Ephesians 5:18 says, "...be filled with the Spirit." Paul wrote this letter to Spirit-filled Christians. He was instructing them in how to live. So, what does it mean to be filled with the Spirit?

The word filled means to be controlled. It is literally saying, "Be being filled. Stay filled to overflowing."

Listen to the voice of your spirit, prompted by the Holy Spirit, and begin to act accordingly. As we are controlled by the Holy Spirit, we will make the proper adjustments to the Spirit as He leads us into certain areas and tells us things to do.

Do the simple things you are led to do, like witness to someone, share God's Word with someone, give someone some money or pray for someone. Do what that inward witness directs you to do in the everyday decisions and choices you face.

Include a commitment to obey God during your morning prayer,

"Lord, thank You for leading me by Your spirit today. I set myself to listen and obey. See that I don't miss one of Your directions.

My desire is to follow You in all things. Thank You for Your divine favor and blessing everywhere I go today. You are always so good to me. Thank You, Father."

If you'll pray that way, as you go through the day, you'll have supernatural knowledge come up on the inside of you that you would not have received if you had not spent time with God.

The leading of the Holy Spirit is easy to miss unless you have made the decision to listen and pay attention.

When you receive that knowledge—act on it! As you do, the Holy Spirit will be able to give you grace in every situation.

You'll find, as the Apostle Paul did, God's grace is sufficient for you: for His strength is made perfect in your weakness (2 Cor. 12:9).

Putting It Into Practice
I learned that in an unforgettable way one morning many years ago. I was preparing to teach at the Southwest Believers' Convention in Fort Worth, studying this very subject of the grace of God, when I received a call that really hurt me.

Now, I'm not very easily hurt. But this situation concerned one of my children.

When someone mistreats my children, it's hard on me. The news I received wounded my heart.

I was going to have to minister in just a little while and I was really hurting. What's more, I was starting to get mad.

I would have kept right on getting madder, if it hadn't been for the leadership of the Holy Spirit.

After I cried a little, I began praying in tongues and He sent one of those promptings into my spirit. Get up on your feet and begin to praise the Lord.

I can tell you, naturally speaking, that was the last thing I felt like doing. But I obeyed anyway.

I stood up and began saying, "Lord, I worship You. I praise You." Then I jumped and praised for a little while.

Next I was impressed to read a prophecy I had been given. As I read it, I was strengthened. Finally, a scripture began to boil up inside me. "No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper" (Isaiah 54:17).

Then suddenly, I realized I was free. Just a few minutes before I had been so burdened down that I felt like I wouldn't be able to minister.

I felt totally unable. But now all discouragement was gone. I wasn't bothered at all. It was over!

Looking back on that situation, I can see that my obedience released the grace of God to me. If I had continued to walk after the flesh and refused to do those things the Holy Spirit prompted me to do, I would have shut off His grace for that situation.

He wouldn't have been able to set me free.

Think about it! I didn't realize at the time that those little things I was impressed in my spirit to do would be the key to my deliverance. I didn't know they would open the door to God's grace.

But they did! I was able to walk in the comfort of the Holy Spirit as I obeyed Him. The weapon Satan formed against me could not prosper!

The same will be true for you. Great deliverance will most often come—not by overwhelming acts of God or burning bushes—but by hearing and obeying those quiet promptings of the Spirit.

Your greatest victories will come by following the quiet promptings of God and walking in the comfort of the Holy Ghost one step at a time.