my christian heritage - part 5: baptism in the Holy Spirit)

About six months before i turned 18, there was a spike in my desire to know the Lord. I was at a prayer meeting, and there was such a yearning for the things of God, i banged my fist (noiselessly) on the back of the pew in front of me. No one heard me, thank God. But i was not at all contented with where i was; i wanted more of life in God. There was no answer for the next few months, and i was caught up with my A levels exams.

Then came Sunday School Camp. That was tremendous. I made a good friend there, and i learnt for the first time in my life the importance of the Holy Spirit and His role in my life. When the speaker taught us the acts of the Holy Spirit, and said that the same power is made available to us, i became angry because in all my years in church so far, no one had shown me that. And it had always been in the bible. I had read through the bible but had hardly noticed what the speaker was highlighting to us.

Anyway, he gave an altar call for those who wanted to receive the power of the Holy Spirit to step up and into a separate room, where he will teach us a little more before praying for us.
About 10 of us followed him and his team into a classroom - our camp was held in a school, and the teaching had been in a hall.

We sat on chairs in a u-shape. I was the second one from the left. As the speaker taught us, the girl on my left began to lean back as if she was weakening. The Holy Spirit was already upon her. When he finished teaching, he asked us to stand to receive, and we all were moved in a straight line before him. The girl who had earlier slumped in her chair was the first to fall under the power.

When one of the team members prayed for me, i could feel power and warmth coursing through me. A bubbling rose from within my spirit, and out of my mouth. I remember clearly that my first words in tongues were: bubububububu. I swayed for some time before i fell under God's power. When i was on the ground, i began to laugh. I discovered much later in my life that it was crucial that the supernatural joy of the Lord entered my life. I was to undergo a life-changing experience, and God's grace and mercy prepared me for this. I was to suffer the consequences of my choices and attitudes, but God was to turn it around for good.