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Posted by Theophilus Can’t say I’ve done much of that kind of thing in the past 20 years or so. I haven’t really been in the kind of Churches where that sorta thing goes on. In the County Jail we certainly prayer for people to receive the Holy Spirit, but we are not allowed to lay hands on the individual inmates... handshakes are fine and so are holding hands during the closing prayers... but I don’t think a Benny Hinn style meeting would be allowed. So - we often close our services with a prayer - asking God to nourish the Word of God planted in every heart and fill us with His Spirit. And this seems to work, we have some great services, we have a lot of people believe in the Lord... last Thursday I ended the meeting with the sinners prayer and we had everyone present repeat the prayer and call upon the Lord in their hearts. We closed with the Lord’s prayer and afterwards there were several guys crying... Sunday night we closed the meeting praying that God would fill them with the Holy Spirit and give them a hunger for the Word. But speaking in tongues have never been part of our services... it’s a subject we tend to avoid in as much as it is a controversial issue. The Jail Chaplin is a 4 Square Pentecostal – but the inmates who attend our services can be practically anything from Catholics to Mormons to Baptists... and in addition so can those who volunteer for the Jail ministry. I have been teamed up with every kind of Christian from Catholic Nuns to black Baptist preachers. As a result, we focus on the Lord Jesus Christ and the Gospel. As far as “How do you know they are spirit filled by these things.........tongues you can listen to and know...a person could just fake you out and say they had a dream, couldn't they?” That is really not my concern... I preach the Gospel, teach the Bible, and speak encouraging words to give them hope in Christ. And, I pray for them, asking God to bless them and pour His Spirit upon them and then I commend them to God and His grace. The results are more than enough to encourage me in the Lord... hearing them all speaking in tongues and praising God would only be a little more radical than what we have happening now. My Church is in West Southhill Puyallup, and we do not get that many guys in the Thurston Jail from Puyallup... so I commend the inmates to the local Churches in Olympia and vicinity... I am not allowed to follow up with them when they get out unless they start coming to my Church. Joel, I know you did not ask about Jail Ministry... but that is the only thing I have to share by way of example. I have never been one to make hast to lay hands on people I do not know. I believe God can use my prayer from across the room just as good as if I am massaging their scalp or forehead with my fingers. Moreover, Pentecostal style Churches that allow people to minister as well as the preachers are not that common. ~ Sid
on 5/2/2006, 10:19 pm, in reply to "So do you personally pray for people to recieve the Spirit after"
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Joel: So do you personally pray for people to recieve the Spirit after they have been converted? Of course you do, you are able correct?
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