”For if the trumpet makes an uncertain sound, who will prepare for battle?” (1 Corinthians 14:8)
The apostle Paul likened the clear sound of the trumpet to the correct use of tongues. And by extension, we can say that every Old Testament battle which involved the use of the trumpet, hints at the importance of tongues in our New Testament battles — thus echoing the high value on tongues.
LOSS OF LIFE AVERTED IN DANGEROUS STORM
I remember hearing a story about one brother Boley, a missionary in West Africa in the last century. One day he was returning from a missionary trip to one of the islands off the coast. One night a sister back at the mission station had a great burden to pray. She didn’t know what it was about, so she began to pray in tongues. The burden kept increasing until she experienced a lightness in her spirit and she knew, whatever it was, that she had prayed through. At the end of her prayer time she saw Brother Boley’s face.
Little did she know that during her time of prayer, brother Boley’s boat was experiencing being tossed by some heavy winds and waves until the lives of him and those on the boat with him were in great danger. They didn’t have any navigation systems back then, so the boat was at the mercy of the elements.
As the boat drew nearer to shore during the storm it came up on a coral reef. They were faced with two equally poor options: try and go through the reef and have the boat broken into pieces, or remain out at sea and risk the danger of the boat being capsized and everyone succumbing to an awful death at sea.
They began moving forward, and by a miracle of God, suddenly the boat sailed into the air and landed safely on the other side of the reef and eventually unto the shore. When the lady compared notes with Brother Boley concerning the exact time of this miraculous deliverance, it was the exact time she felt the burden lift. She had prayed through to victory and not a life was lost on that boat. Hallelujah!
This is the extent of what praying in tongues and in the spirit can do. It can make tremendous power available, dynamic in its working (James 5:16, Amplified version). If that sister had just prayer a simple prayer for protection or some soulish thing the victory would’ve never come. Thank God for sensitive people who know the touch of the Spirit of God.
The dangers that are averted, the victories that are won, and the breakthroughs that come through this type of praying will only be realized in eternity.
LOSS OF LIFE
Another story I remember that did not turn out so well was told by a minister who kept having this impression of his 25 year-old niece being thrown from a car. This minister was used by God in prayer, but he got busy and didn’t wait on the Lord about this constant impression he was having. All he did was claim divine protection and ask the Lord to keep her safe. But you see friends, this is where we can miss it. The Bible instructs us to pray with all kinds of prayer or all manner of prayer (Ephesians 6:18), and asking or claiming divine protection is only one way or one kind of praying. Where we often miss it as people of prayer is to rely on petitional praying, or the prayer of asking God for something in faith, when the Spirit of God may be leading us into making further intercession and on someone’s behalf.
This minister found out later that his 25-year old niece was killed in a tragic car accident. He felt so bad for being insensitive to the Spirit’s touch and had to go before the Lord in repentance. Often this is how it is with many saints. The Holy Spirit is all the time looking to lay some prayer burden on someone’s heart, but we are too casual and careless about it, or we are just unfamiliar with the Holy Spirit’s leadings. And then ignorant people blame God for tragedies and bad things that happen, but all the time the Lord was working to stop it or avert such things.
God works in the earth by invitation. Authority on the earth was originally delegated to man (Adam), but through sin and the fall of man, Satan stole that authority. This is the reason the devil is called the “god” of this world (2 Corinthians 4:4). But through the cross Jesus restored that authority back to man, and He has chosen to work legally with man to exercise that authority on the earth once more.
Praying forth His mysteries is a huge part of that because we don’t know how to pray as we should. Of course, we can pray according to the Word of God as it instructs us, but God has given us His Spirit and a heavenly prayer language that works wonders and gets results. From the aforementioned example one can see that there’s something about it that releases God’s miraculous workings and His mighty power.
NOTE: Don’t forget to register for our New England Fall Holy Ghost Forum here on our Forum page. There are some things in our hearts that are critical for churches and regions in this hour.
