Knowing Better

"When the king heard the words of the Book of the Law, he tore his robes."  -2 Kings 22:11

Me at 8

In today's Our Daily Bread Kirsten Holmberg writes about King Josiah's response to hearing the Book of the Law being read to him for the first time.  He'd been King since he was eight, but the Book of the Law had gone missing and now, 18 years later, it had been found by one of the priests in the Temple.   After it was read to him, when Josiah realized they'd not been keeping all the laws, he tore his robes to indicate his distress.

When I was eight I received Christ as my Savior but it was 20 years later that I found out about the Holy Spirit.  All those years I'd been trying to do what I knew to be right in the eyes of God.  I'd read one self-improvement book after another, but nothing ever "stuck."  The year I turned 28 my dad gave me the Living Bible translation of the New Testament.  I had not read the Bible during those 20 years because I could not understand it, but this translation was written in everyday language that I could understand and the Word began to take hold in my heart.  I  became interested in the Quakers (a story in itself) which led me to attend their meetings for worship.  It was there I experienced the presence of the Holy Spirit for the first time.  I discovered that in God's eyes I was already righteous because of Christ, but in order to change outwardly I would need to trust the inner workings of the Holy Spirit and obey His leading.  The Spirit gave me understanding of the Word of God and as my love for the Lord grew I began to change.

I am grateful that God has provided the Holy Spirit to be my perfecter.