Last week I attended a funeral service of one of the servants of God I hold in high esteem. The program went well until the time when the preacher took to the stage. After a while, he declared that he felt that something was wrong but did not indicate what exactly. Somebody at the back of the auditorium began to pray and somebody else called unto the senior pastors present to rally around the preacher in order to lay hands and pray.
As the pastors rallied around him (the preacher) and began praying, I found myself wondering what on earth was going on. As far as I was concerned the call for prayer was not well articulated in terms of the rationale and the expected outcome. I looked with bewilderment at some of the pastors as they seemed to be casting out satan.
I think that there could only be two probable reasons to explain what happened to the preacher. For me, it was that the preacher had very close personal and work relationship with the deceased, that he underestimated the emotional impact of this loss on himself and decided that he would preach only to discover that he couldn't. That was what I thought highly likely to have been the case. And if that was the case then the call to prayer and the subsequent tumult was uncalled for.
But another possible reason could have been that there was nothing emotionally wrong with the man of God, that satan was simply attacking him. This would make the resultant commotion understandable. And I think it likely that some of those who went to pray for the preacher, including the audience, saw what was happening to the preacher as satanic attack.
I stood there in my bewilderment as I beheld the unfolding scene before me and wondered: Is there something wrong with me? Is this the best I can do- sit down and wonder at the scene? Why not stand and join those praying for this man of God for whatever I think he needs to be prayed for? Is this what being pentecostal is about- rush in to pray without clarifying the reasons and the expected outcomes of such a prayer?
1 comment:
I was reading the story you sent me, and I must say that pentecostalism has been mistaken for suspicious spirituality. We bring so much accusation against satan, that I now think he has grounds to accuse us for falsely accusing him for things that he has nothing to do with. Secondly, our suspicions have given him too much credit and underserved glory. It's my prayer that God will use us to bring true spirituality back into the Church. A spirituality that can make a difference between discernment and paranoia, where people won't look for satan in everything and miss out on tremendous opportunities of ministering to people.
MP
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