This weekend was like none that I have ever experienced. Doug and I spent seven hours sitting in Full Gospel church services, complete with tongue-speaking, healing (at least they prayed for it), and people falling out in the floor. An old Southern Baptist gal like me was pretty much out of my comfort zone! Last night we sat through four solid hours of preaching, praying, and singing, without a single break. As for the music, I thought our church had lively music, but we never get going like those folks did! And it was LOUD. I have to admit, though, I did enjoy the singing and Phil Driscoll blowing the shofar.
Normally, Doug and I would not go to this type of church, but Doug’s attendance was pretty much required, and I went along with him. The federal agency that Doug works for had financed the facilities for their ministry which provides food to people in need. This was done through one of President Bush’s faith-based initiatives. The services this weekend were in celebration of the grand opening of their new facilities. This is a very large ministry which shall go unnamed in this post, because while I do not agree with some of their thinking, I have the greatest respect for the ministry and the people who operate it, and I would not want anyone to think that I am denigrating them in any way. Anyway, Doug and other government officials were invited to attend the grand opening, and Doug was even on the program to say a few words last night.
The first night we attended a barbeque before the services. The food was great, and after we ate, we went outside to release hundreds of helium balloons with the name of the organization and information attached. While standing in the parking lot, tons of paper confetti in the shape of gold and white doves was shot off from on top of the roof, and it floated down all around us. The children were having a ball gathering up handfuls of confetti and throwing it on their parents.
Afterwards, we gathered in the auditorium and saw a video about the history of the ministry. Many accolades and standing ovations were given to those responsible for starting it all. Then the preaching started. I’ll say one thing for those folks; they can talk! They don’t need any notes, and they talk ninety miles a minute, nonstop, without having to think for a minute what to say next. There were many preachers there from all over the country, both male and female. In fact, I guess this was the first time I ever sat under the preaching of a woman! Many of these pastors were asked to come say a few words or offer a prayer. Here is a true thing – if ever one of these preachers gets hold of a microphone, he or she is incapable of NOT preaching a sermon! No one seemed mindful of the time or how many others were waiting for their turn on the program. A husband and wife preaching team were the keynote speakers for the night. He spoke first, and I really liked him and what he had to say. He talked a lot about unity among Christians of different denominations. I’ll say more about that later. Then his wife got up to talk – and talk, and talk, and talk. Her sermon turned into a healing service. She basically said that it is never God’s will for anyone to be sick or suffer pain, which I think is a ridiculous assertion that flies in the face of reality and scientific fact. If that were true, how would anyone ever die? Then she had people come down front, and she laid hands on them and commanded that cancers and other disease come out. Some of these folks then swooned and fell to the floor where deacons were waiting to catch them. Occasionally she would look up and begin speaking in tongues, but it seemed deliberate and did not strike me as a genuine, spontaneous manifestation of the Holy Spirit. There was no interpretation as Paul commanded in the New Testament. Finally, the healing part of the service ended, and the best part of the evening took place. Jackie Valesquez, a well-known Christian artist, sang and gave her testimony. She was awesome. Then, after three hours, the service ended, and we went home for the night.
Last night, Doug spoke briefly near the beginning of the program and did very well. Many people spoke during the course of the evening, but one of the best was Dodie Olsteen, mother of the famous Joel Osteen of Houston , Texas. She was a delightful lady who gave an amazing testimony of God’s miraculously healing her of liver cancer over twenty-five years ago. She also asked people to come down front so she could pray for their healing. While I still have problems with the way it was done, I could not help but think … If I had gotten a bad report from the biopsy I had a week ago, would I have gone down front and asked her to pray for me? I might have.
A kindly older man named Len Mink sang and spoke, and I really liked him. All the people who spoke were talented speakers. One of the most impressive parts of the evening was when they showed a video of John Olsteen preaching. He is the father of Joel and is no longer living. Wow! He was an amazing preacher! His widow and daughter were watching from the seats in front of me, and I saw them crying.
Finally, an old man came up to give the closing prayer, but not until he, of course, preached a sermon. He spoke about helping the poor and finding our ministry. Once he stopped talking and seemed to stare right at me for the longest. When I told Doug later that I was pretty uncomfortable when he did that, Doug laughed and said, “He’s eighty-years-old; he was probably trying to remember what he was doing!” He finished his prayer and we left at 11:00 pm. There was much that was good about the evening, but my legs and back ached from sitting so long, and I was really sleepy.
So here is the bottom line: These are good people who are doing far more than I’ve ever done to help others. I don’t agree with their doctrine, but I admire them for what they do. I respect their sincerity and their obvious love of the Lord. They are full of joy, so they must be doing something right – many things, actually. They are meeting both physical and spiritual needs of people who find hope and love in their church. I say more power to them!
On the other hand, if they were the only representatives of Christianity, I know many people who would never come close enough to them or their church to ever see God. I'm thinking of people who feel God’s presence best in a quiet, more formal style of worship. Or people who are far more intellectual than emotional. That is why, I think, we have different denominations, because we are not all alike. We come to God with different personalities and different needs. One style of worship may be uplifting to me while it turns another person off cold. Our God is a great God who is able to reach out to all His people in many different ways!
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