Gluttons for prophecy

On that last night there was a team of
30 or so students from Bethel School of Supernatural Ministry in
Redding, California. They came to South Africa for a 12-day mission
trip, where they spent time in Pretoria, Nelspruit, and East London.
They were spending a few nights at the Betor House (a missionary
house) to help with the Back Door church’s Easter conference, to work
at the Iris Ministries’ base with Surprise and Tryphina Sitthole, and
to get a taste of the city that I’ve come to love.

I remember a few months ago whenever I
was at the Betor House looking at the calender of when certain
guests, or larger teams, were going to be spending the night. For the
longest time I was waiting for the Bethel team to come. It somehow
really stuck out to me whenever I looked at the calender. I would
find myself badly wanting to be there when they would be staying with
us. But then plans changed, and SA Team (Team South Africa) became
Team Mozey (Mozambique Team), which you already know all about. We
weren’t going to be there for their arrival, which was very
disappointing to me. But then all of a sudden, we were going to South
Africa. And our very last day we were in South Africa, the Bethel
Team arrived. And that is what this blog is about.

Before coming to South Africa my Spirit
was rather dry, and I hadn’t been feeling the Holy Spirit as much as
I would like to. But the Bethel team really brought that to the table
and really added some fuel to my fire. As soon as they arrived on
Betor House property, you could clearly see what they were all about.
By the way they walked, talked, smiled, treated each other, and
treated other people you could tell without a doubt that they were
madly in love with Jesus. When there was a break in conversation they
would ask how we met Jesus as our savior, because it is such a
beautiful thing! They breathed out life. It occurred to me then, can
people see that I am madly in love with Jesus by the way I am on the
outside? The fruit of the Spirit came to mind right around then. As
you can see by what Bethel School’s full name is, they are all about
the Holy Sprit. From what I could see, these Bethel students were
well on their way to receiving the fruit of the Spirit. The fruit of
the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness,
faithfulness, gentleness and self control. Since we live by the
Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit, -Galatians 5:22-23, 25

After dinner, most of the students got
together and prayed for a newlywed couple. We saw this couple get
married the previous day at the crazy wedding ceremony/church service
at the Iris church in Back Door that lasted 7 hours. I was in the
living room with my team, and then the Bethel students were in the
room next to us where we ate, and were praying for them. I really
don’t know how to explain this properly, but God was in that room.
Being a room away from it I could feel it. Jenny was shaking and I
was having difficulty breathing because we were so close to God.
There were some crazy things going on in that room, but it was
totally filled with the Holy Spirit. People shaking, falling over,
screaming, crying, laughing, prophesying, speaking in tongues, and
making noises that, if I hadn’t known better I would have thought
that, they were animal noises. Normally things like this would have
terrified me, but I am coming to realize that since these things are
all from the Holy Spirit, they are all from God, which mean they are
truth and that they are good. God is not a God of disorder but of
peace. -1 Corinthians 12:33.

When I began to be exposed to some of
these more spiritual aspects of God, I instantly had a bad taste in
my mouth towards them. Specifically people who have the gift of
tongues. But God has been showing me and teaching me so much about
this. Whenever someone would speak like that in front of me, I would
be contemplating how to get away from them because it scared me so
much. But now, it is comforting and encouraging. Instead of trying to
run away, I welcome it. I literally cuddle with it. But before God
helped me with this, these were some of my questions and concerns.

How could that be a gift?

We do not know what we ought to pray
for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words
cannot express. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the
Spirit, because the spirit intercedes for the saints in accordance
with God’s will. -Romans 8:26-27.

How is it going to help anyone or
anything?

Tongues, then, are a sign, not for
believers but for unbelievers; prophecy, however is for believers,
not for unbelievers. -1 Corinthians 14:22.

Does God even want us to do this?

Pray in the Spirit on all occasions
with all kinds of prayers and requests. -Ephesians 6:18.

What does it even do?

When he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he
will guide you into truth. He will not speak on his own; he will
speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.
-John 16:13.

Yeah, so I really don’t have a good
idea of how to transition from that…so bear with me.

After the Bethel team prayed for the
newlywed couple and another person, we asked them to pray for us. As
we began walking into the room, they kept saying, “We’re going to
dunk them.” I didn’t know what they meant, but then when they
started praying I could tell that they meant, “We are going to dunk
them with the Spirit.” And that is just what they did. The first
person that layed hands on me kept saying, over and over, “Fire!
Fire! On fire!” This was really funny to me because this was the
first prophecy I had ever received, and I received it the weekend
after I accepted Christ/publicly surrendered my life to Jesus. The
night I received that prophecy several years ago was when God began
speaking to my heart about, and showing me His plans for the life He
wants me to have in, missions. Coincidence? I think not! There were a
lot of great things that were revealed, like what my purpose was in
me coming to Mozambique. God wanted me in Mozambique to be leading
the fight against Satan in spiritual warfare. How God sees me, and
some gifts that God has given me were revealed. To other people on my
team plans and gifts were revealed as well. Some funny things
happened too, like someone thinking my Mom’s name was Pam, funny
faces, hysterics, and people falling over onto people repeatedly. It
felt so good to see the Holy Spirit move in this way, and to have fun
with it. And in some way, I missed the Holy Spirit moving like that.
The funny thing about it is that I’d never seen the Spirit move like
that in my life. That showed and confirmed my desire to let the Holy
Spirit rule in me.

I know that things like prophesying and
speaking in tongues and raising people from the dead and casting out
demons and healing people can seem pretty freaky. Seriously, I’ve
been there… quite recently. But some events in the Gospels has
really softened my heart about it. In Luke 9, Jesus called His twelve
disciples together and, “gave them authority to drive out all
demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them out to preach the
kingdom of God and to heal the sick,” (vs. 1-2). Later on, Jesus
sent out seventy-two others to preach about the Kingdom. “The
seventy-two returned with joy and said, ‘Lord, even the demons submit
to us in your name.’ He replied, ‘I saw Satan fall like lightning
from heaven. I have given you authority to trample on snakes and
scorpions and to overcome all the power of the enemy; nothing will
harm you. However, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but
rejoice that your names are written in heaven,'” (Luke 10:17-19).
That says to me that all these things that sound scary and sound so
far from everything we’ve been surrounded with are okay. More than
okay, they are good. They are 100 percent God! “I tell you the truth:
it is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the
Helper will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you.”
-John 16:7.