and God will surely direct our paths.

Personally, I have had troubles trusting the Lord fully especially when things are not going as expected.

We find it hard to trust when the boat rocks a little.

What do we do when we realise our hearts are not trusting God as they should?

One way that I overcome this temptation is to be in the house of God. I am jostled back from my doubt when I see people worshipping God. This makes me realise God is working His miracles in the lives of other people and it will soon be my turn.

I also love to listen to the testimonies of others. Hearing what God has done for others reassures me.

And I have been praying to God to eliminate doubt completely from my heart because the book of James 1: 6 says, “if we doubt in our hearts when we ask for things from God, there is no way we shall receive anything from Lord..People who doubt are unstable in all their ways.

I don’t want to be known as an unstable person and I believe you also don’t want to be known as such.

Have there been instances that you have doubted the power of God in your life?

Share with us how you were able to overcome it.

You can do that through our social media platforms – Twitter (@christianblogh) and Facebook (The Christian Blog Ghana) or send an email to christianblogghana@gmail.com

Tithing and the Faith

It has always been on mind to share this particular testimony with other believers but I have not been able to do so, therefore, I take this as an opportunity to share.

The word of God says in Malachi 3:10 that we should bring our tithes to the storehouse that there may be food in God’s house.

The word continues to say, “Prove me now in this,” says the Lord of Host, “If I will not open the windows of heaven and pour out for you such that there will not be room enough to receive it.”

Personally, I love the second part of this verse when I have to put God to the test. In life, intelligent and well-prepared people are those who like to take examinations and we know God is the all-powerful one in the Universe, therefore whenever I am presenting my tithe to Church, I tell God, “Now is the time for you to take the test and I know you have never failed in anything, at least not yet.” I then present my heart desires to Him and so far, He has been able to pass the entire test.

He has proven in several ways that He is more than able to provide and take care of His children.

One way that God has provided for me is in the area of my career; ever since I completed college, I have never been unemployed but rather, I have had the opportunity to work with several corporations with wonderful salaries.

Ghana is a country with a high number of graduate unemployment but thanks be to God in heaven, He has provided more than what I can even understand.

You need to put God to the test as well. Make sure you share the testimony with us when God proves he is faithful.

If you have any testimonies to share, why don’t you send an email, a Facebook message or a Tweet and we will be glad to share it with the rest of the world?

Winning Souls at the Drinking Bar

Who do you evangelize to? Are there specific people you should be targeting when evangelizing? Will you evangelize in a drinking bar or to prostitutes on the streets?

Who do you evangelize to? Are there specific people you should be targeting when evangelizing? Will you evangelize in a drinking bar or to prostitutes on the streets?

In the previous post, I mentioned how I broke my “evangelism silence” and ended up speaking to more people than I had ever imagined.  Today, I hope I get readers like you to help me answer the questions a number of questions which will clear certain doubts on the believers’ minds.

I was faced with these problems when a group of us went out last Sunday to evangelize. We passed in front of a drinking bar when we were suddenly approached by a group of men in the bar. They invited us into the bar and asked us to share the word of God with them. They provided us with a time limit of 5 minutes. We prayed and started sharing the word about the love of God based on John 3:16.

The men were silent and receptive until we concluded the message. They asked us if they could ask us questions and probably have a discussion with us based on the word we had shared with them. We told them they could ask us questions but whether we can sit down for the kind of discussion they want to have with us is something we would have to postpone till a later date. These innocent words got the men infuriated. They started using all sort of words to describe us, accusing us of choosing the easier aspect of Christianity.  We were not bothered by their words though because we knew they were under the influence of alcohol but my mind started to wander if as Christians we choose the “easier” route as these men described it.

We know Jesus Christ came for the lost sheep (Matthew 15: 24) so as Christians are we limiting ourselves when it comes to evangelism? Do you suggest specific times and venues go out and win souls? What are your experiences? Let us know your thoughts via Email, Facebook or Twitter.

Evangelism and the Faith

One of our mandates as Christians is to go into the world and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit – Mathew 28:19.  This is also known as the Great Commission. The Great Commission or evangelism is not only speaking to people about God but another way of doing that is through our actions and our words.  People should have a change of hearts by observing your actions.

As we know, we have been mandated to win souls and it is a fact that most of us shy away from this duty that has been bestowed on us. We shy away from this basically because we are afraid people will turn us away or they will not want to listen to what we have for them or they may ask us difficult questions that we may not have answers to.

Personally, I had never evangelized to anyone until it was added to a course I was reading at church. It was not as difficult as I had imagined it. The people I spoke to were much more receptive. Within an hour, we had spoken to over 15 people and we believed they were going to be saved.  I have taken part in three separate evangelism programmes in my church after I was able to break the barrier.

I also believe in what the Bible says Romans 8:30 which says, “Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified.”

You may not feel qualified to speak about the goodness of God with other people but bear in mind that God used Moses who stammered, Jeremiah, Gideon, and others back in the day so if we avail ourselves, God is ready to use us. As my one of the teachers in my church puts it, “this is the work that brings the most blessing to us Christians.”

Have you taken it upon yourself to evangelize to people? How were you able to break the “silence” the first time? We want to hear what you have to say on Twitter and Facebook.

College and Christianity

What do you do when you realize you are drifting from the faith? How do you treat people who don’t believe in what you believe in? This is based on a personal experience.

What do you do when you realize you are drifting from the faith? How do you treat people who don’t believe in what you believe in? This is based on a personal experience.

A number of people are Christians because they are born into the faith. A percentage experiences the goodness of the Lord as they grow up and they turn to the faith. It is also a fact that a number of us backslide somewhere along the way, while a number of us grow even stronger as the years go by.

Until college, I had never encountered anyone who categorically stated they did not belong to any religion and were not Christians at all. In college, I met this special group of people who did not mind being called an atheist and up till now, I continue to meet several people categorically state they did not believe in God. It was during my encounter with these people that I began questioning the existence of God. People presented so many “sound” arguments that God did not exist. My philosophy course did not make the situation easier since our arguments were based on what we experienced through our senses (a posteriori).  It was quite a challenging period for me. There were periods that I stayed in my room on Sundays trying to figure out if God really existed but the truth is I struggled, even more, answering this question outside of the word. The word in Genesis 1 states that God created the world in six days and on the seventh day He rested. I don’t know what else I was looking for.

Although I was going through these moments of challenges, I also met other people who were doing their best for God.  Though I was being challenged on one side, there were others who were serving God in spirit and in truth on the other side. Such people served as motivation to me also during that period of my life. They encouraged me to seek the Kingdom of God and His righteousness – Matthew 6:33 and I can confidently say that it was in college that I received the Holy Spirit. That was the beginning of a struggle-free relationship with God.  I admit I struggled with my faith but my constant visit to the church and regular conversations with believers enabled me to come out of my confusion and doubt.

Have you been in a similar situation or even worse? Have you experienced any kind of unbelief? How did you overcome it? How do you react when you meet people who do not share in your Faith? Share your experiences with us here or on Facebook or Twitter.