Daily Devotional Day & Night

HAPPY WEDNESDAY!

Today's scriptures are about the proceeding of the Holy Spirit, after Jesus’ resurrection. We're each taught that when we accept Jesus as Lord and Savior we receive the Holy Spirit. To commemorate our Salvation, we're to be baptized by water, in the Name of the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit, to represent the cleansing of our sins. If you’re a new believer, what does all of this mean to you? The fact is that you're now a chosen Child of God, who has been given many gifts, including the gift of eternal life. What do you do in the meantime? You are washed with the blood of Jesus, and through Him you are made righteous, but God begins a transformation from your inside out. You're blessed with His Holy Spirit, who helps you make that transformation smoothly, and guides you along the way.
There is only one God, but He's broken up into the Trinity of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. Which all existed from the beginning of time. I was talking to a friend last night, and John 1 was brought up, this amazes me because the scriptures that were quoted, are so relevant to today's devotional (that's an example of how the Holy Spirit works!). It's written: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. (John 1:1-5) Jesus was the Word in the flesh, and He makes it possible for us to become children of God, after we were separated by the sin of Adam and Eve, in the Garden of Eden. Jesus is the light to an otherwise dark sinful world, and His Holy Spirit is the lamp to our path. Before Jesus was crucified He left us with this: “If you love Me, keep My commandments. And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever— the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you." (John 14:15-18) Jesus said, "I will come to you", because He and the Holy Spirit were both one with God from the beginning of time. It's written: Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness…” So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. (Gen 1:26-7)
The Holy Spirit is as important to our life as Jesus, because He dwells in us, and helps us in every aspect. He's in our heart speaking to, and through, us all the time, even in our sleep. He searches our heart and helps us prays to God. He even prays through us, in a special language [which we call "speaking in tongues], that only He and God understand. He's that small still voice that tells us which way to go, in order to stay on the path of righteousness. Yet, He's also that sometimes-loud booming voice, which openly warns us against evil. He's that gut feel we get when faced with a tough decision, and He's our conscious and convicts us when we've sinned. He's our translator when we read the Holy Bible, and He's the reason it comes to life and pierces our heart. He's the author of these devotionals, because ask Him to use me, and write through me each day. I could go on and on about Who He is, and what He does for us on a daily basis, but I think you get the picture.
Invite the Holy Spirit to be a part of your everyday life, because that's what's required to stay in tuned with Him. When you awake, ask Him to lead you on the path of righteousness for that day, pick up the Word of God, and ask for clarity and instructions as you read. When you sin and feel conviction thank Him, confess those sins to God and repent. When you see someone that looks like they need a Word from the Lord, ask Him to Speak through you, to give them what God intended them to have. Each person who has confessed Jesus as Lord and Savior has these abilities so take advantage of them. Each day I strive to be a better person, and to strengthen my relationship with God, so I pray without ceasing, and consult my Holy Spirit throughout the day. That's all it takes to consistently grow in the Lord, as He intends for you to do.
If you don't know Jesus as Lord and Savior, then your journey must start there. Pray and confess your sins to God, and ask Jesus to come into your heart as Lord and Savior, and once that heart felt prayer is complete, you'll be blessed with the gift of the Holy Spirit. From there, find a church home, and be baptized as commanded by the Lord. Follow the bible as laid out for you, with the help of the Holy Spirit’s presence, it worked for me. Learn how to speak in tongues, to help you further feel the Holy Spirit’s presence; it works for me. My favorite verse today is: Hereby know we that we dwell in him and he in us, because he hath given us of his Spirit. (1 John 4:13)

ENJOY! http://www.bible.com/scripture-detail.php?juli=2455371&dtype=Scripture
http://www.intouch.org/site/pp.aspx?c=cnKBIPNuEoG&b=4943197
http://www.intouch.org/site/apps/nl/newsletter.asp?c=cnKBIPNuEoG&b=4943547

I love you!