I’m currenting reading a book by Pastor Francis Chan entitled “Forgotten God: Reversing our tragic neglect of the Holy Spirit.”  The purpose of the book is to bring to light the part of the trinity that Jesus, Himself, gave to us when He ascended to Heaven.  Chan argues that today’s Church has neglected and forgotten the Holy Spirit like an old book collecting dust on the top shelf of the bookcase.  Although it fills a hole amongst the books, little effort is ever used to pull it off its shelf, open it up, and use the power found within its pages.

At the end of each chapter, Chan shares a story about a person (or a couple) that used the Holy Spirit in their lives to do God’s work, most times under very challenging circumstances.  For example, Joni Eareckson Tada is used to exemplify the discussion covered in Chapter 1. As I finished reading Chapter 4 this morning, I was especially touched by the story of Esther Ahn Kim, a Christian Korean during WWII.  In a nutshell, Esther was sent to prison for several years because she refused to bow to the idols as required by their Japanese conquerors.  She gained the admiration and trust of fellow inmates, prison guards, and even government officials as she displayed her faith through grace and love for others.  In his retelling of the story, Chan stated “[Esther] was not content to merely endure. She was ready every day and every moment, asking God, ‘Who do you want me to love for You today?’” (pg 99)

Who among us says that prayer every day? It is such a simple request made of so few words yet can deliver huge outcomes.  Read it again….. Who do you want me to love for You today? The very first quality of the Fruit of the Spirit is LOVE (Galatians 5:22-23).  It is part of the power of the Holy Spirit within us and should be part of our Christian Walk at all times.

Is it easy to love everyone?  Esther showed love to a fellow Chinese inmate imprisoned for murdering her husband, bit her fellow inmates, physically fought with Easter, and was covered in her own excrement.  Talk about unlovable!! But with the help of the Holy Spirit, Easter gained this woman’s trust and eventually led her to the Lord before she was executed for her crime.  If you continue reading Galatians 5, Paul provides a critical truth for how we can tap into the power of the Holy Spirit and exhibit its fruit: “If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit.” 

When I read Esther’s daily prayer, it gave me chills.  I recognized how powerful her request was just as I recognized how hard it would be to complete. But she did it! And so can we… every day and every moment!