My Mother almost died in the middle of church! I've wrestled with sharing this because I know it's controversial and some people might have a problem with the truth, but I've come to the place where I can't keep it inside any longer. I want to encourage you to read it all the way through with an open heart and mind because it is absolutely true...and I have at least a half dozen witnesses to back me up!
Sunday night, June 21st, we were having a great service and our Youth Pastor was delivering a powerful message. From my viewpoint on stage, I noticed that my Mom seemed to be struggling with her sugar level. She's a diabetic and has to be careful when she takes insulin because her sugar level tends to plummet and she has to grab something to eat in order to keep it from hitting the bottom. I saw her trying to discreetly eat part of a candy bar, then my Dad got up and went to the fellowship hall to get some water for her. After a little while, I saw her lean over and I thought she was getting something else out of her purse. Wrong! She had passed out in my Dad's lap and the Pastor and his wife, who were sitting right in front of her, turned around, laid hands on her and immediately began to pray in the Spirit. Becky was working the sound and she came hurrying up, and others who were around them surrounded her and began praying, too. The Youth Pastor immediately asked everyone to begin praying and what came next turned out to be a battle for life itself!
Pastor knew that there was a fight coming and encouraged everyone to persevere and press through. We prayed and it seemed like she would start to come around, but just as suddenly as it happened, she would take a downward turn and head back to unconsciousness. They brought milk mixed with sugar and she could barely even drink it. With each sip we had to remind her several times to swallow it before she would get it down. I had come down and was sitting next to her, trying to hold her up and keep her awake, but it wasn't helping. I have seen her go down before but never like this. Her body normally responds, but this was different. In one of her rallying moments, she turned and looked right at me and I could see death on her face. She turned back and leaned over on Dad and closed her eyes. Becky was behind her and couldn't find a pulse, which set her off. She began crying out to God as everyone around began praying in the Spirit. Finally, her hands began to move and she rallied once again, but it faded as before. Like I said earlier, it was a fight for life! We were literally fighting death itself. The fight probably went on for 30 minutes or more until one point when Mom was laying over on Dad. She began speaking in tongues and praying in the Spirit. Pastor looked at her and said, "The Lord just spoke to me and said to tell you, 'Woman, ARISE!'"
As soon as he said that, Mom stood to her feet. She didn't struggle to get up! She stood up solidly, raised her hands and began to rejoice in the Spirit. Her faculties immediately returned to her and she was alert, back in her right mind! After several minutes of praying and rejoicing in the Holy Spirit, she sat down and was fine. She walked out of the sanctuary that night instead of being carried out on a stretcher, and it was all because of the power of our Almighty God!
I know healing, tongues, and those type of Spiritual matters are offensive to some. Others believe that those are not for us today and it must be of the devil. Let me assure you that the devil was at work that night, BUT it was to do what he does best...steal, kill and destroy. I can promise you that the tongues weren't of him, neither was the healing. God is the One who gets all of the glory in all of this! The power of the Holy Spirit is still just as real and HERE today as He was on the day of Pentecost. There are those who look for the tickle, the tongues, the run, the jump, or the shout. That's NOT what the baptism of the Holy Spirit is for. To focus mainly on the manifestations of the Spirit is missing the point. The power is there to enable us to live a successful, powerful Christian life. The manifestation in tongues, prophecy, healing, or in any of the gifts of the Spirit comes as a sign that His awesome power is still at work and isn't to be used for our pleasure, but rather for the fulfilment of God's will on Earth.
If you have experienced a Pentecostal service that left you feeling judged, condemned, or entertained then please, don't discount the TRUE work of the Holy Spirit. If you have been taught that the work of the Holy Spirit is just hype, emotional overload, false-doctrine, occult or devil-inspired, I encourage you to stop and read God's Word. Don't read it through the eyes of the doctrine of man, but ask God to reveal the truth to you directly. I'm not trying to "turn you on" to the Holy Spirit, but I don't want you to click to the next website without an explanation of fact and a plea to avoid being judgemental. God still works miracles and the operation of the Holy Spirit is still real in our world today. My Mom is LIVING proof!
Praise the Lord! I also know God still work miracles. We also experienced one in church Sunday,6/28/2009. A sister that has a problem with a nerve in her back that causes her at times not to be able to walk, came to church in a wheel chair. She was in extreme pain and not able to stand. After the prayer of faith and God's abundant mercy, with the help of a sister she beginning walking around the building about 3 times. Her pain left and she was able to minister to the church, testifing about the goodness of God and His mercy. In my own life God has shown so many miracles. He is so WORTHY to be PRAISED!
ReplyDelete