The Holy Spirit makes all the difference

It was the power and the presence of the Holy Spirit that made all the difference.

Acts 2:3-4 They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.

Note a few things:

• Tongues of Fire came and rested on EACH PERSON.
• B. They were ALL filled with the Holy Spirit!  The power and anointing of the Spirit, which had rested only upon selected Old Testament individuals called to a particular service, now was available to all believers
• They were changed!  They went from being fearful to becoming bold.  They went from being anxious to courageous.  They went from being intimidated to becoming intimidating.

It appears as if they actually underwent a personality change.  But what made this possible?  They had spent years with direct contact with Jesus, following Him first hand over a long period of time. Why change now?

It was the POWER and the PRESENCE of the HOLY SPIRIT!  His power can change us.  His presence can change us!  My question is; ‘Has your life been touched and changed by the presence and the power of the Holy Spirit?’

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Pentecost is the birth of the church

It was on this day, all those years ago that the Christian Church was born. As a result of what happened 3000 people were saved.  This was just the beginning.  Unique things that happened.   God, through His Holy Spirit came upon His people.  A sound of wind was heard across the city.  Tongues of fire appeared.   These tongues of fire settled on each person.

They were changed as a result. They went from fear to boldness.  They began speaking in other tongues.  People were drawn to this phenomenon.   Many people were saved.   The church, as we know it today, was born.

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The beginning of Pentecost

Names of God make out the shape of a dove

As with many of things that God does, it began with words.  It began with words of prophecy.

Joel 2:28-32 I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days. I will show wonders in the heavens and on the earth, blood and fire and billows of smoke. The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.

Many years before the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, it was foretold or prophesied.  Just as God, in the beginning, said, LET THERE BE LIGHT and there was light, so God said there would be an outpouring of His Holy Spirit and it happened at Pentecost.  God always does what He says He will do.  You can have confidence in this. He will do what He said He will do, even in those things that you trust Him for.  God keeps His promises.

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What is Pentecost?

Names of God make out the shape of a dove

Pentecost is a special time for us as believers.  It is a time when we remember that God has done and where it all started.  It is a time to remember how the power and the presence of the Holy Spirit radically changed the world.  It is a time to remember the birth and the founding of the church. It is a time to remind ourselves that the power and the presence of the Holy Spirit is still available to us today.  It is a time to be empowered and filled all over again.  It is a time to step out in boldness.

Pentecost is a time when Christian believers remember and celebrate something unique that happened shortly after the death and the resurrection of Jesus Christ.  It was about 50 days after Easter Sunday, or the resurrection of Jesus Christ.  Pentecost means 50th (fiftieth) and is celebrated about 50 days or 7 weeks after Easter.  Having died and risen again, Jesus spent some time on earth and was seen by many people. Then He ascended to heaven and we remember that on Ascension Day.  The followers and disciples of Jesus ended up in an upper room in Jerusalem, praying and fasting, and the Holy Spirit came upon them.  They were changed as a result and went on to change the world.

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Don’t miss the moment

In the process of the journey, we can sometimes loose perspective and we miss the moment.  Perhaps we can become obsessed with the goal that we had had in mind.  The truth is life is about the journey.  Each leg of the journey has its own opportunities and joys.  We should get to the stage where we consciously enjoy every moment.  Our attitude should be one of ‘finding joy in the journey’.

We each have our story, and God wants that story to be a beautiful tapestry of all our experiences and ultimately His hand in weaving it all together into something good and something special that gives us our unique testimony and story.

Romans 8:28 ‘And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose.’

Let Him turn things around for you.  Let HIM ‘work ALL things together’ for your good.  Make loving God your priority and remember that you are called according to His purposes.

Genesis 50:20 ‘You intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good. He brought me to this position so I could save the lives of many people.’

Jeremiah 29:11 ‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the LORD, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.’

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Your ultimate destination is secure

If we know our ultimate destination is secure, we can rest in God regarding the journey.  A friend shared this illustration with me:

You arrive at the airport to book a flight, the person assisting you tells you that they have two options available to you.

1. The plane doesn’t look as good, the inflight entertainment leaves a lot to be desired, the flight might be a bit bumpy but they can guarantee arrival at your destination.
2. The plane looks fantastic, they fly higher than most, superb meals and inflight entertainment, quiet and smooth but they can’t guarantee that you’ll arrive at your destination.

Which flight will you take?

You and I have chosen the flight in which the final destination is secure.  The journey may not always be ideal, but the destination is secure and therefore anything we may face is manageable and ‘overcomer-able’ because the destination is secure.

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Overcoming a besieged mentality

The word ‘besieged’ is a military term that means to be surrounded by enemy forces.  In old days cities were besieged in order to attack and conquer them.  That is why they would say things like: ‘The army besieged the castle’. It involves surrounding and attacking a fortified place in order to isolate it from help and force surrender.  It is any persistent effort to overcome resistance or long period of trouble.  The danger is that during a siege, the besieged can destroy themselves.  The besieged mentality is a feeling of victimization and defensiveness.  It is a state of mind where we think we are constantly under attack.

In the same way sometimes we can live with a besieged mentality.  We begin to believe that we are under attack on every side.  We can even develop an ‘us against them’ mentality.

To break besiege mentality, we must get rid of victimization, change how we talk, choose joy, and get out of the trenches.  This is not to say that we do not face attack, but it is not always an attack.  It could be the result of choices we have made, it could just be things that happen in the course of life, and it could be something God is allowing in our lives to set us up for the next great plan he has for us.

Just think of the life of Joseph. If he was not thrown into the pit, he would never have been sold into slavery. If he was not sold into slavery, he would never have ended up in Egypt. If he was not falsely accused, he would never have ended up in prison. If he had not ended up in prison, he would not have made the connection to Pharaoh. If he had not made the connection to Pharaoh, he would not have been in a position to save the Egyptian nation and ultimately his own family and nation.

Genesis 41:57 “All the earth came to Egypt to Joseph to buy grain.”

If anyone could have felt like he was besieged it was Joseph.  He went from bad to worse and yet today his story is one of the remarkable stories that inspire and encourage us.  I believe he won the battle by choosing the right attitude at each turn on the journey of his life and ultimately he emerged as one of the great people that God used.

Let us not live with a besieged mentality.  Living with a besieged mentality is like living life with your foot on the brake.  This attitude or mindset can rob us and undermine God’s plan and purpose for our lives.  Let us move beyond this way of thinking.

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The God on the mountain is still God in the valley

Sometimes we may think that when things are going right and things are going our way and we are having a ‘mountain experience’ that God is there for us. Then when we face a ‘valley experience’ and things are not going as we would like, we may think that He has forgotten about us.

Nothing could be further from the truth.  The God of the mountain is still god in the valley.  Years ago I heard a song ‘GOD ON THE MOUNTAIN’.  This song spoke into my heart and that fact and reality became real to me.

Here are the words of that song:

Life is easy, when you’re up on the mountain
and you’ve got peace of mind, like you’ve never known.
But things change, when you’re down in the valley.
Don’t lose faith, for you’re never alone.

Chorus: For the God on the mountain, is the God in the valley. When things go wrong, He’ll make them right. And the God of the good times is still God in the bad times. The God of the day is still God in the night.

We talk of faith way up on the mountain.
Talk comes so easy when life’s at its best.
Now down in the valleys, of trials and temptations
that’s where your faith, is really put to the test.

Chorus: For the God on the mountain, is the God in the valley. When things go wrong, He’ll make them right. And the God of the good times is still God in the bad times. The God of the day is still God in the night.

Psalm 84:5-7 ‘Blessed are those whose strength is in You, whose hearts are set on pilgrimage.  As they pass through the Valley of Baka, they make it a place of springs; the autumn rains also cover it with pools.  They go from strength to strength, till each appears before God in Zion.’

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The rich fabric of life

I recently read a story about a family who had been farmers for generations. They loved their farm and worked it faithfully and productively. Then due to reasons beyond their control they were dispossessed of their land. It was a traumatic and devastating hurdle in the journey of their lives. When they were interviewed by a journalist about what had happened, they were asked if they were bitter and angry and they owner said no, he was not, but it was part of the ‘rich fabric of life’.

Often the experiences we go through can be seen as tragic or devastating, or we can see the experiences along life’s journey as part of the rich fabric of life.  It calls for a different attitude.  If we have this attitude we can handle things with a better understanding and come out the other side without being destroyed.

Have you ever looked at a tapestry?  If you look at the finished product it is something beautiful.  But if you zoom in on a small section it looks like a mess, confusing and illogical. But as you step back, everything begins to fall into place and the picture emerges.

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Life is about the journey, not the destination

Life is journey.  The journey has stops and turns, many of which we cannot foresee.  The book ‘PILGRIM’S PROGRESS’ by John Bunyan is a story about the journey.  In this book John Bunyan looks at some of the things that we face in the course of life. He identifies many different aspects and gives them unique names: ‘Difficulty Hill, Palace Beautiful, Valley of Humiliation, Valley of the Shadow of Death, Doubting Castle and Giant of Despair, Delectable Mountains and Dark River.  All these different aspects, and others, made up the course of the pilgrim’s journey.

As we face the different aspects along the route that life takes us, the journey of life begins to unfold in the process.  If we are only focused on the destination, we may feel that the dynamics of the journey are a distraction to the fulfillment of the vision we may have had.  But it is the different aspects of life that become the journey of our lives.  We need to get to the point where we ‘discover’ that the life is about the journey and not about the destination.

The life of Joseph is an example of this dynamic.  Joseph had a dream of what would become of his life. But before that could be realized he was taken down the journey of life. The journey included rejection, abandonment, slavery, false accusations, imprisonment and being forgotten. During all these tests be came out on top of the situation and God turned things around.

Today we look at the life of Joseph and we see a tapestry of issues and happenings that all played a part in God’s great plan for Joseph and the people of Israel. We look at his journey and we are encouraged and inspired, not just because of the final outcome, but because of the process and the journey that led to the final outcome.  Imagine the story of Joseph without the journey?  It seems unimaginable.

Your journey has a purpose and your process is not without a divine plan.

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