The Power Of The Holy Spirit

Acts 1:8 – But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. (NIV)

It was back in 1958 that we visited the Sir Adam Beck 2 generating station in Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada. This station, at that time, produced most of the electrical power for the southern portion of the Province of Ontario. The force of water powers the station, and thus we call it hydro-electric power, or just "hydro" — "hydro" meaning "water". What a mighty power plant it was! To this very day it still provides power to residents and industry in large parts of Ontario.

The secret of its power is that in the Niagara River flows an enormous volume of water, just before it falls 54 metres, or 176 feet, into the gorge below. At this place above the falls, man has harnessed and re-directed the river using huge gates built out into the waters upstream, where the flow is controlled. The water then travels through these gates down a tunnel into the electric plant at the base of the falls. Here it passes through the huge turbines to generate electricity.

I have watched the falls, in awe of the mighty power. At this, I was brought to think of another power we have within us — a power I wonder whether we use to the full — the power of the Holy Spirit.

Here we have a power that we can both read about in Scripture and experience in our lives, a power mightier than anything in this world. Jesus, after His death and resurrection, came back, as He had promised, to give His disciples this great power. A mighty power is given to us through the Holy Spirit, to use in the healing of one another in sickness and disease through the laying on of hands and much prayer. This power is also given to us to overcome that of Satan. In addition, it is this power that imparts many other gifts that we may receive in our Spirit-filled lives.

If only we could harness and use the power of the Holy Spirit as well as we use the control gates for a power station that generates electricity! As Christians, we could turn society upside down!

Prayer: Almighty and everlasting Father, through the power of the Holy Spirit, You have given to us a power likened unto dynamite. Help us to use this power for the good of all mankind. We pray in and through Jesus Christ, the one who died for us, that we might be given power. Amen.