The Holy Spirit Gives Us the Power to Do

To celebrate our two year anniversary, and to give me a creative break, Abundant Grace will be reprinting some classic blog devotions from year one for the next month. 

Do you like gifts?  Do you like gifts that you can use?  Do you prefer gifts that sit and collect dust or get put away in out of the way places?  Are you a hoarder of gifts that have been given but never used, and likely never will be?  God has given us gifts.  The gifts that He has given to us fall somewhere in the answer to the above questions.

Jesus promised a great gift to His disciples before He ascended into heaven.  He promised them the gift of the Holy Spirit.  He promised them many gifts that would come from the one gift.  One of the gifts that He promised us through the Holy Spirit is the gift of power.  Jesus said, “But you shall receive power when the Holy Ghost is come upon you.”  In fact, one of the names for the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Power. 

Do you ever sit in church and hear the pastor request volunteers to do a certain task in the church?  When he asks for a Sunday school teacher do you ever think to yourself, “I wish I could do that” but then answer yourself quickly, “But I just couldn’t”?   But wait! Yes, you can!  The Holy Spirit within you has given you power.  Do you hear the call for volunteers to go to the nursing home to sing and visit for a half an hour?  Do you ever say to yourself, “I wish I could do that” but then quickly answer yourself, “But I just couldn’t”? But wait! Yes, you can.  The Holy Spirit within you has given you power!   

God has given us a gift we can use.  He has given to us the Holy Spirit.  The Holy Spirit has given us a gift we can use.  He has given us power.  That is power to work for God, to testify of God, to minister for God to do good works for God to serve God in every way.  It is not a gift He wants us to lay aside and not use.  It is not a gift He wants us to hoard or hide.  He has given us power!  We have the power of omnipotent God within us. Isn’t that a wonderful and useful gift? 

Paul Rader, American evangelist, pastor, hymnist and pioneer Christian radio broadcaster has given us a wonderful hymn about power from the Holy Spirit simply titled, “Old Time Power”.  The second stanza reads, “We will glory in Thy power, we will sing of wondrous grace; in our midst, as Thou has promised, come, O come, and take Thy place.” Then the chorus resounds, “Spirit, now melt and move all of our hearts with love, breathe on us from above with old time power.”  Let us take God’s promises as true.  Let us claim His name as real.  The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Power.  Let us let Him use His great gift in us.    

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