I have never, ever had a saint try to control what I preach in the church where I pastor. Not even one time.

I have had several folks from local charismatic churches visit us, and after a few services, tell me how they loved my preaching, how the anointing they feel here is unlike anything they have ever experienced in their church, etc.

Then they give me the line about how if I would just back off on a few of those, "you know, outward things you believe..." that I would soon empty every charismatic church in town.

I have had the same speech from a number of different ones...lol

I just laugh and tell them to connect the dots.

Our doctrine and separation is what makes us different than what they are used to. If we became like them, the thing that originally appealed to them would be gone.

We've had people comment negatively through sermons and pray loudly at business meetings to sway the vote. Consider yourself blessed. ;)

Honestly, I think I have led a charmed life in some ways.

I don't pastor a perfect church, but rebellion is one thing I just haven't had much of.

I am very blessed in that the saints really love me and my family.

I am sincerely happy for you. :bouquet That is a great thing.

We did have one guy when we first came that would roll his eyes every time there would be a message in tongues and interpretation.

He would fold his arms and sigh, rolling his eyes very mockingly.

I got to praying for the dude, and one Sunday morning during a message in tongues, he started his routine. He was sitting by himself in a pew, with no one even close to him.

While he was going through his expression of contempt, there was a sound that sounded exactly like an uppercut connecting with the sweet spot on the point of his chin, and he went sailing out from between the pews and landed unconscious in the center aisle.

Scared everybody to death.

I tried to pray for him, and couldn't rouse him. I told the folks, leave him lay there, we are going to have church anyway.

He laid there for about thirty minutes, and when he finally came to, he was a very subdued man.

He sat through the remainder of the service, and then walked out without saying a word to anybody. That was his last service.

It was a very sad thing. He showed up a few months ago for the first time in years. he was long haired, unshaven, and unkempt. He wanted to see me outside.

He seemed very sheepish, but wanted to know if I would pray for his daughter, who was in a mental hospital under a suicide watch...it broke my heart to see him so far from where he was when he walked out that morning.

It does not pay to rise up against what God is doing.

I can't even imagine negative comments out loud during a sermon. I'm not sure what I would do, but I daresay some of our men would escort the commentator outside post haste.

We had to put up with it service after service for months. There was nothing we could do. And I mean nothing.

You definitely have my sympathy.

I don't have anything in my whole life experience in Pentecost to even help me imagine something like that.

thank God for people who respect the ministry.

You needed a prophet to come by.:)

We had a couple of them.

Sure enough?

The real article, and God didn't let them help you with something so far outside the realm of right?