The Holy Spirit Teaches and Reminds Us

 

John 14:26

But The Advocate, The Holy Spirit, Whom The Father will send in My Name, will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.

    This is being empowered by God. It is not of our own strength that we accomplish the tasks set before us by our heavenly Father, but through the power of His Holy Spirit. We are weak, and the burden of carrying such a heavy load would break us to such an extent that we would fall and not get back up. 

    But God says that His Holy Spirit would bring everything that His Son Jesus Christ said to us back into our minds and on our tongues what we need to know and when we need to speak it. However, if none of The Word of God is in us, there will be nothing to remember. 

    So, we attach ourselves to our Bibles, studying God's Word for ourselves. We fill ourselves daily, preferable in the morning, because that is the first part of our day (for those who begin their days in the morning). David writes in Psalm 63:1, "O God, You are my God; early will I seek You, my flesh longs for You in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is."

    I don't know about you, but I am always thirsty for a cold glass of water when I wake up after a night's sleep. David was in the wilderness of Judah. I have only been in the landscape of dreams and nightmares. But we both wake up and seek God early in the morning. In the peacefulness of the moment, before the household is awake; before the birds begin to sing; as the sun kisses the sky. It is wonderful to be alone with God. 

    Without a study life I wouldn't know how to start my day. Without a prayer life, where would I be? I would be filled with anxiety and unsureness, like I used to be before I began to fill up on The Word of God. No longer am I empty and dry like a barren well: there is Living Water in me and The Second Wind blows over the surface of the water, empowering It to move in me and through me. 

    John 7:38, 39

"Whoever believes in Me, as the Scripture has said: ‘Streams of Living Water will flow from within him.’ " He was speaking about The Spirit, whom those who believed in Him were later to receive. For The Spirit had not yet been given, because Jesus had not yet been glorified.

    The first Wind that blew through us was the breath of God, giving us life. The second Wind blowing through us is God Himself, His Holy Spirit, renewing us, strengthening and restoring us moment by glorious moment. He brings The Word of God to our minds and our hearts, convicting us where necessary in order that we may be aware of what else within us needs to submit to God (called to repentance), that we might be fully surrendered as we have promised we would be. 

    We must have an earnest desire to learn what God wants to teach us. Many have opened their Bibles to disavow The Word of God, only to find themselves submitting to The Word of God. Many an atheist has laid hold of The Word only to find The Word laying hold of them. The godless have encountered God and become some of His staunchest supporters. Nothing is too difficult for God. 

    I have a few study themes within me just waiting to be poured out, but they cannot all come rushing out at once. One thing at a time. No pushing, no shoving. As the seasons shift throughout the year, so, too, does The Wind and The Water within me. This is a time of submission and surrender. Submit to God's Will for my life and my family's life. Surrender to God's Will with all my heart and my mind. 

    We are empowered by this Second Wind, this Second Breath, to persevere; to go forward under great trials regardless of the cost. [Hebrews 12:1, 2]. We are empowered by this Second Wind to pursue the mission we have been given, namely to share the gospel message of salvation and repentance through Jesus Christ. [John 20:19-22]. 

    We are empowered to witness, be willing martyrs, if necessary, for the sake of the gospel. [Acts 1:8]. We are empowered to speak other languages to reach people who want to hear the gospel of salvation through Jesus Christ. [Acts 2:1-10]. We are empowered to be bold as lions [Proverbs 28:1]; wise as serpents, and blameless as doves [Matthew 10:16]. We are empowered to resist (stand against, oppose) the devil [James 4:7]. 

    But only after we have submitted to God. Submission. Surrender. Empowerment. It is enough to be here in this place, at this time. 

Father, may Your Wind empower me that I might accomplish the tasks You have set before me. Amen.

MORNING WORSHIP - Ember and Altar