{"id":633609,"date":"2022-07-01T01:11:49","date_gmt":"2022-07-01T01:11:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/?p=633609"},"modified":"2024-02-29T10:55:44","modified_gmt":"2024-02-28T23:55:44","slug":"shadowboxing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/nl\/blog\/2022\/07\/shadowboxing\/","title":{"rendered":"Shadowboxing"},"content":{"rendered":"

Onze verontschuldigingen, dit bericht is alleen beschikbaar in het Amerikaans Engels<\/a>.<\/p>

<\/p>\n

I was at the gym the other day and one of the trainers had a new tattoo, a very impressive one of a wolf. \u2018That\u2019s a cool tattoo!\u2019<\/em> I said. He got really pumped and told me that all his tattoos have a special meaning. \u2018This one of the wolf, you know the story? You\u2019ve got two wolves,\u2019<\/em> he explained. \u2018One is the good wolf that helps you and the other is the bad wolf.\u00a0The question is:\u00a0Which\u00a0wolf are you going to feed?\u2019<\/em><\/p>\n

By now\u00a0I\u00a0was getting really pumped because I knew there was a sermon in there. \u2018You\u2019re preaching to me and I\u2019m a preacher!\u2019<\/em> I said. To which he replied, \u2018Well, you know what it\u2019s all about then, don\u2019t you?\u2019<\/em>\u00a0(Amen, brother.)<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not a new idea that we all have a darker side to our natures that eggs us on to do things that may feel good in the moment but are actually bad for us and can even derail our lives. David writes about this in Psalms 68:30 (TPT):\u00a0\u2018God, rebuke the beast-life that hides within us!\u2019<\/em>\u00a0 In fact, the Bible talks about this shadow side of our humanity a lot, usually referring to it as \u2018the flesh\u2019<\/em> or \u2018the sinful nature\u2019<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Once we invite God into our lives and the Holy Spirit takes up residence in us, there are constant clashes between the sinful nature (which wants its own way) and the Spirit (which promotes God\u2019s way) on the battlegrounds of our hearts and minds. Galatians 5:17 (NLT) puts it like this:\u00a0\u2018The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions.\u2019<\/em><\/p>\n

The struggle is real. Even the Apostle Paul writes about it in Romans 7:19 (NLT):\u00a0\u2018I want to do what is good, but I don\u2019t. I don\u2019t want to do what is wrong, but I do it anyway.\u2019<\/em><\/p>\n

When God encourages us to do things His way, however, it\u2019s not to spoil our fun but to protect us from the potential ruin described in Galatians 5:19\u201321 (MSG):\u00a0\u2018It is obvious what kind of life develops out of trying to get your own way all the time: repetitive, loveless, cheap sex; a stinking accumulation of mental and emotional garbage; frenzied and joyless grabs for happiness; trinket gods; magic-show religion; paranoid loneliness; cutthroat competition; all-consuming-yet-never-satisfied wants; a brutal temper; an impotence to love or be loved; divided homes and divided lives; small-minded and lopsided pursuits; the vicious habit of depersonalizing everyone into a rival; uncontrolled and uncontrollable addictions; ugly parodies of community. I could go on.\u2019<\/em><\/p>\n

The paradox is that there\u2019s\u00a0no\u00a0freedom in doing exactly as we please. Instead, we just get caught up and trapped in destructive patterns, habits, and addictions, which end up controlling us.<\/p>\n

On the other hand, look at what we can expect when we follow the Holy Spirit\u2019s direction in our lives (according to Galatians 5:22\u201323 MSG):\u00a0\u2018But what happens when we live God\u2019s way? He brings gifts into our lives, much the same way that fruit appears in an orchard\u2014things like affection for others, exuberance about life, serenity. We develop a willingness to stick with things, a sense of compassion in the heart, and a conviction that a basic holiness permeates things and people. We find ourselves involved in loyal commitments, not needing to force our way in life, able to marshal and direct our energies wisely.\u2019<\/em><\/p>\n

This is where\u00a0true\u00a0freedom lies. Romans 8:6 (MSG) says:\u00a0\u2018Obsession with self in these matters is a dead end;\u00a0attention to God leads us out into the open, into a spacious, free life.\u2019<\/em><\/p>\n

Which brings me back to my friend from the gym\u2019s question:\u00a0Which\u00a0wolf are you going to feed? Or to rephrase it in biblical terms: Will you feed your flesh, or will you feed your spirit, which is fused with the Holy Spirit? (See 1 Corinthians 6:17.)<\/p>\n

Here are two ways to feed your spirit and pave the way for God\u2019s action in your life:<\/p>\n

1. Stay connected to the Vine.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u00a0Jesus says in John 15:5 (AMPC):\u00a0\u2018I am the Vine; you are the branches. Whoever lives in Me and I in him bears much (abundant) fruit. However, apart from Me [cut off from vital union with Me] you can do nothing.\u2019<\/em>\u00a0At our staff retreat here in Sydney earlier this year, a guest pastor asked the following thought-provoking question: \u2018Are you connected to the Vine, or are you connected to the branches?\u2019<\/em>\u00a0If your only spiritual activity of the entire week is to come to church on a Sunday, chances are that you\u2019re connected to a branch of the Vine, instead of to the Vine Himself. And while it\u2019s vital to be planted in church, it\u2019s absolutely essential to spend daily, personal time with God, giving Him your full attention. If you have only five minutes in the morning, start there. Give God those five minutes and see the life-giving impact this will have on you.<\/p>\n

2. Set internal goals.<\/strong><\/p>\n

We hear a lot about the importance of setting goals, but often the emphasis is on external goals, which are all about moving up in life\u00a0\u2013 achieving career success, earning a good income, and so on. Don\u2019t get me wrong, these are important goals to have. We all have a God-given desire to live to our full potential.<\/p>\n

Yet at the same time, it\u2019s wisdom to know that success has its own traps. An increase in position, wealth and status can be a big ego boost, but it also means greater temptations to deal with. The blistering truth is that power, prominence and pride can be like battery acid to the spirit, eroding us on the inside if we don\u2019t pay attention to the kind of people we\u2019re becoming.\u00a0So, while it\u2019s good to want to get ahead in life, it\u2019s even more important to ask yourself: Who am I becoming in all of this? That\u2019s where internal goals come in. They shape our inner being, which is where we live from.<\/p>\n

Imagine if one of your life goals were to exhibit more of the fruit of the Holy Spirit, mentioned in Galatians 5:22\u201323 (NLT):\u00a0\u2018But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,\u00a0gentleness, and self-control.\u2019<\/em><\/p>\n

The good news is that when you\u2019re connected to the Vine\u00a0in a meaningful way, fruitfulness is inevitable. This is what Jesus promises in John 15:5 (and I\u2019ve quoted from the Passion Translation here):\u00a0\u2018I am the sprouting Vine and you\u2019re My branches.\u00a0As you live in union with Me as your source, fruitfulness will stream from within you \u2026\u2019<\/em><\/p>\n

Your part is to apply what the Holy Spirit is shaping inside you in your daily life. For example, practise patience and kindness consistently and you will become more patient and kinder over time, in the same way that, if you exercise a muscle, it will become stronger.<\/p>\n

I encourage us, let\u2019s keep fighting the good fight and never give up.<\/p>\n

<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Onze verontschuldigingen, dit bericht is alleen beschikbaar in het Amerikaans Engels<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Here are two ways to feed your spirit and pave the way for God\u2019s action in your life:<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":49345,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[49,15421,15414,8],"tags":[],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/es\/blog\/2022\/07\/shadowboxing\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"nl_NL\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"[:en]Shadowboxing[:] - Collected\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"[:en]Here are two ways to feed your spirit and pave the way for God\u2019s action in your life:[:]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/es\/blog\/2022\/07\/shadowboxing\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Collected\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2022-07-01T01:11:49+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-02-28T23:55:44+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"6 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/de\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/de\/\",\"name\":\"Collected\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/de\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"nl-NL\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/es\/blog\/2022\/07\/shadowboxing\/#webpage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/hillsong.com\/collected\/es\/blog\/2022\/07\/shadowboxing\/\",\"name\":\"[:en]Shadowboxing[:] - 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