My Declaration

I never knew what to pray and would sometimes get stuck on a word that would go nowhere but would just be bouncing around in my head. I would ask God so desperately to give me the gift of a prayer language. I would even keep my mouth open a little and wait for the words to come out. Nothing. "Why can't I speak in tongues God? Why haven't you given me that gift? Are you saving it for when the time is right?"

At times I didn't feel like my prayers were enough or even good. My whole family could speak in tongues and to be honest I was sad that I was the only one who couldn't. One day as my entire family was in the living room straightening up, minding their own business, I looked at all of them and thought to myself, "All of these people have their very own language that God has given them. It is so incredible that God can do that." I can't describe to you in words how I felt at that moment. It was almost as if I were in awe of a great gift that they had. I wanted it. But I just kept waiting. I knew that sooner or later in my lifetime that I was going to be able to speak in tongues just like them.

I had gone to college and still wasn't baptized with the Holy Spirit. My college is very different, I go to a "Christian" based college that welcomes all sorts of religions; Hindu, Buddha, Muslim, and all different denominations of Christianity. I am non-Dom (Nondenominational), so they call it at school. So many people in this school and all around the world don't have a clear view of God. Some even view God how they want to, not for who He is and what He's come to do. I'm sad to say that so many people think that it's ok to live a life of sin as long as they know that Jesus still loves them. Jesus does still love us even in our sin. But some have that idea like, "well Jesus loves me no matter what, so I guess I'm a Christian." It's not like that. When someone becomes a Christian they are admitting that they are sinners and they need God to save them. Yes God loves us, but He Hates the sin.

All of this stuff going on at my school has gotten me to think and to seek God even more than I had ever before. It has challenged me in so many ways, to make a stand and do something about it. But I didn't know how. Because I was/am going to such a liberal school I needed that prayer language. I needed it so I could fight, battle, go to war. War against the enemy and all the religious stuff my school was trying to throw at me. Not just my school, the world.

The semester was over and I couldn't have been happier. "Finally I can get away from all of these crazy beliefs." I decided that I would spend December soaking myself in God's word and building my relationship back up with Him. During the past few months at school I neglected spending much needed time with my Father. I would be so consumed in school that I would forget to read my bible or pray or even think about God. It was a struggle and my sheltered little world had been rocked by a big world full of sin. But Praise the Lord I have such an anointed family who loves God with ALL the might, soul and strength. Praise the Lord I go to such an amazing church that believes and moves in the supernatural.

It was around the middle of December and still I could not pray in tongues. It was on a Wednesday night and Pastor John Hammer was preaching. He had all of us stand up and start praying out loud. I remember thinking, "Man, now would be a great time to start praying in tongues." So I told God, "I want to speak in tongues, I don't know what to pray." Soon after I had said those words Pastor John asked that if anyone wanted to be baptized with the Holy Spirit to come up to the front.

Before anybody was even up there I bolted out of my row and made it to the front. I was the first person up there and felt a little awkward, but I knew that it was for me. Kim Babcock came to pray for me and she started praying in tongues. I thought, "how will I know when I start speaking in tongues?" So I just opened my mouth and waited for the words to start flowing out of me. My jaw started to quiver and I decided to make some noise come out of my mouth, to use my voice, the voice that I'd kept secret from the world for a long time. The voice that was not going to be silent or hidden behind fear.

As I was being prayed for some babbling came out and my right hand was shaking so bad I couldn't stop it. Babbling, Babbling, more babbling, words, but not words I could understand. Oh yeah now we're getting somewhere. At that moment I was being filled. Filled with the Holy Spirit Himself. Yep, I got it, I can speak in tongues. God has given me the gift of a prayer language. One that I can use in a simple little prayer, to pray for my family, to pray when I have no words of my own, and to pray and war against the enemy and his schemes.

I spent the rest of that December preparing myself for school; using my prayer language, reading my bible, filling my ears and spirit with some anointed worship music and receiving everything that God had/has for me. I went back to school way more confident than I had left. I went back with a purpose and a mission, to speak up and use the voice that God has given me, and to use my prayer language to win battles all with the help of the Holy Spirit.

Not only did I have the gift of speaking in tongues but I had also found my voice. Before I had my voice I was bold and not afraid to speak my mind or even step out. I wasn't afraid of what people said about me and I would stand up for my Jesus. Before I wasn't afraid to let my voice be heard, whether it was with talking or singing. Somewhere down the road my voice was lost and I didn't even realize it until I was thrown into a world of many religions. I didn't notice until my mom said something about it, and asked where it had gone. That's when I got furious, when I was done listening to the lies. No longer will I believe them.

God has given me the gift of speaking in tongues, to use my voice again through the powerful prayer language that He chose to give me when the time was right. To Speak and never shut up!

1 Corinthians 14:2 "For anyone who speaks in tongues does not speak to men but to God. Indeed no one understands him; he utters mysteries with his spirit."

1 Corinthians 14:22 Tongues, then, are a sign, not for the believers but for the unbelievers."