Discernment, discernment, discernment...

If you keep up with this blog, you have noticed a change lately. I would say that there has been a revolution in my mind and I'm still trying to figure out exactly what that revolution is. Maybe some of you have been troubled by my "slide" into charismatic Christianity. I've actually quite enjoyed the slide but I do have some serious reservations about the way things are in some charismatic circles. For me it all comes down to discernment. What is from God and what is not? I think a very wrong attitude to have is that every time someone claims a revelation or vision or prophecy or whatever we just accept it. This should not be. Things need to be tested. I'm still trying to figure this out. Charismatic Christianity has a great strength in that it is open to the miraculous and so the miraculous does occur. People are healed, people see visions, people prophesy and other weird stuff happens. But I feel like I see a serious weakness in a lack of discernment and a willingness to accept whatever claims people make about healings, visions and so on. I'm glad that I have friends whom I can trust and that these friends have experienced some of those various things. Heck, I've experienced them so I can't deny them. The way I feel right now makes me so thankful for my experience in the Anglican Church and it drives me to stay in that place. Even though I love the Foursquare church I go to when I'm home, I think that Pentecostalism + Congregationalism it probably not a good thing. I should read Cantalamessa's book on the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Maybe that will help. Well, I hope you enjoyed my rambling. God bless you all.