The Missing Element

We humans were never intended to walk through this world along. Now, I’m not talking about the blessings of family and friends, which, of course, soothe our souls in hard times and elicit laughter in times of emotional bounty. Nor am I referring to the benefits that connection with our creativity can bring.

Neither am I referring to the wisdom that philosophies have to offer. In fact, we can possess impeccable self-awareness and yet still miss out on the most essential element that God intended for us humans to possess…His Spirit.

As I approach this Easter Sunday, I reflect on a small group of bewildered men and women that huddled together in a house. Full of fear and confusion, they didn’t understand why their Lord had been crucified. They were like “…sheep without a shepherd.”

But when Jesus returned to them after He rose from the dead, He promised to send the Holy Spirit:

“But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.” John 14:26

Perhaps the greatest travesty that the philosophy of self-reliance has unleashed on humanity is the belief that we can achieve spiritual perfection without “The Element”…that we humans possess the capacity for goodness in and of ourselves…that the human heart has some magical quality, which will guide a person into his or her divine destiny.

I don’t believe this anymore, nor do I search inside myself for some kind of innate spirituality. I look for the Spirit of God to stir my heart towards the way of grace. I seek divine guidance for the life decisions I must make and embrace the truth that I often err in this process.

I try to acquiesce my human will to a divine Spirit who is greater than my finite mind can wrap itself around and understand let alone control. This is a presence so very real at times and yet so mysterious at others—a source of unending creativity.

No, God never intended for us humans to walk through this world alone; yet if we insist, He will respect our free will to do so. We all know scores of people that seem just fine going it alone.

God does promise that if we confront and confess our human frailties, besetting sins, and self-sufficiencies, and if we believe in Jesus’s atonement for our sins, then His Spirit is ours for the asking. We can embrace, receive, and follow “The Missing Element.”

“Scripture quotations taken from the NASB.”