“But whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” John 4:14 (NIV)

“I will talk to the Father, and he’ll provide you another Friend so that you will always have someone with you. This Friend is the Spirit of Truth. The godless world can’t take him in because it doesn’t have eyes to see him, doesn’t know what to look for. But you know him already because he has been staying with you, and will even be in you!” John 14:16-17 (MSG)

“God’s Spirit touches our spirits and confirms who we really are. We know who he is, and we know who we are: Father and children.” Romans 8:16 (MSG)

“But when the Friend comes, the Spirit of the Truth, he will take you by the hand and guide you into all the truth there is. He won’t draw attention to himself, but will make sense out of what is about to happen and, indeed, out of all that I have done and said.” John 16:13 (MSG)

All these promises about the Holy Spirit are true. I have experienced Him fully and He is always with me.

It’s true that when, as a younger me, I read such Bible verses, they didn’t make sense to me. Their Truth only became evident when I began getting to know my Heavenly Father on a personal level. Now I am never alone!

I used to be quite religious. Even though I attended church, I felt completely empty. What I liked the most about going to church was my friends. We picnicked together, camped together, looked after one another’s kids and had decent fun.

That all changed the day I first attended a Messianic Synagogue. My life changed drastically. I experienced the palpable presence of the Holy Spirit for the first time, and I invited Him to dwell in me. From that day on, when I read the Bible, I understood it. The Bible became alive, thanks to its Author, God’s Holy Spirit. He is now my best friend as well as my guide.

What about my friends in the other church? Because they didn’t know God personally, and because the Holy Spirit was not taught in my church, my friends couldn’t accept His presence. It scared them so much that they abandoned me. The pastor of that church even began a year-long sermon series preaching against the Holy Spirit. So sad. What they couldn’t understand, they rejected completely.

It doesn’t matter, however, that I lost all my friends, for I now have a bosom friend who will never abandon me: God’s Holy Spirit.

When Jesus was on the verge of being arrested, He knew His disciples would flee, for this was a natural tendency. He was also aware that it didn’t matter, for He taught: “But a time is coming, and has come, when you will be scattered, each to his own home. You will leave me all alone. Yet I am not alone, for my Father is with me.” John 16:32 (NIV). Although all His disciples abandoned Him, He was not alone, and neither are we!

His presence is way more important to me than anyone else. I still love my former friends and I continue to pray for them. Unfortunately, however, this love is not mutual.

The Holy Spirit has guided me all along. He guided me to the right job. The day my colleague told me that the French Consultant was pregnant, I dreamed I was sitting in her office, even though I had never seen her office. A few months later, as I had a workshop in the building where she worked, I knocked at her door. When she opened it, I was completely astonished. Her office was exactly what I had seen in my dream. Sure enough, I took her position during her maternity leave. After this, I again had to seek a new position. One day the Holy Spirit gave me the name of the school where I would work. Sure enough, a position came available, I applied, and I am still teaching there.

We humans depend on medicine, and when I had problems sleeping, I, too, depended on prescription sleeping tablets that were supposedly non-addictive. Three years later, I tried to go off them. This resulted in severe anxiety attacks at night. Here, too, the Holy Spirit guided me to victory. Over the course of the next several months, I was able to become completely free from these pills.

The Holy Spirit has also guided me to a Spirit-filled church. He is my everything. He guides me at all times. The only problem is that sometimes I stubbornly pursue my own will. Even then, however, He stands by me, guiding me back into His will. I truly can say with King David: “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.” Psalm 23:4 (NIV)

If you don’t know God’s Holy Spirit, would you like to get to know Him? If you do, feel free to email me. I will share with you how you can experience Him fully. He loves you, you know.

Rob Chaffart

(To access the entire “Why I am a Christian” devotional series, please click here.)