TWITTER TONGUES ARGUMENT
Recently, there has been a continuous campaign on Christian Twitter to denounce the act of praying in tongues for a long time as against praying in understanding. I began to wonder if these people do not pray regularly or if I am the one that doesn’t pray well (I pray regularly).
I have seen statements like you can’t pray in tongues” absent-mindedly” and claim you’re praying. Is there anyone who prays in tongues for a long time without falling asleep and has their mind at full attention all through? At times, my mind used to blank off. I don’t know about them. Apostle Paul says: when he prays in the spirit, his understanding (mind) is unfruitful.
Some also said something like: “If you can’t pray in understanding through the same length you pray in tongues then something is wrong”. Really? How do I pray with understanding for as long as an hour? What will I be saying? Those days on the mountain, I’d be saying ” Agbara, gbe wo mi” that is, “Power! Power!” Or “so mi di ina”. That is, “Fire! Fire!” I can do that for hours just changing a few words.
Today, I feel I should be doing better than that. So, I switch to tongues. You, yes you, that pray for hours in understanding, what do you use to say- teach me.
When you have a need or a burden, you can pray with understanding using scriptures for 30 to 60 minutes or even longer. But this doesn’t happen all the time! That’s why I said: do these people pray regularly or do they just pray once and decided to write a thread?
If you are praying in a group meeting, you can pray in understanding for a longer time raising varied prayer points.
If you are using a prayer guide or a list of prayer points, you can do well with understanding. Even though, you would still sprinkle tongues here and there.
But if you pray personally all the time, you will do more of tongues and your mind may not be active all of the time. Do I have a witness?
And that you pray in understanding doesn’t mean your mind doesn’t wander off or go blank too. The longer you stay (either in tongues or understanding) the more it is likely for your mind o wander off, you just keep pulling it back.
Our apostolic fathers from 1930 prayed more in understanding, muttering the same words like “power”, “fire” and you see God use them mightily. Do you know why?
Praying meaningfully is one thing (SECTION A). There is a Section B- “staying in his presence”. Praying meaningfully gives answers, staying in his presence gives anointing. So, it wasn’t their continuous repetition of “fire” that produced effect but staying all the same. When people saw the signs and wonders performed by the unlearned apostles, they observed that “THEY HAVE BEEN WITH JESUS”.
If the old ministration of praying in understanding for long produces so much glory and effect, how much more will the new ministration of praying in the spirit produce (2 Corinthians 3:7-8) Aren’t we seeing the effect already?
Let no one blackmail you from praying in tongues for a longer period.
But you also need to learn how to pray a burden with understanding using the word.
My generation (I am not an old man) started with “praying with understanding”. So, we were nurtured in the word! Your generation (again, it’s not by age) started off praying in the spirit/tongues so, some didn’t learn so much of the word. This is what I believe those writers are trying to correct.
Bottom line: it is absolutely right to pray in tongues for a very long time rather than praying with understanding. But as much as you know how to pray in the spirit, also learn how to hold intercessions and prayers with the understanding, quoting the word.
Recently, there has been a continuous campaign on Christian Twitter to denounce the act of praying in tongues for a long time as against praying in understanding. I began to wonder if these people do not pray regularly or if I am the one that doesn’t pray well (I pray regularly).
I have seen statements like you can’t pray in tongues” absent-mindedly” and claim you’re praying. Is there anyone who prays in tongues for a long time without falling asleep and has their mind at full attention all through? At times, my mind used to blank off. I don’t know about them. Apostle Paul says: when he prays in the spirit, his understanding (mind) is unfruitful.
Some also said something like: “If you can’t pray in understanding through the same length you pray in tongues then something is wrong”. Really? How do I pray with understanding for as long as an hour? What will I be saying? Those days on the mountain, I’d be saying ” Agbara, gbe wo mi” that is, “Power! Power!” Or “so mi di ina”. That is, “Fire! Fire!” I can do that for hours just changing a few words.
Today, I feel I should be doing better than that. So, I switch to tongues. You, yes you, that pray for hours in understanding, what do you use to say- teach me.
When you have a need or a burden, you can pray with understanding using scriptures for 30 to 60 minutes or even longer. But this doesn’t happen all the time! That’s why I said: do these people pray regularly or do they just pray once and decided to write a thread?
If you are praying in a group meeting, you can pray in understanding for a longer time raising varied prayer points.
If you are using a prayer guide or a list of prayer points, you can do well with understanding. Even though, you would still sprinkle tongues here and there.
But if you pray personally all the time, you will do more of tongues and your mind may not be active all of the time. Do I have a witness?
And that you pray in understanding doesn’t mean your mind doesn’t wander off or go blank too. The longer you stay (either in tongues or understanding) the more it is likely for your mind o wander off, you just keep pulling it back.
Our apostolic fathers from 1930 prayed more in understanding, muttering the same words like “power”, “fire” and you see God use them mightily. Do you know why?
Praying meaningfully is one thing (SECTION A). There is a Section B- “staying in his presence”. Praying meaningfully gives answers, staying in his presence gives anointing. So, it wasn’t their continuous repetition of “fire” that produced effect but staying all the same. When people saw the signs and wonders performed by the unlearned apostles, they observed that “THEY HAVE BEEN WITH JESUS”.
If the old ministration of praying in understanding for long produces so much glory and effect, how much more will the new ministration of praying in the spirit produce (2 Corinthians 3:7-8) Aren’t we seeing the effect already?
Let no one blackmail you from praying in tongues for a longer period.
But you also need to learn how to pray a burden with understanding using the word.
My generation (I am not an old man) started with “praying with understanding”. So, we were nurtured in the word! Your generation (again, it’s not by age) started off praying in the spirit/tongues so, some didn’t learn so much of the word. This is what I believe those writers are trying to correct.
Bottom line: it is absolutely right to pray in tongues for a very long time rather than praying with understanding. But as much as you know how to pray in the spirit, also learn how to hold intercessions and prayers with the understanding, quoting the word.