As the years passed, I learned to dismantle my misconceptions and inherited prejudices about the Holy Spirit. One of the main reasons was because my own Christian experience\u2014fueled mostly by my own efforts\u2014ended up being a failure, to say the least. When I finally invited the Holy Spirit to fill me, my prayer was a mixed bag of double messages\u2014something like this: \u201cHoly Spirit, I want to receive You, but at the same time I don\u2019t want to lose control. I want You to come in on my terms. I\u2019ll receive You, but I still have some concerns about You and Your ways. If You can behave Yourself, then You\u2019re welcome to come in and stay awhile.\u201d<\/p>\n
If it sounds like a halfhearted contract with an unruly tenant instead of a commitment of love with the God of the universe, you\u2019re right. Like so many people, I\u2019d let my religious prejudices taint my beliefs and color my perceptions. Finally, though, I said, \u201cI want You and everything You have to offer\u2014all of me for all of You.\u201d<\/p>\n
It changed everything. I went from being a weak, milk-fed Christian to a radical, on-fire believer who couldn\u2019t stop reading his Bible and inserting Christ into conversations with my friends. The best part is I wasn\u2019t trying to be a \u201cgood Christian\u201d! I was simply being myself and allowing the Spirit into my heart, my mind and my life. I surrendered all I\u2019d heard about the Spirit so that I could experience the adventure of God\u2019s presence in my life .<\/p>\n
I\u2019m concerned that many people today are in the same place I was in\u2014they misunderstand and misperceive God\u2019s gift to us of the Holy Spirit. Most of us understand God the Father because we all have an earthly father. We know what a father is like or what a good father should be like.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s pretty easy to understand Jesus the Son, too. God with us in the flesh, Emmanuel, came to earth as a baby in a manger, died as a sinless man on a cross and returned to life as the radiant Son who made it possible for us to know His Father. Most of us have some understanding of Jesus because we\u2019ve seen pictures and movies that depict Him, even if they\u2019re not close to being accurate.<\/p>\n
But what\u2019s up with this Holy Ghost? If you\u2019re like I was for years, it may seem easier to stay away and avoid the topic altogether. We don\u2019t have a positive association with \u201cghosts\u201d and all the spooky, supernatural mystery that surrounds them\u2014who wants that? As it turns out, He\u2019s not a ghost at all.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
From Chris Hodges, at Charisma Mag: Invisible, unpredictable, powerful\u2026 As the years passed, I learned to dismantle my misconceptions and inherited prejudices about the Holy Spirit. One of the main reasons was because my own Christian experience\u2014fueled mostly by my own efforts\u2014ended up being a failure, to say the least. When I finally invited the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":197,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-34984","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\n
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