 Celebrating 35 years of Charisma 1975-2010
A look back at some of the most significant stories in Charisma’s 35 years of covering the charismatic movement The charismatic movement started long before the first pages of Charisma were ever printed in 1975. Though this magazine has since become the touchstone publication for Spirit-filled believers, the renewed emphasis within the American church on the Holy Spirit’s power began decades earlier. The wave started in 1906 with the Azusa Street Revival, continued throughout the first half of the 20th century and expanded beyond non-Pentecostal groups with Episcopal priest Dennis Bennett’s announcement on Passion Sunday in 1960 that he’d received the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Fifteen years later, at the height of this newfound movement that was now impacting every denomination and part of the body of Christ, an Orlando Sentinel reporter named Steve Strang formed Charisma as a newsletter for his local church, Calvary Assembly of God.
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 8 ways to connect with God’s supernatural power
I will never forget the moment a 12-year-old deaf girl stepped onto the platform where I was standing. I had been led to pray for deaf ears to be opened, and as God’s presence and glory filled the room, miracles began occurring all over the stadium. My team brought this young girl up to testify. When they brushed back her long brown hair, I was astonished. She had been born without ears. Where her ears should have been, there were just little holes in the sides of her head. The anointing of God had come upon her when I prayed for deaf ears, and she felt a popping in her ears. At that moment, eardrums were formed on the inside of her head. Her hearing was opened for the first time in her life.
 Radical testimonies of the holy spirit’s healing power today
When Thérèse was 2 years old, she cried to her mother that a snake had bitten her. By the time Antoinette Malombé reached her daughter, little Thérèse had already stopped breathing. Antoinette lived in a remote region of Republic of Congo in central Africa where medical resources weren’t immediately available. Strapping her child to her back, she started running to a village where a family friend, evangelist Coco Moïse, was staying. When he prayed for Thérèse, she began breathing again. By the next day she was fine.
 Why speaking in tongues matters more than you might think
I’ll never forget when I first discovered the power of praying in tongues. It was 1953, and I was a 19-year-old student at a Bible college in Portland, Ore. I drove down to Salem with some friends to minister at a church, and after the preaching ministry all of us went to the altar to pray. As I was praying, the Holy Spirit began to move in a way I had not experienced. I could sense this was a sovereign move of God taking place and that I should let the Holy Spirit have His way. I sat down crossed-legged so I could be comfortable while I spent time praying continuously in tongues.
 Answering the most frequently asked questions about the baptism of the Holy Spirit
My life is filled with amazing people. Recently, a widow I know pointed to a midnight intruder and boldly commanded him to leave her house. He did! Another friend refused to panic when her teenage daughter ran away. As she was calling the police, the Holy Spirit revealed the girl’s exact location to her. Another woman—a shy single mom—overcame a 12-year battle with bulimia. Today she teaches a weekly Bible study to women with addictions. Are these people superheroes? No, they’re just ordinary Christians who have received the extraordinary baptism of the Holy Spirit. When people are baptized in the Holy Spirit, they are filled with God’s ability. Natural people do supernatural things. Lives of chaos find serenity and purpose. Shy people become bold, and selfish people experience radical changes in their priorities. Sadly, many Christians today don’t seek the baptism of the Holy Spirit because they don’t understand it. They don’t know what they’re missing! Here are some of the questions I hear most frequently.
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