Indwelt versus filled with the Holy Spirit

Indwelt versus filled with the Holy Spirit. Is there really a difference? Wow. What a tough concept to grasp. This question came up during my weekly mom's Bible study at church. Well, from years of Bible study, reading lots of theology reference materials, and sitting at the feet (so to speak) of Godly women who mentored me, I have come to understand that idea of being "filled" versus being "indwelt" as two different things.

The moment we accept Christ's gift of everlasting life (acknowledge Him as Lord as Savior-confess with our mouth that Jesus is Lord, believe in our Heart that He died for me, that He rose from the dead and is seated at the right hand of God) we become indwelt with the Holy Spirit. He is a He, not an it. He is the "counselor" our Lord Jesus spoke about in Scripture. He lives within us.

The tricky part is the idea of being "filled". I cannot take credit for the illustration I will share with you now but it helped me to understand the concept of being "filled" with the Holy Spirit.

Imagine that your life is like a house. You have a room for "friendships", a room for "parenting your children", a room for "your marriage relationship", a room for "work relationships",.... With each room, comes a door that you can open or close. When we live a life "filled" with the Holy Spirit, we allow the Holy Spirit access to each and every tiny square inch of our house. However, sometimes, we live our daily life with a few closed doors. Because of a arguement with our spouse, we may close the door of our "marriage relationship" so that the Holy Spirit cannot work to reconcile that damaged relationship. On another day (or week, month, or year), we may keep the door to our "work relationship" closed. This may be because we are having an emotional affair with a coworker or maybe we are harboring unforgiveness of a coworker that has seriously damaged our work relationship. When (hopefully, it is not IF) we let the Holy Spirit have access to ALL of the rooms in our life, then we can know we are living a Holy Spirit filled life. (Watch out for those dark closets too.)

The beauty of allowing the Holy Spirit access to all aspects of our life is that it can lead to serious spiritual growth. With spiritual growth always come hurdles to overcome though. Know that the Holy Spirit's job is that of counselor and teacher. We will eventually have to face that coworker we have not forgiven and ask their forgiveness. All of this begins and end with prayer though.

If you desire a life truly filled with the Holy Spirit, then develop a daily habit of Bible Study. During that Bible Study time, ask God to teach you what He wants you to learn. He is patient with us. He will slowly reveal areas in your life that need work. He knows what is most important for you and will walk you through each room as you allow Him too. You may even want to begin making a list of the "rooms" in your life and then pray for God's wisdom and guidance daily.

I hope that this word picture has helped make the concept of being filled versus begin indwelt a bit easier to understand. Blessings to each of you,

Thinking like children

As a parent, I expect my children to obey me when I ask them to do something (clean their room; pick up their toys, clothes, shoes,...). I am pleased when they respond after the first request. I sometimes think to myself-"Yeah! I must be teaching them something right". On occasion, that sense of pride begins to overtake my thoughts. I begin to think that my child has turned the obedience corner (so to speak) and I will not have to deal with a disobedient child ever again. Ha!

Maybe a day or two goes by and I ask one of my children to do something they do not particularly enjoy doing (helping with the dishes, fold the laundry,...). Suddenly, my obedient child is replaced by a child that could not have been raised in my household. Who swapped my kind, considerate child with the one in front of me right now that is whinning about matching the clean socks in the laundry basket?

As I ponder this interesting Jekhl and Hyde phenomena that happens in my house, I cannot help but wonder how my Heavenly Father wonders about my reactions when He asks me to do something.

I can say there have been clear times in my life when I know His good and perfect will for me and I have obeyed whole-heartedly. However, I also know there have been times when I have whined and pleaded with God to let me do something else-something that I enjoyed instead of something that I either knew nothing about or that I clearly did not enjoy.

Thankfully, I serve a God who loves me no matter what my attitude. He desires obedience but He loves me even when I whine. His patience with me is tremendous. Just as I continue to teach my children the importance of obedience (the first time), God continues to teach me the same lesson.

Why do I too often think and react like my children? I believe it is because I am still growing spiritually. I too need a loving parent to guide me gently into obedience. I need to remember how loving but firmly God teaches me to obey and then try to model that to my children.

Do you struggle with thinking like your children too?

Obedience

Last summer when I attended "She Speaks", something drew me to attend several sessions on blogging. I had heard of blogging, knew a few bloggers, and even had read a few blogs here and there but never really had a huge desire to begin blogging myself. After attending the informational sessions at She Speaks, I resigned myself to the thought that it would be years before I would really be interested in starting a blog site.

Well, never say never. God had different plans.

God's clear nudging began in February during not only my quiet times I spent with Him but also as I participated in a Mom's Bible Study group at my church. "What Lord? You couldn't mean me. I know nothing about blogging." I tried the arguing thing but who was I kidding.

I then made the mistake of telling my teenage daughter about some of God's confirming signs regarding blogging. With no sugarcoated kindness, she quite pointedly said "Mom, don't you get it. God wants you to start a blog. So when are you going to do it?" Ouch!!! "Couldn't you have been a bit nicer?" I thought.

Sometimes the Lord uses our children to grab our attention.

The time for obedience to God's clear direction was now. I had learned years ago that delayed obedience was actually "disobedience". Who was I to argue with the God of the universe?

While this site will go through some more additions and modifications as I learn more about blogging, the main goal will stay the same. My goal is to encourage and equip women to see that their true beauty and worth are found in a God who has created them in His image.

I look forward to the journey together.
Created in His Image,