However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come.

(John 16:13 NKJV)

I don’t share this story often, so please don’t laugh. I planned to roast a whole chicken for a neighbor in need. With my visual impairment, I had made the mistake of cooking whole chickens upside-down. As I basted the chicken, I prayed. “Lord, please don’t let this chicken be upside-down.”

The thought of sending my neighbor an upside-down chicken bothered me to the degree that I made another request. “Lord, if this chicken is upside-down, will You please turn it over?”

The chicken sat in the roasting pan, firmly planted on my stove. I opened the oven door, but before I touched the pan, it flipped over onto the open oven door. “No!!”

So, I turned the little hen back to where she started and popped it in the oven.

My husband examined the chicken. “You cooked it upside-down.”

Then I told him what had happened. I asked God to intervene, but I doubted He would.

When we seek answers to the big questions in life, we can’t expect an angel to toss a chicken off the stove.  We can expect to receive an answer and a confirmation from the Holy Spirit.

In today’s verse, Jesus called the Holy Spirit the Spirit of truth. He will never deceive us. He only Speaks what Jesus Christ tells Him to speak. His authority comes from Christ.

Since the Holy Spirit acts as our guide and speaks to us, we must be in a right relationship with Him. A Sunday only relationship doesn’t cut it. Establish a good prayer life, and a good worship time too. Worship isn’t only for church. Whether it’s hymns or praise and worship, turn on the music and praise the Lord. That’s how we get filled with the Spirit (Eph. 5:18).

How can we know we have a confirmation from the Holy Spirit? According to Tony Evans in his Book, Theology You Can Count On,  Holy Spirit confidence won’t waiver when people say you can’t do something.  He gives us a peace about the subject, and we won’t fear the circumstances.

Our spirit will receive witness from the Holy Spirit, and we will know the direction He is leading us. As you continue growing spiritually, this gets easier.  It’s like recognizing the voice of a familiar friend.

Holy Spirit, I want to linger in prayer with You, allowing You to translate my groanings into the words I need to pray. You know God’s will for my life. Help me worship You today. In Jesus’s name. Amen.

DIG DEEPER

Read Romans 8:15 NKJV:

The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God

HIKING THE TRAIL

How can you spend more time in prayer? This needs to be our habit, because we can’t jump into a healthy prayer life only when we need answers.

RELATED RESOURCE

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Originally posted on November 1, 2021 @ 3:00 am