So how did I begin hearing Abba for myself, prayer journaling and writing letters from Abba to myself mostly, but sometimes to others?
Here's how it started--
Abba brought a spiritual mom into my life in 1983 named Carloyn Barnett. She became a spiritual mom to my wife Paula Slagle, our dear son, Bryan Slagle, our beloved secretary, Jayne Hover as well as to her wonderful husband, James Hover whom Jayne met and married after working with us for a decade or so.
Carolyn had somehow heard of Paula and me by word of mouth and local Christian radio, so she began dropping in to hear us in some of our meetings in the Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas area. Back in those days, our music ministry, to our own amazement, had "exploded" into an astonishing PROPHETIC dimension--and our meetings were often lasting for several weeks, people filling the churches night after night--and coming from everywhere imaginable.
Basketcase case that I am, I was as astounded as everyone else that Abba was giving me (and later Paula) such accurate and detailed prophetic impressions for people and many of them being healed. (Not ALL the words were so accurate, of course, but enough of them were sufficiently correct that we kept being invited back to the places where we ministered. Whew! All praise to Abba!
But being the wretchedly imperfect and struggling basketcase that I am, in those days I spent many hours, weeping face down on the floor before Abba, saying stuff like, "Why are you giving me these words? Can't you SEE that I'm not worthy? What's happening, Lord? What are we supposed to do at tonight's meeting? I don't KNOW HOW to teach or preach without boring everybody silly! What am I supposed to DO???"
It was in that era of amazing supernatural events that Carolyn showed up in some of our meetings. I will never forget meeting this remarkable and MOST unusual lady. It was at the close of one of our services. As Paula and I stood with the pastor, shaking hands with folks as they headed for home, suddenly I was looking into the most INTENSE and LOVING blue eyes of Carolyn Barnett. She hugged me. Then she said--
"Charles, as you played and and sang and prophesied tonight, I heard our Heavenly Father calling you, 'David.'" Tears sprang to my eyes, because at the close of another meeting a week earlier in Kansas City, yet another woman had said THE VERY SAME THING.
WOW. What was this about?
Then. . . she said,, Charles, you're about to actually meet your Father."
Talk about goosebumps!
This lady was WEIRD.
But oh so overwhelmingly compelling. . .
So the friendship began between us Slagles and Carolyn and Eugene Barnett, her (gentle hearted, self-proclaimed) "agnostic" husband. One of the most spiritual men I've ever known, truth be told.
When my earthly dad, Dow Slagle passed away in 1984, God had already prepared me for it through an amazing dream a few months earlier. (Read Daddy, What if? at www.sigler.org/slagle for more details.) However I was a mess emotionally anyhow and VERY ANGRY with myself for not being a better son to him. Worse yet, I was BURNING inside with deepest grief yet I couldn't cry. No tears would come! Has that ever happened to you? Talk about miserable!!!
Then Abba's "letter" arrived in the mail box, from Carolyn Barnett. I eagerly opened it and it began as follows--
"My dear Son,
Cease the crap! Nothing is wrong with you. . .etc. . ."
This had to be DAD--Abba. He spoke my language!!!
And all through that letter Abba showed me how He was perfectly tuned in to ALL of my heartache, self-hatred and remorse. He comforted me and reassured me that my earthly dad was happily with Him and wasn't disappointed in me at all. He was proud of me and looking forward to having me with him again some day!
I phoned Carolyn.
"That was amazing! How did you do that?"
"You can do it too, honey," Carolyn gently assured me.
"Your Heavenly Father didn't give you the capacity to receive prophetic impressions so that you could be a kind of heavenly postman, passing along His messages to others. He gave you that ability--and all of us have it, whether we realize it or not--so that you could have real conversations with HIM!"
(WOW! WHAT A REVELATION! ALL OF THIS TIME I HAD BEEN PRAYING ONE-WAY PRAYERS AND RUNNING FROM CHURCH MEETING TO CHURCH MEETING PASSING HIS INNER IMPRESSIONS AROUND LIKE ORAL POST MESSAGES TO EVERYONE ELSE! WOW. . . YET ALMIGHTY GOD YEARNED TO ENJOY CONVERSATIONS WITH---ME??? WOW!!!)
"So then, how do you get these letters from God?" I asked.
"It's easy!" Carolyn told me.
" Just get quiet and alone with a pen and note book and ask Father, "What's on your mind" or "Will you please advise and encourage me?" and begin to write down what you THINK sounds like His gentle voice speaking to you. Keep your notes, because He will begin to confirm and even adjust what you're hearing through circumstances, other people, you name it."
So that's how I So that's how I got started! ?? Later, Paula happened to read one of my letters and said, "Honey, this is beautiful! Do you mind if I read it to the congregation tonight?" The folks were deeply touched.
Then we discovered that by reading one letter from Abba to a congregation we could impart prophetic words MUCH MORE EFFICIENTLY AND QUICKLY to many, rather than trying to pray listening prophetic prayers over loads of people one by one. Then. . .
More and more people kept saying, "You should publish these in a book!" So eventually we did that. For more information about that look up Abba Calling at www.amazon.com
BUT HERE'S THE REAL POINT OF THIS POST--
YOU can write your own Abba letters too!
Christians and non-Christians. Charismatic and non-charismatics. ALL of us CAN hear God!
Every single one of us! Yep.
The knowledge of the Lord shall cover all the earth as the waters cover the sea. ALL shall know Him from the least to the greatest.
Be sure to teach the children to do this too. They're spiritual hearing is usually FAR BETTER than that of us oldies.
Charlie
