Understanding The Influence of the Holy Spirit in my Day-to-day Activities
Does the Holy Spirit care outside the landscape of the church?
Before I start:
Dear God, thank you for this reader. I pray that you make this reader understand your word, see you in a new light, and love you more. Amen.
Have you ever asked yourself if the Holy Spirit cares about your day-to-day activities?
Or have you ever questioned the thought that the Holy Spirit wants you to wear certain clothes, listen to a certain song, or do something or anything not relating to the church rites?
If you have ever felt that, I assure you, you're not backsliding. In fact, you're on the right path. Wondering what I mean? Well, let's dive into the word of God.
To begin the path of answering these questions, it is important that we first establish who the Holy Spirit is. Hence, we arrive at the preface of our topic:
Who is the Holy Spirit?
In Genesis 1:1-2, Moses opened the book with the chronology of the creation story; however, there is an important character that cannot be overlooked in the appearance of events—the Spirit.
In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was barren, with no form of life; it was under a roaring ocean covered with darkness. But the Spirit of God was moving over the water.
Genesis 1:1-2 CEVUK
This verse used the ‘Spirit of God’ which literally is not as same as the ‘Holy Spirit’ if we're considering linguistic relativity. However, in Ezekiel 36:27,
"God says, because I will put my Spirit in you and make you eager to obey my laws and teachings."
Now, we have established that the Spirit of God is what God promised that will dwell in us, then let's conclude our research on the Holy Spirit. In John 14:26, Jesus says
"But the Holy Spirit will come and help you, because the Father will send the Spirit to take my place. The Spirit will teach you everything and will remind you of what I said while I was with you."
Therefore, having drawn a nexus between the Spirit of God and the Holy Spirit, we now understand that the Spirit of God is also the Holy Spirit. Now, back to the first question, does the Holy Spirit care about my day-to-day activities?
Some years back, someone told me of how he often asks the Holy Spirit what to wear before going to class.
Perhaps you're laughing, I did too but then the truth is, the Holy Spirit cares about your day-to-day life.
In Galatians 5:22-23, Peter says,
"But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!"
Now, if we're to consider the fruits of the spirit one after the other, then we can see how penetratingly the Spirit of God helps us.
Love & Joy
Paul explained in Galatians that the Holy Spirit is more concerned with our state of mind.
It's not only about speaking in a new tongue, he also wants you to be happy and joyful because he knows that you can't serve God with a disturbed heart, hence, Joy and Love are also one of the many fruits the Holy Spirit brings to your daily activities.
Peace & Patience
Have you ever felt like screaming your lungs out in frustration but you kept your cool or something seems to be suppressing it? Well, that "something" is the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit is concerned with you exercising patience and having peace of mind in dealing with people.
He knows that these attitudes help in living a healthy life and setting standard living for others.
Kindness & Goodness
The essence of being kind is not for yourself, but for others to enjoy the comfort you bring.
If the Holy Spirit is in you, he is concerned with your daily engagements and he shows this through you being kind and good.
By impact, he makes himself evident in your life.
Faithfulness & Gentleness
God wants you to be faithful and gentle and that is why he has given you the Holy Spirit so that he can guide you in your acts, help you not to rush, and address every task with utmost gentility.
Some years back, I remember how I often rush to almost everywhere.
Now, the secret trick is not about the rush, it is about other things rooted in the rush like anger, frustration, disappointment, untrustworthy, lies, unfaithfulness, and similar things.
Then I told my mentor and he asked me to pray about it.
It felt weird at first, but I prayed and things began to change. Then I realized that one of the major reasons I rush is because I do not value where I am going, neither did I value my appearance nor those I will be meeting.
Hence, when the holy spirit takes the control of your life, you are modeled to exhibit his character in your everyday life.
Self-control
You have the Holy Spirit in control so that you can't lose control.
God is particular about the way you approach relationships, things you say, characters you build, acceptance, and rejection—in all these scenarios, the Holy Spirit wants to be in control of you.
He wants to perfect your utterances and build your character. Hence, through this, your day-to-day activities are all orchestrated by God and guided by the Holy Spirit.
Conclusion
In John 14:16,
"And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter [Holy Spirit], that he may be with you for ever."
The existence of the Holy Spirit in our life is not limited to the time we're in the walls of the church building.
But rather a perpetuity relationship that cares about our daily activities.