Dear Heavenly Father,
This week I had the opportunity to speak Your Word to a friend of mine. Many Christians don’t do nearly enough to share the good news of Jesus Christ, but I’m so thankful that I had this chance. It’s always a great feeling to be able to pour into someone’s life. We can be assured that when we share the Word of God, we are giving someone the very best that can be given.
My friend has questions and concerns about speaking in tongues. He also hasn’t learned to operate by the faith of Jesus Christ in certain areas of his life. You tell us in Romans 12:1(MSG), “So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him.” You want our entire being to be presented to You as an offering. You want everything that we can offer. We are to embrace what You’ve done for us through Christ, and present every drop of ourselves to You, because You will turn our lives into something beautiful.
People that do not know of Your goodness, think that they can do things on their own. They believe their good works make them righteous, and that they can worship any way they choose. Jesus Christ told us in John 4:24 that we must worship You in spirit and in truth. We need Your precious Holy Spirit to help us do this. In John 16:13, Jesus Christ said that he, the Holy Spirit, will guide us into all truth. He will tell us things that he hears from our Master Jesus.
My friend didn’t believe that the Spirit lives inside of us and will speak through our vocal chords a spiritual language that we may not personally recognize. He didn’t understand that speaking in tongues is proof that Your Spirit abides in us. I explained to him that we should want every spiritual gift that You’ve made available, because all Your gifts are good, perfect, and come from above.
I also explained to him that none of us can do anything without faith in You, and that faith, without works to back it up, is dead (James 2:26). If we take an exam, for example, and hope to make an ‘A’, we have to study. Most students realize that studying is the way to back our faith. We can have all the hope we want, but if we don’t put forth diligent effort, the results will not be what we expect. You tell us that we can’t please You without faith, and if we have faith, then we have to do what You’ve said in Your Word to back it.
You have given every person a measure of faith, but our responsibility as Your sons and daughters is to grow in the faith of Jesus Christ by reading, studying, and meditating on Your Word. We must also change our minds and hearts to be like Christ. We must treat others the way we want to be treated, and we should share Your Word and goodness with as many as will listen.
Thank You, Heavenly Father, for Your precious Holy Spirit. Thank You for giving us the example of Jesus Christ. He is Lord! And we can walk in faith the very same way that he did. The Spirit will help us to do this, and when we don’t know how to pray and what to pray for, we can speak in tongues, because it is perfect prayer.
When I think of everything You’ve done for us, how You’ve left no detail undone, and made us totally complete in Christ, I am overjoyed! Thank You for being such a wonderful and loving Father.
“Thank You for Spiritual Gifts”, written by K. Lizzie, edited by Reverend Fran Mack for Sundie Morning Sistas ©2018. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord! SMS is dedicated to inspiring and encouraging Christian Women through the Word of God.