From Head to Heart
The thief’s purpose is to steal and kill and destroy. My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life. (John 10:10)
My great hope in this exploration of the Holy Spirit is to step away from the heat of theological battle and move quietly and closely to the One who has been sent alongside to help. He longs to empower us with His dynamic presence, change our attitudes, warm our hearts, show us how and where to walk, comfort us in our struggles and our sorrows, strengthen us in the weak and fragile places of our lives, and literally revolutionize our pilgrimage from this planet to paradise.
Candidly, my words will be for the heart much more than for the head. This is not an exhaustive theological treatment of the person and work of the Holy Spirit. Please keep that in mind. My goal, however, is to have you travel beyond the cognitive level and enter into the journey on a personal level.
Since the Spirit of God was sent not only to be studied but ultimately to be experienced, it seems to me we have stopped short of God’s intended purpose if we merely discuss and debate His presence instead of exulting in Him on an intimate basis.
Let’s face it, most of us are intrigued by the Holy Spirit. Like moths we are attracted to the warmth and the light of His flame. Our desire is to come closer, to draw nearer, to know Him more fully and intimately without getting burned. I know that is true of me, and I suspect you often feel the same.
During my growing-up years, including my years in seminary, I kept a safe distance. I was taught to be careful, to study Him from a doctrinal distance but not to enter into any of the realms of His supernatural workings or to tolerate the possibility of such. Explaining the Spirit was acceptable and encouraged; experiencing Him was neither. Today, I regret that. I have lived long enough and ministered broadly enough to realize that flying closer to the flame is not only possible, it is precisely what God wants.
If you are one of the vast number of people who have never known the joy of walking more intimately with God, yet have known there was much more, I pray that this exploration will draw you in to come closer and know the warmth of His eternal flame. I welcome you as a fellow pilgrim weary of a sterile, unproductive, predictable existence. Jesus’ promise of an “abundant life” surely includes more than that!
So come along and journey with me as we, together, fly closer to the flame.
Taken from Flying Closer to the Flame by Charles R. Swindoll. Copyright © 1993 by Charles R. Swindoll, Inc. All rights reserved worldwide. Deepen your intimacy with the living God by reading Embraced by the Spirit, an updated release of Flying Closer to the Flame.
