The Anointing of the Prophethad her hand up and her mouth open, about to say something,
when the hand of the Lord fell. She stood there three days and
nights, neither moving nor uttering a word.
The St. Louis newspapers reported that an estimated 20,000
people filed by to see her. When the anointing of the Spirit of
God lifted from her, her hand went down, her mouth moved, and
she picked up right in the middle of the sentence she had been
preaching three nights before. (All of her physical senses and
functions had been suspended for those three days and nights.)
God used that as a sign.
Did you ever wonder about the verse in Acts that says, "And
fear came upon every soul: and many wonders and signs were
done by the apostles" (Acts 2:43)?
I've read many periodicals from Pentecostal people. Some of
those early-day ministers had experiences similar to Ezekiel's
and Sister Etter's. One fellow told of standing under the power
with his mouth open for one day, and others told of being like
that all night long.
You might ask, "Why does God do things like that? Why did
the hand of the Lord come upon Ezekiel and open his mouth in
the evening?" We don't tell God what to do. That's where we
miss it.
John the Baptist's father, Zacharias, who was a priest, didn't
believe the angel Gabriel's message that a son was to be born to
him and his wife. He became speechless and remained
speechless until John was born (Luke 1). Zacharias wasn't mute
from sickness or disease; it was because the hand of the Lord
was upon him.
Another example is the "blindness" of Elymas, the sorcerer
who withstood Paul on one of his missionary journeys. Paul
said, "And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon thee, and
thou shalt be blind, not seeing the sun for a season" (Acts
13:11).
Elymas wasn't struck with disease, for the Spirit of God
never has struck anybody with disease. He doesn't have any!