WHO CONTROLS YOUR LIFE: YOU, OR THE HOLY SPIRIT?

SCRIPTURE:
Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on 
what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the 
Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind of sinful 
man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace; the 
sinful mind is hostile to God. It does not submit to God's law, nor can it 
do so. Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God. You, 
however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the 
Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of 
Christ, he does not belong to Christ. But if Christ is in you, your body is 
dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness. And 
if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he 
who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies 
through his Spirit, who lives in you. 
(Romans 8:5-11)
 
MEDITATION:
Who is in control?  
This is a question we may ask ourselves from time to time.
Are we still “steering the ship”, or have we turned it over to the Lord?
If we are honest with ourselves, most of us prefer to be in control.
The danger with this is that when we ARE in control, we tend to make 
decisions that could have a major impact on our life (present & eternal).
 
So, the question is, 
“Are we better off when we are in control, or when the Spirit is in control?”
 
According to the scriptures, the by-products of when we are in control are:
- Death (ouch!).
- Hostility toward God (heaven forbid).
- Non-submission to the will of the Spirit (‘do not belong to Christ’).
- Worldly desires.
- Inability to please God.

However, the by-products of a Spirit-controlled life are:
- Spiritual desires (what is pure, good, just, right, beneficial, etc.).
- Desire and ability to please God.
- Life (enjoying living).
- Righteous living. 
- Belong to Christ.
- Peace.

When comparing these two lists, it is easy to see which one we 
would (should) prefer, but just how do we give the Spirit control of our life?  
We “starve the flesh” and “feed the Spirit”.  
Of course, starving the flesh means 
we avoid worldly (or fleshly) thoughts and actions.
  
Whenever we are unsure if an action is worldly or not, one measurement 
is to ask, "Do I need to justify my actions (even if only to myself)?"  
Feeding the Spirit means we saturate our minds with spiritual things 
(prayer, scripture reading, sermons, worshiping with others, etc.).  
As we increase one (Spirit), by default the other one (flesh) decreases.

ACTION:
Review the two by-product lists and determine 
which one is winning in your own life: self-control or Spirit-controlled.
Start with your desires 
- are they worldly, or are they directed toward pleasing God?
When the war for your soul begins, which choice do you make?
Where is you allegiance and loyalty?

Pray,
“Heavenly Father, thank You for Your promise of a better life. Show 
me the areas where I have failed to give You control and help me to 
replace the natural with the supernatural. Encourage me as I strive to 
relinquish my control to You and become a “Spirit-led” child of Yours.”