LED BY THE HOLY SPIRIT
Being conscious, which means we are aware of what the Lord has in store for us, aligns us with Him and builds our resistance to the lies and schemes of the accuser of the brethren.
Our passionate love for Jesus, combined with a desire to draw closer to God, pushes us into alignment with the Holy Spirit. During our busy days, we can drift into spiritual unconsciousness, which can cause us to miss what the Lord is doing around us. Being spiritually unconscious means that we are not aware of what is happening in our sphere. However, the Holy Spirit can bring us right back; we just have to ask Him.
SELF-CONTROL
Self-control is one of the nine fruits of the Holy Spirit. (See Galatians 5) When the Holy Spirit is active within us, the fruit of self-control will always neutralize the desires of our carnal flesh.
We follow the Holy Spirit - not the other way around!
We are all learning to be led by the Holy Spirit, especially regarding character issues. The Lord desires for us to live permanently in His rest and this internal calm and peace will produce harmony that flows to other people.
The oil of the Holy Spirit is vital for us, because it keeps us moving forward, aligned with God's purposes. By the way, moving forward in the Lord also means letting go. Letting go of all the hurts by forgiving and giving it all to the Lord. Not carrying it around with us anymore. Resisting God's grace because of not being humble in His sight, can easily steal away our oil! As we know from Matthew 25, it is utterly embarrassing when the oil runs out. We are left with only our lamps, without any extra oil, which we know that means we are the foolish ones.
We should not rely on other people or ministries to supply the oil of anointing over our lives. Furthermore, we can't keep looking to other people to give us revelation-knowledge; we are to get it for ourselves. This is our responsibility.
see Ephesians 5:18 Be ever filled with the Holy Spirit....
A car without oil, or an engine with the oil plug removed, means as we pour oil in, it flows instantly out. The plug must be restored!
Unless we repent for what has caused us to not get the necessary oil for our lamps, there is no other remedy, because there are no shortcuts in the Kingdom of God!
***Visit Psalm 139:23-24 Search me, O God, and know my heart, try me and know my anxieties; and see if there are any wicked ways in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.
Enjoy being led by the Holy Spirit as you dedicate your live unto the Lord.
Abiding in Him,
Gabriele Gilpin