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Question Title	Posted By	Question Date
answered prayer	stacey	Monday, February 18, 2008
Question: I mentioned that I had previously attended a charismatic church that relied heavily on prophecy and speaking in tongues. We(the church members) were always encouraged to seek guidance with other church members regarding important personal issues, etc. Being new to the charismatic movement I relied heavily on the prophetic words of some of the members and naively put them on a pedestal. One of the few members who seemed to have her head on straight warned me about doing this and said that it could invite in a lot of deception. She is verily happily married to a great guy but related to me that before she got married that people were "prophesying" to her that this relationship was from the enemy and that it would all be disastrous which so far has all proved to be very wrong. I went to some of the members with an issue that was very important to me at the time. I kept getting all kinds of weird mixed up information which just didn't feel right. Finally one night in desperation I got down on my hands and knees and went straight to God with the situation because I was tired of going to people and getting a bunch of crap. I really didn't expect an answer but to my amazement he did answer which seemed to be totally opposite of the info coming from some of these church members "prophetic words." It was like he was finally saying to me "It's about time you came to me instead of going to other people!" When I told one of my church aquaintances about praying to God and getting an answer she asked me "Well how do you know it was God who answered?" I said well I just felt a real peace about it but I guess I won't really know until it comes to pass. She asked me if had prayed my prayer in the spirit(speaking in tongues) and I said no. She told me that if you do not pray in the spirit that the devil can hear your prayer and come and supply a false answer even if you thought you were praying to God. I don't know where she got that but it threw me into such a state of confusion at the time and had me so confused as to whether or not I was capable of hearing from God on my own without their help. This is one of the many reasons I decided to dissasociate myself from this church. I come from a heavy occult background and alot of what they were doing seems to be the same as fortunetelling and divination except they just attach the name of the Holy Spirit to it. Is there any merit at all to what she told me? I'm so confused to the point that I feel as if I can't trust whether or not God is speaking to me.
Question Answered by Bro. Ignatius Mary, OLSM Dear Stacey: There is NO MERIT whatsoever in what you were told by this dingbat. "Praying in the Spirit" does not mean "speaking in tongues" in the first place. St. Paul tells us that is better to speak in a language we understand than a language we do not understand. The Bible's language of "praying in the spirit" means to pray sincerely and fervently. These people claim to be "praying in the spirit" but whose spirit? There are many documented cases of people praying in tongues thinking they were praising God when in actuality they were cursing God. In one case the women speaking in tongues happen to be speaking in the native language of a priest who was present. The priest told the women she was actually cursing God. The idea that the devil cannot understand prayers in tongue is also stupid. I have no idea where that fantasy comes from. You did the the right thing getting away from this wacko group. The best way to pray concerning God's will is to sincerely pray (in a language you understand), listen to the still small voice within you, check the "answer" to your prayer against Church teaching and the Bible, and discuss your insights with a trusted spiritual director. If the "answer" to your prayer tells you to do something that is contrary to God's teachings, then obviously that answer was not from God. Since it can be difficult to interpret properly our own inspirations, it is important to discuss these things with a trusted, knowledgeable, and wise adviser. Do not let these people cause you confusion. Ignore them. God Bless, Bro. Ignatius Mary For information on how to receive help see our Help page. We suggest that before contacting us directly for help you try the Seven Steps to Self-Deliverance. These self-help steps will often resolve the problem. Also our Spiritual Warfare Prayer Catalog contains many prayers that may be helpful. If needed you can ask for a Personal Consultation.

Question Title

Posted By

Question Date

answered prayer

stacey

Monday, February 18, 2008

Question:

I mentioned that I had previously attended a charismatic church that relied heavily on prophecy and speaking in tongues. We(the church members) were always encouraged to seek guidance with other church members regarding important personal issues, etc.

Being new to the charismatic movement I relied heavily on the prophetic words of some of the members and naively put them on a pedestal. One of the few members who seemed to have her head on straight warned me about doing this and said that it could invite in a lot of deception.

She is verily happily married to a great guy but related to me that before she got married that people were "prophesying" to her that this relationship was from the enemy and that it would all be disastrous which so far has all proved to be very wrong.

I went to some of the members with an issue that was very important to me at the time. I kept getting all kinds of weird mixed up information which just didn't feel right. Finally one night in desperation I got down on my hands and knees and went straight to God with the situation because I was tired of going to people and getting a bunch of crap. I really didn't expect an answer but to my amazement he did answer which seemed to be totally opposite of the info coming from some of these church members "prophetic words." It was like he was finally saying to me "It's about time you came to me instead of going to other people!"

When I told one of my church aquaintances about praying to God and getting an answer she asked me "Well how do you know it was God who answered?" I said well I just felt a real peace about it but I guess I won't really know until it comes to pass. She asked me if had prayed my prayer in the spirit(speaking in tongues) and I said no. She told me that if you do not pray in the spirit that the devil can hear your prayer and come and supply a false answer even if you thought you were praying to God.

I don't know where she got that but it threw me into such a state of confusion at the time and had me so confused as to whether or not I was capable of hearing from God on my own without their help. This is one of the many reasons I decided to dissasociate myself from this church.

I come from a heavy occult background and alot of what they were doing seems to be the same as fortunetelling and divination except they just attach the name of the Holy Spirit to it.

Is there any merit at all to what she told me? I'm so confused to the point that I feel as if I can't trust whether or not God is speaking to me.

Question Answered by Bro. Ignatius Mary, OLSM

Dear Stacey:

There is NO MERIT whatsoever in what you were told by this dingbat. "Praying in the Spirit" does not mean "speaking in tongues" in the first place. St. Paul tells us that is better to speak in a language we understand than a language we do not understand. The Bible's language of "praying in the spirit" means to pray sincerely and fervently.

These people claim to be "praying in the spirit" but whose spirit?

There are many documented cases of people praying in tongues thinking they were praising God when in actuality they were cursing God. In one case the women speaking in tongues happen to be speaking in the native language of a priest who was present. The priest told the women she was actually cursing God.

The idea that the devil cannot understand prayers in tongue is also stupid. I have no idea where that fantasy comes from.

You did the the right thing getting away from this wacko group.

The best way to pray concerning God's will is to sincerely pray (in a language you understand), listen to the still small voice within you, check the "answer" to your prayer against Church teaching and the Bible, and discuss your insights with a trusted spiritual director.

If the "answer" to your prayer tells you to do something that is contrary to God's teachings, then obviously that answer was not from God.

Since it can be difficult to interpret properly our own inspirations, it is important to discuss these things with a trusted, knowledgeable, and wise adviser.

Do not let these people cause you confusion. Ignore them.

God Bless,
Bro. Ignatius Mary

For information on how to receive help see our Help page. We suggest that before contacting us directly for help you try the Seven Steps to Self-Deliverance. These self-help steps will often resolve the problem. Also our Spiritual Warfare Prayer Catalog contains many prayers that may be helpful. If needed you can ask for a Personal Consultation.