The Secret of Power from On High

Day 1

The Dispensation of the Spirit

How much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!

Luke 11:13

THE writer of a little book on prayer tells us that he has learned through his own experience the secret of a better prayer life, and would gladly pass on that which has helped him. As he was meditating on prayer, the great thought came with power that we are now living in the dispensation of the Spirit. He says: I felt deeply that in this time of the working of the Holy Spirit, all we may do in God’s service is of little value unless it is inspired by the power of the Holy Spirit. This brought me to the well-known, precious, and inexhaustible text, ‘How much more shall your Heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask Him?’ (KJV).

I felt anew that the main thing for each of us is to receive, afresh from the Father, the Holy Spirit for our daily needs and daily life. Without this we cannot please God, nor can we be of any real help to our fellow men. This brought the further thought that our prayers, if they are to raise our lives to fulfill God’s purpose, must have their origin in God Himself, the highest source of power. Water cannot rise higher than its source. And so it happens that if the Holy Spirit prays through us, as human channels or conduits, our prayers will rise again to God who is their source, and the prayers will be answered by the Divine working in ourselves and in others. I believe more and more, says the writer, that the Christian life of each one of us depends chiefly on the quality of our prayers and not on the quantity.

What material for thought is here—for deep meditation, for earnest prayer! When you pray today, ask the Heavenly Father to give you the Holy Spirit afresh for this day. He yearns to do it.

Father, grant me now the working of Your Holy Spirit, that I may learn to pray.

Day 2

The Fruit of the Spirit

The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.

Galatians 5:22–23

WE have seen what are the first two lessons on prayer: We must pray the Father every morning to give us the Spirit anew, and then we must pray the Spirit to teach us and help us. Here is a third lesson: commit to memory the text at the head of this