When our family took a trip to the Holy Land, we enjoyed seeing so many historical Bible locations, but were surprised that many of them looked different than we expected. Some sites had elaborate buildings “preserving” them, and other sites were outright distorted. While many of the locations we visited had modernized or changed over time, there was one place that was special for all of us: the Sea of Galilee. 

The Sea of Galilee remains unaltered by man and was a beautiful and peaceful setting for a special time of Scripture reading and singing with our family. The Sea of Galilee reminded me of how small we are—how dependent we are on God. This location, as the central point of Jesus’ miracles, helped life fall into perspective for me. It drew my attention to the unlimited greatness of God.

We tend to enlarge ourselves in our own imaginations. We think we are strong and capable. But the greatness and majesty of God’s creation reminds us of just how small we really are—how needy we are of the power of God in our lives. 

Thankfully, God has made His power available to us personally. He Himself indwells us, and He wants us to daily experience “what is the exceeding greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power” (Ephesians 1:19).

When you trusted Christ as your Savior, the Holy Spirit took up permanent residence in your spirit (Ephesians 1:13–14). He indwells you and will remain with you until you see the Lord face to face (Ephesians 4:30).

Yet so many Christian women live as if they didn’t have the Holy Spirit. We stumble through life trying to make decisions and accomplish actions on our own. We live according to what feels good to us, and we make choices on the faulty authority of our own wisdom. 

How is this possible? How can it be that we have God Himself within us, yet we live as if life and success rest on our own shoulders? 

Perhaps it’s because we’ve relegated the influence of the Holy Spirit to small sections of our lives. Sure, He indwells us, but we’ve never learned to listen to His voice for direction or wisdom, much less heed what He prompts us to do. 

If we want to live life as God intended, something must change. We must give the Holy Spirit entrance into every area of our lives. This is what Scripture calls being “filled with the Spirit” (Ephesians 5:18). And whether or not we experience this filling is our choice.

The Command

In Ephesians 5:18, we are commanded to “be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit.” The word filled refers to control. In a comparable way to a person being filled with, or controlled by, alcohol, so we are to be controlled by the Holy Spirit. We are to let Him fill us—our minds, thoughts, wills, and actions—so that we are governed by His control.

The very fact that God commands us to be filled with the Spirit indicates that it is quite possible to not be filled with the Spirit. Too often, we give control of our lives to other sources. We let our own selfishness control our decisions. We let our friends, our desire for acceptance, or our quest for monetary success govern our lives. What a loss is ours when we settle for anything less than Holy Spirit control!

Please understand, this is not how God designed for you to live the Christian life. He has made His power available to you, and He instructs you to take advantage of it—to be filled with the Spirit.

The Choice

When God gives us a command, we have a choice—to obey or disobey. Being filled with the Spirit is not a mystical thing that sometimes just “happens.” It is our choice to surrender to Him. 

So how do we make this choice? There are three words that can help us: desire, surrender, and obey. 

Desire

God wants us to desire His filling with intensity. The psalmist expressed his deep hunger for God: “O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is” (Psalm 63:1). When we desire the filling of the Spirit, we will gladly surrender to His control.

Surrender

In Romans 12:1, the Bible gives vivid imagery of what it means to surrender to Him: “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.”

The picture in this verse would have reminded first-century Christians of animal sacrifices—an illustration of complete surrender. An animal could not be “partially sacrificed” or even “mostly sacrificed.” It was all or nothing. Even so, we must wholly and completely surrender ourselves to God.

There is a great distinction, however, between the animal sacrifices mentioned here and the sacrifice God calls us to make. We make a living sacrifice. Laying our will on the altar does not call for a physical death, but a death to self. It is the deliberate decision to offer our will to God—without reservation or stipulation—and then live in surrender to His will. It is to be a “no strings attached” transaction.

Obey

When we surrender to God, He begins to direct our lives in an incredible way. Through His Word and through His inner promptings (which are always consistent with His Word), He gives us instruction and guidance. This is the point of opportunity for us to live out the choice we made to surrender. 

It’s not enough to say we surrender, we must actually obey the Lord. Being filled with the Spirit starts with a decision of complete surrender, but it still requires daily choices to yield to His control. 

Resisting or ignoring the promptings of the Holy Spirit damages our relationship with Him. Ephesians 4:30 instructs, “And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.” When we reject the Holy Spirit’s control, we grieve Him and demonstrate that we believe our own way is better than His.

Each time the Holy Spirit reminds you of His will, convicts you of error, or prompts you to reach out to someone else, obey Him. It’s the only right choice.

Desire the Holy Spirit’s filling. Ask Him to give you a complete dissatisfaction with mediocrity. Surrender your will to Him every day and in every way. And then obey Him completely. 

The Spirit-filled life is not a mystical privilege reserved for a few; it is the daily reality that God makes available to each of His children. He commands us to walk in the Spirit, and as we yield ourselves to His control through the surrender of our wills and obedience in our choices, He leads us to the best future imaginable.