Compelling Reason #4: We need to pursue a deeper filling of the Spirit because we rely on the Spirit’s creativity & orchestration in our efforts to reach people for Christ.
I once heard Jack Hayford describe a vision he had. He saw what looked like a pile of brown leaves. However, as he moved closer, he saw that they weren’t leaves at all. They were bent and rusted keys.
How many of us have keys on our key rings, or in a drawer or jar, but we have no idea what they’re for? We don’t want to throw them away, because we might remember what they’re for. Bent and rusted keys – what good are they, unless they are cleaned, identified, and put to use for their intended purpose?
People can be like bent and rusted keys. We’re made with a purpose. But somewhere along the way, due to sin, brokenness, and life’s hardships, people are damaged (bent and rusted), losing sight of their purpose in life. Like the Samaritan woman at the well whom Jesus met, we all need love, forgiveness, encouragement, meaning, and hope.
The Holy Spirit can orchestrate circumstances in ways we could never imagine. One day I was preaching at my church in northern California. For some reason, I felt led to veer off from my prepared notes to share an experience Cheri and I had with a Native American man at a McDonalds in Elko, Nevada. Cheri told him that Jesus loves him, and he began to share with us all the heartbreak, brokenness, and confusion he had endured as a Native American. We apologized for the many things our race had done to rob him of his culture and for the suffering caused by broken treaties, and so on. We prayed for him, and God touched him deeply. With tears coming down his cheeks, he asked, “How did you know what I needed to hear?” We said that we didn’t, but that God did.
I told that story and then went on with my sermon. After the service a guy approached me whom I’d never seen before. He had long hair, and was dressed in military garb. He was homeless, and lived in the redwood trees. He held a blanket with something wrapped inside it. And, he was shaking.
I said, “Hi, nice to meet you.”
He replied, “I’d like you to have this.”
Nervously, I asked him, “What’s in the blanket?”
He repeated, “I want you to have this.”
As it turned out, it was his prized possession, a 1944 Marine Corps machete. He had polished and sharpened it, and it was beautiful. I responded, “I can’t take this.”
He said, “You have to.”
I asked, “Why? Why would you want to give it to me?”
He said, “I was on my way this morning to kill two people with this machete, people who have been mocking me. Some members of your church invited me to come to church with them, and they wouldn’t take no for an answer.”
The Holy Spirit orchestrated that! He gave people in our church – people like you – boldness to say, “Come on to church!” Even though he looked different, with kind of a wild look in his eyes, they said, “Come on, come on, it won’t hurt you to go to church.”
And there he was, with his blanket-wrapped machete that he intended to use to kill two people. But instead he came to church.
It was a packed service, and I hadn’t noticed him sitting out in the congregation. But the Holy Spirit knew he was there, and He led me to preach a different message than I had prepared, a message that bore right into this man’s heart. Here is where the story gets even more amazing. I asked him, “Is there any other reason you want to give me your prized possession?”
He answered, still trembling with emotion, “My mother is a Native American, and I have never heard a white man say ‘I am sorry’ before in my life.”
He gave me his prized possession and, needless to say, now it is one of mine.
By God’s grace, and the Spirit’s coordination of our efforts to reach people for Jesus, this man heard Good News that day, and I was privileged to lead him in prayer to receive Christ as his Savior and Lord. We need the Holy Spirit because He causes miracles like this to happen. He’s creative. He reveals strategies. He is the Activator of all God’s gifts and resources and blessings. He activates our prayers. He activates the power of the name of Jesus and the power of the blood of Jesus. He activates our spiritual armor and all the weapons we need to claim victory in spiritual battle. He heals, restores, and gives courage. And we need to pursue His fullness!
Compelling Reasons…. and the list goes on!
Well, I could go on and on with many more reasons, but I will stop here, for now. We truly do need to pursue a deeper filling of the Holy Spirit. As much as we may value and love the Holy Spirit, the impact that we are making in our culture is relatively small. We need to turn the knob up to HOT! I pray we will all do that.
I’m sure I speak for all the leaders of Holy Spirit Renewal Ministries. We invite you to join us in our efforts to bring a deeper Holy Spirit life and ministry to Christians, churches, our nation, and the world. Join us as we pursue an ever-deeper filling of the Holy Spirit so that Christ’s church will shine like the city on a hill and the light to the nations He has called us to be.