When you are speaking in tongues you are speaking to God about things you don’t know about. Trust me – if your church is more than four people there are things happening in people’s lives and relationships and situations that you don’t know about. If you all your prayer for your flock is in English, you are very limited in your prayer. I pray for all of the Tree of Life Family in tongues every single day. I pray in tongues to ask the Lord what to preach on Sunday, I pray in tongues to ask the Lord to get the message into people’s hearts after I have preached it. I pray in tongues and I am speaking mysteries to God and declaring life over marriages I didn’t even know were in trouble, the Holy Spirit is dealing with doubts and offenses I didn’t even know people had! All pastors need to be able to pray in tongues, and need to pray in tongues for their churches!
Sometimes people try and diminish tongues and its vital importance for the church and for every Christian and they will say something like “well, we know there are no tongues in heaven”. No, and I won’t need to pray for the churches I am leading in Heaven, I won’t need to pray for sicknesses I didn’t know were coming on people, I won’t need to pray for someone who out of “kindness” (actually more likely, a need to know the gossip) takes a leader I stood down out for dinner, and all the offense on the one was being put on the other. I won’t need to pray for people who are lying and cheating secretly. I won’t need to pray for increase for people, or for people to just step out and give financially. I won’t need to pray for any situation I don’t know about or understand in Heaven.
I am a very busy man, and I am just a man, I do get tired. Especially when I travel, that is physically demanding as well as mentally. I often need to pray in tongues to revitalize myself and give me the energy to do what I do. Sometimes I pray in tongues for me for an hour or so to give me the energy and ability to pray in the tongues for a few hours. That’s how it works.
Inspiring and Challenging Dreamers 