It takes a powerful anointing to accomplish the will of God, but it takes true character to keep us where God will put us (Romans 5:4).

“When Jesus was baptised the Holy Spirit drove Him into the wilderness (Mark 1:12), and many of the prophets and apostles were led in a similar way,” said a disciple of the Lord. “Those who want to live their lives in the Spirit will also be led that way.”

“In the wilderness away from the world, its opinions and the influence of people, the Holy Spirit breaks down self and our resistance to God. He strips us bare and we learn in that barren place, what has value and what is worthless. We die daily, as He exposes all the root of rebellion, self and ambition inside of us. We realise how we lived off the praise of others, their encouragement and how much we did in churches to be seen! The wilderness is a terrible place, but it is there we truly meet God!”

When we have walked with the Holy Spirit for sometime, He will reveal that our problem is no longer so much open sin, but self.

Our own self-interest will be revealed in its true ugliness and we learn that even the good things that we thought we did for Christ, were actually birthed in self. The Pharisees were very religious and outwardly seemed like good people. They fasted, prayed and gave, but Jesus could see that all their religious devotion was to impress man, not God (Matthew 6:16, 9:14-15, 23:26, Luke 18:11-14).

This is an excerpt from the book ‘Holy Spirit Power! Knowing the Voice, Guidance and Person of the Holy Spirit’ by Paul Backholer and is used by permission.