This alllll began in January of this year. random, i know! all of a sudden i really started wanting the Holyghost & i started praying just about every single night that the Lord would work out my life for me and give me the Holyghost. I didnt really give anything up back then but i knew that i wanted it and i knew that i would be willing to give up whatever i needed to. well i guess whenever i started praying for the Holyghost.. i expected the Lord to call me the very next service i got to go to (i had just started working at books a million then and they had me working just about every sunday so i didnt go to church as much as i used to) well obviously it didnt work that way. i do remember finally getting laid hands on by brother David once like maybe sometime around march.. and even though the Lord didnt call me that night.. i had to hold onto to that because i was to the point by then where i thought that the Lord was never gonna work with me again. and it reallllly scared me!
About mid-april me and Hilary went to the beach with the Goldens because Blake had a singing down there. That saturday night at the singing, both Blake and Hilary got really good blessings.. and whenever any of my friends got really good blessings it would always tear me up because i knew i wanted to be able to enjoy that with them! so of course, i sat back there wishing that i had the Holyghost. We came home on Monday.. and it was a full day trip. Once we got back to April and Blake's house, me and Hilly g still had the almost 2 hour trip back to her house. well on that two hour trip sometime is when it hit me. the best i can remember we werent really even talking about revivals.. and if we were it wasnt about me or anybody getting the Holyghost.. but i just felt like i was gonna get the Holyghost during Huntsville's revival. & of course that made me happy.. but i just thought that that was me just thinking that.. because i still felt like the Lord was just never gonna call me again.
The more time that passed the more serious i got about it..i had got to the point where if anything crossed my mind that i could do that might would be pleasing to the Lord .. i would do it. because i wanted to change His mind about me! i would try to pray longer than i had been praying before i went to bed.. i had loaded a ton of gospel music onto my ipod and that had got to be just about all i listened to. instead of reading my book every night before i went to sleep i would either read the Bible(even though most of the time it didnt make a lick of sense to me.. i'd just read each individual word and hope to get something out of it) or i would listen to gospel music(normally either new harmony or the old Joylanders ) on my ipod until i fell asleep. sometimes i would even do both! probably about 2 weeks before i got the HG i had even started getting down and praying first thing whenever i woke up too. i wanted to do everything i could.. but i didnt want anybody to know. right before i got the HG i was like so weighted down with feeling like that Lord still was never gonna call me.. but i still had that little thought that i was gonna get the HG during Huntsvilles revival! but i remember laying in my bed one night (listening to my gospel music) thinking that i just HAD to talk to somebody. i seriously considered going to mamomma (sister Nona Underwood) and talking to her about it. but i just tried to hold off on that... im pretty sure that i decided i was gonna wait till after Huntsville's revival.. just in case (:
So here it is.. Sunday morning Huntsville's revival! pretty packed-out.. of course. i cant really even remember what was said that morning.. after that we went to zaxbys.. then back for the singing.
That night at church, brother Jimmy did the whole invitation thing.. where theres 5 "invitations" (songbooks) left to give out. well surprisingly.. there wasnt many people that held up their hands for one.. so i was a little bit hesitant.. i only held up my hand like halfway to where he probably coldnt even see it.. but once two went out i got a little more confident i guess youcould say and held my hand up high. and he says "this young lady back here wants an invitation! " and runs back there and gives it to me. im sure i was thinking something along the lines of "yeah, only if this invitation was real" hahaha. i kinda felt like mayyyybe just maybe i should go to the alter that night.. so i asked the Lord if he wanted me to go to the alter.. let Brother Jimmy lay hands on me. instead of laying hands on me.. he just turned the service over to brother Edwin. so of course i dont remember what brother Edwin was saying cause all i was thinking about was how i wasnt being called. once.again. i did keep my eye on brother Jimmy though.. just in case he felt the need to randomly shoot back there and lay hands on me.. but it didnt happen.
After church, we all went to Kylees. by the end of the night, we were all sitting on her front porch steps. there was probably close to 10 of us out there. i wasnt really in the conversation.. just kind of sitting there thinking and listening. then i got to looking around and i noticed that i was the only one out there with us that didnt have the HG. That was definitley and depressing thought! so i went straight into praying in my mind again. and that night.. even though i was with Brett and Hilary and we probably couldve just talked ourselves to sleep.. i laid in bed and prayed myself to sleep!
On the way to church, i was telling Hilary and Brett about how one time when i was in the alter a few years back at Huntsville's revival.. Brother Totchie kept calling me Megan and it would just get my mind sooo bad!
^^The before picture. the very last picture i took before i got the Holyghost!
Church time! i sat on the very back bench in the middle that night. we sang songs of course, then brother Jimmy got to preaching. and that night, i kid you not, it felt like he was preaching to me the entire time. it felt like he looked at me through the whole sermon. He got Dylan and another boy to stand up and talked to them for a little bit, asking them if they would rather be up there with all the happy rejoicing people or if they wanted to be back in the back with all of the sad sinners! that really got to me! cause i always wanted to be up there with all the happy people! He turned to me and asked me if i wanted the Holyghost.. asked me which i would rather be with.. and i just pointed up there to all the young girls with the Holyghost. then he laid hands on me.. and just about as soon as his hand left my head i reached down to my purse to get some paper for my gum cause i knew that tonight was the night! the gave alter call.. and i made my way up there. and i knew that would be the last time i had to make that dreadful trip. i was just sooo beyond happy that the Lord had even given me another chance! that was one of the main things that i thought about. i was sooo thankful! Heres where the funny part comes in! brother Jimmy asked me what my name was. and its alter call.. at huntsvilles revival.. so its LOUD! i tell him my name.. but apparently he didnt hear too good. so he starts calling me Haley. and the first thing i think of is ohhh boy. i just got done telling Brett and Hilary the Megan story ... whyyyyy!!!??! he would call me Haley just about any time that he talked to me if i stopped praying. and one point he was even like.."Look up at those girls right there! theyre cheering you on! theyre saying GO HALEY GO! GO HALEY GO! " luckily.. i have a best friend named Haley.. that has the Holyghost.. so by that point.. i was just thinking 'I wish i was Haley! Shes got the Holyghost!' Eventually somebody told him that my name was Bailey.. not Haley! Mom eventually got there.. and i stood up and hugged her. and just told her about how i didnt know what to do. i had already let everbody else around me know that i just didnt know what to do. because the previous times that i had been to the alter i felt like i had done everything i knew to do. and they just all told me that i just had to keep pushing! my mind was up and down.. i would pray good then i wouldnt.. pray good then wouldnt.. and one of the times that i wasnt praying good Satan got in my mind and i was thinking well.. i could just get up and try to figure things out tonight and come back in the morning and get it. but right after that thought i put my foot down and refused to get up out of that alter unless it was with the HG. i started thinking about being up at the front and thinking about testifying after i got the HG and just started thanking the Lord for even calling me back to the alter! Then, either brother Jimmy stopped me or i just stopped praying again and he said "Bailey, this is probably the last thing im gonna say to you... " and i have no idea what he said after that. just that phrase caught my attention. i started panicing .. i had to make this count because this was the last thing he was gonna say to me! so i went back into praying and i knew that i wasnt gonna give up. all the times that i went to the alter.. i can remember Papa(Uncle Charles Underwood) telling me to just love that power.. along with tons of other people that told me the same thing. but this time thats what i did. i just started loving the power then all of a sudden i felt my tongue running but it wasnt me doing it! i like jumped and i know i had to have the funniest look on my face because i knew that i had spoke in tongues.. but i wanted to do it again to be double sure! but when i started going into praying i couldnt.. because i was laughing too much! i bent straight over into the floor just doubled over laughing. i told them that i was pretty sure that something happened.. but i wanted to do it again. so i went into praying.. and it took me a minute.. but it happened again! i was laying down when i did it again.. and i dont even remember how i got up! it was just soooooooooo good! i wanted to hug everybody.. like a thousand times! i went to call people.. and i already had several texts! good news travels fast! i got soooooooooo many texts that night and all the next day! and ive still been getting a few straggler texts of people that are just now finding out. a lot of people that werent at church came up to the church.. and then several came to the house afterwards. i was just soooo happy! everybody was telling me how awesome i was gonna sleep that night.. but i kept waking up that night wondering if it was time for church yet! i wanted to go to church sooo bad! and im still that way.. i cant wait for church tonight!
After picure.. hair messed up.. face red from happy tears.. but smile just as big as ever!
definitely one of my favorites:)
loving kirks face (:
me and Haley.. the real Haley
i got one with Brother Edwin and Sister Dean but Brother Jimmy and Sister Towana ran off before i could get a pic with them!
All happy but one
Sweet little Kamran pre-Holyghost
Little Anneliese was so happy that "Baidey Bug dot de Hodey Dhost! "
still missing a few from the Gaines clan
the next night.. Kamran started the alter. he was just so sweet. he didnt get it that night though.. and the next morning he didnt pray good at all.. but wednesday night.. two night after i got the Holyghost.. he got the HOlyghost! and i felt like i had got it allllll over again! i even shouted some that night! it was .amazing. to say the very least. the next night.. ANOTHER one of my little cousins got it.. Conner Hindman.. who happens to be in Kamrans grade and goes to school with him! Then, sunday night at toney, Lindz started to the alter. and i had no idea the Lord was working with her. because when i got the Holyghost i was expecting her to be tore up and crying but instead she was happy and smiling!!! but the Lord definitely was working with her becuase she got sooo close sunday night she was even to the giggling point! the next night.. monday night.. a week after i got the Holyghost.. we all went out to Williams Cove.. where 2 more had made it the night before. Miranda Moore(Lindzs cousin.. and may as well be mine too) got the HG and then about 2 minutes later Lindz did too!! it was so awesome. this is like way more than i couldve ever imagined! all i wanted was the Holyghost.. but He gave me the Holyghost and 3cousins with the Holyghost and another one that may as well be my cousin with the Holyghost!
More random pictures :
matching!
laura walking in the mall like this.. real!
It's just way too good (: way more than i ever could imagine to be worthy of :)
