LIVING A RENEWED LIFEPaul Dhinakaran
Dearly beloved,
When you surrender yourself to God, you will see an amazing change in your life. After the Holy Spirit came and took control of my life, He made a drastic change in my spiritual life, in my interaction with society, in my studies and in all other aspects of my life.
My attitude towards God changed and I knew that God had become my own Father (Romans 8:15; Galatians 4:6; Ephesians 2:18; 1:8; Matthew 6:32). I could now approach Him directly for anything. He became my Friend too.
I knew that I had to stay away from the things of the world, and so I could not spend much time with my worldly friends, my classmates and others who spent their time in talking about worldly things. So after my classes were over, I would go straight home and go on to work in the ministry once I spent enough time with my studies.
The Holy Spirit one day spoke to me: “My son, I know that you have no friends in this world, but I assure you that I shall be your Friend. I will be with you all the time.” I was so thrilled and happy. Truly, the Holy Spirit became my Friend as I travelled in the bus, went to the college and sat in the examination hall. I would speak to Him as I would speak to a friend. I would tell Him: “Yes Lord, You are my Friend! Please take care of me.” Truly, He responded in a wonderful way and everything that I did became a success.
When temptations arose and trials came, truly, the Holy Spirit would raise a standard against the evil one (Isaiah 59:19). When temptations tried to entice me and sway me, I would say, “I am the child of God. How can I succumb to these temptations?” Immediately a joy would fill my heart. I would know that the Holy Spirit was so delighted. I would rejoice in the Holy Spirit and that has kept me all these years in Him and as His child (Romans 8:16).
I used to hate reading the Bible before I came to Lord Jesus. But after the Holy Spirit came into me, every morning as I opened His Word, I would tell Him, “Daddy, speak to me.” Accordingly, through some words or a passage or an instance, He would speak to me directly: “Paul, you have done this mistake, repent.” I would immediately lay my hands on that portion or on the words and say, “Lord, forgive me!” Then His peace would fill my heart.
Whenever God had a blessing for me, He would speak to me: “Truly, I want to bless you with this blessing that you read of just now.” I would say, “Lord give me this blessing, give me this grace” and down would come God’s presence once again, and whatever I read would become real in my life.
The Psalmist says, “I have set the LORD always before me. Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken” (Psalm 16:8). Keep your eyes always on the Lord. Nothing can harm you as He is beside you to help you.
Prayer:
Loving Lord Jesus,
You are my loving Father. You are my best Friend. I give You the first place in my life. Please take control of my life. Guide me through the right path and protect me from all evil. Change my life and give me success in everything.
In Your matchless name I pray.
Amen.
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