3 Simple Steps

    If we want to walk in the Spirit rather than walking in our sinful nature, we have to feed the Spirit. What we feed is what will win out in our lives. Here are three simple things I do to feed the Spirit.

1. Pray. Yep, I said it. It seems like a Sunday school answer, but this is more than your typical heal everybody who is sick and bless us for being here today prayer. This type of prayer is powerful and desperate for true transformation to occur. It also is the kind of prayer where you sit in silence and listen for God to speak to your heart. The kind of prayer that the Holy Spirit intercedes on our behalf with groans too deep for words (Romans 8:26) when our hearts are overwhelmed and don't know what to pray. Prayer that is way more than here's my list and amen. Prayer from a heart that is continually ready for conversation with God. When I'm driving in the car, buying groceries, tying shoes, etc., I bring my requests to God. I thank Him for who He is and what He has done. I intercede on behalf of people I know who are in need. I confess my struggles and weaknesses to Him. I ask Him to be the portion of whatever I need. I have found there is so much power in praying His Word back to Him. Recently I will often choose one of the prayers Paul wrote in His letters or a Psalm and I pray that truth for myself or someone else.

2. Bible study. Not just reading a verse or chapter to check that off my list. Not just completing a Bible study written by someone else, but actually digging into the Word myself. I have found that when I pray for the eyes of my heart to be enlightened to His truth, I usually get much more out of the Scripture I read than when I just open it and try to figure it out on my own. He has given us the Holy Spirit to open our eyes and impart wisdom and application to us. To me, it seems foolish not to ask the Holy Spirit to do the very thing He was given to us to do. And yet for many years, I wrestled to figure out Scripture out on my own, instead of inviting the very One given to me to reveal God's truths to me. I often read a couple of verses or a short passage. Through the YouVersion app on my phone, I will read the verses/passage in a couple of different translations. I also use www.studylight.org and www.biblegateway.com/ to read commentary on the verses as well. I pray that God will make clear to me a way I can apply that verse to my life, and then try to purposely look for ways to apply it. Am I always successful in this? No. Do I always do this? No. But I know the benefits I experience when I do. It takes purposeful planning on my part to make time for this in my day. I know that it is worth the time I invest in it every time.

3. Invest in friends of the faith. The influences we allow in our lives are so important. The company we keep can push us towards Christ, but they can also push us away from Christ. Friends who encourage you with God's truth and who are constantly pointing you back to God and His Word can be so instrumental in our walk with the Lord. In the last year, I have learned some important lessons in friendship. I have learned that true friends of the faith are those who are not just talking about walking with the Lord, but those who are actively and purposefully trying to live out their faith. In the last couple of months especially, I have learned that true Christian friends love you enough to tell you the truth even when it's hard. They love enough to point you back to God and His Word. They love you enough to do the hard parts of life with you not just the fun, easy parts. They struggle through and do the hard parts of life with you even when it's hard for them too. I'm praying about and trying to be this kind of friend. I want to be that person who points others to Christ, who walks through the fun and hard times of life with others, who speaks the truth in love especially when it's hard. I want to be that person who is actively and purposefully trying to live out their faith. I feel like God is answering that prayer for me. That He is transforming me into that kind of friend. I know I still have far to come, but I feel like we (Jesus in me) are making forward progress in this area.

     We reap the benefits of a close relationship with the Lord and His blessings in our lives when we feed the Spirit.