The Gift

. . . you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. 

 - From The Second Chapter of Acts

When people receive the gift of the Holy Spirit, they often seem to know it.

Some people that have once had this experience, will later on drift away from the faith. But since we're such a feeling-driven species, why would someone do this? Why would you attain such a level of elation once in your life - the kind most people long for but hardly ever experience - and then decide later on it's not for you?

Wouldn't someone that has had a few mind-blowing adventures with LSD continue doing it throughout life, as long as it were legal and not harmful to you physically? Isn't that why virtual reality has such a promising future? Don't we live for great experience that feel good?

Why not stay active in Church, and even accelerate-increase your involvement, in hopes of continually renewing that initial surge of joy and contentment, that accompanies the filling of  the Holy Spirit? Why not just keep doing whatever you have to do, to stay so plugged in to God, the Creator?

The Holy Spirit works miracles, predictably and frequently. Why don't we want more of that?

We go to concerts and sporting events, costing us hundreds of dollars a pop; so that we can ascend to such emotional heights. Why not just get the same, for free, from God's Holy Spirit?

We like receiving gifts. The Holy Spirit is a gift. Is that not quite a handsome present perpetually offered us by the Father?

What's our problem?

In late July of 1980, I was at Camp Texas in Southlake, near Fort Worth. Midway through the week, the Evangelist, Cameron Ainsworth, had an altar call. I moved to the front, with a sense of a physical force pushing, or pulling me forward. I had no idea what I was going to say. But I did say something, and by all accounts it was powerful and effective. The feeling was unlike any other. It was not brought on by booze. It was not a feeling of total nervousness like being in love. It was not a fist-pumper like when your team wins a big rivalry game. 

The Holy Spirit-filling is its own category. There is nothing like it. 

We live for moments like that. Why don't we act like it?