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*♫*Love is the flag flown high from the castle of my heart...*♫* Student; Blogger; Young Entrepreneur

Thursday, January 7, 2010

HE’S NEVER TOO FAR AWAY…

And, behold, I send the promise of my father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.” [Luke 24:49]

Grew up a Pastor’s son and that helped a lot; but, until you experience God for yourself beyond “what I heard”, nothing has really begun. But, then came a book that revolutionized my walk with God. All the epiphany I needed to begin an experiential walk with God was unveiled through a book I came in contact with titled ‘Good Morning HolySpirit’.

On the day that I now write of, most of my high school confederates had gone home for a holiday - hardly remember what it was about. At this point, my schoolboy fascination with holidays had waned; my interests dwelled more in the control I thought I had over my life while I was in boarding sch
ool. Anyway, back to the day [more like a night it was since, once again, I hardly remember the day part of it] in itself.



I sat there in the large assembly hall all by myself with a book in my hand – one I didn’t want to finish and yet I couldn’t wait to consume entirely. I read, probably for hours, intently. With all my attention focused on that one book, the thought ran through my mind – this just has to be true. With tears in my eyes, a heart pounding in my chest, and my knees knocking together, I read the experiences of the healing minister, Benny Hinn, with the HolyGhost in the earlier parts of his life. He shared the understanding of God’s word, color, beauty, and substance introduced by this precious third person of the Godhead into his life. There was only one True reason why I believed all he wrote, and it was because of the witness. That same HolySpirit now stood there with me, telling me “yes, it is all true…and you too can know me the same way.”

Prior to this day, I had begun nurturing an interest in “something more”. I was never what many considered a bad guy – yet, I wasn’t righteous by their standards either. I had religion – so much of it that I got sick of it. And, by religion, I mean the routine of church, prayer, bible reading, and more of the stuff you may already know. For weeks before the day, I had pondered on the person of the HolySpirit. I took interest in the lives of those who lived the supernatural around me like Rev. Chris Oyakhilome. It may be important to know that, at that time, I had no idea I would ever be in Christ Embassy [presided over by Rev. Chris]. Erstwhile, a couple of alumni of my school had come to our school fellowship and spoken highly about the person, character, and power of the HolyGhost. I knew I had to have it; well, then I thought I was dealing with an “it”. Little did I know!

By the time I was done reading “Good Morning, HolySpirit”, the presence of the HolyGhost had so overwhelmed me. I had come to know that He is more than an “it”. I discovered He’s a rational being co-equal with God. That He is, in fact, the person of the Godhead that brings the Word of God to pass. Though I received the HolySpirit that same night, I did not know it till weeks after this experience. But, one thing was sure that night; I had received life. I didn’t mind telling everyone that I saw. I ran to where a dear friend was doing some laundry to explain my experience, and I am glad till this day that we ran from there together for the HolyGhost! There began my series of fortunate events.

To be continued…

Care to share your first experience with Him?

18 comments:

  1. YES!!!!Truly Uplifting!!!...i want more more more.......hehe....Thanks broooooo!!!!....but still more....what were these events?....hehe...thanks again!

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  2. Awww...you know I just love drama...and thank God I can do it for the Lord....well I wont make this one long cuz I got work to do...

    It first started with a deep and sincere hunger for a life I could control...I was looking for a safe place I could be and have so much control over my life which at the moment was spinning outta it...So I had a very good friend, who actually unconsciously spurred my interest in seeking this kind of life...I just loved the way he was in control even as young as we were then;I was 17, he was 15...he was really a principled and smart kid...people didn't just mess with him anyhow,but for me then; I was always so scared and will always run under covers...But to also mention this my friend was really really short in height and looked soo soft like a kid and yet he commanded so much power from the "Big Boy" in school who were also my headache and I just wanted rid them off....I told myself, I gotta have that...but more I just wanted to discover who I was and just be at much peace with myself, U no!!

    Anyway, the story runs like a good movie script but the rest is history, they say. But finally I got my answers and the answer was nothing but the HOLY SPIRIT(even as he's still the answers we need today). I got filled with the Spirit in 2005 in a fellowship service at school...and the walk has been eternally blissful...

    One conscious step for that journey with Christ is just desiring desperately something that only him can give-P-E-A-C-E!!!

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  3. WOW....thanks guys!
    @ Victor: You'll have to wait for the sequel to find out....lol!

    @ Ernest: Thanks so much for sharing. Awesome words.

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  4. Wow.Powerful. God Bless You Son. May Your heart be flooded with insights as you write for the Lord regularly in Jesus name!

    NiceOne!

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  5. Thanks, bro. Jeshurun.....and, Amen to that prayer!

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  6. Great piece St. Burnish!!!

    I can definitely relate with the issue of religion and having so much of it...Oh boy did I have truck loads of religion and the funny thing is that I did not realize it..I had gotten so used to going to church:"the singing and the listening" without expecting any change or improvement...I would say I was a passive Christian but that was until I received light, an understanding of my status as a child of God...and the fact that I MATTER in the Kingdom of God. Before I knew it, I began to actively see myself in the word of God and the Holy Spirit has been bombarding me with more light ever since...now I can boldly say that I KNOW WHO I AM....thanks to the Holy Spirit who opened my eyes of understanding and till today keeps bombarding me with KNOWLEDGE of who I am as a Christian in this year of the Greater Light!!!

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  7. Awesome words, Bimbo....thanks for sharing!

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  8. Gosh, this is so interesting! Thanks a million for sharing, Deji.

    I had a similar experience with 'Good morning Holy Spirit' and 'Holy Spirit my Senior Partner' by David Yonggi Cho. Although I have continued to grow in my walk with the Lord, that period of my life with its experiences are still so precious and sacred to me. It also happened in school.

    The baffling thing is that at the time I came to know the Holy Spirit as a person (which was what the books majorly helped me do), and began to understand how to relate with him, I had been filled with the Holy Spirit for about 6 years! and even witnessed certain demonstrations of God's power, yet I still didn't know him as a "him". I thought he was an "it" and so didn't have an intimate relationship with him. Sometimes in the past as I looked back at the whole thing, I felt bad thinking that I wasted 6 yrs that would've been much more explosive and fruitful than they were, but I also think that I may not have been ready to handle what began to happen to me during that period in my last year and a half in secondary school. I would really love to begin to share but I think it will be too long a comment and it's length may make it boring, and it's too sacred to be shared and be boring. Thanks Deji, for sharing this part of your walk with God; it reminds us of that precious beginning of our glorious journey with the one we love so much. Again, thanks for sharing... looking forward to reading the other parts of the story.

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  9. @ Chibueze: You can inbox me your story, and maybe we will publish it someday on this same blog for all to hear. But, you are right - sacred, indeed, it is. How could anyone truly live a Christian life without the HolyGhost?

    @ Everyone: You can also send me your experiences by mail, and some could be selected for future publishing. God bless!

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  10. Wow! This is simply inspiring. Amazingly, Deji gave me the same book years ago and as I read it, I didn't know I was preparing myself for something BIG. Few months later, Deji heard a message from Pastor Chris and as he shared it with me. I could feel the Holy Spirit for the first time.
    Wow! Look what the Lord has done. You can only imagine how far I've gone within the 5 years from then till now. Wow!

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  11. I'm going to have to get this book! Nice blog!

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  12. Praise God! These testimonies are so wonderful and encouraging!Thank the Lord Jesus forever more.

    I remember reading 'Good Morning Holy Spirit' after around a year in my walk with God and it enlightened me on the person of the Holy Spirit. Before reading the book I didn't really take notice of the Holy Spirit and just thought of him as the aftermath of my salvation. But then after I read all the experiences Benny Hinn had with the Holy Spirit ,I was AMAZED! I was like 'I WANT THAT!!!' And I remember a defining moment I had with the Spirit of God as a result of reading a certain passage from that book. I was on the bus to school in the morning and I was reading the book and then if I remember correctly Benny Hinn said 'You can talk to the Holy Spirit, He's right there.' And so i took it and i just said to the Holy Spirit, 'I love you' and then the tangible and physical love of God just flooded onto me and i felt this warm embrace from God and i had butterflies in my stomach and i began to weep before the Lord and just experiencing this wonderful blanket of love being wrapped and wrapped around me. Then it was time for me to get off the bus, and then as I was walking to the school I asked the Holy Spirit 'Do you love me?' and He spoke and said 'Yes'...and that is where my intimate relationship with the Holy Ghost began. Praise God forevermore! He's so wonderful, so wonderful. Recently I listened to a message from Pastor Chris on the Holy Spirit and he said that ' God wants the Spirit of God to be your friend, RECOGNIZED and KNOWN by you, WELCOMED by you. The person that can talk with you , you talk with Him; your less concerned about His power and more concerned about His personality.'

    Praise the Lord of hosts! Thankyou brother for this wonderful, inspiring, enlightening adn encouraging blog!

    Thank the Lord Jesus forevermore! KEEP SHINING!

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  13. @ Goke: Powerful...powerful! And, it's upward and forward.

    @ Erica: You should...by the way, how's Christ Embassy California

    @ Emma: WOW!! WOW!! WOW!! I love that story. The HolySpirit is all the world to me. And, that indescribable presence is certainly something I would love to write about somebody, if I can find the words that wouldn't belittle that sacred experience. And, I definitely love the part about "your less concerned about His power and more concerned about His personality". I believe his personality is the most fascinating and beautiful thing about him.

    @ Everyone: Keep the comments coming. Glorious...glorious. And tell others about the blog, not just for the post, but also for the comments on it.

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  14. Wow guys.....This is super-duper-awesome!
    Real excellent and uplifting piece, Deji....I'ma get that book.
    The Holy Spirit is truly the best personality ever....I can't get enough of Him. The best part is that I'm getting to know Him more and more each day....Glory! What a life!!!

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  15. @ Lola: Yes, He is the best personality ever. And, I'm so excited to sit as He teaches me everyday. None like unto Him...

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  16. This is so exciting guys. I have to leave my mark, you know...and since there's so much writing fuel coursing thru my veins, U know?

    I had lived most of my life in religion…it was like a ritual to go 2 church every Sunday. Even at that, we (‘we’ means ‘I and my nuclear family’) always came late …like the church was the pastor’s and we were doing him a favor by attempting to come. We also had morning prayers at home every day, and the prayer was like a pattern – I pretty much learned about prayer as a means of getting God to do stuff for you, you know? When I got to high school in 1999, it didn’t help me that much, because I didn’t know God personally; just thru the patterns of prayer I had learned at home. I attended the schools services though, and most of my friends were from Christian homes as well, so that created a blanket of ‘self-styled goodness’, which prevented me from doing things that every normal high school kid would.
    In 2004, June 22nd, or a Sunday around that date, an alumnus of the high school I was attending was the guest speaker for the school’s service. He talked on the Holy Spirit, and explained how he gives us the power to speak in tongues. Before then, I had heard my Mum speak in tongues occasionally around the house. I didn’t know what it was she was saying, and it sounded like some variation of a Dead Sea language to me. But she didn’t speak it very often. When this alumnus (his name is Ovie Onokpachere – can’t forget the name because of what happened next) finished talking, he asked us to begin praying, and told us that as many of us that wanted to receive the Holy Spirit could do so at that moment and start speaking in tongues. Since I had heard it before from my Mom, I knew it was possible for someone to speak in tongues and I desired to commune in the language as well. As we worshipped, I just started saying some strange things…had no clue whatsoever what I said. But yet, I knew I was praying – in a way I had never prayed before. Surprisingly, there were only 2 people that spoke in tongues that day. Much, much later on, I came to realize that receiving the Holy Spirit does not automatically ‘shoot’ tongues from one’s mouth; it could happen as soon as the person received the Holy Spirit, or could happen sometime else. Then I also realized that I had received the Holy Spirit long before that event – maybe 1 or 2 years before, and HE was the reason I couldn’t do what everyone else was doing, not my ‘safe haven of Christian friends.’ Unfortunately, after that experience, I did not maintain the habit, and it sort of ‘died down.’ The fact that we did not speak in tongues during the family morning prayers did not help either.
    On a nice sunny Sunday at church in July 2005, during the worship session, I ‘got lost’ in worship as I praised God in English. Then, something else happened. As I closed my eyes, I began seeing words that were written out – like they were written on my heart or a tablestone or something…most were written with letters from the English alphabet and I did not know what they were, but they were definitely not in the English language. I tried pronouncing them, and as I did, they would be replaced by new, different words, and I would try pronouncing those as well. I continued doing that throughout the time for worship, before I finally realized that I was speaking in tongues! Wow! It felt so good too! I just started thanking God and praising him for restoring what I thought I had lost (though we know now that the gifts of God are without repentance). And, during the coming weeks, I learnt in the church that God speaks to everyone, and we should take time out to listen, and that He loves us. So one fateful day, after the family morning prayer, I tried it – I stayed behind and just bowed my head to listen. I know the first words I heard were...

    stay tuned for more.

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  17. Contd. from above:

    I know the first words I heard were, “Chijioke, I love you. I will bless you like no other” and several variations of it. I suddenly felt basked in the Father’s love (though I didn’t know what it was called then), like layers upon layers of a thick warm blanket were placed over me, yet I felt co comfy. Finally! This God I’ve heard so much about speaks! And he knows my name! And he likes me!!!
    I felt on top of the sky throughout that day, skipping everywhere and dancing to made-up tunes. As I was going to bed that night, I remember the last thing I said was “Good night Lord”….then I heard clearly, “Good night son.” I was his son! It felt different hearing it from him that from others. The next day, I awoke with a ‘Good morning Lord’, and suddenly all the blanket layers were back. And then I went: “So, what should I wear today?” And He went “Put this shirt on, and match it with this pair of pants and do this and that.” By the time He was done grooming me, I was astonished at myself. Ever since then, I’ve had impeccable dressing sense – He taught me what I know about fashion today. Ain’t it cool?
    It got even better. As we communed, He would point me to a verse, and would explain it to me. Then he would tell me some stuff about some people, so I could pray for them. During this period, my desire for reading the bible became like…the closest thing I can describe it to is the same hunger with which a vampire desires blood (apologies for the description) but the Holy Spirit is his Word. Naturally, as we spent more time together, I desired more of his word…like I needed to catch up on something. I read copious amounts of the bible per day…and whatever I found interesting, I underlined, or wrote down. And later on, as I went back, and studied, he taught me. Once (very late at night), I asked him a question on a quite puzzling scripture, where it says “The children of this world are in their generation wiser than the children of light.” I asked him, ‘Why? It is strange, and not supposed to be so. Why did Jesus say that?’ Before I knew it, I had written seven pages on the subject. WOW!
    And you know what? All that happened BEFORE I came into Christ Embassy as a member, although I was an ‘outside spectator” for a while. And with the amount of knowledge on the Holy Spirit that Pastor Chris has dealt us with, can you imagine where I am now? St. Burnivine, ‘This Goke Boy Sef’ and Abimbola E. can testify, not so? LOL.
    I want to sincerely thank the Holy Spirit for what He has made me, and also for reminding me of parts of this story I had forgotten…I had to edit some parts where he reminded me that what I wrote was partially inaccurate…He’s so cool! He loves me, and if you are out there reading this, He loves you too. He’s right next to you, always waiting to hear, ever ready to help and answer – because He loves you for you, like no other person can ever or will ever love you. Why don’t you speak to Him now? It’s as easy as you think it is, and that shouldn’t discourage you because you think you have to deserve any kind of love you get. He just loves you, and that’s it! Talk to him now; He’s waiting….


    Told U I had some Holy Spirit-inspired writing fuel in my blood vessels, didn’t I?

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  18. @ CeeJay: Thank you so much for those words. They have changed lives and will continue to do so.

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