Who is the Holy Spirit? Why is He important? How do I have a relationship with Him?
Great questions.
The Holy Spirit is the third part of the Holy Trinity. You may already know God as the Father, Jesus as His Son, and the Holy Spirit is presence of God in a spiritual essence that lives within us once we accept Christ into our lives. It is the presence of God in this unique form that enables us to apply the same power that raised Jesus from the dead to our everyday lives and situations. (Read that again and let it sink in... Mind blowing!) The trinity is active in all its parts- we approach God as our father, we receive intercession from Jesus who is seated at his right hand, and His spirit gives guidance on how to be more like Christ.
The Holy Spirit is important because He has the ability to transform our habits, feelings and thoughts. In in the Galatians chapter 5, the apostle Paul lays out the struggle we have between our spirit self (referred to as man) and our human self (sometimes called carnal man or flesh). One thing becomes clear in this book: to maximize the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives we have to cultivate a relationship with him and purposefully do things to strengthen our spirit.
Here are some practical ways to engage the Holy Spirit in daily life.
1. Set aside time to speak to him as a friend, and not through formal prayer. I'm going to assume you have a healthy and active prayer life- in addition to this, sometimes when you're going to do a menial activity like taking a walk or washing dishes, have an internal conversation with the Holy Spirit. (People often call this being mindful.) You might want to start this by praying and asking the Holy Spirit to spend this time with you. You might start by telling him about something, a situation or a problem; how you feel about it or how you handled it. Then wait for a response. You will not hear an audible voice. You are not looking for a thought to pop into your head. The Holy Spirit speaks from the middle of your chest in a small, still voice. You may get an image or an impression. Especially in the beginning, it's hard to disengage your mind, but when you do hear from the Holy Spirit, it's like catching a glimpse of something bigger. By the time you realize what has happened, it's gone! And yet through practice, you can learn how to tune into His frequency easier.
2. Ask the Holy Spirit what to wear in the morning or what to have for lunch. This is an easy way to involve Him in your daily decision making and start to follow his leading. Once you start this, you will see what I mean. This also works with asking Him to help you remember things. ( I remember I once thought the Holy Spirit doesn't have time to deal with my nonsense when He has bigger things to do, but the truth is God in his fullness cares about all of the things that concern me. These small ways helped me see His presence active in my life on a daily basis.)
3. Ask Him who to pray for. It may not come right away, but one day you will find yourself thinking of someone, wondering how they are and what they are facing. Then, you should get a little nudge- pray! Pray for the person. God will reveal in time how he used you to pray for that person in a moment when they needed it.
Next week, I will answer questions about the baptism of the Holy Spirit and the gifts of the spirit. Be blessed, sis!