Practice
The essence of the Christian life is what God does in and through us, not what we do for God. Christ’s life is reproduced in the believer by the power of the Holy Spirit. To be filled with the Spirit is to be directed and empowered by Him.
Who is the Holy Spirit?
Journal your responses to the following questions…
What are your beliefs, presumptions, and experiences of the Holy Spirit?
Take a look at the following Scriptures that mention the Holy Spirit. What do you see are the different roles of the Holy Spirit?
- Ezekiel 36:24-28
- John 7:37-39
- John 14:15-31
- Romans 8:1-16
- Galatians 5:13-25
What is confirmed and what are gaps between your presumptions and experiences and knowledge of the Holy Spirit?
What keeps you from abandoning yourself to a lifestyle of depending on the Spirit?
What are the implications for your life as it relates to your intimacy with God and as it relates to perfectionism and excellence?
Spiritual Breathing
Spiritual Breathing is a practice that helps us experience ongoing relational intimacy with Jesus. It’s a word picture to help us understand moment-by-moment dependence upon the Spirit.
This practice can help you engage in a lifestyle of depending upon the Spirit. As you engage in a new practice, simply take two focused days to actively engage in Spiritual Breathing. Take a moment each day to journal briefly about your experience — the challenges and the benefits.
Exhale: Confess your sin the moment you become aware of it. Agree with God concerning it and thank Him for His forgiveness, according to I John 1:9 and Hebrews 10:1-25. Confession requires repentance—a change in attitude and action.
Inhale: Surrender control of your life to Christ, and rely upon the Holy Spirit to fill you with His presence and power by faith, according to His command (Ephesians 5:18) and promise (I John 5:14-15).
Just as we originally were permanently indwelled with the Spirit by faith, we are continually filled day to day with the Holy Spirit by faith alone. By faith, we experience God’s power through the Spirit.
Journal about your experience of the Spirit filled life as it relates to the tension between perfectionism and excellence.