When talking about the Holy Spirit, Jesus told His disciples: ‘You know him, for he lives with you and will be in you’ (John 14:17 NIV). At this time, the Spirit didn’t live inside of people. All through the Old Testament, there are examples of God empowering people with His Spirit for a short time, or for a single purpose (take a look at Judges 15:14 for an example). After Pentecost, where the Spirit descended on the believers (you can read about this in Acts 2), the Spirit came to dwell in each believer. Once we become a Christian and invite the Holy Spirit into our lives, the Spirit can then start transforming us, guiding us, and helping us live for God, from the inside out. We become a container for God’s Spirit. Having the Spirit living within us affects every area of our lives. It helps us with our relationships, our job, our decisions, our struggles, and our God-given purpose. The Spirit can help us understand things that we couldn’t on our own. The Bible says: ‘We have received God’s Spirit (not the world’s spirit), so we can know the wonderful things God has freely given us’ (1 Corinthians 12:12 NLT). And the Spirit also helps us become more like Christ. ‘The Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control’ (Galatians 5:22-23 NLT). The Bible also tells us that ‘where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom’ (2 Corinthians 3:17 NIV). If the Spirit is within us, there can be freedom within us too. Let’s never forget what an amazing privilege it is to be a container of the Holy Spirit. 

What Now?

On small bits of paper, write Bible verses which encourage and challenge you. Then fold them up and put them in a container. Every time you’re struggling, pick out a verse and ask the Spirit to help you keep going.