In every game, good players train and aspire to be chosen members of the ‘A-team’—a league of champions with their eyes set on the common goal of taking the prize! Do you know that you have been chosen to be part of an A-team as well? Who's in that A-Team? You and Holy Spirit!
Whether you have been a Christian for many years, is a church leader or you've only just met Jesus last Sunday, you are called to live a Spirit-led life. This is a life that is constantly dependent on the Holy Spirit—cooperating and partnering with Him to bring the Kingdom of God and the will of your Heavenly Father to Earth.
This is not a life reserved for people that stand on the stage or a just qualified few; We are ALL invited to play a part. It is exactly what the Christian life is meant to look like. So, when we're talking about the A-team, we're talking about you plus the Holy Spirit!
For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God.
This verse confirms that you are called to live a Spirit-led life, qualified or not!
Perhaps you feel like the ‘exception to the rule’ because living a supernatural life in partnership with Holy Spirit, seems overwhelming. The good news is that Holy Spirit will help you. He is your helper, teacher and counselor. He will guide you into all truth and will patiently teach you how to live this incredible life.
So what makes a great team?
Behind every success story of victory is a hard-working team. If you look at any sports team, A-teams cooperate with each other and synergy can be clearly seen as they flow together effortlessly to win game points. Similarly, the Church is made up of many wonderful A-teams such as Guest Services, Production, Media, Kids Ministry—the list goes on and on. As the saying goes, “teamwork makes the dream work”.
I love being part of our worship team. My favourite moments are when the team—without saying a word—have all sensed exactly where we were going together musically. We were all attuned to the Holy Spirit and followed where He was leading us collectively. I’ve loved the moments when Pastor Sam, our Worship leader, has turned around and given us a ‘thumbs up’ to confirm that she too felt to go in that direction. It's a great privilege to be part of such a team! When the A team is working together and cooperating, there is a synergy that results and we complement each other beautifully. This is a picture of the way the Holy Spirit wants to partner with you in your life.
Did you know that Holy Spirit does not NEED our help, yet He chooses us to be part of His team? He doesn't need to draft us because His team NEEDS our talent in order to win. In fact, the very opposite is true; the game was won a long time before you and I were even a part of it! The end result has been secured. Jesus won EVERY victory and Holy Spirit does not need my help, my assistance or my gifts to make that any more of a reality than it already is! I am so grateful for the gracious God we serve, who, in spite of our broken humanity, freely gives us gifts and talents, and hands us a role to play in His story! What an amazing God we serve!
So if you just got saved last week, I want you to know this about God: We didn't get saved just to sit on the sidelines and watch great victories play out in front of us. We got saved to play a part in the greatest victory that is ever going to happen. There is a role for you to play. You might say, “I'm not as gifted as that person”, or “I can’t preach on a stage”, and that may be true. But there IS a unique role for you to play and Holy Spirit is ready and waiting to partner with you. Together, you can form an unstoppable A-team!
I am so grateful for the gracious God we serve, who, in spite of our broken humanity, freely gives us gifts and talents, and hands us a role to play in His story!
Jesus was the best example of living a Spirit-led life. The stories in the Bible are not merely written for inspiration or to make us feel good. The life of Jesus was the very example that we can live out in our everyday lives. In fact, we are called Christians which literally means, ‘little Christs’. When we look at the life of Jesus, our response should be, “I have been invited to live my life in the same fashion that Jesus lived His”. Jesus is the Son of God and yet He chose to live His life on Earth entirely as a Spirit-led man. He willingly surrendered His divinity to work in partnership with and dependent upon the Holy Spirit.
Then John testified, “I saw the Holy Spirit descending like a dove from heaven and resting upon him. I didn’t know he was the one, but when God sent me to baptize with water, he told me, ‘The one on whom you see the Spirit descend and rest is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’ I saw this happen to Jesus, so I testify that he is the Chosen One of God.”
When Jesus was baptised by John, Holy Spirit came and rested upon Him. What stood out to me was that until that moment, John the Baptist couldn’t even recognise that Jesus was the Son of God. He looked just like any other person that John had met previously. But when he saw Holy Spirit come upon Jesus, He knew that this was no ordinary man. From that moment on, Jesus was full of the Holy Spirit, dependent on and led by Him to fulfil His mission on Earth. And if that is the way Jesus lived, how much more are you and I called to live that kind of life as well!
Then Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan River. He was led by the Spirit in the wilderness.
So Jesus explained, “I tell you the truth, the Son can do nothing by himself. He does only what he sees the Father doing. Whatever the Father does, the Son also does. 20 For the Father loves the Son and shows him everything he is doing. In fact, the Father will show him how to do even greater works than healing this man. Then you will truly be astonished.
Jesus said that He only did what He saw His Father do, but if He was living a human life, how did He know what that was? How did He hear what the Father was saying? He knew exactly what to do when He came face to face with a blind man and heard the news of Lazarus’ death. Jesus activated the miraculous in different ways almost every single time He was confronted with a need. He did that by living His life in complete cooperation with His partner, Holy Spirit. They were able to operate with great synergy. Jesus knew what the Father wanted to do and was never without answers, stuck or cornered. I have good news for you! You can live like this too! In cooperation with the Holy Spirit, YOU too can bring breakthrough to your workplace, studies and in your family. Let me encourage you to stir your faith and simply BELIEVE!
And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate who will never leave you. He is the Holy Spirit, who leads into all truth. The world cannot receive him, because it isn’t looking for him and doesn’t recognize him. But you know him, because he lives with you now and later will be in you.
This is amazing! Holy Spirit will never leave you. Thank you Holy Spirit! What a privilege to never be without His help. Jesus said these words to His disciples after He was crucified, rose again and was leaving Earth to join His Father in Heaven. These words brought comfort and assurance that even though He would no longer be physically present with them, someone else, just like Him, would always be by their side—Holy Spirit.
Holy Spirit is our advocate, which means our ‘helper, intercessor, and counselor’. The literal translation for advocate is, ‘One who stands by’. Holy Spirit is standing by you ready to assist you, teach you and give you the keys to open and close spiritual doors in your life. He’s standing by to bring about the breakthrough in your life and in the lives of those you come into contact with. He is your partner who will give you the courage to speak up and use your God-given gifts and talents. When we play our part, Holy Spirit adds the ‘super’ to our ‘natural’ abilities.
This is what the Father wants US to do: To bring the Kingdom of Heaven to Earth. We may not know what tomorrow holds or even what the week ahead has in store for us. But this we can know for certain: We will not have to face any circumstances without the Presence and power of Holy Spirit in and alongside us. We WILL be victorious, not because we are confident in our own strength, but because Holy Spirit is on our side, leading us into victory! We may face troubles, we may face hardships, we may face mountains that we do not know how to move, but we KNOW He will lead us victoriously as we choose to live a Spirit- led life. How powerful and liberating is this simple revelation!
We may not know what tomorrow holds, but this we know for certain: We will not have to face any circumstances without the constant Presence of the Holy Spirit. We WILL be victorious because Holy Spirit is on our side, leading us into victory!
I can never escape from your Spirit! I can never get away from your presence!
The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you.
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.
Holy Spirit is with us. I know, first-hand, that He lives in me and will empower me when I need it.
Leading up to our planetboom Conference, I felt Holy Spirit ask me this question: “If this is a true partnership between us, great things will happen. What kind of partner will you be, Andy?” I then began to ask myself, ”Am I easy to work with or am I difficult to work with? What kind of teammate am I?”
Everyone has experienced what it is like to be assigned to a team where there are challenging people to work with. So what makes them challenging? Generally these types of teammates come with their own agenda and make sure that everyone works towards THEIR chosen outcome. This makes life difficult for everyone else on the team.
In basketball, these are the people you don’t want to pass the ball to for fear that they will ‘hog’ it. They just don’t want to be a team player! This prompted another question:“What is my agenda? Am I someone that is easy to work with, surrendering my own agenda to the leader of the team that has the bigger picture in mind?” Holy Spirit doesn’t look for people that have the right skills or experience. He can give gifts to anyone He chooses to, but when He is looking for someone to partner with, He seeks out those who are willing to surrender their own agenda so that they can be ready to go anywhere He leads.
Holy Spirit can give gifts to anyone He chooses to, but when He is looking for someone to partner with, He seeks out those who are willing to surrender their own agenda so that they can be ready to go anywhere He leads.
Another group of people that are difficult team players are those who are inflexible— allergic to change and resistant to new ideas. If I had to choose between someone who shoots down every new idea and a person that looks at the possibilities that come with change, I would always choose the latter. They are the people that don’t shy away from new ideas, even when they are tricky, and are ready to come up with creative solutions to problems. Are you open to change with the Holy Spirit? Do you just plow ahead with your agenda for your day without considering the will of the Holy Spirit? Sometimes we get so caught up with the busyness of our own ‘to-do list’ that we don’t leave enough space in our lives to be interrupted by the Holy Spirit when He needs to speak to us.
A good challenge is found in the Parable of the Good Samaritan (see Luke 10:25-37).
Put yourself in this story. Would you be the one that ignored the broken man, or the one who was willing to pick up the priorities of Heaven and stop to care for this man?
Sometimes we get so caught up with the busyness of our own ‘to-do list’ that we don’t leave enough space in our lives to be interrupted by the Holy Spirit when He needs to speak to us.
Thirdly, it is difficult to work with someone who is distracted. Such a person lacks focus, constantly looks distracted and is not ‘present’ in the moment.
I want to be a person who is attentive, picks up on nuances and gives attention to the little details. Imagine Holy Spirit trying to get your attention throughout your day. How difficult would He find it? He’s looking for those who would lean in to hear His whispers. I wonder what Holy Spirit has been whispering to you lately that you might not have been attentive enough to hear and partner with? Sometimes He’s waiting for us to just tune in.
This reminds me of the time I got a download from Holy Spirit about a Planetshakers song called ‘Prophesy’. It happened in a discipleship meeting where Pastor Sam was preaching about the prophetic and the power of declaring things with our mouth. At the end, she said, “Holy Spirit is speaking to us right now if you would just listen!” So I said, “Holy Spirit, I’m ready to listen!” As soon as I became aware of Him, He gave me the exact melody of that song.
Another example I remember is when I was hanging out with my 15-month-old daughter, LJ. I learned that day just how attentive a child’s heart can be. My mind was still busy detailing things that needed to be done for our planetboom conference as I was walking to my car. LJ was about 100m ahead of me with her mum and spotted me as I walked behind her. She excitedly called out for me, longing for a hug or a simple “hello” in return. Highly distracted, I didn’t hear her call out and walked straight past her. Unbeknownst to me, something took place in her heart in that moment.
The rest of that night was a nightmare because LJ was not herself, crying and unsettled throughout the night. As I held her in my arms, I thought it would bring comfort but the opposite happened. She grew more restless and wanted to get away from me. I had a ‘gut feeling’ that something was wrong and then I heard Holy Spirit speak to me: “You allowed frustration and stress to get into your heart today and this brought disappointment into LJ’s heart”. I immediately prayed with LJ and let go of all the stress of the day. LJ completely changed after that. She gave me a kiss and went on to worship along to the worship song that was playing in the background as we cuddled together. I got the key to my breakthrough in an instant when I allowed myself to listen to the promptings of the Holy Spirit.
So will you be a person that will lay down your own agenda?
Are you flexible to Holy Spirit’s promptings?
Are you attentive enough to hear what He is speaking to you right now?
If you answered these questions with a wholehearted, “Yes!”, get ready for the greatest journey ahead because you are part of the A Team!
