Perhaps you know this about me — I love, love, love to eat a good, juicy hamburger. So, Vickie and I ate lunch at a local restaurant that specializes in hamburgers. The word “specializes” might be a huge understatement. It’s crazy to believe that this restaurant has fifty different types of hamburgers on its menu. On their list of gourmet burgers are Meatloaf (the burger is stuffed with diced green pepper, raw onion, and seasoning), Rowdy Reuben (Swiss cheese, sauerkraut, and Thousand Island dressing served on grilled rye bread), and Pizza (grilled onions, green pepper, and provolone dripping with marinara). To me, the old saying is true about their burgers. If a bite of the burger landed on your forehead, your tongue would be out your brain trying to get to it. While the food was excellent, the service was horrible. I mentioned to Vickie that the waiter seemed so cold and impersonal, showing little interest in us or our needs. Though the food was so, so good, I seriously doubt that we’ll go back to that restaurant any time soon.
This morning, I noticed something in the Word that was a fresh revelation about the Holy Spirit. I read that He is quite different from the waiter we had yesterday. The Bible shows us that He is a personal Holy Spirit.
“Also, the Spirit helps us with our weakness. We do not know
how to pray as we should. But the Spirit himself speaks to God
for us, even begs God for us with deep feelings
that words cannot explain.”
Romans 8:26 (New Century Version)
Did you catch that? The verse shows that the Holy Spirit is so concerned about you that He doesn’t relegate you to someone else. You are the total focus of His undivided attention. This Holy Spirit, who knows your needs (weaknesses and inadequacies), is waiting for you to connect with the Father through praying in the Spirit and, in doing so, He immediately personally steps into the picture and personally speaks to God and even begs God for you! He is never too busy, disinterested, or distracted. As you begin to pray in the Spirit, He immediately begins to personally communicate what would be impossible for you to communicate on your own.
After obtaining this revelation, I now have even a greater love for the Holy Spirit than before. My dependence upon Him is even greater. I’ll write one more time a phrase that I’ve written many times before in this blog, “Thank God for the Holy Spirit”. I’ll even expand it. Thank God for a personal Holy Spirit!
