Filled with the Holy Spirit

Chuckle: They told me I had type-A blood, but it was a type-O.

Quote: "The voice of the Spirit is as gentle as a zepher, so gentle that unless you are living in perfect communion with God, you will never hear it." --Oswald Chambers

"Don't get drunk with wine, because that will ruin your life. Instead, let the Holy Spirit fill and control you" (Ephesians 5:18 NLT).

Each of us has something in our lives that exercises control over us. We are either controlled by the Holy Spirit or we are controlled by the various attractions of the world and our sinful nature. We have all witnessed how alcohol or drugs control the lives of those addicted. Every thought and action is influenced by their addictions. Satisfying their addictions becomes the number one desire of their lives. Never can they find relief from the power of that controlling force unless something else becomes more important to them than their addictions. Only then can their lives take a new direction and be transformed. The want to must precede the how to.

To be filled with the Spirit literally means to be controlled by the Spirit. God recognizes our weaknesses and makes provision for us to overcome them not by our own strength but by the strength of His Spirit. As a Christian, you may find some temporary satisfaction from giving in to the control of some worldly attraction, but when the regret, guilt, and shame set in, your life becomes miserable. On the other hand, allowing God's Spirit to fill us and control us will result in lasting joy and peace. Such joy can cure our depression, monotony, stress, and anxieties. For you to experience this kind of peace and joy, you must become concerned not about how much of the Spirit you have, but how much of you the Spirit has.

Before you can understand what it means to be filled with the Spirit, you must understand that, as a believer, the Holy Spirit is resident within you. "Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit?" (1 Cor. 6:19). How can you know the Holy Spirit is living within you?

"I know in the same way that I know there is music on a CD, even though I can't see the music. I can know in either of two ways. I can believe the label that says there is music on the CD, or I can play the CD and hear it. We can know the Holy Spirit indwells us by believing God, who tells us so in His Word, or by seeing His results in our lives when we are obedient to Him." --Illustrations For Biblical Preaching, Edited by Michael Green

If your life is controlled by something that is making you miserable, won't you please listen to the convicting voice of the Spirit and surrender your life and will to the One who loves you and wants the best for you? Allow the Spirit of God to restore you and heal you and experience what it means to be filled with the Spirit.

Love, Jerry & Dotse