Tidbits for Thought

THE GIFT OF THE SPIRIT

John 14: 15-16 “If you love me, you will obey what I

command. And I will ask the Father, and He will give you

another Counselor to be with you forever…. the Spirit of

truth. The world cannot accept Him because it neither sees

him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with

you and will be in you.”

Throughout Scripture the image of the Spirit of God is

described as fire…. wind…water…and many other beautiful

images. But no matter how the Spirit is described, the

overriding thought is one of connection to and being a piece

of God. The mysterious concept of the Trinity tells us that

the Father loves us unconditionally and because of that love,

He sent The Son to redeem us and The Spirit to live within

us. Scripture tells us that God gave us the Spirit that we

might grow into Christians that embody the love that is God

and enjoy the fruit that only a relationship with Him can

provide. (Galatians 5:22-23)

The Spirit helps us find JOY in all things, even in times of

grief and tragedy. He assists us to be at PEACE even in the

tempest that might be flooding around us. His counsel shows

us how to have PATIENCE when dealing with the annoying

jot and tittle of life. KINDNESS becomes second nature

when we allow the Him to guide us through each and every

day. GOODNESS shows itself in every action He prompts

us to take in the name of Jesus. FAITHFULLNESS in

believing unequivocally in the words of Scripture is fortified

by His insistence on truth. GENTLENESS becomes an

integral part of who we are when He prompts us to mirror

Jesus to the world. Being led by Him assures us that SELF-

CONTROL is possible in all things, great and small.

We might also find the Spirit leading us into places where

we are not completely comfortable, such as when we are

urged to confront and push back on lies that denigrate an

individual or even an entire race of people. We might find

our patience tested when dealing with bigotry or racism. We

might find ourselves feeling anger instead of peacefulness

when we see other people persecuted and harassed simply

because they are from another country or worship in a

different manner. We might be moved to reach out to assist

the immigrant in spite of their daily persecution and

denigration. In short, the Spirit could be using us to advance

the Kingdom of God by insisting that the values of Jesus are

not just good ideas on paper but a clear mandate on how to

live and how to confront evil and how to assist the “others,”

just as Jesus did. Even though this process might be scary,

real faith tells us that if the Spirit leads us there and our

motives are righteous, the Spirit will protect us there.

A church filled with individuals who display the fruit of the

Spirit, even when tested, is a church that Jesus spoke of

when He said, “A city on a hill cannot be hidden.” (Matthew

5:14) Think about it!      ~ Aron Smith