https://youtu.be/bSd9T-FZMdk
Please watch this video. My sister is really going through a tough time mentally and physically and she is very confused about a lot of things in the Bible. One thing right now is that she believes she can speak in tongues... Can anyone help explain why this might or might not be to her... Thanks in advance.
Tongues is praying to God in the Spirit. Paul said that he would pray with the Spirit (tongues) and pray with the understanding (his own language), also he says that the person who speaks in tongues speaks to God because no person can understand what is being said, because the person is speaking mysteries in the Spirit. Jude says to build ourselves up in the most holy faith, praying in the Spirit (tongues). Also, in Ephesians 6 when Paul talks about prayer as part of the amour of God, he mentions praying in the Spirit (also in tongues).
I can understand the desire to demonstrate the gift so that those who are knowledgeable in the Spirit can encourage her that what she has is genuine tongues. But she also leaves herself open to those who would put her down and tell her that what she has is false. My advice is don't believe those critics - ignore them completely and go with your own heart. If you believe that the language you are speaking is tongues, then according to your faith let it be.
There is a set of Scriptural steps that ensure that you get the right gift:
If you believe that God wants you to have the gift, which you appear to have that settled in yourself, then you need to:
1. Ask for the gift, knowing that God will give you exactly what you ask for according to His will. The Scripture says that if you ask for bread He will not give you a stone, and if you ask for fish He will not give you a snake. So, if you ask for the genuine gift of tongues He will not allow you to have something that is false.
2. Receive it from the Lord. Say, "I now receive this gift in faith".
At this stage you have the gift.
3. Now you activate your faith by speaking a language you have never learned. It may sound like gobbledygook to you, but because God has given you the gift to enhance your prayer life, He understands what you are saying.
If you didn't go through those steps, there is no problem going through them. Then you will find that you will just continue speaking as before.
What I discern is that you have a good heart and spirit while speaking in tongues. It does not sound forced, and there is the appearance of joy and peace with it. I don't get any kind of check in my spirit when I hear you speak it.
But you need to be careful to carefully read 1 Corinthians 14, and keep strictly to Paul's teaching about it. Remember that it is a prayer language for you to speak to God and it is not for the hearing of others without an interpreter present in the meeting. You will find that others may be speaking tongues in meetings without an interpreter, and this might not be approved by Paul, so you need to be careful and wise about praying in tongues out loud publicly.
But overall, I have no problem with the exercise of your gift and you will find two things:
1. Things will start happening in your life and ministry as the Holy Spirit leads you that you cause you to praise God for what He is doing with you.
2. You will experience opposition from the devil and his representatives because he hates tongues because they are a threat to him. Usually, the devil will come in the form of those who will criticise you, accuse you of being false, and will try to talk you out of it by saying it ceased after the last Apostle died. Believe none of this. These are lying spirits in the mouths of those critics to rob you of the blessing of being able to pray in the Spirit as well as with your understanding.
