Showing posts with label
developing a relationship with Jesus and Holy Spirit.
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Showing posts with label
developing a relationship with Jesus and Holy Spirit.
Show all posts
John 14:15-17
“If you love me, show it by
doing what I’ve told you. I will talk to the Father, and he’ll provide
you another Friend so that you will always have someone with you. This
Friend is the Spirit of Truth. The godless world can’t take him in
because it doesn’t have eyes to see him, doesn’t know what to look for.
But you know him already because he has been staying with you, and will
even be in you!
Scripture
quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002
by Eugene Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs,
CO. All rights reserved.
Recently, I discovered a
website called Power of Positivity (PoP)*, which describes as part of
its focus…“the good in the world, how you can expand that good within
you, and how that expansion from within can generate more good for
others.” While I don’t necessarily endorse everything shared on this
website, the article that caught my attention was titled “9 Things You
Should Say to Your Kids Every Day.” These are:
- I love you
- I like it when you...
- You make me happy.
- I'm proud of you.
- You are special.
- I trust you.
- I believe in you.
- I know you can do this.
- I am grateful for you.
It
seems odd to me that we would have to be reminded to tell our children
some of these – especially “I love you!” As I read this list, I thought
about not only how I speak to the children in my own circle…but also my
relationship with our Heavenly Father – and how He speaks these things
into me every day through His Holy Spirit.
These simple phrases
can be incorporated into our daily “mission” to show others what Jesus
has told us. We can let someone know that we love them and care about
them. We can recognize the qualities and accomplishments of others. We
have opportunities to convey to other people that we trust them…believe
in them…are confident in their abilities…and that we are grateful for
their lives. By merely stopping to say “Hello” to an acquaintance at
school, church, or in the aisle at Walmart, we can acknowledge the joy
and pride our association with that person brings – and boost their
confidence in the process.
We have grown so comfortable with
criticism and ugliness. We are ready, willing and eager to share a
negative post or a condescending remark. We can’t wait to laugh with
others about someone’s mistakes and shortcomings. We often mumble and
grumble our way through the day. Quite frankly, if the Holy Spirit lives
in our hearts, very few people would ever know it by the way we talk
and act!
God calls us to change this…to look for positives and
recognize the good things. He wants us to cultivate our relationship
with the Holy Spirit and radiate such hope and faith to others that
those who know this Friend for themselves will readily recognize Him in
us…and the rest will want to know Him.
It doesn’t take all
that much effort to flip the switch from negative to positive. Start
with something as simple as whispering these three words…”Come, Holy
Spirit.” Shift your focus today and start operating in the message and
mission of Jesus. Concentrate on sharing His goodness with others - and
offering them at least a glimpse of His glory through your spirit of
faith and hope.
If you feel you are not hearing these positive affirmations frequently enough, there may be something that you need to change. Do others see Jesus in your daily living? Isn’t it time they did?
©2016 Debbie Robus
* https://www.powerofpositivity.com/
John 14:27
I’m leaving you well and whole. That’s
my parting gift to you. Peace. I don’t leave you the way you’re used to
being left—feeling abandoned, bereft. So don’t be upset. Don’t be
distraught.
Scripture
quotations from The Message. © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002
by Eugene Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress, Colorado Springs,
CO. All rights reserved.
The other day, Timothy said,
“We need to have a moment of peace and quiet. Everyone put your fingers
together (touching his third finger to his thumb), close your eyes,
cross your legs – if you can (always a comedian in the group!) – and
hum…Ohm…Ohm.” We have no clue where he learned this – probably from a
movie. But when I read today’s scripture, I thought of this
seven-year-old’s “moment of peace and quiet.” While this is a great way
to relax for a minute and temporarily de-stress…it is far different
from the peace of which Jesus spoke.
The peace of Jesus that is
given to us through Salvation and the Holy Spirit is far more
encompassing. This is the peace of mind that our sins are forgiven…that
we do not have to live under a cloud of dread and fear that we are
destined for the agony of separation from God for all eternity. This is
the peace that the Holy Spirit provides, so that even in moments when
we begin to feel alone, we recognize His presence and are comforted.
This is the peace that allows us to say, “Yes, there are rough days…bad
patches…struggles and challenges – even downright agony at times – but
God’s got this! I will be okay.”
Again I am reminded of the note
my mother made in one of her Bible study journals (and shared with you a
few days ago). You see, my brother and my dad were both sick at the
same time…my brother with liver failure, and my dad with renal failure.
My brother Tim died on September 23, 1998…my dad on October 9, 1999. As
Mother would say, “It was a lot to process.” She spent the better part
of 2 years caring for both of them…and then there was the task of
grieving and regrouping afterward. And Mother wrote, “During the deaths
of Tim and James Paul, I’d often pull myself up and wonder, ‘Why am I
not falling apart?’ Then I’d remember all the people across the country
who were praying for us.”
Who answered these prayers? God!
How did He answer? By filling my mother with peace through the Holy
Spirit who lived in her heart and was her constant Advocate.
The
GOOD NEWS is that you and I can experience this same peace. We can
invite the Holy Spirit to be a permanent resident in our hearts…to fill
the empty spaces and soothe the hurts…to give us wisdom and courage…and
to be well and whole in mind and spirit. This was Jesus’ parting gift
to us. And what a gift it is!
Does the Advocate live in your
heart? Are you embracing Him completely and calling on Him to fill you
with constant peace in all things? Don’t you think it’s time you were?
There is no time like the present. Stop what you are doing and invite
the Holy Spirit to fill your heart and give you peace. Thank God for
sending Jesus…and His Holy Spirit to comfort you and guide you…and be
well and whole this day. You can still close your eyes and cross your
legs (if you are able!) and experience a moment of peace and quiet…but
Jesus is offering you a much more lasting comfort and peace. Won’t you
accept His gift this day and for all the days to come?
©2016 Debbie Robus
