A friend of mine has just been baptised again in the Holy Spirit, 13 years after first being so. Their joy is palpable. Their eyes are full of life and their joy in the Lord is so full. The sheer excitement of meeting with the infilling glory and presence of the Holy God of Holy love.
And it reminds me that, however much it is right and necessary to stress intentionality and focus in the Christian life, with a consequent emphasis on life-enhancing practices and habits, it all begins with the sheer generosity of the God whose divine identity is made known to us in and through Jesus Christ. The power of His atoning sacrifice and bodily resurrection open the way for us to be filled with the Holy Spirit. And it is this infilling that is the ‘engine room’ of the Christian life. Let us never forget it.
