How well I remember being taught that the infilling of the Holy Spirit happened only at the time of salvation and that it was not an experience.

     Then, I met the Lord.  I found the indwelling Holy Spirit to be a vibrant and very present person, revealing Jesus in all sorts of ways.

     There is a burgeoning problem today in the church.  Christians are taught to try to experience the Lord, rather than to know Him.

     In order for the Holy Spirit to work freely in the heart, there must be affirmative availability in prayer.  The Soldier of The Cross must look at Him and must:

       Want Him. 
       Want to please Him and be like Him.
       Want to lay down his life for the Brethren.  
       Want to reveal Him to a lost world.

     Being a Soldier of The Cross is the result of agreeing with the whole Word of God God in prayer.  There is an outflow of love, and availability to be used.  Those who are being filled with the Spirit and are easily led by Him, rarely feel any rush or power, except perhaps in preaching.  More often they feel weak but move into the thing God puts before them.

     How wonderful it is to know that He is perfect and does not withhold any good thing from His Own. 

     Soldier, if He can be trusted, let us then be being filled, and move on, one step at a time!

      Soldier of The Cross, Paul says you are where you are now.

   
     It is The word of God.

     There is nothing else.  

     Soldier, if you look back with longing, you will turn to salt.  There is no way you may be distracted.  Look away unto the Lover of Your Soul.

     There is much to be done and be assured that the enemy delights in the distraction of those who are determined to take up The Cross.

     Examine the matter in prayer.

     Today.
     Aloud.

       What does Victory mean to The Soldier of The Cross?

     It means pleasing the King of Kings.  It means obedience.  It means the setting aside of the things that call to the flesh and the embracing of Heaven's agenda.

     Soldier, this does not take place by just thinking about it and bending thought in agreement.  Of course, the mind is the battle ground, and there must be a dealing of the thought life.  But, the crossing of The Line takes place in prayer.  There is a time when there is an agreement with God and it must be articulated.

     Today, you have been assaulted.  It is normal and not a matter for alarm.

     The issue is, will you agree with God?
     Will you tell Him so?
     Aloud?
     Without reservation?

      Today, there has been some distraction.

     The distraction has been one that would have consumed thought to the extent that you might have missed a chance to reach out to someone.  Perhaps the temptation was to self-examine, or there may have been a tug at considering how bad someone else is.

     Worried about the bills?  Misbehavior of a teenger?  An abusive spouse?

     Are you a Soldier of The Cross? 
     Have you determined to leave behind all that would distract?   
     Are you determined to take up the Cross daily and follow Him?  
     Have you so told Him in prayer?  
     Do you understand there is an enemy who will do anything and everything to pull you off the rail?
     Will you pay the price?

     Soldier, the focus of your life my must be the pursuit of God.  The first Commandment does not compel a feeling.  It is a commandment invoking obedience.  Obedience to the whole word of God.

     When emotions scream at you, delve into The Promises.  Sing the hymns of those who have gone before, leaned on The Everlasting arms, and have written music about His faithfulness.  Shout the verses aloud.

     Remember, we are Pilgrims and Sojourners.  What a protection.

     Look up and move on!

     There must be salvation before training.

     There are churches full of people who know all about the Armor or God, fasting, tithing and many other aspects of Christianity.  They enjoy the stimulation of meetings and talk about Christian fellowship.  Some of these raise hands in "worship."

     Before any of these things are taught to a person, he needs to be saved.  He needs to know that he needs Jesus and that something has to be done about it.  He must not go from information, to being trained to function as a Christian, and he surely should not be given any responsibility in the church.

     I have heard well-meaning Christians relate how they got the unsaved to start a quiet time, or recite certain verses about the Promises of God in order to claim them.  I have known Christians who were encouraged to exercise spiritual gifts, but were saved years later.   Some function as Christians for years and years without ever experiencing the New Birth.

     Soldier of The Cross, the Gospel is simple and a man must be born again before he participates in the things of the Lord.

     Of course the unsaved should come to church.  The Lord can be found there and there should be red-hot ministry to those who come in. 

     Teaching the unsaved to behave like Christians, think like Christians and speak like Christians, inoculates them against salvation.

     Go into all the world and preach the raw, simple, unfettered and powerful Gospel.

     Soldier of The Cross, understanding and willingness must be ripened and completed by the test of fire.

     There is no power in an area until it has been yielded to the Lord during the training period.  Those who pray for money are many.  Those who pray to be trained to live by faith are few.  They will be tested and, only when they have tasted His faithfulness in this area will they be able to move forward.

     It is critical to recognize that the Lord is answering prayer when the unexpected and the unwanted come blasting in.  Yes, we have an enemy, but God is Sovereign over all things and has promised He would not relax and let things get by.

     The flesh screams for contentment, predictability and avoidance of stretching.  The indwelling Holy Spirit trains us in the way of Peace, which comes by obedience.

     Pray about this.  Determine to find it attractive to live by faith.  Living by faith is not a way to insure against human failure.

     It is the way to know God.

       Soldier of The Cross, His will is simple.

       He wants you to get to know Him.  To recognize Him.  To seek Him out as the Lover of Your Soul.  He has made it clear that His Love for you exceeds any boundaries designed by your situation.

      Soldier, the issue is, do you or do you not believe Him?

     Those who see Jesus are also able to see the brevity of life.

     Soldier of The Cross, while it is a good thing to be sensible and moderate, it is more essential to see that time passes quickly with no opportunity to recapture it.

     When we are with Him, we will see that life was as long as a snap of the fingers.

     The beautiful thing is, we are given choice each hour and each minute.  Those choices will be reflected eternally.

     This is not paranoia, it is truth.

     Go farther than you feel.
     Give more than you have.
     Pray about everything.  Aloud.
     Resist passivity.
     Press hard into laying your life down for the Brethren.
     Sing when things appear the darkest.
     Touch those you find the most unlovely.

     Soldier, you must buy up the time.
 

     Soldier of The Cross, from your perspective, your relationship with the Lord should be about Him.

     If this is not a deliberate decision and focus, everything will be about you.  All prayer, the way you are treated in church, what you do and don't get from the Lord - that is all about you.

     Begin prayer with commitment, then worship.  He will lead and He will show you Himself. 
Then, when you pray about your own issues, it will be in order to transform you into His likeness, instead of solving your problems.

Soldier of The Cross, you must be constantly aware that you are passing through this life.

     Consider the fact that it is guaranteed that you must move on.  We have a period of time when we are given choice.  That choice determines not only where we will be for eternity, but also to what extent we will be rewarded.

     At the same time, we are told to take the Gospel to the ends of the earth.

     We are not allowed to be distracted.  There is always something and it usually feels like there can be no moving forward until the matter is solved. 

     That is not the case.  God's Word instructs us to seek first the Kingdom of God and all else will be "added unto" us.  Simply, it means we allow ourselves to be trained by Him.  We must learn to stand before Him in prayer and give Him the matter by faith, even when it feels like we will never be able to let it go.

     Agreeing with God in prayer is the move that is needed to release it to Him.  If there is no feeling of relief, it will come later.    If you try to deal with the problem until it is resolved, you will be cemented to the issue, and you will not be free to see the Lord, enjoy the Lord, sing a new song to Him or enjoy his people.

     Remember:

     God's Word is more real
     Than the way that you feel.