The fruits of the Spirit will change your life.

How do you change a bad habit? Working at not doing that thing is probably not the best way to go about it. You may need to rethink what the problem is. Is the problem really about losing your temper? Is it really about being impatient or angry? Trying not to be impatient can probably make you crazy.

First of all, recognize that the unsavory aspect of your life is actually sin. Repent. Just repent. Ask Jesus to forgive you and it will be covered by the blood of Christ. Your slate is clean. If you find yourself doing the same thing again, then repent again. Don’t sweat it.

Now be filled with the fruits of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. (Gal 5:22) So many issues that we face can resolved by living with these gifts. Patience and kindness alone will change your life.

Stop looking at the bad aspects and start looking for the greatness that God has put in you. Yes, it’s in you. If you have given your life to Jesus, then you have everything you need. His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness. (2Pet 1:3) You stop doing bad things when you start living in Christ.

The anointing of God is His blessing on your life.

When the priests of the temple were being sanctified, the oil of anointing was poured over them. It was poured over their heads, their hair, their beards, and down their garments. It was a lot of oil. And he poured some of the anointing oil on Aaron’s head and anointed him, to consecrate him. (Lev 8:12) To consecrate means to set apart for a high purpose. The priests were made holy by being consecrated because they were covered with the oil of anointing.

Jesus did not die on the cross just so we can go to heaven. As amazing as that act was, He actually opened the door for us to live here and now in a supernatural way. It is way filled with His presence and power, just as Jesus lived, and the Holy Spirit came to help us do that.

The presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives is just like the oil that was poured out over Aaron’s head, only we aren’t sanctified externally, we are changed internally. It is the higher calling of our relationship with God, from knowing about Him to knowing Him intimately.

When we have the Holy Spirit in our lives, we are actually filled with the same Spirit that raised Christ from the dead. He is the power that changes everything. He is the blessing of God on our lives, making us sanctified and holy before Him. He is the fragrant presence that sets us apart for His purposes.

When we live humbly before God and offer Him all that we are — all our gifts and talents, hopes and dreams, He gives them back covered with His blessing. He gives us favor. And don’t you know that having favor from heaven is the best kind to have.

The anointing from God will bless your efforts and make them more than you could make them. If you make your heart sensitive to being led by God, that anointing will lead you to the steps you need to fulfill your destiny, that amazing plan that God has for your life.

The clear way to say it is that the anointing of God is the presence of the Holy Spirit in us. The Old Testament pouring of oil was a prophetic act for the in-filling of God in us today. It is His blessing on us and the things that we give Him to sanctify. He’s the secret sauce that makes everything better.

The Key of David, by Diana Symons

A story that’s been told for thousands of years…
The Bible’s Book 1 Samuel tells the story of David’s life – from an obscure family to an unlikely king, from shepherd to warrior, from champion to king-maker. What does it mean for a man to love God and be loved by Him? This book explores what it means to be human in the light of the Kingdom.

**************************************************************************The Key of David, by Diana Symons                                                                                             A story that’s been told for thousands of years…  The Bible’s Book 1 Samuel tells the story of David’s life – from an obscure family to an unlikely king, from shepherd to warrior, from champion to king-maker. What does it mean for a man to love God and be loved by Him? This book explores what it means to be human in the light of the Kingdom.

Lift up your eyes and see what God has to show you.

I think it’s obvious that there are realms of the spirit that we can’t see, or even know about. However, I think that for those who press in, there is access. Jesus said, Do you not say, ‘There are still four months and then comes the harvest’? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest! (Jhn 4:35)

He’s saying, if you will look with your spirit at what is right in front of you, you’ll see what I’m talking about. When we allow the Holy Spirit to give us understanding, we begin to see things that we were blind to before. Things right in front of us.

Lift up your eyes. I think it’s interesting that when Jesus prayed, He didn’t  bow His head and close His eyes. He looked up to heaven. (Mark 6:41) When you look to God, He shows you the things that you won’t see until you make that effort.

Think about the realms of the spirit that could be open to you if you looked up to heaven. How would that effect your life or your ministry? Instead of working blind, you could see the leading of God and know what to do. It’s time to lift up your eyes and see what’s going on.

You are responsible for being light to the world.

You are the light of the world. (Mat 5:14) You. God left the light in your hands. What will you do with it? Without you, the world is dark. How will you give it light?

It’s almost a threatening question because it gets very personal. What do you mean, me? Surely you mean people who are called to the ministry, or people who want to do that sort of thing. I remember having that attitude. That ministry stuff was for other people. I had my own life. And I claimed to be a Christian.

God still wants to know. What are you going to do with your light? You actually are responsible for it. Will you shy back from admitting your faith? How about declaring it? How about helping people you don’t know? Or loving people who refuse to be loved?

You don’t have to be obnoxious about your faith. That’s really the opposite of what God means. He means you to be kind and loving, generous and patient, peaceful and happy. See, it’s not that scary. You can do this. If you are filled with the Holy Spirit, you have everything within you to be light and have fun doing it. So shine on my friend.

The Holy Spirit is here to help.

When the Holy Spirit calls Himself our Helper, He means it. I don’t know why we assume that so much of what God says is just FYI, as if we don’t really need it. It would be amazing if we took God at His word. The Holy Spirit really is our helper, and connecting with that help will get you through the day on a whole different level.

First, you have to know that you have the Holy Spirit in your life. That comes when you ask Jesus into your heart. There is a baptism, or in-filling of the Holy Spirit to activate His presence. (Acts 8:15-17) Ask God for it, and be very persistent about it.

When you pray, quiet your spirit and listen for God to talk back. I guarantee that He wants to talk to you. Once you know that you hear Him, pay attention to what that feels like. When He speaks to you during your day, you’ll recognize that feeling and pay attention to it.

That feeling came to me today while working on an important project at work. I thought I was done, but I felt the Holy Spirit tugging at me. Something wasn’t right. I went back and checked again, and He was right! I was so grateful for that check.

Get connected with the Holy Spirit. He’s there to help.

Another post on the Holy Spirit: The Holy Spirit Helps You Do The Right Thing

Go after the fruits of the Spirit.

We know the fruits of the Spirit are love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. (Gal 5:22) We know that the Holy Spirit puts these fruits in us. We talk about the God of peace and the God of joy. But all these are aspects of God Himself. So He is also the God of patience and the God of self-control.

That’s a good thing to know when things get difficult. You can turn to the God of peace when you are harassed by fear. Turn to the God of self-control when you are facing temptation.  You can address that part of God that you need in your life. It’s who He is. And because these are fruits of His Spirit in you, these are all yours as well.

Be active in embracing this fruit. It should be an outgrowth of your relationship with God. Don’t assume that because you believe in God that you will be filled with joy when you need it. You have to want it. That means allowing that aspect of God to be active when you need it to be.

I believe that there are many other parts of God that are fruits in the same way. Pursue them, and He will be more to you than you knew He could be.

Another post on the fruits of the Spirit: Let’s Go After The Sweeter Fruits

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The Holy Spirit is God in you.

Yes, we know that God is in heaven on His throne, but God is three people. One of them lives in you, if you received salvation through Christ. When you accept Jesus as your Savior, the Holy Spirit comes to live in your heart. He’s always with you. So when you pray, your prayers don’t have far to go.

We like to think that we call down heaven. We ask for God to come down on us and bless us. But He’s already here. He’s just waiting for us to get it. It’s the amazing plan that God had when He created the world. He’s always wanted to live with us.

When sin ruined the garden of Eden, God set the plan of salvation into effect. He worked a way to live with us, even though we didn’t deserve it. He loves us so much. His Spirit is there in us and for us. All we have to do is connect with Him and we’re as good as in heaven now.

Sound too simplistic? Try it. Ask the Holy Spirit to speak to you. Listen with your heart. Tell Him everything and watch how He blesses. He is Emmanuel, God with us, and He wouldn’t have it any other way.

Another post on the Holy Spirit: Be Aware Of God Today

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The Holy Spirit is your very best friend.

The Holy Spirit is your best friend because He knows you better than you know yourself. You may have false ideas about your looks, your talents, or your prospects. You view the world through a filter based on how you’ve been hurt in the past. You use the same filter on yourself. The Holy Spirit knows the real you.

He knows what wounds you’ve carried and why. He knows all the times you tried to do the right thing and got shot down for it. He also knows when you never tried, when you let your anger get the best of you, and when you just gave up. But He loves you wildly anyway.

He is the essence of patience. He is forgiving and comforting. And best of all, He knows everything! Learn to chat with Him, and you get instant access to everything you need to know. He may lead you to the answers in ways you don’t expect, but you can trust Him when you need to.

The Holy Spirit knows exactly what you love and will point you to special blessings, just like a father kneeling down and pointing to something with a small child. He wants to make sure you see what He’s up to. He loves you and is the best friend in the world.

Another post on the Holy Spirit: What Is The Holy Spirit?

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Set your heart to God’s timing.

Have you noticed that God never seems to be in a hurry? It’s a little annoying sometimes, but that’s because we’ve been led to embrace a fast food culture. We have instant everything. Plus, we have a human nature that is selfish. We want things our way and we want it now.

Once we come into the kingdom of God, we need to allow Him to readjust our soul clock. We need to run on His time, now ours. Patience is a virtue of His Spirit that He put inside us. It’s there. All we have to do is call it out and ask for it to be released in our lives.

We miss so much by being rushed. It is a strategy of the enemy to keep us from fully receiving all that God has for us. Learn to slow down in your spirit, even if you have a hectic life. Allow His peace to set your pace and you’ll be more productive and rested.

We never read about Jesus being stressed for time. His heart was God-focused, not culture focused. Find His peace and patience. Take a deep breath and relax in His hands. He’s got you covered. All you have to is trust Him.

Another post on patience: Go Ahead, Pray For Patience

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