Regarding the article in The Baptist Courier about a private prayer language, I must admit that I find this a very unusual practice. I guess you have figured out by now that I’ve never experienced such a thing. I do not think this lack of a private prayer language makes me less spiritual or further away from God than those who practice this private language. Normally, I am not overly demonstrative in my worship practices (raising my hands, saying amen, etc.) but I have no problem with those around me who are. If it should reach the point where I find it distracting to my worship of the Lord, I will find a church that subscribes to a more conservative worship style. I will not insist that it is the responsibility of those with whom I now worship to change their practice.
A private prayer language is just what it says it is – private, between that person and God. It only causes problems when those who claim to have this language advertise it, promote it and look down on those who do not have it. Once this takes place, it is no longer private, and personally, I feel that those who handle it this way are looking for man’s admiration and approval, not God’s. Those who try to urge others into the practice are taking it out of God’s hands, making it a public issue and opening it up for very unfair debate.
All Christians, missionaries included, should never promote the idea of the need for this practice. Those who have this gift should never publicize it or flaunt an air of superiority because of it. Neither should they promote the idea of inferiority or lack of spirituality toward those who don’t claim to have it. Remember, it could very well be that those who don’t talk about it are the ones who truly understand the meaning of the word “private.”
Anything, including prayer language, that takes our focus off our Lord will cause us to sink in our circumstances the same way that Peter sank in the sea. We must keep Jesus as our focus. Everything else is incidental.
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