May 26, 2012
When The Fire Falls – Lives Are Changed`
And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. And there were dwelling at Jerusalem Jews, devout men, out of every nation under heaven. Now when this was noised abroad, the multitude came together, and were confounded, because that every man heard them speak in his own language. And they were all amazed and marvelled, saying one to another, Behold, are not all these which speak Galilaeans? And how hear we every man in our own tongue, wherein we were born? Parthians, and Medes, and Elamites, and the dwellers in Mesopotamia, and in Judaea, and Cappadocia, in Pontus, and Asia, Phrygia, and Pamphylia, in Egypt, and in the parts of Libya about Cyrene, and strangers of Rome, Jews and proselytes, Cretes and Arabians, we do hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful works of God. And they were all amazed, and were in doubt, saying one to another, What meaneth this? Others mocking said, These men are full of new wine. But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and said unto them, Ye men of Judaea, and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem, be this known unto you, and hearken to my words: For these are not drunken, as ye suppose, seeing it is but the third hour of the day. But this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel; And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams: And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy: And I will shew wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood, and fire, and vapour of smoke: The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before that great and notable day of the Lord come: And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.
Acts 2:1-21
Quote of the Day
“Holy Spirit of God, visit now this soul of mine, and tarry within it until the eventide. Inspire all my thoughts. Pervade all my imaginations. Suggest all my decisions. Lodge in my soul's most inward citadel, and order all my doings. Be with me in silence and in my speech, in my haste and in my leisure, in company and in solitude, in the freshness of the morning and the weariness of the evening. Give me grace at all times to rejoice in Thy mysterious companionship.” – John Baillie
Today’s Thoughts and Insights:
When an individual surrenders himself to God and asks Jesus to forgive their sins and invites Him to live in their heart: they are in essence inviting the presence of the third person of the trinity to move in and abide with them. Some people call it the baptism of the holy-spirit: some call it the indwelling: while others may refer to it in some other descriptive way: but the crux of the matter is this: when you accept God’s gift of salvation you are welcoming the Holy Spirit to move in and to live with you daily. You are allowing the fire-power of the presence of God to ignite in your spirit and to illuminate your life. The question then becomes how hot will you let that fire burn and how brightly will you allow Him to shine?
I contend it is impossible to be in God’s presence and not be affected and changed. So why then do we see so many people who call themselves Christians who are lukewarm to cold and seem to have about as much illumination as a burnt out light bulb? Could it be that their relationship with God is superficial at best an more than likely non-existent at worst?
When you truly connect with God and the fire of His presence falls from Heaven and ignites your life, there must be change: there must be an evidence of His power: there must be a testimony the bespeaks of His existence within you and if there is not then you may need to consider giving you life to Him. If you are a Christian and your light is dull and your fire is nothing but embers you need to asses the place you give Him in your heart and life and you need to realize that if you really want to make a difference in this world for His glory – you must let the fire of His presence consume you and allow the glow of His glory to illuminate you and then you need to step back, stand aside, let go and let God do what only He can and if and when you do: you will be in awe and amazed at His mighty works and wonders in and through you.
Today’s Prayer
Father, you are all encompassing, all powerful and beyond amazing and you are the light of my life. May I be bold, courageous and always willing to allow the fire of your spirit to rage out of control in my heart and life so that it can consume me and light my world with your amazing radiance!
“O Holy Spirit, descend plentifully into my heart. Enlighten the dark corners of this neglected dwelling and scatter there Thy cheerful beams.”
–
Augustine
“This is my cry: This is my song,
You are my guiding light, when the way is unknown;
And when the sunny skies, turn shades of gray,
I’ll stay close by your side: As you lead the way.
Jesus lead on I will follow:
Jesus lead on, let your love light the way… “
- Lyrics from ‘Jesus Lead On’ by Brent Helming
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