Back in 2008, I was in a job that I loved, until I didn’t anymore. My great boss, that I got along with so well, left and I inherited a micromanager as a supervisor. Everyday was stressful to say the least. I would get home and the first thing I did was grab a beer. One day, the micromanager had been out of the office. At home, as I was microwaving my dinner, I realized that I didn’t have an urge to have a beer. Then I also realized that Ms. Micromanager had not been in the office all day and it was so peaceful.
Eventually, they eliminated my position and I found myself unemployed. At that point, I could have very easily turned to booze to numb the pain and de-stress. However, booze costs money and that was something that I had very little of, as unemployment checks hadn’t kicked in yet. So where do I turn?
Fortunately, I was a part of a wonderful church family at First Christian Church of Phoenix. Their support and prayers helped me get through 2 years of unemployment, along with the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit is Better than Booze
Don’t turn to the vices of this world when you’re down, anxious, afraid, worried or stressed. As the daughter of a reformed alcoholic, I have a high tolerance for liquor. In college I used to drink everyone under the table. Thank God I had the Holy Spirit to turn to during tough times. And the tough times come no matter who you are.
April 1, 2018, my mom fell in her home in Puerto Rico and broke her hip. I flew to Puerto Rico to deal with having to put her in a nursing home. I found some liquor in a cabinet in the kitchen. Thankfully, it was not anything that I liked even though I wanted a drink badly. I kept telling myself that liquor was a luxury item and it’s not in the budget. I turned to God and His Spirit of peace.
A few months ago, I was dealing with my mom’s death on Christmas Day and boy, did I want a drink. Again, I avoided temptation and turned to the Holy Spirit for comfort.
What to do in Moments of Temptation
Surrender to God — accept whatever future God has in store for you. Troubles can come in many forms, however, God can handle all of them…
But you belong to God, my dear children. You have already won a victory over those people, because the Spirit who lives in you is greater than the spirit who lives in the world. Those people belong to this world, so they speak from the world’s viewpoint, and the world listens to them. But we belong to God, and those who know God listen to us. If they do not belong to God, they do not listen to us. That is how we know if someone has the Spirit of truth or the spirit of deception.
1 John 4:4-6 NLT
Yesterday I wrote that the Holy Spirit is like a sailboat. You have to let Him be the wind in your sails so you can function. Thinking, “I’ve got this!” is only going to make the situation worse, because there is no way you can deal with whatever the problem is by yourself. That will kill you or make things worse. You have to admit to yourself — I can’t do it by myself — I need God!
And all of you, dress yourselves in humility as you relate to one another, for
“God opposes the proud
but gives grace to the humble.”So humble yourselves under the mighty power of God, and at the right time he will lift you up in honor. Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you.
Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your family of believers all over the world is going through the same kind of suffering you are.
In his kindness God called you to share in his eternal glory by means of Christ Jesus. So after you have suffered a little while, he will restore, support, and strengthen you, and he will place you on a firm foundation. All power to him forever! Amen.
1 Peter 5:5-11 NLT
Stand Firm Against the Devil?
Yes. Sin pulls us away from God. But, the Holy Spirit pulls us back. It is futile to resist the Spirit — you resist the devil with the Holy Spirit! I could get into a whole long article on spiritual warfare — the Christians’ fight against Satan — but I’ll save that for a future post.
The Holy Spirit knows what to pray for us when we don’t.
And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words.
Romans 8:26 NLT
In any rate, the idea is that we have the Holy Spirit inside of us to support and guide us no matter what we’re going through.
You have to be a born-again believer to receive the Holy Spirit in your heart and soul. If you don’t have the Holy Spirit, you can get it easily. All you have to do is…
Believe. Repent. Be Baptized. Receive the Holy Spirit.
- Believe — have Faith — that Jesus is the Christ and He died taking your sins away forever and that He rose from the dead 3 days later.
- Repent of your sins — stop sinning! Do a complete 180-degree turn in your life and surrender your life to Him. When you ask Jesus to forgive you He will. ALL your sins will be wiped clean — past, present, and future! And All means ALL!
- Be Baptized by water baptism — show the world and yourself that you have died to your old life and are born again in Christ.
- Receive the gift of Holy Spirit in your heart.
Invite Jesus into Your Heart and Receive the Gift of Grace, Joy, Peace, and the Confident Hope of Eternal Life…
Pray this prayer humbly and wholeheartedly…
“Dear Lord Jesus, I know I am a sinner. I believe You died for my sins. Please forgive me. Right now, I turn from my sins and open the door of my heart and my life to you. I confess You as my personal Lord and Savior. I will follow you for the rest of my life. Thank You, Jesus, for saving me. In Jesus’ name, Amen.”
Next Steps in Your New Walk with Jesus…
- Start reading the Bible daily to get to know God. If you don’t have one, I recommend the YouVersion, Bible.app and Through the Word app — both are free and have a lot of great Bible studies.
- Pray every day. Talk to God. Ask the Holy Spirit to guide you daily.
- Find and join a Bible-believing church — preferably a non-denominational one and be baptized!
I invite you to go through the last few articles and podcasts and get to know who the Holy Spirit is and all the love, gifts, comfort, knowledge, wisdom and guidance He brings instantly to anyone who repents of their sin.
Don’t forget the 5 Solas…
The 5 Solas
- Sola Scriptura (“Scripture alone”): The Bible alone is our highest authority.
- Sola Fide (“Faith alone”): We are saved through faith alone in Jesus Christ.
- Sola Gratia (“Grace alone”): We are saved by the grace of God alone.
- Solus Christus (“Christ alone”): Jesus Christ alone is our Savior, Redeemer, Lord, and King
- Soli Deo Gloria (“to God alone be the Glory.”): It’s all about God, not us.
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