Andrew Wommack's Blog, page 20

Believe All Things

When you’re a kid, everything is easier to believe. Then comes the day when you wipe childhood from your eyes and begin to see the world for what it really is. Somewhere along the way, you lose the ability to just believe the best about people or situations. While part of that is just growing up, when it comes to walking with God, seeing things “realistically” doesn’t always help.

First Corinthians 13:7 says that love “beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things” (emphasis mine).

First of all, we need to believe God. When He says that we are “the righteousness of God” in Christ Jesus (2 Cor. 5:21) and that we’re already healed by His stripes (Is. 53:5), He wants us to just believe it and release that righteousness and healing. No questions. No doubts. No wavering. Like children, we must trust that He means what He says. We’ll never attribute the loss of a loved one, a failed business pursuit, or physical sickness to Him when we know that His intentions toward us are always good. We can believe Him when He says that He’s already given us everything we need for “life and godliness” (2 Pet. 1:3).

Andrew explains what this everything for life and godliness is in his You’ve Already Got It! teaching. “Everything that you will ever need in the spiritual realm, the physical realm, the emotional realm, the financial realm, has already been done, and He placed this supernatural, raising-from-the-dead [power] on the inside of everyone.” He goes on to explain, “It’s a matter of releasing whatever it is that you need instead of trying to get God to do what you need done.”

When it comes to believing all things in regard to other people, it does not mean being a dupe and accepting everything people say without discernment. It means to assume the best. It is hope.

Do you believe the best of others, of yourself, of God? Galatians 5:6 says, “For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love.” Doubt and faith don’t mix. When we doubt, when we don’t assume the best of others, we’re not walking in love, and this messes with our faith.

Andrew describes our stance of faith as “our receiver”: “Whatever it is that you need, God has already done it. His supply is already there. God has already done everything through Jesus, and if you don’t see it, . . . the first thing you ought to do is check your receiver.”

Contrary to what the world tells us, believing all things, or assuming the best, is not childish. After detailing what the love of God is, Paul says in 1 Corinthians 13:11, “When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away
childish things.”

This verse implies that walking in the kind of love that believes all things is a mark of maturity. It’s essential to manifesting what’s already in your spirit. Start believing the best and develop a faith that works by love! This is the faith that releases what God has already put inside of you.

First John 4:19 says, “We love him, because he first loved us.” Get consumed with His love for you, and you’ll find that it’s difficult to see bad in others. Become captivated by His goodness, and you will never doubt His plans for you. When all you can see is the best in people, in situations, and in God, you cannot help but release what’s in your spirit. With Andrew’s teaching You’ve Already Got It!, you’ll learn more about God’s goodness and build your faith to what is already in you. It’s available as a CD, DVD, book, and study guide. Check it out today!

Written by Aria Fischer

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Grace + Faith = 1 Powerful Event

Did you know that Andrew’s biggest annual meeting doesn’t even take place in the States? It’s true. The Grace and Faith Conference, held in Great Britain, has drawn Andrew’s largest crowds for years now. The event this past May was no different, with around 3,500 people in attendance. Representing nearly thirty countries, folks traveled from as near as Portugal and as far away as Brazil to be part of the conference. Why do they come? It’s simple: they know they will be healed, set free, and taught how to live victoriously through Christ (Rom. 5:17).

Attendees at the four-day event gained a deeper understanding of God’s heart for them as they heard the Word—raw and uncut—taught by not just Andrew but by seasoned ministers Duane Sheriff and Wendell Parr. The topics covered were discipleship, being dead to self, and dealing with discouragement. As expected, God confirmed His Word with signs following.

Derek came to the Grace and Faith Conference quite reluctantly, having been persuaded by his wife. He had recently fallen a considerable height from a ladder and landed on his side, breaking four ribs and putting his hip through his pelvis. He was taken to the hospital immediately and, after surgery, was put in a wheelchair. By the time of the conference, he had been on crutches for a couple of weeks. After one of the sessions, he went forward for prayer. A Charis Bible College student began praying for him, and he thought, Actually, the stiffness is going, and the pain has eased off. Then he went for a walk outside the building and thought, Wow, this is going well! He walked back into the conference and waved his crutches at his wife. “I don’t need my crutches anymore,” he shouted. As he shared his story during testimony time, he said, “Thank You, God, and thank you, Andrew Wommack Ministries!”

Another testimony came from Pam. Back in the 1980s, she started to get pain throughout her body and was diagnosed with fibromyalgia. She had suffered pain in her body off and on since then. In the three to four weeks leading up to the conference, the pain flared very badly. In particular, the pain in her hands had become so severe that she couldn’t use them properly. But during the conference, the pain left her hands. On another day of the event, the pain started to return, but Pam decided to put into action what she’d been learning over the weekend. She rebuked the pain, told it to leave, and claimed her victory through Jesus. After that, her hands were pain free, and she left the conference feeling well.

These are just two of the amazing stories that took place during the weekend. Besides these and other testimonies of God’s power, there were salvations and baptisms in the Holy Spirit by the hundreds during the nine sessions. In addition, attendees were treated to a taste of Charis’s production God with Us, with a special live performance from Jamie Wommack and Adam Stone.

It’s no wonder the Grace and Faith Conference is such a powerful event year after year. Make plans to join us in 2018, and experience the power
for yourself!

The friends and partners of Andrew Wommack Ministries make this conference possible. If you have not yet partnered with us, consider doing so today. Lives are being changed!

Written by David Moore II

For resources and products or to partner in the U.S., visit www.awmi.net; outside the U.S., visit www.awme.net.

Faith Sees

Who hasn’t heard of the expression “blind faith”? People use it to explain trust in something or someone they can’t be sure is trustworthy. That’s how I thought faith in God was. Stepping out and trusting God was like taking a leap of faith. I mean, you can’t see God. You can’t perceive Him with any of the five senses. You have to believe the Bible without fully knowing it’s
true, right?

Then Andrew comes along and says, “You have an ability to know things by your spirit that you don’t know in just the natural realm.”

If you didn’t hear Andrew say this on the Gospel Truth last week, you might be wondering how blind faith fits into that. (That’s what I would
have wondered.)

“I’m not talking about blind faith where you just hear what I say or [what] somebody else says, and you just base your whole life on it.” Andrew continues, “But I’m saying you go to the Word of God. You take the truths of the Word of God, and the Holy Spirit will bear witness and confirm to you and say, ‘Yes, this is true.’ It’s an inspired Word of God, and it will inspire you.”

Excuse me, Andrew, but . . . whaaaaat?

Second Corinthians 4:17-18 says, “For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory; [18] While we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen: for the things which are seen are temporal; but the things which are not seen are eternal.” After sharing these words of Paul, Andrew asks, “Did you know, to only a person who’s going by their sight, by their physical senses, this just doesn’t make a lick of sense right here. . . . If they can’t be seen, then how do you look at them?”

Yeah, how does that work, Andrew?

“Faith is how you look into the spiritual realm through the truths revealed in the Word of God, quickened to you by the Holy Spirit, and you can perceive things in the spirit.”

Ah, so it’s a revelation.

“Faith is something that is based on seeing things that can’t be seen.”

Fascinating! That sounds a lot like what Philemon 6 says:

That the sharing of your faith may become effective by the acknowledgment of every good thing which is in you in Christ Jesus.

New King James Version

I did some study on the word “acknowledgement” in this verse. It means “discernment” and is a derivative of a Greek word translated “perceive” (Strong’s Concordance). Basically, this is saying that for my faith to work, I have to see—present tense—something.

Well, that explains why, at times, I struggled to receive from God. I would believe what the Bible says concerning healing or finances, confessing and standing on a promise. But while those things are good and even needful, those promises hadn’t been quickened, enlivened, or made real to me. I didn’t see them, really see them. I found myself dealing with a long, drawn-out battle. Sometimes, I received. Sometimes, I didn’t.

It was when I really began to see with my spirit, and I allowed God’s promises to become real to me, that I received from God more quickly and easily. True biblical faith isn’t blind. Do you see?

If you have a testimony of how this truth has worked for you, please share it in the comment section below. Also, if this is totally new to you, but you “see” what Andrew is talking about in his teaching Faith Builders, we would love to hear your thoughts as well.

Written by David Moore II

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By Faith You . . .

You’ve probably heard the saying “Don’t judge a book by its cover.” While that can refer to people, you could very well apply that to life. All throughout the Bible, God teaches us not to accept circumstances at face value. As Andrew says in his teaching Faith Builders, “Faith isn’t denying that this physical realm exists. Faith is just acknowledging that there’s something beyond just the physical. There’s also a spiritual world out there.” Faith is all about not judging your circumstances by how they appear. You judge them by the Word of God.

Hebrews 11 lists several people in the Bible who did not judge their circumstances by how they appeared. “By faith Noah” built an ark to prepare for a flood God forewarned him about (Heb. 11:7). No one at that point in history had ever even seen rainfall before! But Noah knew the words God spoke to him and believed that His words superseded his current reality.

“By faith Abraham” offered up his long-awaited child Isaac as a sacrifice at God’s request (Heb. 11:17). The circumstances made it look like Isaac, Abraham’s promised son, would be gone forever. But Abraham’s faith in God’s promise helped him trust Him, and God responded to Abraham’s faith by having him sacrifice a ram instead of his son.

“By faith Moses” chose not to identify with Pharaoh’s household (Heb. 11:24) but rather to suffer with God’s people, “for he endured, as seeing him who is invisible” (Heb. 11:27). Andrew says in his teaching:

“One of the things that has helped me to operate in faith is to recognize that when I am believing God for something, I’m not believing in something that doesn’t exist. I’m believing in things that are already realities in the spiritual world. They may not be able to be seen, but they do exist. . . . If you can understand that faith is just reaching over into the unseen realm and bringing into reality things that do exist—they’re just spiritual realities—it’ll change the way you see God.”

Paul admits in Hebrews 11 that he didn’t have time to go into the stories of all the others who lived by faith. Some of those people were Gideon, Barak, Samson, David, and Samuel “who through faith subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of the lions” (Heb. 11:33). Like Andrew says in Faith Builders, “Faith is what separates a person who’s walking in victory from a person who’s walking in defeat.”

In other words, the life of a believer should be marked by believing!

First John 5:4 declares:

“For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.”

“It is not your natural talents and ability,” Andrew continues. “It’s not your great wisdom; it’s not all of these things. It’s God and it’s our trust and adherence to Him that causes everything to work. . . . God’s plans for you are good, and if your life is not good, it’s not because God hasn’t blessed you and had a perfect plan for you. But we have to cooperate, and faith is how we cooperate with God. It takes effort on our part. The things of God do not automatically come to pass.”

What promises in the Bible don’t appear to be a reality in your life? God hasn’t changed His mind. Order Andrew’s Faith Builders teaching and build your faith to live in overcoming victory. It is the key to everything.

Now it’s your turn! By faith you . . .

Written by Aria Fischer

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Where Self-Dependence Ends

“You pray as much as you depend on God.”

When I heard the speaker say that, I was brought up short. A quick mental inventory of my prayer life yielded a dismal level of dependence on God. Perhaps that’s why I was getting some of the results I was getting. And maybe it’s the reason God brought it to my attention.

We serve a God who has Genesis 1 on his resumé, yet how often do we still try to do things in our own strength? It would be comical if it wasn’t so tragic. Self-dependence is an enemy of God, but many believers still struggle with it.

Before the Fall, Adam was completely God-centered. Everything he needed was supplied through relationship with his Creator. He was aware of no lack because there wasn’t any. But when Adam sinned, he immediately became aware of what he had lost and of what he was not (Gen. 3:7). He recognized his separation from God. He and Eve had become independent of God.

The results of their independence, both sweeping and devastating, are obvious in the world around us. Lack, chaos, and fear dominate the hearts of people. That’s because self-dependence, or independence, is the mindset of fallen man, and it prevents us from accessing the abilities, assets, and resources of an infinite God.

In Andrew’s Faith Builders series, he talks about the importance of coming to the end of self:

“Paul said, ‘When I am weak, then am I strong’ [2 Cor. 12:10] . . . You could turn it around and say, ‘When I’m strong in myself, when I am trusting in myself, then I’m weak. But when I am not trusting in myself, when my trust is 100 percent in the Lord, then I’m strong.’ We have to come to a place where we quit putting confidence in ourselves.”

As the oldest girl in my family and, later, a single parent for fifteen years, I’d learned a little too well how to rely on my own strength to get things done. I had gone to college, been self-employed, had homeschooled my children, and bought my own home. My self-reliant mindset continued to thrive even after my children were grown and out on their own.

But just like God had to bring Moses to the end of himself, He had to do the same with me. So, in the summer between my first and second years at Charis, the Lord orchestrated my own personal “burning bush” experience. Though I didn’t travel any farther than my comfortable bedroom rocker, the impact of the encounter left its mark on my life. Speaking directly into my heart, God let me know in no uncertain terms exactly what He thought about my ability to accomplish His will in my own strength:

“The only way this is going to work is when it stops being about you and it starts being about Me. Get yourself off your mind and get Me on it. If I don’t show up, you’re toast anyway, so why make it about you?”

Wow!

Thankfully, God is both loving and patient. It has been a process, but for the first time in my life, I am actually learning how to lean on Him. And He’s revealing to me that, no matter what, He’ll never let me fall.

Build your faith in a loving God by catching the full teaching of Faith Builders on Andrew’s Gospel Truth broadcast. If you miss any of the programs, you can watch them free or listen to the Faith Builders series on our website.

Written by Sylvia F. Wells

For resources and products in the U.S., visit www.awmi.net; outside the U.S., visit www.awme.net.

Share It with Confidence

“Before my first mission[s] trip to Ecuador, people encouraged me by saying I would change lives with the Gospel, while others said it would change mine. I didn’t know what to expect, but I quickly discovered it wasn’t one or the other, but both. It is impossible to not change when God is all about transforming our lives through Christ.”

Pascal Gravelle was just one of the several students on the 2017 Charis Bible College missions team sent to Ecuador. He went armed and ready with new revelations and with excitement to share what he had been learning
at Charis.

But a missions trip is not only a time for students to reach out to others with the Gospel; it’s also an opportunity for God to transform students outside the classroom, students like Trisha Calhoun. After arriving in Ecuador, Trisha quickly learned how good the Holy Spirit is at taking what believers have to offer and translating it into the hearts of His people, regardless of culture
or language.

“I came prepared with messages, as instructed,” Trisha explains. “However, I lacked confidence that the messages would be received or relatable to the people we were serving. I had the wrong perspective, though. I was focused on me and my messages rather than realizing they were His messages that I was simply presenting.”

Trisha remembered something one of her Charis instructors taught: If you believe God gave you a word to share, then act like it’s His word and share it with confidence.

“During one of the church services, I shared one of the messages I felt God had laid on my heart,” Trisha recalls. “I admit that I was nervous and did not feel overly spiritual as I was sharing. However, the response from the crowd blew me away! I had to stop multiple times as the crowd praised God, shouted, and clapped. It was apparent that God was speaking to their hearts and downloading revelation to them. I could see joy on their faces as they came up to talk with me after the service.”

Trisha continues, “Joy began to spring up in my heart, as well, as I realized that it’s not about me or my abilities; it’s about God! This may seem like an obvious fact, but for the first time in my life, I am beginning to experience freedom in sharing the Good News as I learn to simply say ‘Yes, let go, and let God.’”

As the students continued to step out in faith, the people of Ecuador became more to the team than just a mission field. “We built good relationships everywhere we went, had many open doors to minister, and shared God’s love everywhere,” Pascal recalls. “No one remained a stranger as we embraced one another as family with the love of Christ.” Pascal adds, “What a privilege it is to build friendships with people through love and [to] point them back to the arms of the Father.”

When you partner with Andrew Wommack Ministries, you are helping send missions teams around the world to both disciple and be discipled. For information on partnership or to give toward Charis missions trips, you can find more information online. Together we can take the Gospel farther and deeper than ever before.

Written by Jessica Giaimo

For resources and products in the U.S., visit www.awmi.net; outside the U.S., visit www.awme.net.

Overcoming on the Mission Field – Part 2

Last week we shared the first part of Annerine Tomlinson’s testimony about her experience in Sri Lanka for her Charis Hong Kong missions trip. Part two reveals some of the challenges she faced and how she overcame them.

“On the first Sunday afternoon, we had the privilege of going to a Hindu village with a pastor associated with Smyrna church. . . . It wasn’t the friendliest reception. In fact, while I shared, I could see several men glaring at me with folded arms. For a split second, I felt unsafe. Some of my teammates also saw this. One of them told me he was thinking, Man, we better wrap this up and get out of here! Another just prayed in tongues. A thought went through my head: What if nobody responds to the altar call today? But right at that moment, I had another thought: This is exactly where I want to be, sharing with people in a context where this is not what they expect or believe in. This is where I want to preach my heart out, right here on this spot.

“Even before I had finished the altar call, hands shot up, including from a lot of the men who were glaring at me. Of the small crowd that assembled there, I guess almost three-fourths of them accepted Jesus. After that, some of these people went to get family from the little houses and brought them to be prayed for. Almost every old lady that I prayed for received Jesus. It was wonderful to have some young people of Smyrna church there translating and praying with us. Team members went with people to their houses and continued praying for people. I am beyond thankful for that day; it’s the stuff I dream of!”

Before her trip even began, Annerine had to count the cost of going on the mission field. The price she had to consider was the condition of her health.

“One of the things that I was slightly concerned about in the natural before we went was how I was going to be able to give out so much and go non-stop for so long. . . . I remember one night we had to climb seven flights of stairs up to a place to practice the skit, but I haven’t been doing that kind of physical exercise in many months because of a major health setback. It was huge for me! I was blessed beyond words to be able to go and give and minister non-stop and not being more tired than any other member of the team. That was incredible! That was really incredible!”

Annerine shares a few closing thoughts on making this missions trip possible:

“I feel completely alive and alert in these kinds of settings. The missionary and evangelist in me are in some kind of heaven if I can go somewhere where ground needs to be taken. I think it is the joy of the Father connecting with his children that explodes in our hearts. . . . Almost every day was my favorite day of the trip.”

Annerine says, “Thank you for this opportunity!”

Your support means changed lives. It’s that simple. If you are not a Charis Bible College World Outreach partner, consider becoming one today. If you are, then thank you! Together, we’re changing the world.

Comment below to share what part of Annerine’s testimony ministered
to you.

(Note: Testimony has been edited for length and clarity.)

Written by David Moore II

For resources and products in the U.S., visit www.awmi.net; outside the U.S., visit www.awme.net.

Overcoming on the Mission Field – Part 1

Missions trips can be life-changing and are an essential part of the Charis Bible College experience. After returning from Sri Lanka, Charis Hong Kong student Annerine Tomlinson had this to say:

“We came back from this outreach so encouraged! I saw again the beauty of teamwork. I haven’t been on a missions outreach with a team for a while—only on my own with a translator. I haven’t taken any teams on trips since I started studying at Charis, if I remember correctly. This was so rewarding
and fulfilling.

“On a personal note, I was so thankful that I was able to take the original material I have been working on and share it with the children in Sri Lanka. It was a great encouragement to me to see how they have received it with open arms and how well it worked.”

Preparing for a missions trip is never easy. What do you take? What do you say to the people you will be visiting? On the field, you quickly find out that you can do without a lot and that the best items are usually those you give away! Sometimes what you share can end up being something you didn’t anticipate. The same was true for Annerine:

“There was a lot of very hard work to be done preparing for this trip, but it all paid off. And none of it was wasted. We did not end up teaching as much on the topics we prepared, but our hearts were well prepared by it. And by the leading of the Holy Spirit, we knew what to do. I love it that we have the Holy Spirit to help us and also that we have the Holy Spirit to help show us what
to prepare.”

But there was one other thing Annerine didn’t anticipate: the number of children she would be privileged to encounter in Sri Lanka. One of the things Charis leaders tell students before going on a missions trip is to be flexible. Why? Because it’s likely things won’t go exactly as planned. But often what God does is a pleasant surprise.

“Initially we were only going to be in contact with 60 to 80 kids during the trip. . . . We ended up ministering to close to 250 children in some form or another. I was blessed by the children and their open hearts. They flowed with such ease with the original children songs. I was stunned!”

In the end, she experienced these words of Jesus to be true: “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35b).

Annerine discovered this while ministering to more children at an orphanage:

“The day at the orphanage was a personal calendar day for me on this trip. I never expected to be so touched by the children at Fridsro. I was so encouraged by how they responded to the music and the teaching, how they took it all in, and how hungry they were for interaction and love.”

Here are Annerine’s parting words to thank you for sending her:

“I am very thankful that we had this wonderful opportunity to go together on a missions trip as a second-year class. It has been amazing to do it through Charis contacts, since we could connect with quite a few like-minded people on the other side. Thank you for this opportunity. It was
absolutely life-changing!”

Stay tuned for more on Annerine’s trip to Sri Lanka, coming up next week.

If you are not a Charis Bible College World Outreach partner, please consider becoming one today. Your gifts make trips like Annerine’s a reality. Let’s keep sending out these world-changers!

(Note: Testimonies have been edited for length and clarity.)

Written by David Moore II

For resources and products in the U.S., visit www.awmi.net; outside the U.S., visit www.awme.net.

Leaving the Comfort Zone

What would you leave for the sake of the Gospel?

Some people leave family and friends, even countries, to share God’s love in nations across the world. But “leaving” doesn’t have to involve permanent or long-term geographic relocation. Leaving can simply mean getting out of your comfort zone, stepping outside the boundaries of the familiar, to reach out
to others.

That describes the second-year Charis Bible College students who visited the Dominican Republic earlier this year. The team, comprised of twenty students, two interns, and two staff members, left the familiar surroundings of the U.S. to bring the Gospel to a nation more than 2,000 miles away. Ministering on the streets and in the schools, the students didn’t do it in their own power but in the power of the Holy Spirit.

When the team traveled to a high school located high in the mountains outside Santiago, it was slow going. Four weeks of rain had produced terrible road conditions. The road was even washed out in many areas. But their leaving was worth it. Once they got to the school, the team performed skits and shared a short message of salvation. About 175 students received Jesus as their Savior! The Charis students found such freedom in being able to share Jesus so openly—in a public school!

During a second public school outreach, the team ministered to about 500 students and faculty members. Again, they performed skits and shared the Gospel. They also passed out food and candy, which was a hit with
the students.

The weeklong trip also included street ministry and open-air ministry in a park. During one of the open-air meetings, the team invited people to come forward with their prayer needs. Bryan Houser prayed for a lady who had pain in her throat. Because of their language differences, they were only able to communicate through hand signals. Bryan placed his hand on the lady’s throat and prayed. The pain lessened after the first prayer, but it wasn’t completely gone. He prayed again and the pain left!

Another team member, Kathy, prayed for an elderly woman with an eye problem. After praying for her, Kathy learned through the interpreter that the woman’s eye problem was healed. The team also prayed for Pastor Abel, a man their team leader had known for over twenty years. Pastor Abel and his wife pastor a church in a rough area of Santiago and had joined the Charis team during an outreach.

“Personally, the most exciting part of the entire afternoon,” Kathy says, “was the prayer for the pastor and his team. I felt the Spirit in a tangible way over his wife. I felt the anointing flowing over her like rain showering her, over and over. [It was a] powerful time!”

Evangelism wasn’t relegated to only the schools and streets, however. The team also ministered in local churches. During one such meeting, the students witnessed an event they do not usually encounter in the States. At the end of the service, people were invited up for prayer. Bryan had just finished praying for someone and had turned to join a teammate, Carrie, in praying for a woman who had come forward. As soon as Bryan placed his hand on the woman’s head, she fell backward. Carrie immediately knew there was demonic activity, so she continued to pray in the Spirit. When she laid her hands on the woman’s legs, the woman began to scream and cough. In the spirit, Bryan saw black smoke come from the woman’s mouth. He commanded the demons to come out, and the lady was set free!

Leaving for the sake of the Gospel is what second-year Charis missions trips are all about. Partner with us and help take the power of the Word and the Holy Spirit to the nations!

Written by Sylvia F. Wells

For resources and products in the U.S., visit www.awmi.net; outside the U.S., visit www.awme.net.

The Gift

“You’re the loneliest person I’ve ever laid eyes on.”

I had only been at college a week when a girl on a campus bus turned around and said those words to me.

“What?” I shook my head in disbelief. “How would you know that?” She simply replied, “God told me.” With the most disrespectful tone I could muster, I said, “Oh yeah! What else did He tell you?” Her eyes softened. The words that followed—about something very personal in my life—both pierced me and made me wonder. There was no way she could’ve known that,
I thought.

She went on to explain that if I accepted Jesus into my heart, I wouldn’t be lonely anymore. I didn’t know how to respond. After an awkward silence, she simply turned back around in her seat.

One evening about a week later, I experienced an acute loneliness as I adjusted to college life. Suddenly, I remembered the words of the girl on the bus. It was then that I asked Jesus into my heart. I felt a warmth pour over me, and I fell asleep. The next morning, everything seemed different. I woke up with a feeling of hope. Something within me had definitely changed.

That same day, I saw the girl from the bus and told her what had happened. After she introduced herself, Corrine said, “You’ve been born again.” She then invited me up to her dorm room where she gave me a Bible. After explaining a few things about my “new life,” Corrine asked to pray for me to be filled with the Holy Spirit. She said, “You’re going to hear a new language inside. When you do, that is the Holy Spirit speaking. Just say what you hear
Him say.”

Corrine laid her hand on my head and began to speak in another language. I may have imitated her at first, but soon I realized that the words coming out of my mouth sounded quite different from hers. She said, “That’s it!
That’s tongues.”

Over the weeks that followed, Corinne and I spent a lot of time together until she left school to marry her boyfriend. I felt like my guide was gone, but really He wasn’t. Corrine had accomplished her assignment: I was born again, received my first Bible, and was filled with the Holy Spirit. I had everything I needed for the journey in front of me.

In Andrew’s new teaching, The Present-Day Ministry of the Holy Spirit, he describes how Paul didn’t want his readers to be ignorant of the person of the Holy Spirit or His gifts (1 Cor. 12:1). Understanding the ministry of the Holy Spirit is not an issue of eternal salvation. However, knowing Him allows you to call on His help and ability. Without His help, most of what you do will be tied to self-effort. As Andrew says, “He’s not a force…. He’s a person.” He’s a gift.

If you want to experience the Holy Spirit’s ministry in your life, you’ll want to hear Andrew’s full teaching, which is currently playing on television or available on demand through our website. But why wait? If you want the baptism of the Holy Spirit right now, call the AWM Helpline: 719-635-1111. One of our phone ministers will be happy to pray with you. When you do that, you will also receive a free copy of The New You & The Holy Spirit book. Let these truths introduce you to the Comforter, and experience the help of the Holy Spirit for yourself.

Written by Eileen Quinn

For resources and products in the U.S., visit www.awmi.net; outside the U.S., visit www.awme.net.