PRAISE AND THANKSGIVING

Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Ephesians 19:20

To experience the ministry or manifestation of the Spirit on a continual or consistent basis, thanksgiving is a non-negotiable factor. We must continually maintain a grateful heart to create a conducive atmosphere for the Spirit’s workings in and among us. If we hope to see an increased activity of the Holy Spirit in, through and among us, then we must consciously create an enabling atmosphere for Him to work.

In Ephesians 5:18, Paul tells us not to “be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit” (emphasis mine). Actually, this phrase, “be filled with the Spirit” means to be continually filled with the Spirit. So, this is not a once and for all occurrence, but a daily part of the believer’s life. God wants us to be continually filled with the Holy Spirit every day.

But how can we do that? Paul tells us just how to do it. He says we are to be continually filled with the Holy Spirit by “Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Ephesians 19:20).

Don’t forget that the Holy Spirit lives in our spirit having taken up His residence in the quarters our hearts through our faith in Jesus Christ. He (the Holy Spirit) will work in and through us through our spirit; and for Him to be able to work in and through us, we must activate ourselves (our spirit) so that He can find expression through us.

It is important as a believer to keep your spirit continually activated and receptive by maintaining a grateful heat full of thanksgiving and praise. The Holy Spirit is choked and greatly restricted in an atmosphere of bitterness, ingratitude and complaints. On the other hand, His ministry is greatly encouraged and enhanced in an atmosphere of praise and thanksgiving.

The vine is dried up, and the fig tree languisheth; the pomegranate tree, the palm tree also, and the apple tree, even all the trees of the field, are withered: because joy is withered away from the sons of men.

Joel 1:12 (emphasis mine)

Do you desire an increased ministry of the Holy Spirit in your life? Then stop the grumbling and complaining. Be thankful and praise the Lord continually. Let your life be a continuous stream of thanksgiving and praise to God. Live in and surround yourself always with an atmosphere of gratitude. No matter the situation of life you find yourself, give thanks to God always.

Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name…Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name…O give thanks unto the LORD; for he is good: because his mercy endureth for ever…In everything give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

Psalm 100:4, 103:1, 118:1, 1 Thessalonians 5:18

Paul says we are to be speaking to ourselves “in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ”. This is a sure way to enhance or encourage the ministry of the Holy Spirit in, through and among us.

WALKING IN LOVE

Another very important way to activate our spirits for an increased ministry of the Holy Spirit in our lives is by consciously and habitually walking in love. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of God, and according to 1 John 4:8, “God is love”. So, we can rightly say that the Holy Spirit, who is also the Spirit of God, is the Spirit of love. Without a conscious walk of love, we will never experience the manifestations of the Holy Spirit on a continual or consistent basis. Love is the atmosphere of the Spirit. He will naturally manifest Himself in an atmosphere of love.

But eagerly desire [covet] the greater gifts. And now I will show you the most excellent way.

1 Corinthians 12:31 NIV (emphasis mine)

Walking in love is the most excellent way to attract the ministry of the Holy Spirit. Believers and Churches that walk in love will hardly need to pray for the manifestations of the Holy Spirit. They will just find that things begin to work even when they have not specifically prayed for it.

And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

Romans 8:28 (emphasis mine)

Love is the foundation of the Christian faith and the motivation or motive behind all activities in the kingdom of God. Nothing works in our kingdom without love. Love is the purpose of everything. To walk in love is to be aligned with God’s purpose for the now. Love is the way of the kingdom and the character of the Holy Spirit. God is love. We were drawn or wooed to God by His love, and like the beloved apostle John said, “We love Him because He loved us first” (1 John 4:19).

Why does God care about us so much? Why did He go as far as sending His beloved Son, Jesus Christ to die for us? Why did Jesus die on the cross to freely provide redemption and forgiveness for sinful humanity? Why did He send the Holy Spirit to live in our hearts? The answer to these bugging questions is in the words recorded in the popular John 3:16: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (emphasis mine).

The answer is simply this: God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son. Jesus so loved the world that He died to save us. The Holy Spirit so loved us that He came to live in the quarters of our hearts. Everything God did, is doing and will do, is all because of His great love. If you are ever going to see God move in a powerful way, then you are going to have to subscribe to a lifestyle of selfless love.

When I talk about love, I don’t mean the selfish, self-centred, corrupt and humanistic form of love. I mean the God-kind or type of love. I mean the love that has its root or origin in God. I am talking about the purest form of love possible- the selfless, self-giving, sacrificial, unconditional love of God. No one can truly love until he has experience the reality of God’s love in Jesus Christ. It is the love that saves, liberates and transforms lives.

How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God…

1 John 3:1 NIV