audio
Prayers that trigger my character change (1)
Jessica’s testimony
Eager to move forward with God, I prayed like this after reading Galatians 5:22-23: “It is written that the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, benevolence, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control… So Lord I’d like to bear witness of this fruit for your glory”.
… And a test arrives!
When all’s well, it’s easy to pray like this. However my prayer of Galatians 5 was quickly put to the test! Would you like to know how? Well ! I was very quickly confronted with a person and a situation that exasperated me and to the point that I felt overwhelmed and pushed to my limits…
In other words, at the very end of my own resources! I promptly realized that I needed a new outpouring from the Holy Spirit’s for patience and benevolence, in order for my attitude to be appropriate and acceptable to confront what was before me.
My prayer: Lord, you fill me now with your calm
Deep within my heart, I cried out to the Lord. Here is my prayer that triggers my character change :
“HELP! I need your intervention or else I won’t be able to claim the victory you so desire me to have over this situation and for this person. I have reached my own limits. Lord, So I’m hereby abandoning to you all my impatience and my aggravations, I now condemn them and reject them in Jesus’ name. Forgive me Lord, take over Holy Spirit and provide for my needs at this precise moment! Thank you, Lord, and qualify me with your patience and kindness towards “…”. You fill me now with your calm, your patience, your gentleness. And so, by faith I now receive the gift of this fruit of the Spirit. Lord, let your outpouring manifest immediately in me, and on me, Amen.”
I become aware of what I lack through situations
We often need unpleasant situations or people in order to become aware of our limits and our real needs for God. We find patience and benevolence we find in He who lives in us; we draw them from Him by sincerely turning our hearts towards him; this is how we are supplied and enabled to bear the fruit of the Spirit; we can then say with Paul: “It is no longer I who live, it is Christ who lives in me”!
I cooperate with the Lord
In other words, if we cooperate with him, the Holy Spirit can work in each of us to change our hearts. He gradually reproduces the character traits of Jesus Christ. As we engage in this process of transformation of the heart, we manifest here and there the fruit of the Spirit therefore we can truly say with Paul: “It is no longer I who lives, but it’s Christ who lives in me”!
God is on your side! Have a beautiful day!