Private Prayer Language

mima, you are a he? Here all this time I thought you was a she. I'm sorry. I guess I should pay closer attention. :saint:

(interesting experieince, btw)

 

I was suprised to find that you are a he, too, back a few months ago when I figured it out, lol. That is an interesting experience. Who knows...?

 

Well see, that's just it. I had a great walk/prayer life before this happened. But some pentacostal friends kept telling me there was "more". When this happened, I was in an AOG church at Myrtle Beach, and just figured okay, this must be real and I'd been wrong about it all before. But since then... does it edify me? No. I can turn it off and on like a faucet. I can sit and do it for hours... but nothing has been more powerful or meaningful for me than those hours that I know what I'm praying about, or when I just sit in silent worship... if that makes any sense. raise:

I mean no disrespect to anyone and certainly not to blaspheme the Holy Spirit. But now I've got this thing... and for what? I stopped praying that way, and haven't noticed any changes in my prayer/spiritual life. I don't feel like I've moved away from God or anything.

I know I'm not making it up consciously. And nobody "taught" me what to say. I know I'm not possessed either. :tongue3: But I do wonder now about how the psychological side of this stuff works... it WAS a rather emotional service. Did I just get all worked up emotionally and this happened? Like I said though, after that first time, I can use it now at will.

????????

 

Hmm, Sister Robin. That is very interesting to me. I appreciate your honesty about your experience. I will ponder on that.

 

I stopped trying to tell after I called you Brother. Now you've changed your picture so I can't see your beard

 

Pastor SBC,
Which of the pastors that I mention have a private prayer language? I have cd's about the subject from John MacArthur, David Jeremiah and Charles Stanley (who was saved in a Pentecostal Church, and his grandfather was the preacher). Which of them believe in tongues, or a private prayer language,Billy Graham, Charles Swindoll, D.L. Moody or Billy Sunday?

Why would the word tongues in the Bible have a different meaning in I Corinthians, than it did in Acts?
The word "edification" means "build up". Do you agree that that is what we are suppose to do, build ourselves up?

I would never go by anyone's experience. My hero Pastor Adrian Rogers says, "Your emotions are your most shallow part of your being, God is not going to do His deepest work in your most shallow part.

 

I found this from a sermon by John Piper. "To pray in the Holy Spirit is the moving and guiding power. "The key words here are "moving" and "guiding." "In other words, when you pray in the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of God is "moving" you to pray. That is, he is the one who motivates and enables and eregizes your prayer."
"And when you pray in the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of God is "guiding" how you pray and what your pray for. So, to pray in the Holy Spirit is to be moved and guided by the Holy Spirit in prayer. We pray by His power and according to His direction."

"The first thing to notice is the very close parallel passage in Ephesians 6:18, where Paul says, "With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit." The reason this is important is that is shows that "praying in the Spirit" is NOT a special form of prayer-like speaking in tongues. We can tell this is so because Paul says in Ephesians 6:18 that we should pray "at all times" in the Spirit. In other words, all prayer should be "in the Spirit." Praying in the Holy Spirit is not one form among several. It is the way all prayer is to be offered."
John Piper

 

27 If any man speak in an unknown tongue, let it be by two, or at the most by three, and that by course; and let one interpret.
28 But if there be no interpreter, let him keep silence in the church; and let him speak to himself, and to God.

Can you explain what the instructions mean here?

 

I think maybe you have misunderstood me on this thread. I am not saying that any of these pastors has a private prayer language. I am not saying I have a private prayer language or want a private prayer language. I am perfectly happy with the times of prayer I have with the Lord using words that I completely understand.

My whole point in this discussion is that the things of God are much bigger and deeper than we can fully understand. And I would venture to say each of the pastors you mentioned would agree with that statement to some level.

Scripture is and forever will be our final authority. Experience never trumps Scripture. However, I think we should be honest enough with experiences and with Scripture to wrestle with such things instead of just dismissing them because we do not completely understand them or we have a bad taste in our mouth from the Pentecostal/Charismatic movement.

I think we as "baptists" have becomes so afraid of associating ourselves with that movement that we do not fully understand the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives. Do I have all the answers? No. Do you have all the answers? No.

In the end, I am open to that fact that God may choose for some reason to give some a private prayer language. I am not dogmatic on the issue and just trust that God knows what He is doing. raise:

 

Could you possibly be wrong?

Here is a suggestion to all those who would know the truth concerning speaking in tongues. Since this is a Christian blog site perhaps it would be wise to approach Almighty God our Father about this matter. For those of you who doubt are even for those of you who are by completely opposed to this prayer language's existence why not ask God to show you whether or not there is any validity to what people are saying, that claim to have a prayer language.
Consider if you will sister Robin having read her story only two things can possibly be true, one she is telling the truth and there is something to having a prayer language. Secondly sister Robin is a boldface liar and/or completely self deluded. Do the nonbelievers reading this post have enough nerve to take a stand?

 

I dont think anyone here would call her a boldface liar. I told her I appreciated her honesty. She also stated that she didnt use it much, though she could turn it off and on (which means she is in control) and her most meaningful prayer experiences were not done in tongues.
I dont think anyone here has intentionally lied when talking about the prayer language. And I have prayed several times about it, in earnest, which is partly why I came to my conclusion. But I dont believe its a hill to die on. As long as God's children are talking to Him and nurturing that relationship, that makes me happy.

 

Yes , it makes sense.

My wife's story... A while back she was going to a weekday bible study with her cousin. It was held in a small non-denom church. The pastor, or pastorette in this case, led the study.

In the course of the study, the issue of tongues came up. When my wife said she didn't believe in them, the pastor started trying to convince her (not an easy feat). My wife finally told her that she figured that they might be real. So the pastor started trying to coach her on how to speak in tongues. from what my wife told me about it, it sounded like the lady was trying to get my wife to just start babbling... "Feel it in your stomach... just feel it... now let it out... don't try to make words... just let the sounds come out..."

As for me, I got no use for it. God is not the one who takes control of people. He is a God of order, not chaos.

 

The woman trying to teach your wife how to speak in tongues is wrong. Tongues are a supernatural gift, not something that is learned.

 

A friend's vision:

From what I understand this teaching someone a prayer language is just crazy, I believe this idea is simply something from the pit of hell.
If it is called a gift why would a teaching to receive it be necessary?
But my principal reason for posting at this time is to pass along this(what ever it is) the man called it a vision. Is the man crazy? No and he does not offer any other experiences of having other visions either. But anyway for what it's worth here is his vision. He describes seeing a vision of a time when the Southern Baptist church has been completely broken up into many different branches. This breakup he claimes he saw in the vision is because of the distention about tongues. The difficulty which forced Rankin out, and distrust of many of the missionaries on in the field now will continue to eat away at the Southern Baptist convention.
While I have little or no knowledge of anything of administration or anything else of the Southern Baptist convention. I do not see my friends vision as being realistic at all. But because he knows I too have a prayer language, he naturally wanted to tell me what he thought his vision showed him. At the minimum this is all very strange.

 

Personally, I think that there may be a breakup of the SBC, and it will be over this issue. There are quite a few Baptists, like myself, who believe the gifts are still for today, and this forcing missionaries out or pastors out who have had a so-called "Charismatic experience" is going to have repercussions.

 

I don't need to ask God because his word is a sufficient measuring stick. When the Bible is silent on something pertaining to God or prayer or anything spiritual, then I think we should be wary.

As far as Robin's story goes, one thing for sure that I will not do is base my doctrine on anecdotes. If it can't be supported in scripture, I don't care how many people say they have a prayer language. Anecdotal evidence is not my way of deciding things like this.

 

My point exactly.

I believe that the gift of languages is still among us... just not in every Pentecostal church in America... or some people's prayer room.

 

Ditto Trotter!!

Bro. David

 

I disagree, you would have to teach me to speak in greman or spanish. Especially if you want someone to interpret

Acts 2

[7] And they were all amazed and marvelled, saying one to another, Behold, are not all these which speak Galilaeans?
[8] And how hear we every man in our own tongue, wherein we were born?

 

And how did they come about to speaking those tongues in Acts 2? Was it something taught to them by someone else, or was it a supernatural gift given by God?

ACTS 2
1 And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.
2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting.
3 And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them.
4 And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.