Spiritual Senses #14 - Feeling Spirits

A Spiritual Kingdom

Courtesy Dean Williams 2012

As we continue to bring forth spiritual fruit (Gal. 5:22, 23), our inner witness will provide the proof that we are becoming more and more spirit, and less and less corrupt flesh. Remember, in the eternals of God, the Spirit is life, the flesh profits nothing.

Let's begin at the point where we've just been baptized with the Holy Spirit and have yet to crucify our flesh (Gal. 5:24). Until we do, we are susceptible to ALL spirit-workings. Godly, angelic, or demonic. Don't like it? then don't become spiritual because you're going to need a lot of faith to grow in this area of a spiritual kingdom.

1. I made it a nightly habit to pray (1 Thess. 5:17). One night, about three months after receiving the baptism of the Holy Spirit, I began to pray in the Spirit when suddenly, I felt two hands around my neck, choking me. I struggled to call out but couldn't. In my head I began to scream, "Jesus! Jesus!" The hands let go. I opened the lights and thanked the Lord. I cautiously went back to sleep. When I thought back upon the experience, I realized this was a demonic spirit, and it attempted to choke me because it could! In my ignorance, I hadn't gotten rid of my fleshly sins (Gal. 5:24).
2. I worked downtown at a mortgage banking corporation, where bars and clubs are open during the day; and where, in Hawaii, different cultures from Asia, the South Pacific, America, and Europe often run their businesses flavored with the spirituality inherent in their culture. One afternoon, I had to run an errand past such an establishment. As I walked by, I got a piercing headache. It was so bad, I wanted to throw up. I began to pray in the Spirit, silently commanding the spirits of oppression to leave in Jesus' name. The headache lingered until I sought out a fellowship of faith and asked them to pray for me.

 Next week: More on Feeling Spirits
===============================================================
Scripture taken from the New King James Version 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
 

# 9b – When We Can’t Find Faith (Part 2 of 2)

3) Faith to recognize God’s answer

photo credit: Dean Williams 2012

In fact, I felt like my mother! I felt hunched like she had been. I felt I had her white hair, her facial creases, and her tired smile. So convinced was I that I anxiously glanced around the empty room. Mom, if your senior-citizen friends were to walk in here right now, would they say to me, ‘Ana, what are you doing here’?

Peace descended. Fear left. My body quieted. Joyfully, I hunkered down—so happy that God chose to answer this particularly strange prayer of mine.

When I came to, I felt like myself again.

I was surprised to see my aunt sitting next to my bed. Unexpectedly, a tear rolled down my face, which prompted her to ask, “How’re you doing? You okay?” This aunt and my mom were very close sisters-in-law. I responded that I was okay and thanked her for coming.

After she left, my heart beamed a silent prayer of gratitude to God for this extra special gesture on his part because in a strange way, mom had visited me twice: first, literally, as spirit-wind and then second, figuratively, in the flesh as aunty (Matt. 11:9, 10, 14 - John the Baptist as Elijah).

What is faith? For me faith is the proof of things I cannot see; the reality of what I hoped for and took hold of, during my time of need (Heb. 11:1).

 

Faith is accepting the proof and the reality when they appear in whatever form God chooses to package it.

=====================================================================

Scriptures from the Holy Bible, New International Version (NIV).