When we begin our spiritual journey it is pretty exciting. It seems like one blessing after another falls upon us, we just can’t praise God enough. I wonder if it somewhat like when a child is born and leaves the womb. The world suddenly is much larger then it was.
I think of when Pauline was prayed over for the Holy Spirit. She described it was like warm oil flowing down over her, just a wonderful feeling and then it was like she had been living in this house all her life and all of a sudden all the window shades flew open and she could see out and the world was much bigger then she had ever seen before.
We prayed for one young man many years ago he wanted to receive the Holy Spirit. After several months went by he came back to a pastor we knew and he wanted to know how he could get rid of the Holy Spirit. The pastor wanted to know why he wanted to get rid of the Holy Spirit. His reply was, “I have never been so miserable in my life”.
Why was he so miserable? He did not want to change; he wanted to continue his old way of life. To walk with the Holy Spirit requires change.
When we start our journey the first months, maybe a year or two are bliss; then it is time to start growing up. Most of us don’t like that, we fight with God, we plead with God, and we try to tell God what to do. Our emotions go up and down, we are in a valley or on a mountain top.
Thank God things begin to level out after a while; we start growing up spiritually, we stop fighting with God and demanding our own way, we begin to enjoy the Lord. We begin to see His way is better than our way. The ups and downs level out and we begin a gradual climb upward. We still have problems and sicknesses, difficult children, all the things that are part of this world. We find we are different; we are able to handle lifes problems, the storms do not blow us away.
We now have confidence God is in control and He knows what He is doing. Because of that confidence we are able to handle each day as it comes, and whatever it brings. Our house is now built on the solid rock; the ups and downs are pretty much left behind.