Soaking in the Spirit Shook Down the Strongholds!
In 1996, I had a life-changing encounter with God. Revival had hit John and Carol Arnott’s church, Toronto Christian Fellowship, and my husband, Bill Johnson, and I traveled there with my parents. While we weren’t feeling particularly burned out, we were hungry to know more of God. We carried a holy dissatisfaction, passionate to see everything God had for us manifested in our lives. After one evening session, I was hit with the power of God in a way that I had never experienced before. I shook on the floor for twenty minutes, unable to stand. The Lord shook the strongholds right out of my life and, as He later explained to me, birthed my true identity. I was completely changed. Bill likes to say that he went to Toronto with a lamb, but he came home with a lioness!
Spending time in the presence of God does just that for each of us. After my encounter, fear had no place of authority in my life. In the presence of Light, darkness cannot remain.
When I returned from our trip to Toronto, I began to practice soaking in the Spirit for the first time. With my focus set on adoring God, I would allow all of my attention to be in communion with Him. I was totally in love; I simply wanted to be with Him. I began to learn how to connect with the Holy Spirit and dwell in the presence of God without an agenda. A deep well of intimacy began to develop in my spirit and, to this day, this practice is a pivotal part of my walk with the Lord.
Carol’s new book, Soaking in the Spirit, is a powerful teaching on the practice of soaking in God’s presence. Interweaving her own testimony with strong biblical teaching and practical wisdom, this book is an invitation to grow in relationship with God. Carol explains how, by setting aside time to saturate in His presence, we actually become more like Jesus, better equipped to pour out onto a world that is dying to know the Father.
It is the absolute grace of God that, as we draw closer to Jesus, He reorients us back to Himself and His original design for our lives. This is what soaking is about: an intimate relationship with God, through which we cannot remained unchanged.
John and Carol’s obedience in following the direction of the Holy Spirit transformed my spiritual life. I would encourage every believer to read Soaking in the Spirit. It carries a vital message for our current culture. Let the testimonies in this book stir your spirit and encourage you to protect space in the busyness of life to rest in the presence of God. Let His presence fill you so that the Body of Christ can truly release the kingdom and bring heaven to earth.
Beni Johnson
