Why we need to be filled with the Spirit of God

One of the old hymns sings to Our Father, "I need thee every hour, every hour I need thee" and oh how true that is.  As a believer, it is easy to fall into the trap of only seeking God in the moment you need Him; but what about the moments a need isn't immediately in front of you?  I don't know about you, but my record of seeking the Lord on a regular basis is spotty at best and how I react to stress certainly shows it.

On a bad day life can come at me from every angle; waking up to someone having an accident in bed, a baby that wants to eat now, and the dishes I was too tired to do at 9 o'clock the night before.  Throw in a moody (almost)teen who wants to argue, first thing in the morning, about whether or not he should be able to play video games all day or how he needs a smart phone because some of his friends do, and a moody threenager who needs you to wipe her butt, and the day certainly starts with a bang.

Now I'm sure there are practical things that can be done to help with this mess, getting over the being tired and making sure I wake up to a clean kitchen, or simply making sure I'm up before the kids so it's not coming at me the moment my feet hit the floor.  But if I'm not taking time to be with the Lord, none of the practical stuff matters.

The perfect example of this is my nine-year-old's desire to embroider a pillowcase.  I'm constantly encouraging (sometimes forcefully) my kids to find things to do that are not screens, so when we were at Hobby Lobby getting stuff for the upcoming school year, she asked if I would get her some iron-on patterns and embroidery floss so she could.  Of course I said yes and the game was on.  Now anyone who knows my daughter knows that she has one of the most beautiful, generous hearts you could ever want in a friend, but patient she is not.  Once we got everything ready, she started her project.  It didn't take long before a stitch didn't happen the way she planned and all the marbles were thrown from the basket.  Now, on a bad day, I would have lost my marbles as well and we would have ended up angry with each other.  But on this day, the Spirit of the Lord was upon me and I was able to talk her down.  The marbles became projectiles a few more times before she finally said (not me, her) "I think I need a break because I'm getting too upset."  The reason this is a cause of celebration for me is because this is my child that will insist on continuing in whatever endeavor she's working on, even when things obviously aren't working.  So for her to put it away by herself is a big deal, momentous even.

I won't lie, when it was all said and done I was spent!  There was an actual feeling of depletion in my chest.  I should have taken a moment to 'recharge' and spent more time with God, but....  The day ended with a mom's night out so it all worked out ;)

I do want to say, I am by no means saying that God is some kind of genie able to conjure patience and a good temper at will.  And there are certainly days where I do have my quiet time and the day comes crashing around my ears.  But to fill the cups of our children, our husbands, our friends, we must first be filled with the Holy Spirit ourselves.

"I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me

and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me

you can do nothing...

These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you,

and that your joy may be made full."

John 15:5, 11 NASB

My joy