Veroni's Views

I don’t know who first used this sentence, but I can identify completely with it. It has been ascribed to a leader in the Salvation Army, who probably meant that he loved the fire and enthusiasm of that movement, as compared to the lack of enthusiasm he saw in some other groupings. I first heard it used by my father, who was referring to the reality of the Holy Spirit, in contrast to any imitations of it.

I long for this reality, and I cannot understand why some Christians never miss it, some fear it, and some even fight against it! In the next few blogs, I want to elaborate on my experience and the Scriptural foundations for what I believe about the Holy Spirit.

My first experience of the Holy Spirit was in the church of which my father (L.L.Kruger) was the pastor in Kimberley, South Africa. This experience was characterized by the peaceful excitement of worship services during which we felt the presence of the Spirit of love and power. We knew that anything could happen, yet we were confident that we were safe in enjoying the warmth. We felt secure, knowing that our leaders possessed adequate knowledge of Scripture and wisdom about how to follow the teachings of Scripture. On the other hand we believed that God loved us, and was more than able to make up for human fallibility.

“Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion?” (Luke 11.11-12)

What I experienced there was nothing like the extreme emotionalism of some Pentecostal churches. However, it was also so much more than the fearful avoidance of anything that might be out of the ordinary, practised by so many good, Christian churches.

Although not the only reason, I believe the church’s openness to, and dependence on the Holy Spirit were very important factors in the transformation we saw in the lives of people. Many came to know the Lord in a personal relationship of faith; many whose lives were in total disarray through unfortunate backgrounds or bad decisions were transformed into happy, fulfilled people; there were also miracles of healing and delivery from bad habits and addictions.

I came to faith in Jesus on 17 August 1954. Four years later, during prayer meetings held to commemorate Pentecost, I received the baptism of the Holy Spirit, on May 22, 1958. It was a tremendous experience! What initially felt like shock waves flowing through my body, became a mighty torrent of words that flooded my brain, waiting to be uttered. I spoke in tongues for over an hour, all the time feeling as if I was being bathed in the power and love of God.

As I emerged from that experience, I knew my life had been changed once again. It was as if I had received confirmation of my experience of salvation, and had received a promise of strength for whatever challenges I had to face. How I wish that we all may experience both the exhilaration of the baptism of the Holy Spirit, and the ongoing fruit of the power of God through his indwelling Spirit.