How to Speak in Tongues

Co-authored by wikiHow Staff

Last Updated: February 22, 2023 Approved

Some people believe that speaking in tongues is a powerful way to pray and allow God to flow through your spirit. However, if you’re like most people, you probably don’t entirely know how to perform this particular prayer method. Fortunately, once you know how to create the right mindset and speak the right words, you’ll be well on your way to speaking in tongues.

Things You Should Know

Put your faith in God at the forefront of your mind and study the Bible for information. Build confidence in yourself and find a distraction-free environment.
Make simple sounds and listen for repetition in the sounds you make. Pray with any words that pop into your head and for increased faith to guide you.
Remember that God doesn’t force anyone to speak in tongues. Don’t overthink your goal or discuss it with people who don’t like the idea of it.

Method 1

Method 1 of 3:

Creating the Right Mindset

1
Place faith in God’s salvation plan at the forefront of your mind. Focus your mind on God and the holy spirit that God has filled you with. Speaking in tongues is believed to be an act of strong faith, so focusing your mind in this way makes it much easier to successfully speak in tongues.^{[1]
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- It might be useful to concentrate on a mantra, such as “Jesus Christ is the way, the Truth and the life,” to make it easier to focus your mind. Choose your favorite Bible verse and repeat it in your mind over and over.
2
Study the Bible to learn what it says about speaking in tongues. Read and ponder passages in the Bible that discuss speaking in tongues, such as 1 Corinthians 14:18. Remember that, according to some people, speaking in tongues is an ability that God grants to people in order to pray and feel closer to the holy spirit.^{[2]
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- Some other passages to read include Acts 10: 46a, Acts 2: 4a, and 1 Corinthians 14:4.
- If other members of your church practice speaking in tongues, it may be helpful for you to talk about this prayer method with them to learn more about it.
Warning: Speaking in tongues is a fairly controversial practice today, so be careful who you talk about it with. Some people may not be accepting of the practice.

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3
Build the confidence in yourself to speak in tongues. Speaking in tongues can be hard to do at first, so building up your confidence and desire to do so will help keep you motivated in the long run. Repeat to yourself that you will be able to speak in tongues and allow yourself to feel confident that you will succeed.^{[3]
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- One way to do this is to repeat a positive mantra to yourself, such as “I am a child of God; God wants me to pray and be joyful, and so I will speak in tongues to do this.”
- Focus your mind on all the reasons why you want to speak in tongues and let that desire grow in your heart. Doing this will keep you motivated and may also make it easier for you to speak in tongues on the first go!
4
Create a distraction-free environment around you for the best results. Find a quiet place where you can sit and be alone for up to an hour, or however long you plan to pray by speaking in tongues. Try to avoid noises from things that may call your attention away from God, such as loud children, a TV playing, or street noise from outside.
- You may also want to avoid being around other people, if this would cause you any embarrassment.

Method 2

Method 2 of 3:

Making the Right Sounds

1
Start by making simple, monosyllabic sounds. Make the first sounds that pop into your head and allow yourself to babble a bit. Try to do this as “unintentionally” as possible. In other words, don’t try to sound out specific words or phrases, unless they happen to pop into your head in the moment.
- This may seem a bit awkward at first and will sound like a baby babbling, but this is the point! You have to start producing random speech before God will help you to speak in tongues.
- These sounds will probably be choppy and repetitive at first. Don’t worry; this is perfectly normal, so try not to feel discouraged.
2
Listen for repetition or hints in the sounds you’re making. Pay attention to those sounds that you tend to naturally produce most frequently and focus on them in your babbling. These may be part of your natural “prayer language:” those words and sounds that flow from your spirit the easiest.
- Note any sounds that you make that seem to take you by surprise, such as a syllable or pair of letters you don’t normally pronounce. These may reflect God communicating with you, so repeat these phrases to add them to your prayer language.
3
Try praying those words or sounds that seem to pop into your head. This is a form of internal discovery that allows you to add to your prayer language vocabulary and expand your ability to speak in tongues. These may be the words that God flows through your spirit and which result in your speaking in tongues.
- God will not cause your lips to move, which is why the babbling is so important. However, God may cause certain words or sounds to pop into your head; repeating these sounds is the basis for speaking in tongues.
Tip: You can also do this with words that catch your eye on a daily basis. For example, if a word stands out to you on a billboard, try incorporating it into your babbling during your next prayer session.
4
Ask for increased faith to reinforce your devout mindset. If you feel your faith begin to wane during your babbling session, repeat a positive mantra like “Lord increase my faith.” This will help you to stay in the right mindset for speaking in tongues and keep you from feeling discouraged.
- You don’t necessarily have to make this request out loud; simply thinking it to yourself will also work.

Method 3

Method 3 of 3:

Avoiding Common Mistakes

1
Note that God doesn’t force you to speak in tongues. You don’t lose control of your mouth or speech muscles when you speak in tongues. Instead, think of it more like God is telling you through your spirit what words you should speak.^{[4]
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- This misconception may be one reason why some people look askance at speaking in tongues. It’s wrong to think that people who speak in tongues aren’t in control of their own faculties.
2
Try not to overthink or feel discouraged about speaking in tongues. Speaking in tongues doesn’t come easily, especially on your first try, so it’s all too easy to begin to doubt yourself or your faith. If this begins to happen, take a break from your session and try again later after some prayer (or just some rest).^{[5]
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- In between sessions, it might be helpful to pray to God in a more “ordinary” way and ask for help and guidance in learning how to speak in tongues.
3
Avoid talking about this prayer method with people who don’t accept it. Some people hold very negative views of speaking in tongues, with some even believing that it’s a form of Satan worship. Talking about this prayer method with people like this may cause you to feel discouraged or give up on speaking in tongues entirely.
- This doesn’t mean you should avoid people who don’t believe in speaking in tongues; simply refrain from talking about this particular prayer method with them.

Community Q&A

Question

How can I silence my mind so I can speak in tongues?

Sarath guttikonda

Community Answer

Just sit in a quiet place and relax yourself. Then pray to God and let the Holy spirit flow through you.