Three Steps to Walking in the Holy Spirit

“If the Holy Spirit is living in us, let us be led by Him in all things.” Galatians 5:25 (NLV)

What does it mean to walk in the Spirit? How do we live this out in our day-to-day lives? Over the years René and I have both gained some insight into this and wanted to share what it means (to us) to walk in the Spirit and how we can do it every day.

What Does “Walking in the Spirit” Mean?

The phrase ‘walk in the Spirit’ means many things to different people. For some, it might be a life of regularly going to church. For others, it might be a charismatic moment of visions and inspiration. And for still others, walking in the Spirit is demonstrated by a strong and fruitful prayer life.

In truth, this phrase actually combines all of these! It simply means being guided by the Lord, living connected to His Spirit on a regular basis.

When each of us was saved, Jesus made this promise: he would give us the Holy Spirit. Consider:

• I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, so that He may be with you forever; the Helper is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him; but you know Him because He remains with you and will be in you. – John 14:16-17 (NASB)
• Christ also brought you the truth, which is the good news about how you can be saved. You put your faith in Christ and were given the promised Holy Spirit to show you belong to God. – Ephesians 1:13 (CEV)

These two passages offer a profound truth: as Believers, we already have the Holy Spirit living inside us! This is precisely what Jesus said.

The main purpose of the Holy Spirit is to help us. He is the one who helps us understand. He is the one who helps us pray. He is the one who helps us overcome the temptations of the world around us.

To walk in the Spirit is to tap into the help God has already provided for us. The more we can do this, the stronger in our faith we become.

Staying Connected

One key to walking in the Spirit is staying connected. I’ll confess, we, like many folks, spend a lot of time every day on our smart phones. While our phones are powerful devices that keep us connected to the world, they are useless without being plugged in and charged up. 

It’s the same with us when it comes to the Holy Spirit. Without a direct connection to the Holy Spirit, we can’t surround ourselves with the full power and armor of God’s Will for our lives.

To be clear, as Christians we never have to worry about losing the Holy Spirit. When we. truly accepted Christ into our lives, this promise was made by Christ. However, what can increase or decrease in our lives is the impact the Holy Spirit has every day. The more we yield to God’s Spirit, the more impact He has on our lives. How can we do this?

3 Ways to Make Sure We’re Walking with the Holy Spirit

1. Commit to prayer

The simple truth is that we cannot walk in the Spirit without praying. Prayer is more than just a spiritual exercise or discipline. Prayer is our lifeline. The way we connect our spirit with the Holy Spirit is through prayer. Are we spending time with God?

There’s a direct connection between time spent in prayer and challenges we overcome. When we make room for the Holy Spirit, He empowers us to overcome the struggles of the flesh. This is walking in the Spirit.

2. Commit to the Word

Many people don’t connect reading the Bible directly with walking in the Spirit. We get it. But in our experience, there is no way to separate the two.

How do we connect them? Here is how it works. The Word of God gives us instruction on how to live while the Spirit of God gives us the power to do it. The Spirit of God and the Word of God work in cooperation with each other. David offered an excellent example of this in Psalm 119:10-11 when he wrote: “With all my heart I have sought You; Do not let me wander from Your commandments. I have treasured Your word in my heart, so that I may not sin against You.”

When we hide God’s Word in our hearts, it’s His Word that teaches us how to live. Then God gives us His Holy Spirit to strengthen our ability to live out the Word. When we commit to the Word, the Holy Spirit will help us do God’s Will in every aaspect of our lives.

3. Commit to obedience

Simply put, without obedience, it doesn’t matter how much we pray or how much we read the Bible. Without obedience, those things are just items to check off our lists. Consider the words of James: “Do not deceive yourselves by just listening to his word; instead, put it into practice.” – James 1:22 (GNT)

Here’s the best part. When we walk in the Spirit, He gives us the desire to obey. The desire comes not out of obligation but because He forms in us a heart that grows to love God more. The more we love Him the more we want to obey him.

Connecting the Dots

God has given us the Holy Spirit. The Spirit helps us pray, which gives us strength. He moves us to read the Word, which provides us wisdom, showing us how to live. Finally, He helps us obey God’s Will.

God’s Holy Spirit lives inside us. Because He does, He will give us what we need to live the life He wants for us. When we walk in the Spirit, every aspect of our lives is made better.

May God continuously lead your path.

René and Robin