Father Are You There?

A little child lay in the dark; the room was strange, she saw no where, she was afraid; but then she called, FATHER, ARE YOU THERE?She felt a hand, so strong and warm, close clasping hers; then calm and clear. she heard her father's tender voice, YES, LAS, I AM HERE.Like the small child, we sometimes feel that we are in the dark of care; In terror of some harm, we call, O FATHER, ARE YOU THERE?We reach our hand to Him, and find, a blessed answer to our fear. His hand holds ours; we hear His voice, FEAR NOT FOR I AM HERE.So though we tremble in the dark, in need of strength and help and cheer, We have a tender Father's word, FEAR NOT, FOR I AM HERE.Dinnie McDole Hayes

You are not alone. You will call upon me and come and pray to me and I will hear you. "You will seek me and you will find me; when you seek me with all your heart, I will be found by you, says the Lord." (Jeremiah 29:12-14)

Father God,
You are always with us. In all our days, in every moment, if we open our eyes and heart to you, you are there and you desire to be found. You are everlasting love, everlasting life. When we are needy, you are sufficient. When we are helpless, you are helpful. When we are weak, you are strong. When we feel alone, you are intimately present. When it is dark, you are the only light we need. When we are insecure, you are our rock and fortress. Thank you Father for your faithfulness.
Jesus - thank you for the cross. There is no sinner that your blood cannot save. No sin that your blood cannot forgive. Your blood heals our wounds, breaks the chains of bondage and destruction, redeems our shame and pain and struggles of life. Thank you, Jesus for your sacrifice.
Holy Spirit - The counselor, the comforter, the Spirit of truth. When we are lost, you regenerate. When we are thirsty, you give us water. When we are divided, you unite. When we are carnel, you convict. When we can't pray, you intercede. When we are visionless, you show us things to come. When we are purposeless, you show us purpose.
Father, Son, and Spirit - fill us with joy and peace that we might overflow with hope. Thank you for your love, mercy and grace. We need you. We can't live without you. You are the light of the world. Make your face shine upon us O Lord! We give you honor and glory every day, every hour and every moment. Amen

We Live By The Spirit

"So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature" (Galatians 5:16)

We inherited a sinful nature. Before that dreadful day that Adam and Eve ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, they lived a life under the watchful, loving hand of God. All their needs were provided for. God had made them "in his image" to rule over the earth under God's authority. Adam was to do nothing without God. God would do his work in the world through His children.

After many years of man trying to "do it on his own" in his inherited sinful nature, God , in his mercy, sent His Son to earth so that man could be "reconciled" to God. Jesus death on the cross was payment for our sins. God placed all of His judgment on Him for our freedom. Freedom from what?

Freedom from the sinful nature. How does that happen? By accepting the "sacrifice" and placing our trust in God. By allowing him His authority over us as originally intended. Not only did God himself pay the price for our sins, He also put his very being inside of us. The Holy Spirit would live in every believer to guide and direct them that they would be transformed and conformed into the perfect image of God.

"…your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own. You were bought with a price." (1 Cor 6:19)

We are not our own - we are God's. He is our authority and if we want victory in this life, we must trust , abide in and submit to God. The Holy Spirit lives in our spirit. God's revelation comes from the Holy Spirit into our spirits.

What this means is that we must "live by the Spirit". Romans 8:8 tells us that "those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God." But Praise God! Paul continues and tells us "You however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you."

Romans 8:10-11 tells us that if Christ is in us, (if you're a Christian, He is), our Spirit is alive because of righteousness. 1 Cor 2:12 tells us that "We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us." The Holy Spirit is the motivator, energizer and operator of every revealed plan or vision from God. He wants to reveal our God-nature and cause us to live in a higher level than we now live. He is the only power to live the Christian life.

"But the helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you." (John 14:26)

As Christians, we now serve in the new way - the way of the Spirit. We are to "set our minds on what the Spirit desires." (Rom 8:5) "... the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace…. (8:6)

I will be writing a lot in this blog about the Holy Spirit. (I already have some notes on my FB page) Through Christ Jesus, the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death. My body is dead because of sin and my spirit is alive because of righteousness. I believe with my whole heart and soul that a Christian cannot live a victorious, fruitful life without submission to God's Spirit. I desire that all Christians know that "The Spirit of him who raised Jesus Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies, through His Spirit."