Walking By The Leading of the Holy Spirit
Friday, October 29th 2010 @ 10:54 AM
October 28
Walking By the Leading of the Holy Spirit
Yesterday, I was speaking with a mother who has been praying for her prodigal son to come back to the Lord for many years. As a child, her son professed to know Christ and spoke about the Lord often. Today, however, as an adult he's caught in the deception of homosexuality.
She called me to talk about a great opportunity which the Lord has orchestrated for her son. He will soon have a chance to meet a Christian evangelist who is specifically called to reach the homosexual for Christ (I think you can guess who this Christian evangelist already is!) When this meeting happens, this man will come face to face with the fact that no one is born “gay” and complete change is completely possible (as my dear husband always says.)
Now, this mother needs to be involved in some way in order for this meeting to happen. But exactly what should she say or what should she do? She cannot push her son or take things into her own hands for fear of pushing him away. This is a time she must humbly come before the Lord and ask Him what she needs to do. By relying on the Holy Spirit, she will act and speak as the Lord leads her. Then she can leave the consequences in God's able hands.
Before I go any further, I’d like to ask all of you to please pray for her, her family, and her son. Please pray for Stephen and myself as well. We have prayed for many years for this prodigal to come home and the Lord is clearly moving!
Like this mother who called me, we all must make decisions on how to minister to our prodigals and unsaved loved ones. Answers do come when we rely on the Holy Spirit’s guidance. Psalm 16:7 says “I will bless the Lord who has given me counsel; my heart also instructs me in the night seasons.” I love this verse because it pictures God speaking to your heart when you are quiet and listening.
We listen to the Lord because we want Him to tell us what to do and what not to do. We want Him to direct each one of our steps. Although, discerning between God's leading and your own ideas can sometimes be a bit tricky, I believe through prayer and knowing God’s Word, your sensitivity to the Holy Spirit is fine-tuned. As you grow and develop your personal, intimate relationship with the Lord, you become familiar with His voice and accustomed to His ways.
I’d like to share with you what happened when my dear friend “Miss Lucy” obeyed the prompting of the Holy Spirit. Lucy is a real prayer warrior, has been a pastor’s wife, and has a real heart for ministry. She also has two prodigal sons who came back to Jesus – one who is alive and well, and the other who went on to be with Christ..
Miss Lucy was walking down the street in the city where she lived when she noticed a homeless man on the sidewalk, lying in the midst of all kinds of debris. As she came closer, the Holy Spirit told her to pray for him. Immediately, she bent down and told him she would really like to pray for him and asked if that would that be alright. He said yes. She prayed for him, and then continued on her way.
About a year later she met him again. This time he was working at a church outreach. She didn’t remember his face, but he sure did remember hers. He told her she was sent directly from God and proceeded to explain what had transpired that day. He was so dirty that his body itched all over and just when he couldn’t stand it any longer, Lucy came by and prayed for him. As soon as she finished praying, the itch completely stopped. He was so amazed over what happened that when someone else came by and shared the gospel with him, he accepted Christ. He has been serving Christ ever since!
The Holy Spirit lives inside of us and is active and ready to guide us in our daily lives. I believe just this morning the Holy Spirit prompted me to pick up a book I haven’t read in a long time. What I read in its pages is perfect for my blog today. It’s a quote from a very famous Christian man who relied on the Holy Spirit’s guidance and in doing so changed the world.
“It was the Lord who put into my mind (I could feel His hand upon me) the fact that it would be possible to sail from here to the Indies. All who heard of my project rejected it with laughter, ridiculing me. There is no question that the inspiration was from the Holy Spirit, because He comforted me with the rays of marvelous inspiration from the Holy Scriptures… I am a most unworthy sinner, but I have cried out to the Lord for grace and mercy…For the execution of the journey to the Indies, I did not make use of intelligence, mathematics, or maps. It is simply the fulfillment of what Isaiah had prophesied…
“…for this was the alpha and omega of the enterprise, that it should be for the increase and glory of the Christian religion and that no one should come to these parts who was not a good Christian.”
Christopher Columbus (Book of Prophecies, completed after his third voyage to the New World, Journal, p 78, Thursday November 27, 1492)
Amazing! The Holy Spirit led His children in times past just as He does now. I pray that you would endeavor to spend some time being quiet and listening to the Holy Spirit today and throughout this week!
Have a blessed week,
Irene Bennett
