When you were a child, part of you longed to be older and wiser. That’s why you played with toy dolls and soldiers and fire trucks. You pretended you were grown up.

Likewise, there is a holy desire within us to grow up to be more like Jesus. It’s also God’s desire for us to be “conformed to the image of Jesus”. Where did this desire come from, and how does this happen?

Don’t miss this. The Holy Spirit, who lives in all believers, intercedes for us in prayer before God. His prayers are like spiritual vitamins for us to grow. The Spirit knows what we need to become like Jesus, so He pleads for us in prayer before God. And the Spirit, who is now in us, releases His own sacred desires within us. Once we get introduced to Jesus as our Savior, we then also want to know Him more deeply as our Lord and leader.

This is one of the greatest blessings we have. To want to know God more fully is a holy desire the Spirit puts within us. His desires now become our desires.

“And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words. And the Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God’s own will.” Romans 8:26-27 NLT

So now my spirit wants, and even yearns, to submit to the Holy Spirit. I don’t do it perfectly, but the Spirit is patient with me. Sometimes I grieve the Spirit by ignoring His voice, but He is faithful. Why? Because the Spirit is in total unity with God, and His love for me.

This is why we embrace the Spirit as our best friend and pastor.

This is why we share our faith with those around us.