Has Anyone Else Felt Like This?

Just wondering, has anyone else felt like this, or is it just me and Art. If so, what have you done about it?“There are times when a prophet will enter a fellowship that seems to ‘have it all together’ and are worshipping enthusiastically-and everything seems to be right-yet he is grieving! He is almost doubled over and knotted in the inner man. He is anguished in his soul while everybody else is having a good time...Everyone else seems to be ‘moved by God,’ and there is all kind of talk about the ‘presence of God‘, yet you feel no presence at all. You are not conscious of any anointing. You do not see any blessing. All you see is a sea of soulish carnality and self-deluded people priming and pumping themselves up, and your one presence in that room is a contradiction to all that is going on.” “The Spirit Of Prophecy: An Examination Of The Prophetic Call” by Art Katz

I have experienced that before. I don't claim to be a prophet or anything, but I have noticed that if I move closer to God I see more of my bakruptcy without God, people's blindness to the truth, and I "feel" God less and less. I think God moves us into stronger faith and devotion. I don't really know for sure.

is almost doubled over and knotted Yes, I know this experience. It is actual physical pain, sometimes when the person in the pulpit says something very wrong, perhaps arrogant, perhaps manipulative, deceptive, or out of a bitter root ... Sometimes I suspect it is a releasing of a demonic presence (curse?) through those words.And yes, as you say, it also happens when all worshippers are mesmorized by a euphoric force. It may feel like a smothering blanket coming down from the ceiling - again, I suspect evil forces. In churches were the spiritual realm is acessed a lot, I think that people, without realizing it, are invoking wrong spirits. Art Katz is probably talking about something different - the ability to see what's really going on beneath the "good time". You experience deep grief and burden because of the sin load. No human can handle the full impact of sin. Thankfully God protects me from being sensitive to everything that is going on in the spiritual realm - in order to carry on necessary duties.Diane

Dear ChristIsKing,Moses must have felt something like that when he came down from the mountain and they were worshiping the golden calf. We are told to examine our own hearts so it is important to identify where a feeling may be coming from. It could be my sins that would make me feel this way. If I've just been on the mountain top and this happens it is a golden calf that is being worshiped. The calf can be called God's presence or Jesus but that idol is just melted metal or a carved stick.Once, I stood up in a large auditorium and challenged the situation. I was escorted out of the auditorium by four people. It is probably not the Lord's will for you to do something like this. After all these years I still don't know if it was a righteous anger or my own pride that came out.One time, I just walked from the front of the church out the back door in disgust as I visited a church. Actions are sometimes louder than words.Another time, I brought up a situation similar to this to a pastor who was at a convention. This was done in private and the pastor didn't say whether he agreed or didn't. Another person that was there was the same way.Enough of talking about these bad experiences because there are many places that are the opposite. Sometimes the power of the Holy Spirit falls to the place where everyone is affected. Two times in my life I have seen whole assemblies weeping there eyes out over the Lord's mercy and forgiveness. One of those places was in a large prison ministry. Oh how I want to be at one of those places again or one of the many places where I held onto every word that the Holy Spirit spoke through a preacher.In Christ,GaryE

There right now. I must admit -- prosperous church. good towm, people seem to love God -- I am miserable for no apparent reason. I angish ovre the fact we need a move of the Spirit. Good quote.Blessings.

At the fear of this going completely the wrong way it is true. Could relate to most of your expressions, there were times I thought I would just burst out loud but fortunately it didn't happen, was far to naive and it was wrongheaded, angry, not indignant with accompanying grief.But did walk out a number of times as it began to break more and more, that knot that started small with questions and things I could not grasp were so troubling... This was in a WOF setting and caused no small arguments with my precious wife at times. An example, one time a 'prophetic'\\evangelist came up and stated a bunch of mumbo jumbo and was calling people out in the audience for healing ... sigh... He made reference to all that he wanted to say with the bonus of "and when the Holy Spirit arrives in about 20 minutes" (after his 'message' presumably) I just got up and walked out... I stewed under this for quite awhile as well, a confusing time but that knot just kept getting worse and worse, bigger and bigger. The sham of it all, the flippancy, the disregard for a Holy God... The body language alone must have been much worse than I realized. It's difficult to do this, seems like it can be just like jumping on a bandwagon. Have been in more docile situations and God love them, sincere perhaps but just so caught up in the here and now, the popular things, just 'nice' everything is real 'nice' and it produces the same grief, just not as gut wretching perhaps, just saddness... Pre-planned and programmed, handouts and follow alongs, it's that unction thing again. Or as Ravenhill put it, more "teaching" than preaching, which is fine if it could but get away from the Christian-ease and clichés', something borne out of a true study and prayer.Art Katz was such a joy to hear on two occasions, it's not whatever particular theology that matters so much as just that he is real and passionate and speaks from the bowels. The first time he must have gone on for close to 4 hours with a short break and I was disappointed when he began to wrap it up. It was just all the difference in the world to be raptured in attention and digging into the scriptures, losing all sense of time and praying that the whole thing might end to go back home again.There is that danger of the whole "bless me" mentality and doubt that would be the case with most of us. Had tried desperately at times during some rather boring and not very penetrating messages to just pray for the pastor, not to anything I might have in mind but... maybe it was just for unction, that the Holy Spirit would somehow take over the proceedings and the preacher... This all sounds terrible, it's just grievous. Maybe it's just as much our fault for not praying for some of these men. Thinking of some like Sir Edward here, even while joining in his anguish for the same longing for a true moving of Gods Spirit.

Joh 10:14 I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine. :-D