How Often Do You See Your Best Friend?

I’m holding something sacred in my heart and somehow I need to get His words across to you, dear reader, making sure I’m representing Him and Him alone.  Oh how I long to share with you about my BFF (best friend forever); Who He is, His power, His understanding, and His wisdom, and I want to do so in such a way that you can clearly see Him even though He is, well….. invisible!

If you’re joining me for the first time, I’m currently writing a series on The Power of the Holy Spirit, and let me just say right now that I’m not worthy to pen any of these words. But my heart is heavy for you to know Him more and to experience Him more abundantly so that’s why I’m sharing this with you.  And if you’ve missed the first post, My Burning Bush Experience, you can read it here.

I’m going to take you back to the beginning of yours and my salvation.  Our journeys goes something like this:

We give our hearts to the Lord or we say we got saved or we came to Christ.  The Bible says when that happens that we are a new creation; old things have passed away; and behold, all things have become new. 2 Corinthians 5:17

You and I are now new in Christ and then we start our Christian journey or walk.  But then something happens; LIFE!

And sometimes we have a tendency to go through life in a constant state of defeat, discouragement, and uncertainty, so much so, that those traits start to become part of our character.  Yet, that should not be the case because we have something that the world does not have and that is the Power of the Holy Spirit.  Yet for some reason not all Believers tap into this Power.  (Just so you know, when I came to Christ it took me several years before I could hear the voice of the Holy Spirit.  I’ll share more about that in another post.)

Let me give you an analogy of your new life in Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit:

Imagine you receive a new car.  You’re so excited and you can’t wait to drive it and go through life.  Right?  But then you find out you can’t drive it because you don’t have the keys to start it!  The car won’t go very far unless you push it. This act would take a tremendous amount of physical strength, but it can be done nevertheless.  It may not be easy, but it is doable.

Now here’s the tie in:

Your new car is you, the new creation in Christ- your new found faith/salvation, if you will. And the keys, which is the power, is the Holy Spirit.  So wouldn’t you much rather drive the car than push it?  And wouldn’t you much rather go through life with the power of the Holy Spirit guiding you and filling you rather than resting in your own strength and understanding?

I believe there’s a desperate need to have more of the Holy Spirit in our lives but somewhere in our Christian walk there’s a breakdown or a disconnect and we don’t know how to draw closer to Him.  Perhaps we take for granted the role of the Holy Spirit, or maybe our hearts aren’t softened towards Him, or we can’t hear Him, or we don’t know how to discern His voice.  All of these areas can leave us as debilitated Christians; weak and easy prey for the Enemy.

Sadly the view of the Holy Spirit has been somewhat skewed by Christians, and quite frankly, it’s not a topic that is shared about all too often.  In my own belief system (which is just reading the Word of God) I don’t know why we don’t talk of Him much, after all He is our Power that is needed to live a spirit-filled life.  We shy away from this subject matter because of how different churches handle their understanding of the Scriptures.  I know I didn’t want to open up a can of worms with this series….but God had a different plan for me! It’s not like I’m afraid to address this very important topic it’s just that there are differing views of the Spirit of God and I want to make sure I clearly communicate the Truth.

So I’m not going to get into the ‘whys’ or ‘hows’ of various church doctrine and traditions because that is not the point of this post.   Instead, I’m just going to present Who the Spirit is and what He does as we examine the Scriptures like the Bereans did.

“Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true” (Acts 17:11 NIV).

We Have a Counselor

Do you ever just want to sit down and talk with a friend and pour your heart out about your life situations?  One who fully understands you and knows exactly what it is that you’re going through?  One who won’t condemn, judge, or criticize you?  Did you know that the Holy Spirit is our Counselor and He’s free of charge and you don’t even have to make an appointment to see Him?  Oh yes He is!  So what do you think about that?

And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever—the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you.  John 14:16,17 (NIV)

Do you believe this truth?

We Have the Advantage

Imagine yourself in a situation where you did not know what to do or what to say, but you had Jesus Christ in the flesh sitting right next to you, kinda like the way the disciples did.  Would you turn to Him and say, “Hey Jesus, can you help me out here?  I’m not sure what I should do.  Can you give me some answers and guidance?”

Wouldn’t you be thrilled to death to have Him right there by your side?  Walking through life with you?  Handling your biggest and littlest concerns?

Here’s something that will blow you away (it blew me away when I was doing research for this post.)

Jesus said we have the advantage for Him to go away.

Say what? You mean my life would be easier if Jesus Christ weren’t here in the flesh with me?  How is that possible? Jesus is in the flesh, but the Holy Spirit as we all know, is invisible! Why would I have the advantage for Christ to go away?

Because He says so!

Nevertheless I tell you the truth. It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you.  John 16:7 (NKJV)

Do you believe this truth?

We Have Power

Did you know that you can do great and mighty things because you have the power of the Holy Spirit?  He’ll equip you for works of service even when, according to the world’s standards, you don’t measure up.  Remember how the Lord called Peter to be His disciple?  He was just a fisherman, an uneducated man who made a tremendous impact for the Kingdom of God.  How was that possible?  Through the power of the Holy Spirit.

“But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”  Acts 1:8

Do you believe this truth?

He Dwells in Us

Many times, we as Christians look no different from unbelievers because we are consumed by fear, worry, pride, anger, etc.  Why is it that we are not filled with peace, joy, and love like the Bible says, after all, we have the power of the Living God within us?  Here’s what God’s word says,

But you are not living the life of the flesh, you are living the life of the Spirit, if the Holy Spirit of God really dwells within you [directs and controls you]. But if anyone does not possess the Holy Spirit of Christ, he is none of His [he does not belong to Christ, is not truly a child of God].  Romans 8:9 (Amplified Bible)

The Spirit of the Most High God dwells within our bodies.  Let that thought sink in for just a moment.  The Spirit of the Creator of the Universe, the Great I Am, is residing in you.

Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own?  For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.  1 Corinthians 6:19,20

Do you believe this truth?

He’s Brilliant

The Holy Spirit has an answer for every single one of your problems.   He knows all of your hurts and fears.  He knows everything you need.  He can guide you and direct you in all Truth.

All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.  2 Timothy 2:16,17 (NKJV)

“For the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say.”  Luke 12:12

Do you believe this truth?

So I’ve presented several aspects of the Holy Spirit and I kept asking you if you believed it.  I did so because I want your heart and mind open to His role and His power in your life, because embracing these truths are the beginning steps needed in order for you to start seeing Him.

How about you, sweet friend?  Are you starting to see your invisible BFF?  No worries if you can’t fully at this point because in my next post I’ll teach you how to cultivate your relationship with Him!

Now, here’s where I need your help.  My heart longs for every Christian woman to fully breathe in her Savior, to know Him intimately.  So do you happen to know a fellow sister that is wounded, weary, or worried?  Or perhaps a babe in Christ?  Do you mind sharing this series with them in hopes that it will draw them closer to the Lord so they too can be encouraged by the Truth?

Next up in the series, When Your Life is a Mess and You Don’t Know What to Do.

Live a poured out life for Christ,

Jolene Engle

 

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