Holy Spirit

Following the Israelites exodus from Egypt, Moses recounted their conquests and urged the people to obey God’s Law. In his discourse, he spoke the poignant words in Deuteronomy 4:7. Ponder them with me.

“For what great nation is there that has a god so near to it as is the LORD OUR GOD whenever we call on Him?”

Have you ever thought about his words in relation to our nation? The LORD OUR GOD is OUR God and whenever we call on Him, He’s NEAR? Now you may be thinking that God hasn’t heard our prayers for our nation and hasn’t answered them. But oh, dear friend, we have absolutely no idea the outpouring of evil that might have occurred had God’s hand not been on satan’s neck. God hears our prayers. The Holy Spirit is acting and moving in response to them. If not for our prayers and God answering, I shudder to think how depraved our nation would be. So keep praying! Keep calling on God to raise godly leaders, to protect all who are standing for truth, righteousness, and freedom. What we see on earth is a reflection of the unseen spiritual warfare being played out in the heavenliness so pray like never before. There is power in prayer and your voice counts. In the meantime, it is important to have a grateful heart to God for the daily victories He is accomplishing. Is there any good in your life? Is there a victory in a leader speaking up rather than being silent? Is a family member standing strong under pressure from friends to compromise their beliefs? Are you mindfully thanking God? If not, begin! It’s important that our thanks reach God’s ears. Don’t delay. Order your copy of Prayers of My Heart journal and in the monthly calendar section, jot down 3 ways you see God work each day. Why? Because if you pause over the day with the intention of thanking Him, you’ll bring forward in your mind how God did show up big. It will bring Him pleasure to see you recognize His handiwork. It will alter your mood so that you are a more joyful Christian. 

“For what great nation is there that has a god so near to it as is the LORD OUR GOD whenever we call on Him?.”  Deuteronomy 4:7

Heavenly Father, I shudder to think what it would be like if Your holy restraining hand were ever lifted. I shudder to think the extent to which evil would prevail were Your Holy Spirit not restraining it. Yes, You are near, hear our prayers, and are working magnificently. We give You praise and glory. Hallelujah, praise You, Lord. Continue on. Show off big. And, may your saints be cheering You on with their daily, mindful, intentional praise.

Journal Your Praise 

So we get that our body needs water. But, what about our spirit? According to Jesus it needs spiritual water: Living Water, the Holy Spirit.

If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’ But this He spoke of the SPIRIT, whom those who believed in Him were to receive; for the SPIRIT was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.  John 7:38

Oh my goodness. This is so exciting and such an important principle. We must not miss it. Just as our body thirsts, so does our spirit. Unhappy? Feeling grumpy? Resentment making your face look dry as a prune? You could be thirsting spiritually. Yes! Go to your Heavenly Father. Tell Him, “I thirst. I feel spiritually dry.” Ask Him to refresh you. Hold your heart up wide and ask Him to fill it to overflowing with His glorious, refreshing, life giving Spirit. Oh, sweet friends, nothing in God’s Word was written in vain. When Ephesians 5:18 tells us to be filled with the Spirit, it’s not joshing around. It’s a vital command that we be filled and keep on being filled with the Spirit. So yes, when your mouth is dry, reach for a glass of water. When your spirit is dry, reach for your Lord. This is a Biblical principle that is Plain. Simple. Truth. Are you plump in the spirit or dry as a prune?

Sweet Jesus, thank You for coming from heaven to speak truth into our lives. Thank You for giving us Your Spirit,  LIVING WATER, that cleanses and refreshes us so we are filled and energized to serve You. We love You, Lord. 

Have you ever been overwhelmed with new information yet tried to process it all as best as you could? No doubt, that’s how Christ’s friends felt. They had heard Jesus’s sermon on the mount. That was pretty upside down. Meek inherit the earth. Blessed are the peacemakers. Not warriors???  Deny yourself? Take up your cross?  Certainly they must have had private chats among themselves after Jesus downloaded kingdom principles for their “best life.” However, one of the more overwhelming teaching to process must have been about the Holy Spirit. That He, the Holy Spirit, would come to them and help them. Imagine their questions!  Their frame of reference for the HOLY SPIRIT was God anointing a select few Old Testament people to accomplish divine work on earth. Names like Elijah and Elisha most certainly came to their minds. But them? Common fishermen? Tax collectors? Dazed and confused might have described the disciples as they listened to Jesus tell them God the Father would send the Holy Spirit to them. That the HOLY SPIRIT would teach them all things and bring to their remembrance all Jesus said to them.  That the HOLY SPIRIT would empower them to live in a way that bore witness to Christ. (Acts 1:8)  HOLY. SPIRIT. Isn’t that what God knows we need? A Holy Spirit? So God did just that –  sent His Holy Spirit – the Who, not “it” to live in us. Are we treating His heavenly presence in us as a welcomed, Holy guest? Are we giving Him reign over our lives? Are we yielding to His prompts? Are we asking Him to overwhelm us so we glorify our Heavenly Father and Lord Jesus Christ?

“But the Helper, the HOLY SPIRIT, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.” John 14:26

Heavenly Father,  thank You for the incredible blessing of the Holy Spirit. We ask for the Holy Spirit to fill us, to overwhelm us so Christ is preeminent in our lives.   

Have you ever felt lost about what to do? I have. Probably one of the most difficult times was when I was 29 years old and received a letter from M.D. Anderson saying I had stage 1a ovarian cancer.  The oncologist we selected agreed that a second opinion would be good. When we did, the second pathologist said it was not cancer. Our doctor’s advice was to treat it on the basis of M.D. Anderson’s diagnosis. We had one child but wanted more children. If we followed M.D. Anderson’s advice, I’d return to the hospital and have a hysterectomy. My husband and I didn’t know what to do. Isaiah 42:16 says “I will lead the blind by a way they do not know, In paths they do not know I will GUIDE them.” God is our guide to eternal life, but He’s also our guide for daily life. When we pray, which is what Keith and I did along with many family and friends who prayed for us, God guided us and we felt at peace about what we should do.  Difficult, stressful, knee-buckling, tearful times occur, but in each and every one of them we are not alone. Our Heavenly Father, Lord Jesus Christ, and Holy Spirit are present to guide us. Look to them. Follow them. Be assured they love you.

Thank You, Lord, for being ever-present with us and for being our daily GUIDE. Guide all who are searching to follow Your will. 

Please pray for my dear friend, Debbie Anderson, who has been diagnosed with lung cancer – for God’s healing, peace, and comfort. Thank you. 

Our family has had several dogs but one was particularly clever at communicating what she wanted.  She would go to the door, which was her way of saying, “Heh, get up from your desk. I need out!” Then, she’d turn and go to the kitchen hoping for a treat. She could certainly communicate. I learned what she wanted by her small prompts. In the same but much more important way, Christians can learn God’s prompts. Jesus explained in John 16:12-14 that He would send the Holy Spirit to guide us. What a gift! How can we learn the Holy Spirit’s prompts so we walk in the ways He’s leading us? We ask God to help us learn His voice. We evaluate our thoughts and actions in light of Biblical truths. Learn more about how to know and follow God’s voice and prompts in Listen UP.

Do you know all that God has prepared for you in eternity? The answer is “no, we don’t know.” First Corinthians 2:9 says, “Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard, and which have not entered the heart of man, all that God has prepared for those who love Him.”  Does that bless your heart?  Our earthly days may be rough, but God has prepared a future for us beyond our imagination.  The passage explains that no one knows God’s thoughts except God’s Spirit. 

“For to us God revealed them through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God. For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so the thoughts of God no one knows except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God,” First Corinthians 2: 10-12 

Do these verses about the Spirit make you want to have a deeper understanding of the Holy Spirit and how you can walk by His promptings? If so, I encourage you to get  “Listen UP! When the Spirit Speaks,” our gift to you for a donation of $20. The Holy Spirit is God’s gift to Christians. Know Him. Listen to Him. Love and adore Him, for He is the Spirit of Christ abiding in you.

Heavenly Father, Your gift to us of the SPIRIT who SEARCHES ALL THINGS, is the most amazing gift. Thank You! Help us faithfully walk by Your Spirit.

YES! Send me Listen UP! When the Spirit Speaks.  31 Points About the Holy Spirit Every Christian Should Know.   Here is my 1-time donation in appreciation for Beyond Ourselves 365 Days of Praise.

So we get that our body needs water. But, what about our spirit? According to Jesus, it needs spiritual water: Living Water, the Holy Spirit. “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’ But this He spoke of the SPIRIT, whom those who believed in Him were to receive; for the SPIRIT was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.”  John 7:38

As water is to our body, so the Holy Spirit is to our spirit.  Our body needs water. Our spirit needs Living Water. Plain. Simple. Truth. Reach for Him. Drink deeply.

Sweet Jesus, thank You for coming from heaven to speak truth into our lives. Thank You for giving us Your Spirit as LIVING WATER to cleanse and fill us so we can live in Your presence forever. 

Prior to Jesus’s crucifixion, He prepared His disciples for His departure; comforting them that the HOLY SPIRIT would come to them. Can you imagine their confusion? Their frame of reference for the HOLY SPIRIT was God anointing only a few Old Testament people to accomplish divine work on earth. The names Elijah and Elisha certainly came to mind. But them? “Dazed and confused” might have described the disciples as they listened to Jesus tell them about the HOLY SPIRIT. The HOLY SPIRIT would be their Helper. God the Father would send Him in Christ’s name. The HOLY SPIRIT would teach them all things and bring to their remembrance all that Jesus said to them.  The HOLY SPIRIT would empower them to live in a way that bore witness to Christ. (Acts 1:8)  HOLY. SPIRIT. Isn’t that what God knows we need? So He sent Him – The Who, not “it,” to live in us. Are we treating His heavenly presence as a welcomed, Holy guest? Are we asking Him to reign over our lives and yielding to His wishes?  “But the Helper, the HOLY SPIRIT, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.” John 14:26

Heavenly Father,  forgive us for discounting the gift of Your Holy Spirit in us. Forgive our insolence for living without being mindful of Your divine presence. Fill us. Overwhelm us so Christ pours forth from us to serve others and glorify You.   

Have you ever felt lost about what to do? I have. Probably one of the most difficult times was when I was 29 years old and received a letter from M.D. Anderson saying I had stage 1a ovarian cancer.  The oncologist we selected agreed that a second opinion would be good. When we did, the second pathologist said it was not cancer. Our doctor’s advice was to treat it on the basis of M.D. Anderson’s diagnosis. We had one child but wanted more children. If we followed M.D. Anderson’s advice, I’d return to the hospital and have a hysterectomy. My husband and I didn’t know what to do. Isaiah 42:16 says “I will lead the blind by a way they do not know, In paths they do not know I will GUIDE them.” God is our guide to eternal life, but He’s also our guide for daily life. When we pray, which is what Keith and I did; along with many family and friends who prayed for us, God guided us and we  felt at peace about what we should do.  Difficult, stressful, knee-buckling, tearful times occur; but in each and every one of them, we are not alone. Our Heavenly Father, Lord Jesus Christ, and Holy Spirit are present to guide us. Look to them. Follow them. Be assured they love you.

Thank You, Lord, for being ever present with us and for being our daily GUIDE. Guide all who are searching to follow Your will and heart today. 

Do you know all that God has prepared for you in eternity? The answer is “no, we don’t know.” First Corinthians 2:9 says, “Things which eye has not seen and ear has not heard, and which have not entered the heart of man, all that God has prepared for those who love Him.”  Does that bless your heart?  Our earthly days may be rough, but God has prepared a future for us beyond our imagination.  The passage continues explaining that no one knows God’s thoughts except God’s Spirit. First Corinthians 2: 10-12 explains:

For to us God revealed them through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God. For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so the thoughts of God no one knows except the Spirit of God.Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God, 

Do these verses about the Spirit make you to want to have a deeper understanding of the Holy Spirit and how you can walk by His promptings? If so, I encourage you to get  “Listen UP! When the Spirit Speaks,” our gift to you for a donation of $20. The Holy Spirit is God’s gift to Christians. Know Him. Listen to Him. Love and adore Him, for He is the Spirit of Christ abiding in you.

Heavenly Father, Your gift to us of the SPIRIT who SEARCHES ALL THINGS, is the most amazing gift. Thank You! Help us faithfully walk by Your Spirit.

YES! Send me Listen UP! When the Spirit Speaks.  31 Points About the Holy Spirit Every Christian Should Know.   Here is my 1 time gift as thanks for 365 Days of Praise devotionals.

For inquiries about Debbie bringing the Listen UP CONFERENCE to your church, contact us.

#biblegatewaybloggergridmember