Can one receive the baptism in the Holy Spirit and not be aware that he has received it?
Generally speaking, the answer to this question is no; one cannot receive the baptism in the Holy Spirit and not know he has received it. But to be more precise, we must qualify that answer in three ways: 1. On rare occasions, people have received the baptism in the Holy Spirit with speaking in tongues and, although they knew something strange and wonderful had taken place, did not know what had happened to them. They had never heard of the baptism in the Holy Spirit and so had no way to define the experience. In such cases, the baptism usually comes in some deep moment of prayer or during a time of spontaneous praise to God. We know one friend who went forward in a meeting for what she thought was to be prayer for healing. She had misunderstood the minister’s invitation, which had been for those seeking the baptism in the Holy Spirit. As she sat in the appointed place, people gathered around and began praying for her. Suddenly, she felt her tongue begin to thrash around in her m...