Sunday’s guest speaker, Gary Auten, had a message about the Holy Spirit (I’d encourage you to check it out after reading this…catch the link at the bottom of this post). At one point, he started talking about the cost of following Jesus and he said, “When you’re pierced – when you go through a trial – what comes out of you?”
And, of course, my mind immediately went to golf.
See, the day before, I played a round a golf with my son-in-law; we were paired up with another duo. They were great guys, but one of them had the worst dialogue coming out of his mouth I had ever heard on a course.
When he’d hit a good shot, he’d always say, “Well, take a photo because that’s the only good shot I’m gonna make.” When he’d mess up, it’d inevitably be, “You stupid, *****! You’re terrible!” “I always do that!” “I stink at this!” His game followed his words.
It was a vicious cycle: What came out of this man’s mouth revealed what was in his heart…and the more he talked, the more he fed his heart the defeatist attitude.
Now, we’re just talking a game of golf…but sadly this process is seen in people – including Christians – with far more important things. It may not show up in “normal” times, but when you’re pierced – when you go through a trial – that which is truly inside you is going to come out.
What Are You Full Of?
As I shook my head at this golfer’s attitude and result, God reminded me about a more positive example. A few weeks ago, a good friend of mine was on a ladder and due to some untimely movement by a pressure washer’s hose, the ladder shifted and he fell, slamming head against the edge of some concrete.
As he shared about the incident, he was full of thankfulness to God and to what he had been taught over the years through our ministry and others (I’ll paraphrase): He said, “I’m really glad I’ve been taught over the years to fill myself with God’s Word and praying in the Holy Spirit, because after I hit my head, I realized it was really bleeding.”
This person lives in a fairly secluded area and he was at the house alone.
He went inside his home and sat on the floor, severely disoriented for 15 minutes or so, dazed and possibly unconscious at times. But he said he never panicked and had no anxiety about the situation. In fact, once he got his bearings, he got up and finished the job he was doing.
But when the accident occurred, he just started praying in the Holy Spirit and worshipping God – that’s what came out of him because that’s what he regularly put into himself.
Later, after speaking with a relative, he was encouraged to drive to a local MEC (because the bleeding continued), where they stapled the wound closed! He’s fine now, by the way.
My point: When the accident occurred, my friend could have freaked out; he could have feared and gotten anxious. But because he wasn’t full of those things (but was full of the Holy Spirit), he walked through the challenge successfully.
“The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.” – LUKE 6:45 (ERV)
What’s going to come out of you when the pressure’s on? Are you full of it (fear, doubt, anxiety, depression, defeat) or are you full of God? In day-to-day living, you might not be aware of the outcome of your decisions…but when you get squeezed by a life-challenge or attack of the enemy, you’ll reveal what you’re full of.
To watch the June 27, 2021 on which this post was based, CLICK HERE.
