Whose Hand Are You Holding On To?

Galatians 5:16
So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won't be doing what your sinful nature craves.

II Timothy 3:1-2
You should know this, Timothy, that in the last days there will be very difficult (stressful) times. For people will love only themselves and their money.

Two verses from two different books in the Bible, yet these verses reveal the very heart of the trouble in our world today.
In Galatians, Paul the apostle writes that if we won't to make it in this world then we need to get "self" out of the way and let the Holy Spirit lead. He uses the term "guide".

So if someone is guiding me, what is it they are doing?
They are showing me the best way to navigate. Being the guide, they are very much aware of the terrain we are moving through. They know where the dangerous spots are. They know where hidden traps and snares may be lying in wait to catch us. They are guiding us by knowledge that you and I may not possess. Even with all of this interaction between the guide and me, I have to heed the guides advice and act on it. I still have the free will to reject the guide. I can strike off in any direction I want to, but I put myself in danger in doing so.

Let the Holy Spirit lead us.
In recovery, we let the Spirit of God become our guide through daily life. Believe you me, He will warn you to not go to the old places you use to frequent. He will warn you about hooking up with old friends. He will warn you when your thoughts turn to the darkness and the way you use to live. He, the Holy Spirit, is the ultimate guide.

If you look at the II Timothy passage, we see that Paul predicts that in the "last" days things would become stressful. Of course some may ask.."Are we living in the last days?"  It is my belief that we are, and that such began when Jesus came to planet earth, walking among us as a man. You may or may not believe in such, but I do know this one thing. John Wimber use to say, when asked if we were in the last days.."I don't know, but I do know we are laster than we've ever been."

Going back to the II Timothy passage.
In the last days there will be difficult, stressful, perilous days.
What happens when we find ourselves in such circumstances? What happens when we are facing stressful, difficult situations? Such usual brings out the real us. Not the religious self. Not the good image we try to project in front of others. The real us comes out, along with evidence of what we claim to believe in. In other words, our behavior is driven and evidenced by the real beliefs we possess. It is easy to say one thing and live another. When this is the way we move through life, then we are living a lie. We have erected a false image in order to manipulate and create a lie that we hide behind. Paul writes that we are entering into a time where all facades will come down and we will see the reality of what everyone believes. 

You can play at recovery...
You can appear to be the poster child for recovery....
But if you are not being led by the Spirit of God through the Twelve Steps...you will be uncovered for who you truly are.
Such uncovering is God's ultimate act of love toward us.
He loves us so much that His desire is that we harbor no sin or give the devil a foothold in our lives, but that we turn from our old ways, confess, repent, and receive His forgiveness. 

So I guess the question we all must answer today is "Who are we following? The Spirit of God?
Or our old nature of sin?

God on you...
mbb