The Spirit within

THE BIG REVEAL(I)

Raymond steered on his bed that morning and opened his eyes. Brilliant rays of light came in from the window adjacent to his bed and lit up his room, creating a shimmering aura around certain metallic objects in the room. The intensity of the light forced him to shut his eyelids. He slowly lifted them again; this time his iris constricted to adjust to the brightness of his room.

He moved to a sitting position on the bed leaning against the wall behind him as his mind tried to grab a hold on the present. He caught sight of his new Bible lying in the drawer next to his bed, and that jogged his memory. The events of the previous day came flooding back to his mind. Pausing at the event of his Holy Ghost baptism, he closed his eyes to relish every bit of it even as the tingling sensation sent goose bumps over his skin.

After a while of reflecting, he looked at the Bible again and felt something pull him towards it; the urge to pick it up and open it. He eventually gave in and opened its pages to read from it. The bookmark on the bible led him to a passage in the book of Galatians.

‘But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things.’

He thought about it for a while reading the passage over and over. Then a voice broke in his heart. It was still, quiet, and coming from within. He knew he was the only one who could hear it.

‘As fruits are to a tree, so is this nature to the Holy Spirit.’ Eagerly, he read through the passage again.

‘God’s Spirit produces this through the life of a person who allows him. All you have to do is let him, follow his lead, submit to his instructions, and you will see wonders.’ He paused and waited to see if there would be any more of those words, but he heard none.

Raymond was surprised. He tried to confirm if what he heard came from his mind, but as he thought he discovered that such firmness and peace could not have come from the voice of his mind. He let out a deep exhale, closed the Bible, and gently placed it back in his drawer.

‘I know I have a new life to live. It's almost like a second chance; I pray I live it well.’ He said aloud not talking to anybody in particular. He looked around his room and felt the silence around him.

Letting out another deep exhale, he stood up and headed for the restroom to get ready for the day. When he was done, he realized that he didn’t have any new clothes to change into. As he looked around the room, he noticed a wardrobe standing at one of its corners. He walked towards it hoping for the best.

As he opened the door of the wardrobe, his face lit up with a smile. The clothes there were just right for him. The right style and colours. Surprisingly, they were his size too.

‘Well, what do you know?’ He said as he picked out clothes for the day still smiling.
 
Raymond walked out of his room backtracking his movement the previous day to get to the living room. He stepped into the living room, meeting Williams, who was already there. Williams turned to him as he entered and greeted him with a warm smile.

‘Good morning, Raymond. How was Bible study this morning?’

‘How did you know I studied the Bible?’ Raymond asked surprise evident in his voice.

‘You did, didn’t you? ’ Williams replied with a knowing smile.

‘Would you quit doing that?’ Raymond snapped. ‘You still haven’t answered my question.’

‘We all study the Bible. I did the same when I first got here. It’s second nature to you now.’ Williams responded as he walked to Raymond looking him straight in the eye.