I was at University when Jill and I were engaged. In 1959, during the summer Long Vacation, I
worked as a Nursing Auxiliary at a Mental Hospital in Sussex, England, for a period of six to eight weeks. It was the first time we`d been separated for such a long period of time and we knew we would miss
each other badly.
Before I left we promised that we would write to each other every day, and we did - long letters
saying what each of us were doing and how we were feeling during this time of separation. Jill kept
the letters I`d written to her and I found them again some years ago.
It was fascinating reading them. It was like going back in time. It was also a bit embarrassing reading
what I`d written about how much I loved her. I`d tried to put down on paper all the feelings I had
for her - I even wrote a poem (for the first and last time).
The other thing I remembered was being highly frustrated with the English language, how inadequate
it was the say the things I really wanted to say, to express what I was really feeling about her. I
remember wishing that I had a love-language to do this - words better than and beyond English which
would really express my feelings.......... but I never did find such a language to express these feelings
for Jill.
In 1971 I had a new experience, this time in my relationship with God. I`d nearly lost my faith - God
seemed a long way away, and I`d stopped praying to Him. I nearly left the Ministry.
But then someone said to me that it was possible to have your relationship renewed - that if I was
really serious about this, all I had to do was to be honest with God, and tell Him the truth about what
I was feeling, and that He WOULD respond. Sometimes this response would come in a strange way
through the gift of speaking in tongues.
I was at my wits end. Either I would leave Him behind or I would do what I was told - so I said to
God, "Please, if there is a God, do something about me.". For a few days nothing happened, but then,
slowly, I began to be flooded with a sense of the love of God, a real sense of joy that He DID love
me, just as I was. I wanted to sing. I wanted to tell Him what I was feeling about this and about Him.
And then I did the other thing I`d been told - stop speaking in English, ask God to give me a love
language that could express what I was feeling - so I did (stop speaking in English), and He DID (give
me this love language).
That`s what speaking in tongues is for. It`s a love language to set us free from the constraints of
having to think out English words - and to let our feelings soar to God. It`s as simple as that - not
frightening, not weird - just feelings put into words.
There are plenty of other things I could say about it - but that`s enough for now.
See also: www.mysterycell.freeserve.co.uk
