And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statues and be careful to obey my rules. (ESV)

Recently one evening, my sister-in-law and I were driving back to Anchorage from Girdwood. As we passed along the Turnagain, the sun was hitting the mountains across the water and giving everything a sparkly, ethereal quality. I’ve often wondered how anyone can look at creation - especially the beauty right around us here in Alaska - and think, “Eh, this was all from just a big bang.”  

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As we were discussing this, my sister-in-law mentioned that she knew someone who looked at nature and felt nothing. When she could be sitting on a back porch, sipping coffee and enjoying nature, she would sit inside because it didn’t make any difference to her what she was looking at. Instead of admiring the expanse of an ocean and the vibrant sunset on a beach, she would just as easily look at a lump of coal and feel the same thing, or rather, not feel anything.

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Our conversation made me think of our verse today - it seems to me that she has a heart of stone, a heart stubborn to who her Creator is and what he’s done.  

When we allow the Holy Spirit in our lives, it changes us. My sister-in-law’s prayer for this person is, “Lord, soften her heart and remove the veils from her eyes.” But when we keep a hardened heart to the Lord, nothing good can come of it. Perhaps the best example of this is the Pharaoh during the time of Moses. He had a hardened heart, and the result was major destruction to Egypt, as well as the death of his firstborn son (Ex. 4-14).  

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I think it’s also easy to lose sight of the fact that we have the Holy Spirit living in us all the time. I feel the Holy Spirit’s presence easily when I’m on a mountaintop, surrounded by beauty, but not as much when I’m stuck in traffic with my kids squabbling in the background. We also tend to focus on Jesus’ return - which isn’t a bad thing - but we forget that while we’re waiting for Jesus to come back, we have the Holy Spirit with us every day. What a privilege it is that we don’t have to live alone!  

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Jesus said in John 14:15-17, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.” The Lord fulfilled his promise to put his Spirit in us when he sent his Holy Spirit to be our helper, counselor, and guide.  

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How do you feel the presence of the Holy Spirit in your life? Where do you go to feel closer to the Lord? If you don’t, pray and ask the Lord to reveal his Spirit to you. He wants nothing more than a close relationship with you, his dearly beloved child.  

Lord, what a blessing it is to have the Holy Spirit guiding us so we can walk in your ways! Thank you for caring for us so deeply that we never have to be without your presence. You provide for us in every way possible, and we are never lacking. Holy Spirit, help us to remember that we have you with us at every moment. We love you, Lord, Amen.