Christian Living
I recently visited with a relation who had been seriously ill in the recent past months and who is currently in the recovery phase. The person was looking really fresh and strong from the last time we met, when the illness was at it’s worse. So I complimented the person’s appearance noting specifically the apparent vigor and strength being expressed. The person’s response was; ‘I don’t really feel so strong “inside”….
Believe me when I say that I’ve felt same way before and it doesn’t only happen with recovery from an illness.
Do you sometimes feel weak on the inside, uncertain about something, undecided about a next step, troubled, tired, afraid, impatient, agitated or weary? There is a way to stay strengthened in the innerman.
Ephesians 3:14-19 is one of the Pauline prayers and it tells us how to become strengthened “inside”…
“For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height—to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.”
Ephesians 3:14-19 NKJV
We can be…… strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man…..yes, it is through His Spirit!
The way I understand it, ‘the innerman’ in Ephesians 3:14-19 is your spirit (being that a person is a tripartite being; a spirit who lives in a body and has a soul).
So our spirit can become strengthened by the Holy Spirit.
How does this happen?
According to First Corinthians 14:4a speaking or praying in tongues strengthens your recreated human spirit..
“A person who speaks in tongues is strengthened personally, but one who speaks a word of prophecy strengthens the entire church.”
1 Corinthians 14:4 NLT
“He who speaks in a tongue edifies himself, but he who prophesies edifies the church.“
I Corinthians 14:4 NKJV
Below is an extract from Kenneth E. Hagin’s ‘Ten Reasons Why Every Believer Should Speak In Tongues’ offering explanations on 1 Corinthians 14:4……
……”In writing to the church at Corinth, Paul encouraged them to continue the PRACTICE of speaking with other tongues in their worship of God and in their prayer lives as a means of spiritual edification. Greek language scholars tell us that we have a word in our modern vernacular which is closer to the meaning of the original than the word “edified.” That word is “charge“—as used in connection with charging a battery. Therefore we could paraphrase this verse, “He that speaketh in an unknown tongue edifies, charges, builds himself up like a battery.” And this wonderful, supernatural means of spiritual edification—notice that it is not mental nor physical edification—is for every one of God’s children.”
Speaking in tongues edifies (charges up) your spirit-man, putting you spiritually alert and in control of your feelings. When we pray in tongues as we should, the Holy Spirit charges up our born again spirit (Ephesians 3:16).
Becoming strengthened in the inner man is not the only thing that happens when we pray in tongues, I believe that we also receive a fresh dose of wisdom, understanding, counsel, knowledge because the Spirit of God possesses all these traits/abilities (Isaiah 11:2 NLT). And suddenly we have clarity on how best to handle life’s challenges.
Therefore for discernment; pray in tongues. When at crossroads and in need of direction; pray in tongues. Feeling emotionally disturbed, weary and anxious; pray in tongues. When you don’t know what to do next? Pray in tongues. If you need understanding of a particular portion of scripture? Pray in tongues.
I find that some Christians don’t believe in speaking in tongues. Someone once said to me that it is impossible to be speaking same tongues for different prayer topics. Some others think it’s too monotonous or boring. Well, the taste of the pudding is in the eating. You’ll never really maximize the benefits of praying in tongues until you commit to making it a practice.
So any time you feel weak in spirit, fearful, confused? Charge up your spirit,…. pray in tongues. When you are charged up in the spirit, you are strengthened with might in the inner man, you are more alert in the spirit, you are more sensitive to the Spirit of God and your spirit gains dominance over your body and soul (mind).
Become strengthened in the innerman today; pray in tongues.
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You can find other Benefits of Praying in Tongues in ‘The Whole Armor of God (X)‘.
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