Is the fire of Pentecost burning in your heart?

 

Glorify God!

For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s. 1 Corinthians 6:20 KJV

Glorify God in your body and in your spirit…that’s a huge mission; one that human strength and activity alone can’t accomplish.

That’s why I am thankful for for the prophesy in Isaiah 61:1-3 that begins with: “The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me…and concludes with “that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified”.

 From these verses and many others, it is clear that one of the roles of Holy Spirit in a believers life is to help us glorify God.

A little bonsai

Let’s look closer at this picture of  “trees of righteousness”

There are all sorts of trees. They come in a variety of colors, shapes and sizes. While I am fascinated by trees, I am saddened by Bonsai Trees. Oh I realize they are valuable. A friend of mine purchased one for $600.00.

A bonsai may reach maturity, but it will never reach it’s full potential.

Trees are designed to be big!

You climb in them, swing on their branches or rest in the shade of their bushy canopies. Bonsai trees are too small for any of those activities.

Mature trees will reach heights of 50 to 150 feet, but a mature bonsai tree will only reach 12 to 14 inches.

Bonsai trees are not dwarfed by genetics; they are miniature by deliberate design. The blueprint locked inside the DNA of the young seedling promises a mighty giant, but that destiny is deliberately altered to create a bonsai.

Sequoia

Too many believers live satisfied and content as bonsai Christians instead of being the giants God intended.

Several translators translated trees as oaks, but I think a sequoia is a more accurate picture of what God had in mind. The giant sequoias that grow in the Sierra Nevada Mountains are among the oldest and largest living things of the earth.

The bark on these towering wonders is over 12 inches thick.

A picture doesn’t capture the enormity of the sequoia. These supersized giants are spectacular, reaching heights of 250 feet. When I stood at the base of the General Sherman tree, named for its exceptional stature, I commented to my husband “Look how small the branches are”. My husband read the sign to me. The lowest limb was so high that it appeared to be very small; yet, it was six feet, eight inches in diameter, more than the average man’s height.

I felt like a tiny bug in comparison to its towering majesty.

Although God puts the seed of potential in every believer to live super-sized Christian lives, too often we live like a bonsai with bonsai results.

Sequoia
Sequoia trees of righteousness the planting of the Lord

Something is missing.

Where’s the power we need to overcome sin and be more like Jesus?

Something seems to be missing.

That something is actually “Someone.”

We are missing precious Holy Spirit. Our unbelief has frozen Pentecost into a myth or a relic of the past, like a dinosaur. Whether by deliberate neglect, fear of the unknown, or skepticism, we have pushed Holy Spirit into a  dark corner in the basement of our lives.

Our inability to produce desired results leaves us questioning Him instead of questioning our beliefs and values. One of the benefits of Spirit filled living is having Holy Spirit help us glorify God. Oh yes, we have an abundance of activities, programs, and ideas – but no power. We have plenty of knowledge but little wisdom. We know how to compromise, organize, and economize, but we refuse to evangelize.

Every believer has the DNA to be a spiritual dynamo, but we have dropped our God given authority and shirked away from the responsibility. We live as if Christianity was another self-help program, picking and choosing scriptures as though they were suggestions.

We employ self-discipline to produce righteousness and holiness just as we would if we were trying various tips to stay on a diet.

Our theology insists Holy Spirit exists, but divorced from His living presence, we live like deserted, hopeless orphans.

The early church was born in the fire and power of Holy Spirit.

If the early church needed power, why don’t we still need it? Did God intend for the church to be born in a dynamic fire only to fizzle out?

Or, has the lid of wrong teaching kept us from expecting and experiencing the infilling of Holy Spirit?

Has unbelief cut our taproot, so we fail to reach for and receive the deep things of God?

Let’s stir our hearts to discover God’s truth.

What is the truth concerning Holy Spirit?

We all have questions but some don’t seem to have clear answers; others are simple to understand when you know where to look.

Who is Holy Spirit?

Do you receive Holy Spirit at the same time you receive salvation?

Is there a second work of grace?

Have tongues stopped?

The truth is hidden in the seed of a mystery.

Unlocking the mystery will enrich your life beyond your wildest dreams. In seven lessons, in my book “Precious Holy Spirit” I will take you on a journey through Scripture to unlock the mystery of Pentecost.

Are you ready for Holy Spirit fire?

I’d love to share with you things I’ve learned about my precious friend, Holy Spirit.

Holy Spirt filled living
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