Last week I put together a new desk for my wife. It came in two flat boxes, along with several pages of instructions. I laid everything out on the floor, then step by step put pieces together. Only once did I give in to profanity (I sank a screw too deep). Pretty good for a couple hours working through someone else’s instructions.

Paul gave profound instruction to the church members in Galatia when he wrote, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. Paul compared the acts of the flesh—envy, debauchery, selfishness, and rage to name a few—with the fruit of the Spirit—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.

The Spirit trumps the flesh. But how do we actually go about walking by the Spirit?

There are two important pre-requisites to walking with the Spirit of God. First, we need to keep short accounts. Sin in our life (acts of the flesh) short-circuits the work of the Spirit. So we bow and ask God to reveal our attitudes and actions that displease him. We pay attention to what we hear. We confess and make things right. We open our dark places to the light of the Lord.

Confession and repentance are vital to walking by the Spirit—you cannot skip this part of the instructions.

Then we pray and ask the Holy Spirit to spread his influence within us: Holy Spirit, think with my thoughts, speak with my mouth, and extend my heart to others in love. Lord, develop within me love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.

Never forget how astounding it is that we can actually engage with God. To do so more intimately, employ these disciplines of spirituality every day. Let a time of praying, listening and responding settle into your routine. You’ll be surprised at the changes you notice when you keep in step with the Spirit.

Galatians 5 in Through the Bible in 2024

Photo by Annie Spratt