Encounters With the Holy Spirit's Power to Transform

Psalm 18:8 The Lord will perfect that which concerneth me: thy mercy, O Lord, endureth for ever: forsake not the works of thine own hands.

When you understand that the Holy Spirit is the third person of the Holy Trinity and not a force, He can reveal Himself to you in amazing ways. Because you have a personal relationship with Him, there may be things He does for you that others may not experience. In 2001 I had a situation that I was concerned about and the power of the Holy Spirit perfected it for me in a very personal way. In February of that year, my husband and I became Deacon and Deaconess in the church we were attending. We wore off white during the fall and winter and regular white during the spring and summer. When September rolled around, I realized the off white suit I had worn at the beginning of the year was spring attire and not appropriate for the fall. I knew I would need a new suit, but did not want to spend the money. I prayed for a way to be made, but also prepared to utilize the skirt and jacket that I already owned. At times when the situation came to mind, I would simply say "Help me Holy Spirit" and move along.

One day during the last week in September my mother called. A co-worker had given her several crates of household items but she had no space for them. I went to her home, loaded the crates in my car then set them on my living room floor. They had been sitting for a few days when I decided to go through them on a Thursday evening. In the first one, I found a wooden paper towel holder, dishcloths, dish towels, a napkin container, and a few wooden picture frames. In the second container were some brick or brack, porcelain figurines, a spatula, long-handled fork, a set with four wooden coasters and a few sweaters. As I was holding up the last sweater, I noticed another item on the bottom off the crate. I picked it up and immediately wanted to throw it way.

It was an off white two-piece matching A-line skirt and jacket that was dusty and looked faded. There was a ring around the color that was actually brown in color. It smelled dusty and musty as if it had been packed away for a long time, and my nose burned as my eyes watered. Both the skirt and jacket looked so bad I was about to discard them. A church phrase came to mind, "Little becomes much in the Master's hands." In that instant, I was just like the Grinch, because a wonderful awful idea came to mind. I envisioned the suit cleaned and pressed and restored to it' original condition. I knew if I put it in the dry cleaners, it may not be ready by Sunday., so I talked to the Lord.

I said out loud that I was going to wash this suit in my washing machine, hang it outside to air dry then iron it. I declared this was a gift from the Lord as it was in my size and that when I wore it the glory of God and the power of the Holy Spirit would have me glowing and people would notice. I lay my hands on the skirt and jacket as I spoke and then I went to work. Sunday morning that suit looked as I had purchased it brand new. The brown ring, dirt, musky smell and faded spots were gone. When I got to church I received several compliments on how nice the outfit looked. More importantly, several individuals told me that the anointing of God was upon me and His glory was radiating from me. The suit was similar to the one in the photo except the neckline was higher.

I was so thankful. because this was so much more than cleaning up a dirty suit. The glory of the Lord cannot be faked and to have His stamp of approval is one of the best things that can happen to a believer. I resigned myself to using the suit I had but the Lord made a way. Had I been high minded and thrown away that suit, I would have missed a blessing that was better than spending money to purchase a new one. I encourage all believers today to reach out to the Spirit of the Living God and see what He does in your life. Make it personal between the two of you.