I don’t know how you feel about yourself, but I know I’m not dumb. By that I mean: I don’t just walk around life with an empty head. I read, study and interact with information actively on a daily basis. And yet, for all my knowledge, here’s what I have learned:

Knowledge in itself cannot change you.

And, yes, that includes the knowledge of God’s Word. 

Are you shocked? Me too. For a long while now, I have been very discouraged because of the disconnect I have felt in my life between just how much I know about God, His Word, etc and where I would like my spiritual (and honestly, my whole) life to be. It seems as if my knowledge of God’s truth always far outpaces the place of sanctification I am in my christian race.

You will think that simply knowing the truth in your head ought to transform your life powerfully, right? After all, it’s the truth! It should have weight in our lives, propelling us into infinite heights of spiritual maturity! The painful truth I have come to realize is that simply being stuffed with a lot of knowledge about the truth or knowledge about the right thing is no guarantee for a transformed, thriving, Christian life. 

Life is not that simple. We are very complicated people; we have wounds, struggles, traumas, joys, distractions, sin, responsibilities. Life is anything but straightforward or streamlined. What I am learning over and over again is that what we need is power. Yes, power. 

I am no expert in the kingdom of God, and honestly, I speak (or should I say, write) as one who most of the time feels inadequate, insufficient, broken and “not-where-I-want-to-be.” But to the degree that I am a Master in the Art of intensely studying the man I think the most about (myself lol), I have come to see that even when I know the right things, even when I am filled with knowledge of how good and glorious and powerful God is, a lot of the time I still feel too weak to press on in faith, unable to move forward with courage and consistency as I’d like, incapable of sufficiently encouraging myself in the Lord and being sustained to the point where I feel like I am thriving or being as fruitful as I want to be. 

I do believe that I need more power. Power from on high that will quicken my spirit and enable the truths that I know (up in my head) to ignite my heart and propel my hands to action. I need the power of the Holy Spirit to help me not just know about righteousness but actually live righteously, to not just know about faith and boldness but actually walk in faith and boldness, to not just know about the commands of not worrying or the comforting promises of the good that comes from enduring trials and intense suffering but to actually run in the strength of those comforting promises. 

I need the Holy Spirit to empower my Christian life. I need the Holy Spirit to take the truthful word of God (which He wrote) and apply it in practical, meaningful ways in my life. 

Dear friend, will you pray for me? And if you resonate with this, will you pray for yourself? Will you pray for your loved ones? Seriously, please pray even now. We need the truth, yes, but alongside that, we need the mighty Holy Spirit desperately to help us walk in the power of that truthful gospel with all of its promises and comforts and commands. May God help us. 

 “For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.”  -2 Timothy 1:7