Learning to Walk in the Spirit
Submitted by Chris on June 18 2000 15:45:29
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Hi Everyone, I am indeed back, however I will not be able to visit every day. I am using the computers of family and friends to be able to be here. To zip and Jules, I would just like to thank you again for your very wonderful welcome back, and I want you to know that I am doing just fine. God has been working tremendously in my life, and my needs are being met by Him in every way...Praise God!!! I feel truly blessed to be back here again, even if it means only doing so between one to four times a week (I will feel very fortunate to actually get online four times in a week, actually.) Just lately I have become very interested in a man by the name of Gary Sigler. He has a website, however I do not know the U.R.L. Actually I have been studying his writings via printouts my Mom's husband gives me. It has been quite an eye-opening study so far, and I would love to share with everyone some things I have been learning. I have heard a lot of talk about "walking in the Holy Spirit", and most of it has lead me to a lot of confusion. I used to believe that in order to walk in the Spirit, I would have to work hard to try to do only the things that would please God, and try to NOT do the things which did not please Him. I always failed at this, simply because it is impossable for me to do of my own accord, or using my own will-power. I have come to the conclusion that, on my own...trying as hard as I can, it is impossable to walk in God's Spirit. I truly believe now that this is something that only God can do for me. But how? I have begun a daily routine of "seeking God's Kingdom" just lately, and I believe this is indeed the way to being able to live and walk in the Holy Spirit. What is "seeking God's Kingdom"? It is simply making a daily decision to believe, first of all, in your heart that God's Kingdom is inside of you. He has placed His Kingdom in our hearts! And what is this "Kingdom" in our hearts like? I believe it is just like the love described in 1 Cor. 13:4-8. I believe that this gives us a great description of the Kingdom of God. It is all about love...how God loves us, and how we love one another. I truly believe that God will put His perfect love in our hearts and cause it to grow, but only if we continue to make a decision to believe His word and seek out this Kingdom of love within us. I believe that God's Kingdom is all about having the character and nature of God revealed in us. And we can clearly see the character and nature of God in 1 Cor. 13: 4-8. It's simple...want to know God's true nature, then just replace the word "love" in this passage, with "God". "God is patient, God is kind. etc....". I believe that by seeking out His true nature in our hearts each day (the Kingdom He has placed within us), and then by making a decision to live our daily lives according to this Kingdom, than we will begin to experience "walking in the Holy Spirit". Notice that it is a DECISION that we make every day to believe His Word. In Luke 17:21 it tells us that God's Kingdom is within us. And if you read the Gospels, Jesus is often speaking about the "Kingdom of God" as something that will grow within us. He compares it to a mustard seed in Mat. 13:31. He also compares it to yeast added to flour, which will, in time, work throughout the ENTIRE lump of dough. God's Kingdom is placed within us, like a small seed, but it will grow within us if given the right kind of nourishment. A seed needs nourishment in order to grow. But there are "weeds" that can rob this seed of nourishment. The "weeds" I am thinking of are "doubt, fear, guilt, etc..." I believe that we can seek God's Kingdom by trusting in Him and thus eliminating these "weeds". If we make a decision to trust His Word, instead of our own feelings of fear and unworthiness, unreasonable guilt and self-centeredness, we will be giving this seed within us the chance to grow. This, I believe, is truly walking in the Spirit. We decide to believe God's word about what it says about us, and then live that way every day. However, I also believe that this is something which will take time to perfect...to see it manifested entirely in our daily lives. But praise God that His word tells us that it WILL indeed grow...if we only seek it every day. Anyway, this is a little bit of what I am studying (and trying to put into practice) lately. And I want all of you to know that, so far, my experience has been just incredible!!! I practice seeking His Kingdom and put it first in my life, and He has indeed been "adding all else" unto me. It works, brothers and sisters, it really does!!! God Bless all of you here, I love you all. Your Brother in Christ Jesus, Chris |
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