An old story is told of a king in Africa who had a close friend with whom he grew up. The friend had a habit of looking at every situation that ever occurred in his life (positive or negative) and remarking, “This is good!”

One day the king and his friend were out on a hunting expedition. The friend would load and prepare the guns for the king. The friend had apparently done something wrong in preparing one of the guns, for after taking the gun from his friend, the king fired it and his thumb was blown off.

Examining the situation the friend remarked as usual, “This is good!” To which the king replied, “No, this is NOT good!” and proceeded to send his friend to jail.

About a year later, the king was hunting in an area that he should have known to stay clear of. Cannibals captured him and took him to their village. They tied his hands, stacked some wood, set up a stake and bound him to the stake. As they came near to set fire to the wood, they noticed that the king was missing a thumb. Being superstitious, they never ate anyone that was less than whole. So untying the king, they sent him on his way.

As he returned home, he was reminded of the event that had taken his thumb and felt remorse for his treatment of his friend. He went immediately to the jail to speak with his friend. “You were right,” he said, “it was good that my thumb was blown off.”

And he proceeded to tell the friend all that had just happened. “And so I am very sorry for sending you to jail for so long. It was bad for me to do this.” “No,” his friend replied, “This is good!” “What do you mean, ‘This is good’? How could it be good that I sent my friend to jail for a year?”

“If I had NOT been in jail, I would have been with you.”

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“And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose.” (Rom. 8:28)

Situations may not always seem pleasant while we are in them, but the promise of God is clear.

Dear friends, do not believe everyone who claims to speak by the Spirit. You must test them to see if the spirit they have comes from God. For there are many false prophets in the world. – (1 John 4:1)

Occasionally, we hear someone say something, preach something, or teach something that doesn’t sit well in our hearts. We have a nagging feeling that something just isn’t quite right with what they are saying. The Holy Spirit within us gives us what I call “the greasies” — that sick feeling in the pit of our stomach that something isn’t quite right.

The things said could be very pleasing to us, they could be difficult for us to hear, or they could be the culturally acceptable point of view. No matter on what trajectory the comments reach us, we need to pray and seek the Spirit’s leading and then open the Scriptures to check and see if what we heard is really from God.

Spiritual discernment is an important work of the Holy Spirit in our lives.

Prayer : O Father, I confess that I get busy and distracted. In such times, I know that I don’t practice good spiritual discernment. In the rush of my life, I neglect opening your word as often as I and I don’t come into your presence seeking to have my heart tuned by your Holy Spirit. Father, please forgive me and also guide me through the leading of your Spirit so I may better know and obey your will.

Whatever happens, as citizens of heaven live in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in the one Spirit, striving together with one accord for the faith of the gospel.- (Philippians 1:27)

At first glance, we are not sure whether the word “Spirit” in this passage should be capitalized or not. Yet as we’ve read this past week, the love we share for each other and the unity that we have in Christ are inspired and empowered by the Holy Spirit.

We stand together, we are part of the same family, because of the tie we share together in the Holy Spirit. Our strength to strive for common goals and to make every effort to be one comes from the unifying power and presence of the Holy Spirit.

The love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, and faithfulness we have in our lives come because of the presence of the Holy Spirit. So now, let’s seek to let the Spirit’s influence mold us
and shape us so we can work together for the sake of the good news of Jesus.

Prayer : Almighty God, whatever happens in my life, I want to honor you, share Jesus, and display the fruit of the Spirit. I want to bless your people and stand together in unity with them, working for the cause of the gospel. So I ask for your help to honor this commitment, to keep it foremost in my heart, and to not be distracted or deterred by disappointment, hardship, heartache, or my own fleshly desires. I ask for this grace, in the name and power of Jesus Christ. Amen.