Why do we want the things that we want? There is always a reason behind our desires. Some of them are not so good as others, but a reason none the less.
As part of our salvation our spirits were washed and regenerated, that is, we were born again in our spirit which means we are now connected to God in spirit.
not out from works, the ones in righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us through washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, Titus 3:5
But the one knit together with the Lord is one spirit, 1 Corinthians 6:17
Our spirit is our rational part
For what human intuitively knows the things of a human except the spirit of the human, the one in Him? 1 Corinthians 2:11
Because we are now connected to God in our rational, intellectual part and the Holy Spirit indwells us, He impacts our desires. So the next time you have a desire to do what is right, that desire is not coming from you; rather, it is a direct result of the Holy Spirit expressing to you His desire for you in that situation. Don’t take these desires lightly, they are not natural to our human nature and are contrary to it.
But I say, walk by the Spirit and you will never bring to completion the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the desires of the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh. For these are against one another in order that you do not do the things you desire – Galatians 5:17
Now we do not want our sin nature taking advantage of us and persuading us to do what it desires thinking it is good because we are not using the renewed mind God gave us to know His desirous will for us.
And stop being outwardly conformed to this age, but to be transformed by your renewed mind, for the purpose to test for approval what is the desirous will of God, the good and well pleasing and mature. – Romans 12:2
Understanding that the Holy Spirit impacts our desires is important because He has no need to speak to us or to show us signs and wonders. He influences us far greater than any of those could do. He indwells us and just like our flesh or our emotions, He gives us desires. We need to take the time to learn to recognize these desires and follow them. Therefore, experiencing the Holy Spirit is not an emotional thing. The hairs on the back of our neck do not stand up, we do not get goose bumps, we are not put in a trance, or made to laugh uncontrollably, or speak in gibberish (some try to pass this off as speaking in tongues); rather, it is by using the new mind we have in Christ and training our senses to discern the difference between the desires we get so that we determine what is proper and what is wrong, knowing that ultimately the desire to do what is right is coming from God and is a direct result of fellowshipping with Him. So the next time you have a desire to do what is right, that is the Holy Spirit communicating with you.
