Whew! I am glad I got that out of the way and my secret is out. Actually, it is no secret at all. The question is....what exactly is a Pentecostal? If you took a survey among the average citizen, you would probably get all sorts of definitions. If you took a survey among Pentecostals, you would get the same number of definitions. I am a Pentecostal.
My Daddy was a Pentecostal preacher but my Pentecostal roots go way back to the late 1800s. My great-grandmother, Lillian Davis Comer, was a Pentecostal before she knew what the term was and before there were any Pentecostal churches. I grew up hearing my Dad tell her story. He passed away when I was 16 so the story is fuzzy and I am going to do some research in the near future to get a better handle on what happened. What I remember was that she was in prayer and began to speak in tongues and had no clue as to what was happening to her. A preacher came through town preaching about the Pentecostal experience and she realized that was what happened to her. She was involved in the Bethel, North Carolina Church of God for many years. My great-grandmother was a Pentecostal preacher.
I grew up a Pentecostal preacher's kid in the small town of Roswell, Georgia. Though I have heard stories of abuse and being made fun of, I did not experience that. There are a couple of reasons why. Roswell was such a great town where most everybody got along regardless of church affiliation. We were Christians. Also, my Mom and Dad were not the typical Pentecostal parents in that they did not force me to do weird things like not allow me to wear shorts to baseball practice. That seems like a little issue but I had lots of friends who weren't allowed to play sports let alone wear shorts. So, I had a great life in Roswell as a Pentecostal PK.
There is not enough room in a blog to tell my story but let me fast-forward to today. As I sit here writing this blog, I realize that there are still many different definitions of Pentecostalism. Let me give you my definition. I believe that a Pentecostal is one who believes that the Gifts of the Spirit and the Fruit of the Spirit is alive and well for today. Many believe that it ended with the last apostle but there is no scripture to support that and the community of Pentecostals is just too big to think it a coincidence. Some site 1 Corinthians 13:8 because it says "tongues will cease. But, it also says that knowledge will cease as well and I don't think that has happened. You do not have to attend a Pentecostal church to be Pentecostal. In fact, many Pentecostals have left their churches to attend churches that are not considered Pentecostal. This is my experience. I have not left Pentecostalism and haven't really left my church but attend an independent church, yet, I am a Pentecostal.
I am considering writing about my Pentecostal experiences and how my beliefs have changed through the years. I have no idea how it will be received but it is on my heart and is way too much for a blog. I don't know how long it will take for me to accomplish this goal but have already begun the process. I am a Pentecostal. I will always be a Pentecostal but I get to define it. Stay tuned!
4 comments:
I enjoyed your post. I especially found fascinating the historical info about your great-grandmother.
Bonnie Knox
I too am a Pentecostal. I am in a doctoral program in worship studies. Do you think you could write that book by next fall? Thanks for the post.
I will be working on it in 2013. The Fall sounds like a good goal!! Blessing to you!
Love it Eddie! We both come from good roots. My Mom and Grandmother were with Grandma Comer when she died. Mom said that Pentecostal power was on her when she went to be with the Lord. Her lips were moving as she talked in that Heavenly language. Her mind was very confused about everyday life before she died but she was not confused about her Lord.
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