Driving
back to Dallas from Houston, I was tired and bored from listening to the
constant whining of talk/news radio and the emptiness of country and rock music.
In the console of our SUV I found a worship CD that a local church in Dallas
had made. I slipped it into the player and in a rather distracted and tired way
I began to listen. The first couple of songs were nice, nothing special, but the
music was somewhat of a welcome distraction.
It
had been a long day for me, but a very good day. I had left the house a little
before 5 o’clock that morning in order to be in Houston before 10 o’clock to have
breakfast with a friend. Then I had spent the rest of the day at the offices of
a ministry, working with them on a new
fund-raising program. We finished up around 3:30 and I got onto the freeway to
start my 250-mile drive back home, tired but rather pleased at the progress of
the day.
The
fourth track on the CD was a song from the late ’60s written by Max and David
Sapp entitled “There is a River.” I immediately recognized the song and began
to quietly worship along with the singers. When the song finished, I hit the
replay button and listened to it again and then again and then one more time.
My bored drive up Interstate 45 had become a refreshing time of praise and
worship.
The
words to the chorus begin with, “There is a river that flows from deep within.”
The chorus finishes with, “There is a river that never shall run dry.”
Jesus
makes a very powerful statement about the water of life flowing in those who
follow Him.
“He who believes in Me, as the
Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water. But this
He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive; for
the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified” (John 7:38-39).
As
I sat in the car enjoying the time of worship and the refreshing of the Holy
Spirit, I was gently reminded again of the presence of God’s Spirit in me.
While He indwells me, I need to actively participate with Him and again and
again be filled with His power and presence (see Ephesians 5:18). Part of the
Holy Spirit’s work in me is to refresh, rebuild and repair. The word edify used in 1 Corinthians 14:4 means
exactly that and is a reference to what happens when we participate with the
Holy Spirit.
I
need the Holy Spirit’s work in me regularly and more so right now as our world
tumbles headlong into the chaos of the coming days. Praying
in the Spirit . . . it’s vital that we do that! As we pray in the Spirit,
worship and praise Him, we are allowing the Holy Spirit to fill our lives, and
the Spirit’s ministry of healing, rebuilding, refreshing and restoring takes
place. If you have a prayer language (tongues), then it needs to be exercised
regularly. If you don’t pray in tongues, then may I suggest that you begin to verbally
worship and praise Him or sing a worship chorus during your prayer time. Don’t
rush this—take your time in praise and worship and invite Him to fill you with
His power and presence.
I confess that I need that time with Him and I need it more now
than ever before. The rough and tumble of all that is going on in our world—the
economic uncertainty, the increasing violence, the foolishness of politics, the
depressing news day after day—takes a toll on you whether you understand it or
not. It is vital that we who have been given the Holy Spirit allow Him to do
His work in us.
The Holy Spirit should not be relegated to the basement of our
lives. We need to invite Him to fill us, to literally fill this house we call
our body. Can the river really flow if I relegate it to just a corner of my
life? I am not a Spirit-filled person in name, I am a Spirit-filled person in
practice.
A
few days after driving home from Houston and while I was still basking in the
afterglow of that marvelous time with the Lord in the car, I made another wonderful
discovery. I found on YouTube a video of the Gaither Vocal Band singing, “There
is a River.” Here is the link to the video:
You
may be able to just click on the link and get to the video. If not, then copy
and paste the link to your Web browser and get ready to be refreshed.
Turn
on your speakers, sit back and enjoy—and let the Holy Spirit refresh you as you
worship Him. The river of living water is flowing! Come on in—the water is
fine!
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