An Honest Heart, A Proving God

I have heard of atheists and agnostics saying, "If there is a God, let him strike me dead!" Although this probably won't happen, because when you are God, you don't have to prove yourself to anyone, God will prove Himself to someone genuinely seeking Him. I have seen this first hand.

I had been taught from birth that there was a God, Jesus was His name, and He wanted to fill me with His Spirit, which is the baptism of the Holy Ghost according to the Bible. At the ripe, old age of nine, I decided to find out for myself. I had felt God move on me in the past and decided I wanted the Holy Ghost that I had been taught about all of my life. Let me explain the circumstances that had brought me to this point.

In July of 1984, my parents started noticing I walked and ran funny. I had started dragging my leg behind me and it looked very strange. It had become obvious to my parents and me that something wasn't right. Knowing the family history and the fact that my dad was born crippled, they decided to take me to a doctor. I was taken to a specialist and after having x-rays done, was diagnosed with Legg-Calve-Perthes disease. This disease causes the hip bone to deteriorate and mine was deteriorating rapidly. The specialist wanted to put me in leg braces, explore possible surgery, etc. My parent were distraught and asked them to wait and to give them time to think it over. Knowing the issues my dad had faced, this was a blow to my parents. The specialist said a few weeks would be fine and we would set up a later time to start the process. 

On August 2, 1984, we went to a church camp in Millersport, OH. I will never forget that Thursday night when I went to the altar, and with tears streaming down my face, I cried out to my Creator and told Him I wanted this Holy Ghost I had heard about. That night, God heard my prayer and filled me with His Spirit. I began to speak in a heavenly language, known as speaking in tongues, as the Spirit used my mouth to speak the words. It is the most real thing I have ever encountered. After I finished praying, there was a joy in my heart that I could feel radiating from my face. I had received the baptism of the Holy Ghost as spoken of in the Scriptures. 

A few minutes later, I took my one year old brother and began to push him around in his umbrella stroller. As I was walking around, my mother said, "Walk back in front of me again. It doesn't look like you're limping." I wasn't limping; something supernatural had happened. I went back to the doctor a few days later. I still remember him walking out with a huge grin on his face and saying, "You are a lucky boy! Your hip bone is growing back! You don't need any procedures!" God had proved himself to a nine year old boy!

Perhaps you are reading this today and have been wondering if God hears your prayers. You lay down at night and look up at the ceiling and wonder, "God, are You really out there?" If you are asking an honest question from a sincere heart, God has no problem revealing Himself to you.