Valuable Life Lessons from Dark Times: Rely on the Holy Spirit
Are you living with or in dark times? Here are thirteen lessons I learned from living with darkness. Lesson #2 is very simple--Take the Holy Spirit With You!
Being alone in the darkness we find ourselves in is unbearable; listening to our own voice alone is maddening; bearing the complete burden of our choices is strength-sapping until we fall on our faces in utter, soul-crushing defeat.
Who or What is the Holy Spirit?
For someone who grew up in strong, Christian theology and was taught about the Holy Spirit his whole life, I didn't understand diddly squat until I was much older. Frankly, my understanding for many years was that the Holy Spirit was somewhat akin to one or a mixture of the following:
the Force from Star Wars;
Casper the Friendly Ghost;
Karma;
a Divine Spark within all beings;
Cosmic Wi-Fi;
our Spidey-Sense;
the Emotional Support Animal of the Spirit;
a spiritual "Mexican jumping bean";
the Genie from Aladdin;
Jiminy Cricket from Pinocchio.
Fortunately, the Holy Spirit made Himself known to me in so many ways, and I feel I have a much better grasp of this third person of the Trinity. It wasn't my theological training or upbringing that brought me to this greater understanding. Rather, understanding was gained every time I was brought to the end of myself and had to recognize anew that mankind is not meant to be alone in the valley of the shadow of death. When David says "Even when I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil for You are with me ..." (Psalm 23:4a), it was the Holy Spirit he was experiencing!
Usually depicted as a dove (from the passages of Jesus' baptism [Matthew 3:16, Mark 1:10, Luke 3:22, and John 1:32]), the Holy Spirit is much, much more, and because we don't understand Him, we fail at walking the Christian life. Being alone in the darkness becomes unbearable; listening to our own voice alone is maddening; bearing the complete burden of our choices is strength-sapping; eventually, we all stumble and fall on our faces in utter, soul-crushing defeat. But it doesn't have to be that way. Here are three powerful roles the Holy Spirit plays in the Christian's life.
Presence, Counselor, Power
He is the Presence of God who lives in us (1 Cor 6:19-20)!
One day, while in seminary, I was at the end of my rope. Taking a full load of graduate classes while working 4 or 5 part-time jobs while also helping care for a depressed wife and a 2-year old had all taken its toll on me. I vividly remember curling up in a fetal position in the corner of the hallway and weeping. My two-year old--attuned at a very early age to the emotional atmosphere in the room--did the most amazing thing she could have done. She toddled down the hallway to me, wrapped her little arms around me, and hugged me for several minutes, until I could arise and handle life a little bit longer.
In that moment, Kayla modeled the Holy Spirit's presence in this believer's life. This presence is why Jesus tells the Disciples in the Gospel of John, chapter 16, verse 7, that He must ascend to heaven OR the "Comforter [one of the attributes of the Greek word paraklete] will not come." In His physical body--bound as it was to time and space--Jesus could only be in one place at a time. But returning to God the Father allowed Him to send the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit is everywhere at all times! In my life, that has included the sands of Afghanistan, the airspace over Iraq, the streets of Amman, the hallways of seminary, and the darkest corners where the shadow of depression ... insecurity ... fear ... anxiety ... and the like loomed large. I have experienced the presence of the Holy Spirit when fired from jobs (yes, more than one!) and mentored by 2-star generals and in the midst of personnel issues andwhile counseling people through the darkest of human experiences. King David asks this question in Psalm 139: "Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from Your Presence?" The answer is "Nowhere." He is no "life force" flowing through the universe; He is a Person who is the Presence of God walking beside us, His rod and His staff comforting us. In Genesis 2, God creates Eve for Adam because "It is not good for man to be alone." In Acts, He sends the Holy Spirit for the same reason--it is not good for us to be alone and so believers are NOT!
He is the Counselor (John 14:16-17)!
That term paraklete in John 14:16-17 is a powerful word, translated variously as "helper," "comforter," "advocate," and "counselor." The Holy Spirit is all of these things! The Apostle James reminds us that, if any of us lack wisdom, we should ask, and God will give it generously (James 1:5). This is the work of the Holy Spirit.
Truthfully, I grow weary of my own stupidity. Just when I think I have it figured out, I realize that I DO NOT! Did you know that indiscriminately raising one's voice is a poor motivator for behavior in kids and spouses? Or that frequent uses of sarcasm creates a toxic workplace? Or that reacting to circumstances without seeking to understand first creates an even bigger mess? Oh yeah ... the Holy Spirit has been hard at work in my life!
Wisdom, in the Judeo-Christian Scriptures, always begins with God. As the Apostle James describes it in James 3, "17 But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere. 18 And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace." I received much "wisdom" during the hardest years of my wife's depression. Most often, the wisdom proferred me can be summed up like this--"Kraig, you deserve to be happy. Divorce your wife." The Holy Spirit counseled otherwise with the wisdom that comes from above.
He reminded me of my vows to Jennifer;
He advised me that godly discipline is shaping, not punitive (Heb 12:11);
He brought to mind that Jennifer was my gift from God;
He let me in on a little secret--God takes our experiences and our growth and the knowledge and wisdom gained and uses them in the lives of others undergoing like situations (2 Cor 1:3-7)!
Counseling and advising--these are the attributes of the Holy Spirit which allow us to see a bigger picture than our human-sized, tunnel vision will generally allow.
He is the power of God (Gen 1:1-2, Acts 1:8)!
As a kid, our family had a Toro push mower. That thing was a BEAST! And every year, we kids had the joy (?) of pushing that sucker around 1-2 acres of land. Remember, there was no electric start ... like today's mowers, it was carbureted ... and it was HEAVY! For a 10-year old young man with a slight body build, pulling that engine through the firing sequence with a pull cord was a chore and it was always a guessing game as to how many pulls it would take before the gas and the air mixed just perfectly for the spark plug to fire it off! But once it started? That powerful mower would cut through about anything.
The application of non-human, kinetic energy has driven our world today to experience an ever-increasing pace of change. Outside energy sources have allowed us to fly, explore space, travel the world, haul goods, and more! Try to imagine your life without external power. Simply getting a drink of fresh water becomes exponentially more difficult. And yet, Christian believers will go through life relying on their own spiritual power to climb up and through and around and under and the darkest shadows of life, making an already arduous journey impossible.
Honestly, I was certain if I just knew more about depression, if I tried harder to be a faithful husband, if I controlled more aspects of life in the family and at work, IF I DID ALL THE RIGHT THINGS ... I would overcome Jen's depressive issues and emerge the hero of this story. And I failed .... Time after time after time I found myself back in the same corner of that same dark hallway in that same fetal position at the same end of myself. I have myself contemplated suicide more often than I am really comfortable admitting. At some point in time, however, when I cried out, "How long, O Lord, must I do this on my own?!", He responded with, "I never asked you to." And the presence and the counsel of the Holy Spirit led me to uncover the power of the Holy Spirit. Not, of course, that it was ever hidden, but I simply had not grasped how powerless I am without that application of non-human, spiritual power.
In Genesis 1:1-2, Scripture records the Spirit as hovering over the formless waters, shaping order out of chaos. Looking into the Colorado night sky from my back porch, I am reminded that the "heavens were made by the Word of the Lord and the Spirit of His mouth" (Ps 33:6). Before Jesus' ascension into heaven, He tells the Disciples to wait and they will "receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you ..." (Acts 1:8). The Disciples then perform miracles under the power of the Holy Spirit. The Early Church is empowered by the Holy Spirit with spiritual gifts and with great influence. The Holy Spirit is the creative, life-giving power of God that makes ALL THINGS NEW again in unfathomable, unimaginable ways and I tried to do it all on my own! SMH ....
Last night, I was at a friend's house and he handed me a jar of something to open. I'll confess--I was having trouble. Instead of doing what I normally do, however, which is to tap the lid on the table or use a spoon to break the seal or continue to try to twist the lid off with ever-increasing grunting and straining until SOMETHING breaks loose, I just handed it off to someone with more power and let that person handle it. I'm learning to do the same in my spiritual walk. Can't love my wife? Let the Holy Spirit handle it. Can't handle the traffic? Let the Holy Spirit do it. Can't manage my emotions? Rest in the power of the Holy Spirit. Can't win my battle against (fill in the blank)? Quit relying on my own power and invite the Holy Spirit to take over. There is great freedom and release in my letting go of my strength and and relying on His. Like having an electric start on a mower, the power flows right when it should and moving forward becomes so much easier.
Now What?
Life is a constant journey of twists and bends, ups and downs, ins and outs. We face Rodents of Unusual Size, Fire Swamps, Lightning Sand, and other struggles beyond our comprehension. Christian, don't face this journey alone! God, in His mercy, has provided His Presence, His Counselor, and His Power through His Holy Spirit. Let Him make your burden easy and your yoke light, as Jesus promised, and may you walk with Him daily. He is no magic button or genie-like figure; He is "a very present help in times of trouble" (Ps 46:1).
Note: Need/Want to understand more? Use the comment card to reach out. I will get back to you!
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