Borrowed Breath

Of late, I’ve been struck by the necessity of being replenished daily, moment by moment, by the Spirit of the living God. And it’s not just that we leak, as my pastor once observed in a sermon, though I am indeed a porous vessel for the Holy Spirit. But the reason I need constant refilling is because I am expending Him throughout the day. The truth is that He is not meant to be bottled up and stored away for future use. He is given to be spent and shared today, right now.

I often get the image, upon hearing the phrase “filled with the Holy Spirit” of a cup being filled with fresh water to the point of overflowing and splashing onto the floor. When’s the last time you experienced the fullness of the Spirit to the point of making a spiritual mess of yourself? Can you imagine a community of Jesus-followers who literally drip with the Holy Spirit in their everyday lives?

Of course, there is an innate fear of experiencing this fullness. Part of the problem with the Holy Spirit is the fact that He is unpredictable and wild and uncontainable. He may ask me to step out of my comfort zone. He may coerce me into forgiving someone I don’t want to forgive. He may move me to show love to someone I would rather hate or ignore all together. He may compel me to speak when I would rather be silent. He may tell me to shut my stupid mouth when I want to say something to someone. I would rather rule my daily life. But upon surrendering and welcoming the Holy Spirit to fill me to the point of overfilling, I find that His Lordship is better.

So this morning, invite the Holy Spirit to fill you.

He’s been waiting for you to ask Him for awhile now.