T O N G U E S ? Just before Jesus left the earth to return to heaven  (after he was crucified,  then raised from the dead),  he told his followers this . . . "It is to your advantage that I go away:  because, when I go away, the Comforter will come. If I don't go, he can't come." Acts 1:8-9 records that he also said this just before he left earth . . . "You shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you." Then he was taken up into heaven. Just 21 verses later, in Acts 2:4, the Bible says "They were all filled with the Holy Ghost and began to speak with other tongues."

Sadly, religion has done much to muddy the water concerning this "promise of the Father." (See Luke 24:49,  Acts 1:4-5,  and Acts 2:33) Actually, if an unchurched person simply picked up a Bible from a stack of books and read all the passages in the New Testament concerning the Holy Ghost and speaking with tongues, he would have no trouble understanding exactly what God was saying.  Matter of fact, in order to misunderstand it, that person would need to hire a theologian to throw in some man-made doctrines, like. . . "That was only for the disciples, but not for us today," . . .  OR "Speaking in tongues is from the devil," . . .  OR "It's not for everyone." The small book "Why Tongues" will send you to the Bible to see what it says...  not what some theologian says. We will gladly send you a free copy of this book.  Just write us. Jesus came to earth to live and die, so he could redeem us from sin, sickness, and spiritual death. And just before he went back to heaven, he briefed us on an upcoming, very important event...  He would be sending the Holy Ghost! Please don't be content to live your life missing this crucial, profound, and powerful gift from your Father! Write or email for a free copy. Ministry In Motion PO Box 1901 Catoosa, OK  74015 email: Ministry.inMotion "at" yahoo.com Notice: replace "at" with @  A woman was waiting at an airport one night,  With several long hours before her late flight.  She hunted for a book in the airport shop.  Bought a bag of cookies and found a place to drop.  She was engrossed in her book, but happened to see  That the man beside her, as bold as could be,  Grabbed a cookie or two from the bag between,  Which she tried to ignore, to avoid a scene.  She read, munched cookies, and watched the clock,  As the gutsy "cookie thief" diminished her stock.  She was getting so irritated as the minutes ticked by,  Thinking "If I wasn't so nice, I'd blacken his eye!"  With each cookie she took, he took one, too.  When only one was left, she wondered what he'd do.  With a smile on his face and a nervous laugh,  He took the last cookie and broke it in half.  He offered her half, as he ate the other.  She snatched it from him and thought, "Oh brother!  This guy has some nerve, and he's also so rude.  Why he didn't even show any gratitude!"  She had never known when she had been so galled,  And sighed with relief when her flight was called.  She gathered her belongings and headed for the gate,  Refusing to look back at the "thieving ingrate."  She boarded the plane and sank into her seat,  Then sought her book, which was almost complete.  As she reached in her baggage, she gasped in surprise  There was her bag of cookies in front of her eyes!  "If mine are here," she moaned with despair,  "Then the others were his, and he tried to share!"  Too late to apologize, she realized with grief,  That she was the rude one, the ingrate, the thief!"

Charles F. Parham, a former Methodist pastor who had started a Bible school in Topeka, Kansas, gave his students an assignment to work on while he was away for a 3-day preaching revival. "Study the scriptures, and when I get back, report on what is the Bible evidence of being baptized in the Holy Ghost." When he returned, the students said, "To tell the truth, when we study the scriptures, we see that they spoke with tongues.  Four times in the book of Acts the Spirit is recorded as falling on people, and each time, they spoke with tongues." The students unanimously agreed that speaking with other tongues was the proof that the Holy Spirit had filled a person. So a few days later, at a New Years Eve "Watch Night" service, where the students had gathered to pray, a young lady named Agnes Ozman asked that hands be laid on her in prayer that she would be filled with the Holy Ghost. Within minutes, just after midnight on January 1, 1901, she was gloriously filled and began to speak in tongues. Although there had been previous sporadic instances of people being filled with the Holy Ghost, this incident marked the beginning of a mighty time of outpouring still happening now. After a Muslim in Africa came to Jesus, his friends asked him why he became a Christian. He answered, "Well, it's like this. Suppose you were going down the road and suddenly the road forked in two directions, and you didn't know which way to go: and there at the fork were two men, one dead and one alive. Which one would you ask the way to go?" During a British conference comparing religions, experts from around the world were discussing whether there was any one factor found in Christianity that was not found in any of the other religions. They began eliminating possibilities. How about incarnation? No, other religions had different versions of gods appearing in human form. What about resurrection? Again, no. Other religions had versions of returning from death. The debate went on for some time until someone wandered into the room. "What's the commotion about?" he asked, then heard in reply that his colleagues were trying to find the one factor that sets Christianity apart from all the world's religions. His response... "Oh, that's easy, it's grace!" Songs Of The Lukewarm Church 1)  Blest Be The Tie That Doesn't Cramp My Style 2)  Pillow of Ages,  Fluffed for Me 3)  I Surrender Some 4)  I'm Fairly Certain That My Redeemer Lives 5)  Sit Up, Sit Up For Jesus 6)  Take My Life and Let Me Be 7)  What An Acquaintance We Have In Jesus 8)  Where He Leads Me, I Will Consider Following 9)  He's Quite a Bit To Me 10)  Oh, How I Like Jesus 11)  Fill My Spoon, Lord 12)  It Is My Secret What God Can Do