Last December, I came across an article on parenting by partnering with the Holy Spirit. It was written by a mother and hence, its impact on me was deep. She spoke about how she imparted the practice of consulting the Holy Spirit to deal with the big and small things of life—conversing with the Holy Spirit even in the midst of a storm. Little did she know that one day this exercise would rescue her 12-year-old daughter from abuse.
She goes on to narrate an incident that happened when her daughter was alone with an adult male. The mother had to rush out to pick up something at the time and so, for a brief period the almost-teenager was alone with the man. Things went south pretty quickly—he started making advances and the girl started feeling uncomfortable. There was nobody at that point who she could run to; she did not know what to do. But she remembered something at that moment. Something that her mother had been teaching her to do daily—talk to the Holy Spirit! She closed her eyes and told Him about her fear. What happened after was just beyond words—she saw Jesus in front of her. He was pointing His finger at the man saying “what he is doing is wrong; it really hurts Me!” The girl uttered the exact same words that she heard the Lord say to the man—out loud. And almost immediately, he turned and walked away.
The mother goes on to say in her article that if she had not trained her daughter to communicate with the Spirit of God, she would have been in so much trouble because there was no one besides Jesus to her rescue at the time—He was the Only One who saved her daughter from harm’s way and abuse.
What a powerful testimony! —this story was a big eye-opener for me. I always felt that my children aren’t old enough for such mature topics such as the presence and power of the Holy Spirit. However, after reading this piece, I understood the gravity of equipping my children. And for this, I partnered with the Holy Spirit for it was not worldly wisdom that I needed, but a divine download right from the throne room of God.
Until last year, I did not have the habit of talking to God about everything. But once I started leaning on God for even the tiniest things of my life, I saw a breakthrough. I wanted this for my children as well. I started being very intentional about teaching my 8 and 6-year-olds the importance of communicating with the Holy Spirit about everything—doubts, fears, joys, hurts. More so, after reading the article, I made them pause for some time during our devotions daily so that they can speak to God. I also asked them to be quiet in the presence of God daily so that they can hear what He says.
Trust me when I say this— “I was simply amazed by the things Judah and Sairah came back with after their time alone with God!”
There was a particular thing that Joel and I were trying to explain to Judah for months and somehow, we weren’t able to get it through him. Either he did not want to do it or he did not really get it. He used to keep asking us the same questions over and over again to see if he could get a different response from us. This went on for some time until I asked him to talk to the Holy Spirit about it and get an answer from Him. One day after our daily devotion time, he came to me and said, “The Holy Spirit told me that what Pappa and Mamma have been saying is the right thing to do!” I was so surprised to hear this from him. There was a sudden transformation—I am not kidding! Whatever we were trying to explain to him for months, suddenly made sense to him. And the change happened immediately because of the divine encounter he had.
Surely, my children have a perfect Heavenly Father who is more than just willing to help them out even with the smallest of things. The Holy Spirit is our helper and it is amazing when He co-parents your children. My husband and I have become so intentional in this area—the Holy Spirit helps us with parenting now. The fruit of that one encounter was so real in our lives—Joel and I were awestruck by the transformation. This instance got me being even more intentional than before in ushering my children to God’s voice every day.
To my surprise, our Pastor made an announcement last Sunday during service that this year as a church we will be focusing on partnering with the Holy Spirit. I had tears rolling down my eyes. Isn’t it just amazing when the Lord confirms what he has been speaking to you? —I am getting goosebumps just thinking about that moment.
In Acts 1: 4-9,
4 On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. 5 For John baptized with[a] water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”
6 Then they gathered around him and asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?”
7 He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
9 After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.
In the above passage, Jesus speaks about how “we will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on us”. This power can be anything supernatural—preaching the Gospel, healing, breakthrough, wisdom, favour—and the best part is that it brings about transformation. Whatever supernatural that we hope and pray for can only happen through the Holy Spirit—the perfect Helper who is God’s gift for you and me.
The Holy Spirit reveals God’s thoughts, teaches, and guides us into all truth, including knowledge of what is to come.
Romans 8:11 says,
11 The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you.
Such a powerful verse! And what an assurance.
Today, I urge you to partner with the Holy Spirit for the big and small things of your life—especially parenting. No book or guide with parental tips is going to help for it is all written by imperfect people like you and me. Know that, each child is unique and deserves a kind of parenting that is tailormade—no book or class can do that. It is only our perfect Father who understands our children fully—nobody else, not even their own parents. So, it is time to hand over the rudder of your “parentship” to the Lord.
Consider this:
This may not look or sound like Parenting 101, but here are three Es for you to remember as you co-parent your children with the Holy Spirit. Know that the Holy Spirit:-
Enables you to do the works of God. On that first New Testament day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit enabled the 120 disciples to speak in other languages, and He still does today. He will come to your defense. Mark 13:11 says,
“Whenever you are arrested and brought to trial, do not worry beforehand about what to say. Just say whatever is given to you at the time, for it is not you speaking, but the Holy Spirit.”
Equips you for battle against the enemy. The Apostles never walked in power because they were anyone special in and of themselves. They had power because of the Holy Spirit and they yielded to Him.
Empowers you to walk in faith and not be shaken. Without the Holy Spirit, we cannot even come close to living the life that God has called us to. It is clear in Ephesians 3:14-19,
For this reason, I kneel before the Father, 15 from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. 16 I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, 18 may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, 19 and to know this love that surpasses knowledge-that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.