What enabled my student to hear?
She had a broken and contrite heart. She left my class mourning.
She had been in scripture and turned to scripture. My sisters, even though the Holy Spirit is revealed in scripture he does not live within the pages of the Bible. We receive Him at baptism. “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” Acts 2:38 He lives with us and in us.
She had been encouraged to listen to him and for him. I had related in the prior class how the Spirit had worked in my life in a particular instance. She said she had never heard anyone say something like that, nor had he ever worked in her life like that to her recollection. She had had her spiritual eyes opened to His power when she listened to my story.
She had faith that He could speak. “Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.” Romans 10:17 The Holy Spirit revealed THE WORD then and reveals THE WORD now, that in turn creates faith. Therefore, the Holy Spirit and faith have to be connected; one demands the other.
Here is a quote from Doris Black, a dear friend of mine who, herself, taught the Bible worldwide and inspired me to speak, from her book Reach For Your Spiritual Potential.
“The stronger our faith, the stronger God’s spirit is in our lives. Not because our weak faith limits the might of God’s power, but because our weak faith prevents us from stepping out to be empowered.”
My sisters, Romans 8:11 says, “And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you.”
And Ephesians 3:20 says, “Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever! Amen.
How much power do we as Christians have living within us? ALL THAT WE NEED, but only according to his power that is AT WORK WITHIN US.” If I do not recognize the Spirit, listen to the Spirit, live by the Spirit, keep in step with the Spirit I will be powerless.
How can I make this happen? You can’t. He speaks; you listen. He guides; you follow.
But you CAN do this:
Be in THE WORD. Have a Bible by your bed -- one by your favorite chair, one in your purse and one in your car so you can read it while you’re waiting, waiting, waiting wherever. Pray this prayer: “Open my eyes that I might see wonderful things in your law.” Psalm 119:18 and you will begin to see them.
LISTEN. Something will jump off the page right before your very eyes. This is what you need to hear and God knows it.
LISTEN SOME MORE. Listen to that inner voice you may have never recognized as the Holy Spirit. Act, don’t squelch it. Go where He leads you. Don't make a decision until you're absolutely sure you've heard His voice.
PRAY. When you’re in THE WORD, God is talking to you. When you pray you are talking to God. Pray without ceasing. I just read this quote from the book The Practice of the Presence of God by brother Lawrence; read this teeny, tiny book if you haven’t. “….it [is] a serious mistake to think of our prayer time as being different from any others. Our actions should unite us with God when we are involved in our daily activities, just as our prayer unites us with Him in our quiet time.” Pgs. 20,21.
HAVE A QUIET TIME. Contrary to what young moms might think, I did this more when I was young because I needed the quiet time amidst the chaos; now I have less. My quiet time now involves meditation or “percolation,” rather than investigation, so to speak. But I will add, I never go to the scriptures trying to prove what I already know; I go as though it’s the first time I've ever read it.
PRIORITIZE. You know this; put it into practice. (I have an entire series on this, based on the book Too Hurried to Love, by Bradshaw and Gilbert; this is one of my all-time favorite books.)
WAIT. These are my three maxims: God is in control. His timing is perfect. And He’s never made a mistake. These three things apply to everything. Know them. Believe them. Remember them. Apply them to everything.
Patience is waiting for God's perfect will. Patience. Patience. Patience.
Even though you may have heard that the Holy Spirit is the silent member of the godhead, He is not. He speaks as loudly today as He did when He was with God hovering over the waters, when He revealed scripture to Moses, Matthew, Mark and others, and when Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God. “Look,” he said, “I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.”
When you hear the Holy Spirit speak, the heavens will be opened and you will see the Son of Man in a way you have never seen before. He speaks 24/7 in ways He knows best. Listen, listen, and keep listening. And he will reveal Himself to you.
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