Holy Spirit

Song written by: Katie Torwalt, Bryan Torwalt
Performed by: Francesca Battistelli

For the very few of you who became used to my more regular(ish) weekly devotionals, let me begin today apologizing for the very lengthy delay in this new devotional. Please forgive me!

Believe it or not, I've been working on this single devotional for over two months. How sad is that on my part? I've asked my Heavenly Father many times throughout this devotional why I was struggling so much. I think He's given me clarity on two points, of which I would like to share with all of you – as hard and personal as they might be.

1. The past few months have been very personally challenging for me. We've faced a lot of struggles and sadness, but even joy and celebrations. And, if I'm being honest and letting the Holy Spirit convict me for my own growth, I myself have not turned to my Heavenly Father enough to lean solely on Him through these months. As a result, these months have been personally taxing emotionally, making it hard to fully give myself over to the devotional in the way it requires.
2. This song speaks so deeply of the Holy Spirit in our lives. A deep, profound, and life-altering presence. A presence I do not often enough fully soak in, recognize, and tap into the power of in my own life (see even #1 above for a prime example). But I feel so deeply God guiding me that others and even I should grasp hold of the truth and power of the Holy Spirit in our lives. I trust that's why He led me to this song. While I am so easily aware of my own weaknesses and failings, the Holy Spirit is reminding me of His strength.

So, if I were writing this intro before all of the above, I would tell you I originally intended this devotional to be posted during the busy "holiday" season around Thanksgiving and Christmas. While not a traditional Christmas song, I think it's a beautiful reminder many of us (or myself at least) need during the holiday season. So often, we focus on all the busy-ness of Christmas – the travelling, the presents, the social events, the food – oh, how the list goes on. But do we stop often enough to recognize the presence of Jesus in this season? Sure, we go to church maybe even more frequently in December, but do we recognize His presence? His power? His relationship with us?

In addition, I believe many of us go through the holiday season with an additional sense of loneliness. Maybe that's because of loss we've experienced. Maybe it's because we're so busy we don't stop to appreciate the relationships. Maybe it's because, as I mentioned above, lose sight of the "reason for the season". No matter the reason, I think we can feel that loneliness.

But the truth is, as I read the above, God is so deeply reminding me that the sense of loneliness isn't only present during the holiday season. Sadly, it's true at so many different times of the year for most of us. It's true in various seasons of life – good and bad. We fail to appreciate the presence of the Holy Spirit. We fail to recognize that we're never alone. We fail to tap into His power.

For me, this song is a reminder that we are never alone, and we have great power within us. Power that is fighting on our behalf, but even more importantly, power that is transforming us day-by-day, step-by-step. Oh, that we could be great warriors for God's Glory! Make no mistake, each day we're fighting battles – you are a warrior!

I pray that through this devotional you may become more aware of (even if that's just reminded of) the power of the presence of the Holy Spirit. Let it soak in. Use the power of He who is within you for the glory of our mighty God! Be an effective warrior for the glory of God through the Holy Spirit.

Soak in His presence.
Revel in His goodness.
Transform through His guiding.
Fight with His power.