I have a sister whom I first met in Johannesburg. At first, I thought she was just like any other Christian—but I was wrong. She was so much like Jesus that it completely shocked me.
I remember visiting her place, and there was even a time I stayed with her. Her room was a sanctuary. I had so many encounters with the Lord in that room and I even got healed in that room without her even praying for me. One time, I was there with her and two of our other sisters, and the Holy Spirit came (I often don't like saying he came because it sounds like he is was not there at first maybe if I said his presence manifested) . That moment was truly out of this world.
We had just finished praying and asked Itu to sing a song she had written about God being holy. But she couldn’t sing—she was trembling and kept saying, “God is holy,” over and over again. Then she started laughing—it was as if she was being filled with the oil of joy.
That’s when I realized the Holy Spirit was there. I said, half-jokingly, that it wasn’t fair that Itu laughs alone. As soon as I said that, she turned and looked at me. I was so shocked that I ran to the other side of the bed! With that look, I instantly knew—it wasn’t her looking at me, it was the Holy Spirit.
I was afraid, but not in a bad way. It was the kind of holy fear that comes when you realize the Holy Spirit truly sees you and responds to what you say. I had been a little playful and maybe even a bit jealous—but He spoke to me gently, telling me that He loves me. He even wrote those words on my back.
That moment completely melted my heart
You see, during that season, I was struggling to believe that God loved me. I couldn’t feel it or believe it. Just a week before that encounter, someone had asked me what I wanted the Lord to do for me, and I answered, “I just want Him to tell me He loves me.”
And did He not ?