Every human being has a spirit. This is the invisible center of a person that continues to exist when their body dies. You may feel a special connection to that part of you through something that has deep meaning for you. This could be a person you love, a strong memory, or a deep question that you just can’t shake. 

Christians believe that the human spirit is an opening into another world that we can’t see. Invisible spiritual beings in this other world influence our mind, will and emotions (soul). There are two ways that this can happen. Good influence comes from a connection with God (the Father, Son and Holy Spirit) which causes us to love him with all of our heart, soul, strength (will) and mind. (Luke 10:27). Bad influence to reject God and others comes from the devils (Satan and his army, also called demons).

This communication happens through thoughts. Communication with God is called prayer, and communication with devils is called witchcraft (among other names).

We can’t always tell when we are being influenced by this invisible dimension. However, we can look at our lives and see the good and bad effects of this influence on our souls. That is, when we have bad feelings in our hearts, bad thoughts in our minds, or bad choices in our wills, we are being tempted to feel, think or choose something wrong. Our enemies have silently communicated with us through the spirit realm. Their job is to make things seem good that end up badly in our world. 

God, on the other hand, cannot guide us to bad outcomes. His guidance always causes good thoughts, feelings and decisions. Sometimes we might feel uncomfortable when he exposes our temptations. But this is always for the purpose of healing our pain, like spiritual surgery. It shows us how to make changes. Most of the time, though, we are motivated to communicate with God by the good feelings that we have when we talk and listen to him. 

When we notice good thoughts, feelings and decisions coming from his influence in our lives, we naturally feel wonder and want to thank him. Telling him this is called worship. God wants to influence the way that we worship so that it becomes better and better. Worship is an art form that we practice with God as our art instructor. 

No one else is qualified to guide us in self-expression like the one whose art project is the creation of the world.

Assignment 1: Have you ever noticed good thoughts, feelings or decisions coming from God’s influence in your life? Write an example.