Dear Tim, When you ask for the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, God's Word promises that you will receive it: "And I say to you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. If a son asks for bread from any father among you, will he give him a stone? Or it he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent instead of a fish? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!" (Luke 11:9-13) Tim, The Holy Spirit will give you utterance as you give Him permission, and allow Him permission, and allow Him to pray through you. Boldly speak out loud those words and syllables you receive, not in your own language, but the language given to you by the Holy Spirit. It's just like a baby learning to talk. But God won't force you. You'll have to open up your mouth and use you own voice.

Dear Shelly, Stop searching.

Karma, one of the building blocks of Eastern mysticism, is the "law of the deed" of sowing and reaping. Karma is connected to Transmigration (reincarnation), and defines the results of sin and the rewards of good. According to karma, wrong actions inevitably produce punishment, good actions their reward; and salvation consists of doing good in excess of evil in order to evolve to the highest state through successive incarnations. This highest state is called "Enlightenment," "God-consciousness," or "self-realization." According to this belief system, there is no sin, no supernatural intervention, and no God. Heaven and hell are not accepted concepts. Each person bears the entire responsibility for his actions, and continue on through successive incarnations until he reaches union with the Divine, and actually becomes God. Lord, give me grace and mercy instead!




Gail Ramsey, an ordained minister, portrayed the role of Susan Moore on the ABC soap opera General Hospital. She had other roles on the TV programs Mike Hammer, Generations and California Dreams. Today, Ramsey leads Semeion Ministries, where readers can write her at PO Box 77, Renoldsburg, Ohio 43068.