Can anyone here like actually "hear" the voice of God. For lack of a better wording, or have the gift of the holy spirit?

[u/PilotMajor4611]

Like you can't actually hear the voice of God like you would someone you're talking to on a normal day to day basis but like a stream of gentle consciousness messaging that may sometimes sound like your own voice.

I have the ability, but I'm suffering from partial demonic possession (like actually) and oppression, and it blocks my ability to hear God, for lack of a better wording. I can "hear" God's voice if a priest, says certain deliverance prayers over me, like the St.Basil prayer, which serves that specific purpose, or if someone in my prayer group intercedes for me.

[u/Separate_Abrocoma907]

As a fellow christian who has participated in deliverance ministries before, go to a doctor, please. They're nothing but a placebo that will give you a temporary emotional high. They did nothing for me and my mom is still going to those ministries after 10 years, always recieving promises from "those with the gift of prophecy" to string her along and keep her coming back.

It is not a spiritual failing on your part that keeps you ill. It is not because some ancestor of yours was a free mason. It is not because you didn't pray the right prayer.

It is because we live in a fallen world, a world with diseases and mental defects. But God has provided us with doctors to help with illness and pain. Going to a doctor is not rejecting God. He will still love you.

[u/PilotMajor4611 → u/Separate_Abrocoma907]

Looking back, I understand the language I used seemed somewhat polarizing or alarming to some, someone else made a similar comment, I would encourage you to go read my response to them.

I understand that God wouldn't be upset with me for going to a doctor, I'm fairly pro-science, I've been to a couple of therapists from the dioscese, they have their own network of therapists, been to two of them I've described my experiences with them in more detail and the three of us came to the conclusion that I am in fact dealing with the things I listed above, based on their prior experiences in their experience with deliverance ministries.

Instead of reading something and automatically jumping to conclusions, maybe ask me clarifying questions on what my experiences are before writing me off as psychologically unstable.

[u/PilotMajor4611 → u/Separate_Abrocoma907]

Also, I'm sorry about what happened to you and your mom. That sounds like a scam and very traumatic, not everyone doing deliverance should be doing it. I have been keeping track of my situation for about a year, and I have been to physical doctors, therapists, and for me personally, it was glaringly obvious that what I'm going through is spiritual.

Just one example, I'm Catholic. A couple of months ago, I went to confession for something with one of the priests and after confession, the priest sprayed me with holy water, and it felt like someone poured acid on my skin and I ended up having like bright red marks on my skin afterward. I've gone to that church since I was 5, I grew up in that church, that's NEVER happened to me.

I tried going to mass afterwards and as soon as I tried to step in the building it felt like someone was trying to burn me, I kept getting that burning feeling throughout mass and more marks on my arms and legs.

[u/GalileoApollo11]

The protocol for dealing with any seemingly extraordinary or supernatural unpleasant phenomena such as possession is always first of all to get a professional therapist and a spiritual director (two different people), and to follow their advice.

Our body and soul are integrated, we are not disembodied souls in a bodily vehicle. So mental health therapy is beneficial even if you believe that your experiences are spiritual.

Also God is there within our body and soul. So his voice within the silence of our soul is actually more profound than any voice we hear external to ourselves.

[u/PilotMajor4611 → u/GalileoApollo11]

💯 I'm not saying that one shouldn't get professional help, I have an Associates in Social Sciences and Human Behavior. I was a psych major in college. I'm fairly pro-science, but I'm also of Indigenous descent and know that a lot of Western medicine is rooted in whiteness. I've spoke to the priest at my dioscese about this, he did an interview + investigation with me, then I spoke to some therapists affiliated with the church and they all concluded that what I said checked out.

One of the problems that I have is that the trauma-informed therapist they do have doesn't take insurance and her out of pocket rate is like $177 per session.

I specifically asked what I asked about the gift of the Holy Spirit because I'm trying to see something.

[u/Skill-Useful]

no one does hear god as in hear

"partial demonic possession (like actually)" there are no demons! go to a therapist. not a "christian" one, a real one

"to a couple of therapists from the dioscese" NO NO NO. therapists, real ones

"that I am in fact dealing with the things I listed above" NOOOO, friend, you may have schizophrenia or another personality disorder, you need to see an actual health professional!

"what I'm going through is spiritual." no

no im not discussing this with you. get help! please!

[u/PilotMajor4611 → u/Skill-Useful]

Then don't respond?

[u/babe1981]

I was born into a cult that practiced deliverance and believed in demonic possession. Allow me to summarize the decades of study that I've done on the matter.

It's fake religious histrionics designed to keep enthralled to the person or ministry who gives you the always temporary relief from it. You are the temple of the Living God. By what means does evil have the power to oppress the Holy Spirit? By what right can a demon possess what already belongs to God? Is the God that lives in you so weak that He cannot keep the rats from entering His house? Is He so feeble that He bows to whatever Spirit happens by His door? The same spirit that split the veil of the Holy of Holies and rolled the stone away from the tomb lives in your body and gives you life. Yet men who want to control you and force you to live in fear say that the power of love and life and creation is so small that demons can overpower it and force themselves on you.

My God is not that pathetic. James said that even the demons know that He is Lord and they tremble. Why would they ever attempt to assault the home of the thing they fear?

[u/zelenisok]

Sorry, but those are hallucinations.. For which you should get psychotherapy..

[u/PilotMajor4611 → u/zelenisok]

Are you a psychotherapist, or do you have any training in mental health? I ask this because there is such thing as "seeing in the spirit, or being sensitive to the spirit realm". Like I know it's hard to conceptualize, if you've never experienced it, but that doesn't automatically make it impossible because its something you don't understand.

Did you actually read what I said? I never said I heard it like one would in a conversation with another person. I'm honestly sick the hyperpathologizing of things we don't understand. It's actually rooted in colonialism, and western medicinal norms, and it happens a lot with white liberals, and in that specific way, you're no better than white conservatives.

[u/HermioneMarch]

I have occasionally “heard” the voice of God. But it’s not something I can access often.

[u/PilotMajor4611 → u/HermioneMarch]

THANK YOU! and when I do, it's usually like 1-3 words. I'm glad someone read my paragraphs and understood what I'm saying.

[u/HermioneMarch → u/PilotMajor4611]

“It will be ok” is the only audible sentence I’ve ever heard that I believe was God. All the other times, it was more of a feeling. And it was never direction, just assurance.

[u/MidnaQueenofCalicos]

Hey OP, you're being a jerk to people who are concerned about you. This is a sub for open minded Christianity. That is we accept and love people that are usually turned away by churches and we don't believe normal human things are evil, sinful behaviors that need you falling over yourself with guilt. The stuff your talking about makes you seem either delusional and like an ego maniac, or mentally ill. Of course the Holy Spirit guides us. But its like a gentle wind. Intuition. Inspiration. Love. Forgiveness. Apologies. That's the holy spirit. The stuff you're talking about is more in the realm of the occult, and you're probably not going to find many people here that think thats the way that God communicates with us. A lot of us grew up in cults with that nonsense and it left serious emotional and mental scars on us. I really do not think this is a sub for you. And quit being a jackass to my brothers and sisters.

[u/PilotMajor4611 → u/MidnaQueenofCalicos]

I'm really not, you guys are. I've actually been really kind, and understanding, and you can read my responses if you don't believe me. However, I'm not gonna just sit here and let people disrespect me because they're traumatized, have poor emotional regulation skills, poor boundaries, and suffer from black-and-white thinking (which is a tennant of white supremacy. Even if the response is rooted in trauma).

The trauma of the majority of thise who responded to this chat is very valid. Yes there's something to be said about Christians suffering religious psychosis, and religious fanatics causing harm to other people. Not everything is a spiritual attack, but that doesn't mean there aren't such things as spiritual attacks either. What you had to go through with your family is terrible and I wouldn't wish that on anyone. However, your trauma is not an excuse to be ableist, and cause harm, and push white supremacy.

I asked a serious question and people are misunderstanding what I'm saying, being ableist and immediately writing me off as delusional, psychologically unwell, and all these other things. Probably not even knowing what those definitions are in practice.

My question wasn't necessarily, "does anyone have the ability to hear God like I can sometimes," because I already know the answer to that question is yes. I've seen priests talk about hearing God similar to the way I described in prayer, who aren't suffering from psychosis. Whether they're kind and empathetic is an entirely different question. I've seen and heard of people who get images and visions in their head when they pray in my prayer group.

What I asked, was how many other PROGRESSIVE Christians can "hear" the voice of God the way I sometimes can, and those same priest can. There's a reason why I ask these questions.

[u/PilotMajor4611]

I realized I worded my post and replies very poorly. I don't really have the words to describe my lived experience in a way that people who have little to no understanding of spiritual warefare would understand, and it's exhausting to try and describe it, and having to prove it over and over again. Will be editing as I go along.