Lets start our year filled to overflowing with the Holy Spirit
Generally I look at the New Year as a place to empty out in preparation for refilling. But How different might the year look if we ask that the Holy Spirit fill us up first?
It’s never occurred to me before that I should start the New Year filled.
Fill yourself first
In Acts 1:8 right before Jesus is taken into heaven He tells those gathered around Him that when the Holy Spirit comes upon them they will be given power so they can go into all the world and be His witness.
Notice that Jesus didn’t say go out first, rather He said that receiving the Holy Spirit would be the catalyst to them being His witness.
Jesus wasn’t encouraging His people to go out and face the world empty, and in the same way I believe we should fill ourselves before we face the challenges of the year ahead.
The Benefit of being filled
From searching the scriptures there are a few take-aways that leap out at me.
You will:
- Notice things that are right in front of you, that you may have otherwise missed. Like in Acts 7:55 where Stephen sees the glory of God, and Jesus standing at God’s right hand. Or in THIS Testimony shared back in June.
- Develop into the best version for yourself. Like in Galatians 5:22-23 where it lists the fruits of the Spirit; love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.
- Learn new things. Like in John 14:26 where it tells us how the Holy Spirit will teach you and remind you.
- Be taken care of. Like in Romans 8:26 where the Holy Spirit helps us when we are weak, and talks to God on our behalf when we don’t have words of our own.
- Have freedom. Like in 2 Corinthians 3:17 where blatantly tells us the Spirit brings us freedom.
- Not be lonely. Like in John 14:16 where we are told that the Holy Spirit will be with us forever.
So many of the life changes and developments that we hope to succeed in as we move into a New Year can be ours by simply filling our Holy Spirit tank!
Take the year on filled
Imagine the confidence you will have if you face 2022 KNOWING that you will:
- Notice what you need to see.
- Be the best version of yourself.
- Learn what you need to.
- Won’t need to fight your battles alone, because not only will you not be alone, but you will be cared and advocated for by someone strong enough to face those battles.
- Have freedom.
Aren’t those some of the big ticket items we are searching and hoping for in 2022?
Starting the year filled with the Holy Spirit means that you will already have the strength and resilience to face the hard things you might encounter in the year ahead, and that all the good things will be like the icing on your cupcake, just an addition to something that’s pretty fabulous all on its own.
Happy New Year Zion Family!
Below you can check out the song that encouraged me to consider starting the year filled.