More Power to You – Ghost Stories: Week 3
When the Power Goes Out, The Party’s Over
In 2013, the Carnival cruise ship, the Triumph, lost power when a fire broke out in the engine room and knocked out the ship’s power, so the ship just drifted in the Gulf of Mexico currents. More than 4,200 passengers and crew were stuck. They couldn’t flush the toilets, use the air conditioning, keep the food refrigerated or cook the food. The passengers lined up for the food that was left. They didn’t have enough clean water and they got sick. They were also incredibly bored with nothing to do. Passengers were sleeping in the halls and even outside because it was so hot inside and it smelled so bad. CNN called it “the cruise ship from hell.”
The ship’s power loss wasn’t just a problem for the passengers. Carnival lost hundreds of millions of dollars as a result of this incident. They responded by putting new emergency power capabilities on the ship. They learned their lesson: When the power goes out, the party is over! No power, no party!
The power around us is important, but the power inside of us is even more important. Why do we often feel drained, defeated and powerless? Too many times, we try to live by our own power and strength. We are fighting a losing battle because we’re not supposed to live off of our own power. We have to be connected to a much bigger power source!
That Power Source is the Holy Spirit! After Jesus died on the cross and was buried for three days, He was raised from the dead by the power of the Holy Spirit.
The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. Romans 8:11
Consider that for a moment: The very same power of the Holy Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead lives in you today!
At the start of the book of Acts, Jesus was talking with His disciples, and saying his last words before he ascended into Heaven. He said He was leaving and He was going to send the Holy Spirit to live in us,
“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere—in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Acts 1:8
The actual word POWER here is the Greek word, DUNAMIS that actually means the explosive power of God. The only way to understand the change that happened in the lives of the disciples and the explosive growth of the church is that the Holy Spirit filled these ordinary people with an extraordinary power to change the world. We have that same power at work in us today!
3 Big Areas Where the Holy Spirit Gives Me Power
The Holy Spirit gives me the power to be strong.
“In the same way, the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness.” Romans 8:26
Wherever you are weak, the Holy Spirit can be strong. Call on Him! He will give you power where you are weak.
The Holy Spirit gives me the power to be positive.
Where can you find the strength to live a positive life in a negative world?
I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit. Romans 15:13
Our hope is limited when we place it in anything other than God. When you put your hope in God, you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Your situation is not hopeless. Even if you don’t see anything to be positive about, put your hope in God and His Spirit will fill you with hope.
The Holy Spirit gives me the power to be bold.
After this prayer, the meeting place shook, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit. Then they preached the word of God with boldness. Acts 4:31
Why are we afraid to reach out to others? We’re afraid we might say the wrong thing. Maybe we’re afraid that people will think we are hypocrites. But usually, it’s because we fear rejection.
Our mission as believers is too important to be afraid. The people around you need you to be bold enough and brave enough to reach out to them. Even though you may be afraid, God’s Spirit that lives inside of you isn’t.
God’s Spirit doesn’t make cowards out of us. The Spirit gives us power, love, and self-control. Don’t be ashamed to speak for our Lord… Use the power that comes from God and join with me in suffering for telling the good news. 2 Timothy 1:7-8 (CEV)
The Holy Spirit gives us the power to share Jesus and He will give you that same power if you will trust Him.
If you don’t know what to say, the Holy Spirit will give you the words to say that you didn’t even realize you knew.
“For the Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what needs to be said.” Luke 12:12
We need power to do what God wants us to do. Why do so many believers live powerless lives? Because they don’t realize that they can tap into the power of the Holy Spirit and live power-filled lives.
I pray that from His glorious, unlimited resources He will empower you with inner strength through His Spirit. 17 Then Christ will make His home in your hearts as you trust in Him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong. 18 And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep His love is. 19 May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God. Ephesians 3:16-19
You can know, understand and live in the fullness of the love of Jesus. Through Him, you can be made complete and whole and live an abundant, joyful life. This doesn’t happen by your own strength, but there is a greater power source for your life. Ask the Holy Spirit to fill you, strengthen you, comfort you, guide you, and lead you as He empowers you to live the life that you can’t live on your own.