Obedience is hard! I don’t know about you, but I like to be in control. I like to decide what’s next in my life, what I’m going to do. However, when we decide to follow the Holy Spirit, we don’t always get to do exactly what we want…
One lesson I’ve been learning is that the Holy Spirit will sometimes ask me to do things are uncomfortable, inconvenient, or outside my comfort zone.
So, how do we get better at saying “yes”? Let me offer 5 tips to help us embrace obedience.
1) Pray for strength to obey
When I’m struggling to obey a particular prompt from the Holy Spirit, I’ve started praying for the strength to obey instead of asking for additional confirmation. Of course, you do want to make sure you’ve confirmed what you’ve heard by making sure it’s consistent with scripture, but then start praying about whatever fear or concern is holding you back. Ask for the power to overcome your barriers.
2) Give your fear a name
Sometimes our reluctance to say “yes” is driven by our fears. I’ve found it helpful to identify the particular fear and call it out. Fear begins to lose some of its power when we call it by name. Get tough with your fear – yell at it, tell it to GET OUT!
3) Imagine the outcomes
What’s the worst thing that could happen if you obey? What’s the best? I’ve found it helpful to think about possible positive outcomes to help me get more excited about being obedient.
4) Share with someone who can hold you accountable
When I’m really wavering or procrastinating, I find it helpful to share what I’ve been asked to do with a friend, someone who can hold me accountable. Recently, I was struggling with one particular prompt. I prayed and considered it for a while, but now I was just procrastinating. So, I shared it with some friends and committed to a timeline. It wasn’t that they were going to fuss at me if I missed the deadline, but I knew they’d ask how it turned out because they care. That was just enough motivation to help me to finally say “yes”.
5) Just do it!
Lastly, just do it! Just take that leap of faith and try. You’ll never know the full power of the Holy Spirit until you say “yes” and give Him a chance to work through you.
“For I am the Lord your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you.” Isaiah 41:13 (NIV)
What else helps you say “yes”? Please share in the comments and let’s encourage each other in this journey of obedience.
This post is part of a 4 week series about the Holy Spirit. Click HERE to catch up on other posts in this series.
This series will look at topics such as:
– Inviting the Holy Spirit to begin working within us
– How to listen for the Holy Spirit
– What it means to obey the guidance of the Holy Spirit
– How obedience is linked to trust
– How the Holy Spirit equips us, even when we don’t feel qualified
– What impact we can have in the world when we open ourselves to the Holy Spirit
[callout class=”callout”]Subscribe today and receive these posts via email. Also give my new Facebook page a “Like”!
NOW AVAILABLE! “Surrender Your Heart” A 21-day devotional to draw closer to the Holy Spirit. Subscribe today to receive your FREE copy!
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Linking with: Essential Fridays, Make My Saturday Sweet, Fellowship Fridays, The Weekend Brew, A Little R&R Wednesdays
5 Ways to Embrace Obedience [Holy Spirit series] – Prayer & Possibilities
Obedience is hard! I don’t know about you, but I like to be in control. I like to decide what’s next in my life, what I’m going to do. However, when we decide to follow the Holy Spirit, we don’t always get to do exactly what we want…
One lesson I’ve been learning is that the Holy Spirit will sometimes ask me to do things are uncomfortable, inconvenient, or outside my comfort zone.
So, how do we get better at saying “yes”? Let me offer 5 tips to help us embrace obedience.
1) Pray for strength to obey
When I’m struggling to obey a particular prompt from the Holy Spirit, I’ve started praying for the strength to obey instead of asking for additional confirmation. Of course, you do want to make sure you’ve confirmed what you’ve heard by making sure it’s consistent with scripture, but then start praying about whatever fear or concern is holding you back. Ask for the power to overcome your barriers.
2) Give your fear a name
Sometimes our reluctance to say “yes” is driven by our fears. I’ve found it helpful to identify the particular fear and call it out. Fear begins to lose some of its power when we call it by name. Get tough with your fear – yell at it, tell it to GET OUT!
3) Imagine the outcomes
What’s the worst thing that could happen if you obey? What’s the best? I’ve found it helpful to think about possible positive outcomes to help me get more excited about being obedient.
4) Share with someone who can hold you accountable
When I’m really wavering or procrastinating, I find it helpful to share what I’ve been asked to do with a friend, someone who can hold me accountable. Recently, I was struggling with one particular prompt. I prayed and considered it for a while, but now I was just procrastinating. So, I shared it with some friends and committed to a timeline. It wasn’t that they were going to fuss at me if I missed the deadline, but I knew they’d ask how it turned out because they care. That was just enough motivation to help me to finally say “yes”.
5) Just do it!
Lastly, just do it! Just take that leap of faith and try. You’ll never know the full power of the Holy Spirit until you say “yes” and give Him a chance to work through you.
“For I am the Lord your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you.” Isaiah 41:13 (NIV)
What else helps you say “yes”? Please share in the comments and let’s encourage each other in this journey of obedience.
This post is part of a 4 week series about the Holy Spirit. Click HERE to catch up on other posts in this series.
This series will look at topics such as:
– Inviting the Holy Spirit to begin working within us
– How to listen for the Holy Spirit
– What it means to obey the guidance of the Holy Spirit
– How obedience is linked to trust
– How the Holy Spirit equips us, even when we don’t feel qualified
– What impact we can have in the world when we open ourselves to the Holy Spirit
[callout class=”callout”]Subscribe today and receive these posts via email. Also give my new Facebook page a “Like”!
NOW AVAILABLE! “Surrender Your Heart” A 21-day devotional to draw closer to the Holy Spirit. Subscribe today to receive your FREE copy!
Linking with: Essential Fridays, Make My Saturday Sweet, Fellowship Fridays, The Weekend Brew, A Little R&R Wednesdays