Flowing with the Holy Spirit

Trying to fight the Holy Spirit makes you miserable. Trying to force the Holy Spirit makes you frustrated. But when you flow with the Holy Spirit, there is peace and joy. When it comes to the work of the Holy Spirit, don’t fight or force; just flow.

You can’t stop what He’s doing in the earth, so you might as well get on board, lest you become miserable.

You can’t force Him to do that which is outside of His will, so don’t even try. People waste so much time trying to live in their own strength and by their own will.

Live at the pace of the Holy Spirit, and things fall into place. This is not to say that you won’t have trials or experience heartache. This simply means that when you’re walking in the Holy Spirit, there is a flow, a peace, and a joy.

 If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit. (Galatians 5:25)

We belong to Him. We are alive in Him. So let’s live like it.

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Can You Lose the Holy Spirit?

Can you lose the Holy Spirit? Will the Holy Spirit ever leave a believer? Can you exhaust His patience with your many mistakes and repeated sins? 

All too often, I’m approached by Christians who are filled with fear and doubt - they wonder if they have finally gone too far. They imagine that their most recent mistakes have done them in, disqualified them from fellowship with the Holy Spirit.

To be clear: I’m not writing about losing your salvation. That’s an entirely different topic which would require another blog altogether. 

What I’m addressing here is the idea that a Christian can be abandoned by the Holy Spirit. Let’s settle the matter now by looking at what Jesus said:

16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, who will never leave you. 17 He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth. The world cannot receive him, because it isn’t looking for him and doesn’t recognize him. But you know him, because he lives with you now and later will be in you. (John 14:16-17, NLT)

The Holy Spirit doesn’t abandon us when we make mistakes; instead, He remains to rescue us from ourselves. Think of all that Jesus taught concerning forgiveness and patience, and then realize that God keeps to His own standards of mercy.

The Holy Spirit abides faithfully, patiently, working with us to overcome the worst parts of our humanity. The Holy Spirit is not a reward for the spiritually elite, if ever such a group existed. The Holy Spirit is our only chance at truly being spiritual. What sense would it make for God to withdraw from us our power to be holy as punishment for not meeting standards of holiness? 

The Holy Spirit’s patience is by no means an encouragement to go on sinning. And one of the marks of a true believer is a true desire to be holy, backed by a lifestyle of true repentance. 

But it is a relief to know that we are not abandoned just because we make mistakes. When you sin, repent. When you fail, turn to the Lord. When you make an ungodly mistake, humbly turn to your friend, the Holy Spirit, the One Who never leaves you, the One Who stays faithful to you, even when you are unfaithful to Him. He is more loving than we are flawed, more patient than we are stubborn, more faithful than we are sinful. 

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Abiding in the Vine

“Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing.” – John 15:5

Making the mistake of doing things in your own strength is as deceptively easy as living without prayer.

Certainly, the ministry requires from us hard work, and living the Christian life is done so with vital disciplines. But the ministry is not to be overwhelming, and the Christian life is not tedious. The believer is not meant to walk in a constant state of exhaustion and tension.

We become exhausted when we give from ourselves instead of from the Source. However, if you will abide in the secret place of prayer, you’ll not grow weary.

When you abide in the vine, your ministry is overflow, your messages are fresh, your prayers are energizing, and your efforts are carried by the wind of the Spirit.

By contrast, when you try to carry out the ministry while neglecting the secret place of prayer, your mind grows tired, your body becomes exhausted, and there is a dryness to your prayers for others.

Thankfully, abiding in the vine is simple. It takes only this: time.

Spend time with the Lord daily – and moment by moment. Whether you, at first, sense a difference or not, God is pouring into you when you set aside time for Him. So step out of the desert and into the springs of living water.

Establish again the altars. Seek the face of Jesus. Keep it simple, and just spend time with Him. Obey His Word, and trust Him. Then you will receive all the benefits of abiding in the vine.

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The Futility of Worry

“So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today.” - Matthew 6:34

Let neither the depression from the past nor the fear of the future deny you of your peace for today. Jesus understood the troubles with the human heart. When He spoke those timeless words, He knew the nature of man.

We worry. We worry, even if we can’t admit that we worry. Some worry more than others. And we all worry about different things. But we all worry or, at the very least, have the inclination to worry.

Anxiety, paranoia, fear, and all kinds of phobias are deeply rooted in man’s desire (not “need”) to control everything. Worry is man’s useless attempt at control.

Somewhere within our minds we believe that if we can assess, analyze, and consider a matter thoroughly enough, long enough, and intensely enough that we can prevent or solve the problem.

This is why Jesus asked this powerful, rhetorical question:

“Can all your worries add a single moment to your life?” - Matthew 6:27

Worry accomplishes nothing.

Your breakthrough, your freedom from fear and anxiety, begins with exchanging worry with prayer.

“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.” - Philippians 4:6

So, today, replace worrisome thinking with faith-filled prayer. Exchange what troubles you for what gives you peace. Give up the futility of worry and walk in the effectiveness of prayer.

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