Today we are privileged to have my lovely bloggy friend, Debbie Wilson sharing a guest post about her new book, Little Women, Big God: It’s not the size of your problems, but the size of your God as well as hosting Wedded Wednesday with a giveaway of her book to boot! Yay, Debbie! 🙂

Larry and I married at 4:00 p.m. on a blustery November afternoon in Savannah, Georgia. We pledged our love with heartfelt promises. Two hours later, we left for our honeymoon and had our first argument. What happened?

Sadly, good intentions—and even love—are not enough to check insecurity and selfishness. Today, we battle the same enemy David and Bathsheba faced—our flesh.

Seminars and support groups promise techniques to manage our weaknesses:

• Anger management.
• Addiction support.
• Assertiveness training.
• Communication techniques.
• Marriage and parenting skills.

While these may help, techniques alone can’t provide the desire, motivation, or power to be a better person. We may be able to bite our tongues around the boss, but are we still seething inside? How do we break free from the limitations of our temperaments, family backgrounds, and insecurities?

Some believers, confused by ugly thoughts and desires, question their salvation. David loved God and yet sinned in a way that is hard to fathom. Bathsheba faced her own struggles. Let’s look at the help God provides.

The Resources Within

God gave animals instincts. He gave humans himself. God created us to walk with him. If your Christian life has become boring or impotent, you may be missing out on the ministry of the Holy Spirit.

Every Christian has the Holy Spirit. We receive him the moment we come to Christ. “If anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ” (Rom. 8:9). But …

[Tweet “There is a difference between being indwelt by the Holy Spirit and being filled with him.”]

To illustrate the difference, picture making a glass of chocolate milk. When you add chocolate syrup to plain milk, the syrup settles in the bottom of the glass. The milk is indwelt with chocolate. If you took a sip before stirring it, you would taste plain milk. Stir the milk, and the syrup disperses throughout the glass.

The milk is filled with chocolate. Now, every sip is chocolaty. Christians can look and act like unbelievers even though we have the Holy Spirit. But when we are filled with the Spirit, we begin to look and taste like Christ! His love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control disperse into every aspect of our lives (Gal. 5:22–23).

We don’t wait until our lives are sparkling clean to invite his filling. We ask him to help us forsake the things that grieve God, and he knows just what to do. But don’t be surprised if he focuses on a different area of your life than the one that bothers you!

Are you ready to experience God’s strength? Here is a suggested prayer to get you started:

Dear Father,

Thank you for your great love for me. Thank you for giving me your Holy Spirit. Please search me and point out any area that I need to confess and forsake. Thank you for your cleansing. Please fill me with your Holy Spirit. Take leadership over every area of my life: my thoughts, my will, my emotions, my words. Thank you for filling me.

In Jesus’ name. Amen.

(excerpted from Little Women, Big God: It’s not the size of your problems, but the size of your God .)

Debbie Wilson wants to celebrate the release of her new book Little Women, Big God: It’s not the size of your problems, but the size of your God with you. Please leave a comment by 6 p.m. (CST) Saturday, March 12th 2016 to enter to win a free copy. If you’re in a hurry, simply say, “I’m leaning on my big God!”

About Debbie:
Debbie W. Wilson is an ordinary woman who has experienced an extraordinary God. Drawing from her personal walk with Christ, twenty-four years as a Christian counselor, and decades as a Bible teacher, Debbie speaks and writes to help women discover relevant faith. She and her husband, Larry, founded Lighthouse Ministries in 1991. They, along with their two grown children and two standard poodles, enjoy calling North Carolina home. Share her journey to refreshing faith at her blog.

[Tweet “Come and comment to win the book, Little Woman, Big God, by Debbie Wilson! #giveaway”]

What insight from what Debbie shared with us today really ministers to you?

What are the habits, hang-ups or hindrances in your life that have kept your relationship with God stale or boring?

[Tweet “Christian bloggers, please join us for the Wedded Wednesday Linkup going on now!”]

Joining with my friends at Giving Up on Perfect, Wifey Wednesday, A Little R & R Wednesdays, Mondays @ Soul Survival, Coffee and Conversation, Coffee for Your Heart, Sitting Among Friends, DanceWithJesusFriday and Wholehearted Wednesday.

Join our Wedded Wednesday Linkup!
Add any links that are uplifting, helpful and encouraging to our spiritual lives, marriages and families! Be sure to add a link on your blog back to Wedded Wednesday or Messy Marriage as well. For Wedded Wednesday guidelines and buttons, click here.

<div align=”center”><a href=”http://www.messymarriage.com&#8221; title=”Messy Marriage”><img src=”http://i1129.photobucket.com/albums/m502/bethsteff/Messy%20Marriage%20Buttons/WeddedWednesday170.jpg&#8221; alt=”Messy Marriage” style=”border:none;” /></a></div><<br<span id=”mce_marker” data-mce-type=”bookmark”>​</span><span id=”__caret”>_</span><span id=”mce_marker” data-mce-type=”bookmark”>​</span><span id=”__caret”>_</spa<br><br><br><br>BByt By<br>BBy </p></p></p></p></p></p><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />
 <br /></p></p><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />
<p><p>I

// <![CDATA[
document.write('’);
// ]]>