Luke 1:39-55
"As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. Blessed is she who has believed that what the Lord has said to her will be accomplished!" And Mary said: "My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed, for the Mighty One has done great things for me--holy is his name..."
The story of Christmas is filled with work of the Holy Spirit. In the first two chapters of Gospel of Luke, the work of Holy Spirit was mentioned seven times, especially when the whole family of Zechariah was filled by the Holy Spirit. Verse 15 talks about how John was filled by the Holy Spirit in the womb, in verse 41 Elizabeth was filled by the Holy Spirit, and finally Zechariah was filled by the Holy Spirit too. At first, Zechariah didn't believe the prophecy from the angel, so God made him dumb and unable to speak. Later on, his wife became pregnant, and even when he witness his child and wife filled by the Holy Spirit, he still couldn't speak and became very anxious. He didn't believe it before and was not eager for the Holy Spirit, but then he just wanted the Lord to open his mouth and he believed he will be filled by the Holy Spirit as well. In verse 64, as soon as he could speak, he was filled by the Holy Spirit. All three of them filled by the Holy Spirit and joy, and in the same way the joy of Christmas should be brought upon by filling of the Holy Spirit.
God's Kingdom is full of joy, not because everything is steady and smooth, but because of God's genuine presence. Joy cannot be forced; when convenience stores launch a smile campaign, the store clerks' faces only become stiff after smiling for eight hours. You can pretend to smile, but your heart might still be carrying tons of burden. Only when the Holy Spirit lands upon you will your bitterness and hatred be broken by Him and your burden and worries removed, allowing you to have real joy. The Bible says that when the Holy Spirit comes, there will be "the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair."
Have you fallen into worries and have no joy in your heart? You need to welcome the work of the Holy Spirit to bring you true release. When you come before God, you will find genuine joy and satisfaction. May the Spirit of the Lord help us to see what we really need inside, and we welcome the Holy Spirit to come and work within us, to bring the genuine presence of God into our daily life!
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