Thoughts on Holy Spirit

Few points on the Holy Spirit:

1. If you are a Christian, you have the Holy Spirit reigning in you. There cannot be more or less of Him in you. It's either - you have the Holy spirit or not. If you proclaim that Christ is your savior and master, you have the Holy Spirit in you. If you are more obedient, you don't get more of the spirit; if you are disobedient, you don't get less of the Holy Spirit.

2. So what does people mean when they say filling of the Holy Spirit? The person will give greater control to the Holy Spirit in his/her life.

3. We have to learn to hear the voice of the Spirit. To interpret the nudges of the Holy Spirit. We don't hear the audible voice of the Spirit. So how do we grow to be sensitive to hear the Spirit speaking?

4. The basic spiritual discipline is part of that. God's word is a recording of the Spirit. The Word of God was written through inspiration by the Spirit. When I read the word, I am hearing the Holy Spirit. 

5. The Spirit does not need to repeat what is written in the Word of God - it is a public record. He has already put that in writing. So, when I read the Word of God, I am learning many of the essential things that I need to know. I am also learning how the Spirit thinks and how the Spirit views things. Therefore, the Word of God is a critical starting point to learn to listen to the spirit's voice.

6. The next method - Prayer. I do two things. I speak to God and I listen from the God. It's a two way conversation. While I spend time in prayer expressing my thoughts, the Holy Spirit speaks through my intellect. He speaks through my thoughts. When I pray, I focus - to listen. As I pray, I am giving the Spirit opportunity to shape my thoughts about God.

7. Third, look for the Holy Spirit to speak or express His thoughts through my thoughts. So, you have to practice it - expect the Spirit to speak to you; keenly listen to his thoughts. It could be through your situations, through your conversations with other people. If you are not looking for the Spirit's response, you may miss it. Pray that you recognize the nudging of the Holy Spirit. If you are well grounded in the word, you can eliminate things that you hear that are not from the Holy Spirit. If it is from the Holy Spirit - he will sustain it, strengthens it, affirms it. Once that happens, you run with it. Each time you hear and obey, next time you are at a better position to hear next time.

8. It's a conscious doing. If you don't consciously do this, you will lose the nudging of the Holy Spirit in your life. He still speaks, but you don't recognize it.

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