Spirit Intelligence

Romans 8:9 NIV

You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ.

What Is Your Spirit IQ?

One of the great questions in the field of psychology has to do with intelligence.  What is intelligence?  Is it the ability to solve problems, how quick you think, your verbal skills, your creativity?  Do you have to be great at math to be considered intelligent or able to grasp spacial relations?  Are you intelligent if you have a great memory or are smart people forgetful?  How important is intelligence anyway?  Does it make you a happier person?

The Bible is adamant that intelligence is important but it takes a unique stance on it.  Psalm 53 gives us a measure or a standard of intelligence rarely considered but it is crucial for us to consider.  The fool says in his heart, "There is no God."  They are corrupt, and their ways are vile; there is no one who does good.  God looks down from heaven on the sons of men to see if there are any who understand, any who seek God. (Psalm 53: 1-2 NIV)  Perhaps we could call this “moral intelligence”” or “spiritual thinking”.  It is easy to discredit spiritual thinking by calling it impractical or just something religious people think about but it is anything but impractical.  Spiritual thinking is the most practical way of understanding intelligence because it is universal in its scope.  Spiritual thinking demands that all of our thoughts must run through the Holy Spirit or else it always comes up short.  Without God in our figuring and evaluating, we lack the most critical component of thinking, the mind that is behind the life of every mind in all creation.  It is like trying to decide what would be best to wear outside without any idea what the weather is.  In Russia yesterday it was cold and rainy despite being the middle of July.  How smart would it be to go traipsing outside there in shorts and a light blouse?  Spiritual thinking gives us the ability to think with facts unavailable to the mind without God.

Let me give an illustration of the importance of spiritual thinking from an event described in Mark 4.  Jesus was asleep in the stern of the boat when a great storm arose on the Sea of Galilee.   The panicked disciples, several of whom were seasoned sailors, shook Jesus awake when it looked like they all might drown.  Quickly Jesus reacted to the storm.  He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, "Quiet! Be still!" Then the wind died down and it was completely calm. (Mark 4:39 NIV)  Without God, the mind is chaotic, wild, unpredictable.  After Jesus quieted the elements, the disciples were amazed that even the wind and waves obey Him.  When the Holy Spirit enters a mind, it gains a freedom it did not possess before.  The mind can see things clearly without the wild nature it once had.  What it never noticed because it was too spasmodic to comprehend, the mind can grasp with the Holy Spirit as part of the thinking process.  Important details are processed with spiritual thinking that go unnoticed or are unattainable for the mind without the Holy Spirit directing the elements of our thinking.

The Lord told a story that helps us get a handle on spiritual thinking. There were ten virgins, all pledged to be married to a single man.  The wedding was delayed though because the groom had to be away for a while.  But when he returned, the wedding would begin.  Part of the ceremony was to have lamps ready and lit when the groom arrived.  Without them, they could not participate in the wedding.  Five of (the virgins) were foolish and five were wise.  The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them.  The wise, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps.  The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep. "At midnight the cry rang out: 'Here's the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!'  "Then all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps.  The foolish ones said to the wise, 'Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.'  "'No,' they replied, 'there may not be enough for both us and you. Instead, go to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.'  "But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut.  "Later the others also came.  'Sir! Sir!' they said. 'Open the door for us!'  "But he replied, 'I tell you the truth, I don't know you.' (Matthew 25:2-12 NIV)

What was the difference between the two groups of virgins?  All of the virgins had the same information available to them that they had to have their lamps lit when the groom arrived.  What separated the groups was the way each group processed that information.  At the time when they all fell asleep waiting for the groom and even before that, the five of the virgins thought it did not matter how much oil they kept with them.  The other five with varying degrees of urgency believed it was best to have extra oil for this crucial night.  The first group, the group without extra oil provides a clear picture of the chaotic mind, the mind without God working through the thinking.  They did not think far enough or process the information they had with enough clarity to avoid being kept out of their wedding.  The second group had spiritual thinking at work and although they may not have known why they needed to have extra oil, they took the information they had of the coming wedding and made sure they kept with them extra oil.  The second group of virgins thought in a different way than the first group of virgins and the way each group thought was critical…life altering.

There are key moments, and we never know when they will come and rarely know their importance at the time, when we need a higher intelligence, a smarter way of thinking and that is spiritual thinking.  When Jesus came across a man who had been crippled for thirty-eight years, the man had no idea the importance of that day.  But then when Jesus healed him, he started to see God’s hand upon him but because he lacked spiritual thinking, he could not process the data correctly.  For some reason, the man did not even pay attention to who Jesus Christ was, did not bother noticing even the slightest bit of information about Him.  When the Jewish authorities found the man carrying his begging mat that day and it happened to be the Sabbath with its regulations against carrying such mats on that day, he was asked why he was violating the Sabbath.  (H)e replied, "The man who made me well said to me, 'Pick up your mat and walk.'" (John 5:11 NIV)  When the Pharisees demanded to know who told him to pick up his mat, the man did not know.  Of course it seems odd to us that this fellow did not even know the name of the one who healed him of his thirty-eight year disability but that is the sort of thing that happens when we lack spiritual thinking.  We aren’t able to process the data we have coherently so that it makes sense for what is important.  Later, Jesus met up with the man and told him to stop sinning or else something worse would happen to Him.  What that something worse was, the man never bothered to try and discover.  Instead he just ignored Jesus’ warning and went on with his life.  Without the power of God working through our thinking, we become arbitrary in our actions, disordered and unable to make sense of the most important factors we encounter.  Spiritual thinking allows us to see and think about what is most important and how to understand what we see.

When the rich young ruler who met up with Jesus as described in Luke 18, was told that if he wanted to inherit eternal life, he had to sell what he had, give it to the poor and follow Jesus, he mentally collapsed at the words.  He could not process how important it was to leave behind his wealth if he was to have a happier and more joyful life that could never be ruined by circumstances or even by death.  Jesus was not good enough for him and that was because of the inability he had to utilize spiritual thinking.  Zacchaeus on the other hand without even having to be told, as soon as he met Jesus, realized that he had to pay back everyone he cheated four times over and give up half of all of his possessions to the poor if he was to be happy.  You cannot be talked into such a decision.  Who willingly would do such a thing with a glad heart?  It is not logical in any way unless of course you process it using spiritual thinking.  Of the two men, who made the smart decision?  The rich young ruler met Jesus, looked carefully at him with all his mental acuity and decided it was best to hold on to his wealth.  Zacchaeus used the same mental skills as the rich ruler but added to it was spiritual thinking, and he decided to give away his wealth.  One famously went away sorrowfully.  The other was joyful in his decision.  Spiritual thinking determined the quality of life each gained.

There are two parts to spiritual thinking.  The first is a determination that the Bible is the ultimate authority in our decision making.  If this is not decided, we will be unclear in our thinking and unable to process rightly what we face.  Who knows what to think of the person who gossips about us at work?  The Bible gives a clear answer.  Who knows how to respond to being unemployed?  The Bible tells us.  Who knows what we should do if we can’t stand our neighbor?  The Bible has a plan for that.  The Bible has an answer for every moral decision we face.  The second part of spiritual thinking is that it thrives off a craving that borders on desperation for the Lord to direct us in an ever growing way.  To develop spiritual thinking, we must be eager to be led by God.  For us, it is a sort of Promised Land.  We can stand on the edge of spiritual thinking like the rich ruler of Luke 18 and watch as others enter into a joyful and intelligently peaceful life or we can enter in and be like Zacchaeus, glad beyond measure to be with Jesus.  Others may not think much of the decisions you make but you will know, as you let the Bible and the Spirit of God dominate your thinking, that you have a better life than they can ever imagine.

Do You Know Who You Are?

There is no one quite so disoriented and frustrated as the man or woman who has gone part-way with Christ...the Savior is neither Lord nor rival but somewhere in-between.  The commands in Exodus are acknowledged but the ones of Matthew 6 are for another day and time.  Faith is some sort of murky variable rather than a clear and certain way to face each decision of the day today.   Charity is an institution rather than a lifestyle and contentment is more like shrapnel from an exploded hope.  The whining of the Israelites when they stood at the edge of the Promised Land the first time is such a distant thunder for us but are we certain the lightening does not strike at our feet too?  Are we ready to abandon ourselves to the wild God who told the rich young ruler to get rid of His fortune and follow along the path of disciples?  Will we hold tightly to what we have or pursue the vision our Lord has set before us of holy abandonment to God wherever that may take us?  Is there within us a leaning forward as Christ calls to us to come or do we lurch back at the tug upon the bit.  Many are called but few are chosen!  Are you chosen or do you do most of the choosing?  Something deep within us calls to go into the raging waters of the Galilean Sea but do we hesitate within the boat?   Have you decided to put your plans into God's hand and let Him reshuffle the deck and then show you how you are to make your next move?  Are you confused by your uncertainty to follow Christ or do you have a clear determination to let Him be fully Lord and thereby bring your rebellious disposition into alignment with His plumb line?  Are you a "true Israelite in whom there is nothing false ?"

 "How do you know me?" Nathanael asked.

Jesus answered, "I saw you while you were still under the fig tree before Philip called you."

John 1:48 NIV

Transcendent Doing

Just because you have believed in Jesus Christ does not mean you are His disciple.  You may have heard many good things about Him and acknowledge what He has done but not be His disciple.   You can even have powerful times of prayer and work with great and marvelous ministries tied to His name and not be His disciple.  The disciple of Jesus Christ lives out of a paradigm that is the fulfilment of Salvation.  It is a most explosive moment for the Christian when the realization strikes; "by myself I can do nothing".  It is not a partial accomplishing; it is not an imperfect doing.  It is nothing that can be done by myself.  We bark at the personal inadequacy expressed by this determination.  What is wrong with you?  Why are you so pessimistic?  Why do you give up so easily?  Don't quit yourself!  You can do it!  But the disciple realizes, "I cannot do it."  No matter how hard I work at my projects and goals, I am incapable of doing anything on my own.  Where we stumble on this is our view of "nothing".  I can build a computer program but to what point?  I can read an article but for what reason?  I can make lunch but why?  Everything hinges on the determination of the soul.  Am I at this moment in Christ, living through Him and by His might or am I on my own?  Does Scripture have its hold on me or am I just loosely associated with it?  Is the Holy Spirit worked through both my will and my reach?  It seems to the one without the Holy Spirit that Jesus' contention that even He by Himself could do nothing is gross irresponsibility.  Yet, nothing in eternity can be worked out on our own.  It is only in Jesus Christ and through Him that we take hold of heavenly purposes.  Everything else will be consumed by fire but what is done in God endures forever.  The disciple lets himself be held in the grip of Jesus Christ and decides by rugged determination to stay there regardless of the contending needs all around.  There were plenty of places our Lord could go during His life but He only went where the Father led Him.  Are you ready to take that next step?

By myself I can do nothing; I judge only as I hear, and my judgment is just, for I seek not to please myself but him who sent me.     John 5:30 NIV

More Than A Difficulty

It is nearly impossible to get the sufferer to believe that what is happening is for good.  Etched in our personality is the determination to want none of the trials we face.  Adam and Eve groaned under the weight of Satan's temptation and refused to endure it courageously; consequently the rest of us are marred by their heritage.  For most seeds to sprout, the ground must be broken and torn apart, a violent tearing of what was settled and at peace.  Even the seed itself must be blown to bits before it can find its place in God's design.  The Lord's yoke is the most profound way He transforms us into living, breathing images of His perfect glory.  No trouble or hardship or difficult person comes to you without God's loving hand making the gate swing wide open.  The yoke is easy as long as you keep your mind fixed on Christ and do not let it be split apart by Satan's accusing and your own whining.  There is kindness and goodness and humility and patience and sincere faith and hope ready to be born in you if you will just settle your thoughts on the crucified Savior who has suffered for your complete salvation.  Nothing is finished with you; you must bear the yoke before you can move along into perfection.  The character of the yoke bearing Christian is the loveliest sight in all the universe.   Imagine the hunk of marble barking at Michelangelo for wrecking his day.  Look in the mirror.  Are you the canvass upon which Rembrandt is recklessly slopping paint or the paper that Mozart is scratching his notes?   Are you not in the hands of a far greater genius who has a plan for you that will be worked out perfectly?   "But the yoke", you cry.  Why this yoke?  The greater the yoke, the more settled your Lord's determination to make you into a masterpiece of love and glory.

Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  Matthew 11:29-30 NIV

Unsettled Christianity

It is so easy to live spiritually when sitting at a cafe sipping a coffee or while the great preachers of our time captivate us with their intoxicating messages.  What happens though when your co-worker cheats you out of your bonus or your dad ignores your accomplishments?  How well does your spirituality fly when the sales team meets together at a local club; what sort of religion do you possess as the argument in the kitchen spins out of control?  Where is your love for God when you are disappointed, frustrated or filled with itching desire?  Christianity is not a religion of clear mountain streams and golden sunsets.  It is the blossoming faith of those who face connivers and debaters and humilators and wreckers of days.  Christianity is for the tele-conference, the sales floor, for the Google search and the hospital waiting room, for the shattered dream and the wasted day.  Christianity is for all those times you feel angry and confused and tempted and proud.   We do not read the Bible and pray and pay attention to anointed sermons to be able to live on pause spiritually until the next time we can relax with God.  The Lord gives us His power and conviction so that we might express His life in us at the darkest and ugliest moments and rather than just be ourselves, we find we are more than ourselves, we are Christ joined to us in holy revelations of God's glory.  Of course we can't forgive our mother but Christ in us can.  Of course we can't say "no" to one more drink or having the last word but Christ in us can.  Of course we can't be kind when we have been ignored or belittled but Christ in us can.  Every place we go and each circumstance we face is an opportunity for Christ to shine more brightly through us than ever and for our character to be upgraded into a purer form of godliness.  Nothing surprises Satan more than Christ suddenly showing up where He hasn't been noticed before.      Who better to make Him known than you, who better to reveal His power than you when no one expects to find Him in the room?

And he sent messengers on ahead, who went into a Samaritan village to get things ready for him; but the people there did not welcome him, because he was heading for Jerusalem.   Luke 9:52-54 NIV

How Are You Doing Your Calculations?

Our time is one of great interest in supernatural activity and powers.  And yet we explore it not as Columbus or Magellan did looking for something actual and determinable but as creators who let our imaginings do all the work of it.  We are entertained by thoughts of the supernatural but we don't take it seriously.   Jesus on the other hand lived within the reality of unseen forces and personalities and He both attacked and allied Himself with them.  Demons He cast out of people and angels He let serve and nourish Him.  At one time we treated the atom as a straight forward and quite logical entity until we discovered the wild unpredictability of electrons and subatomic particles.  When will we face facts?  Our personalities are far more complex and unreliable than the field of psychology can reckon because there are unseen forces and beings that wreak havoc upon us and interject themselves in every nook and cranny of our lives.  Paul spoke of doing things without predictability or self-control and we should give this credence too, not because the seen world is so at variance with logical outcomes but because the unseen world is far more vast and influential than we grasp.  How often has our Lord told us to pray?  Do we take at all seriously this grave command?  Do we realize how critical prayer is to us and to all those who surround us?  Jesus did not quiver over the unseen world but He didn't calculate without taking it into account either.  He showed us how to respond to supernatural surroundings and it was the simplest of all strategies.  Pray.  Pray for direction.  Pray for help.  Pray for protection.  Pray for eyes to see what is beyond the senses.  Pray for reactions that can handle the split second changes in direction caused by supernatural forces, both demonic and angelic, that impose their wills upon our circumstances.  If it is not warfare at the highest levels, do you think Jesus would have agonized as He did in the Garden of Gethsemane?

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.  Ephesians 6: 12 NIV

Happiness or Joy

1 Kings 4:20 NIV

The people of Judah and Israel were as numerous as the sand on the seashore; they ate, they drank and they were happy.

What Is The Value of Happiness?

San Francisco used to have a rather famous local celebrity who was known as “the bush man”.  It wasn’t that he was from some remote part of Africa, but rather it was how he used to torment tourists who came to Fisherman’s Warf.  He kept with him a big, leafy branch that he hid behind as someone approached him on the sidewalk.  The bush man waited until just the last second as the tourist came up to him unawares and he suddenly threw his branch aside, rose up from his haunches and screamed.  Tourists would immediately scream themselves and some would drop their bread bowls and cokes, most would just jump aside in fear.  Then everyone on the sidewalks on each side of the street who were anticipating the prank would laugh and for his effort, the bush man expected the startled tourist to give him some money for being the butt of his joke.  My pleasure in all this came afterwards as I watched the embarrassed tourist walk away.  Some would smile broadly and laugh with their companions, happy to have been made a public spectacle.  Other shuffled off clearly disgruntled, perhaps their entire day wrecked by the experience.  All the rest of us in the impromptu audience of the bush man were mostly happy…perhaps because what we saw was funny, perhaps because we were glad the bush man had not humiliated us instead.

What makes us happy?  Is it good health?  Are we made happy by winning the lottery or getting a promotion?  Do children make us happy?  Are we happy on our birthdays?  Perhaps when our favorite team wins the championship…or just a game…we are happy.  Do romantic evenings make us happy or exotic vacations?  Does your pet doing a new trick make you happy?  Has an effective medicine ever made you happy or a tax refund?  Have you found happiness going to school or to a movie or at the mall picking out shoes?   Were you happy on your wedding day, your graduation day, your last day at work before your retirement began?  Have you ever made someone else happy?  Are you happy?  Do you think you will be happy tomorrow…or next week…or next year?

Thirty times or more a form of happy or happiness is used in the Bible and it nearly always describes the reaction to some sort of external circumstance.  Leah said she was happy because she had given birth to a son. (Genesis 30: 12)  The people of Israel and Judah were happy over the prosperity they enjoyed with Solomon as their king. (1 Kings 4: 20) Haman, the assistant to the Persian king Xerxes was happy that the queen had invited him to a private banquet she was hosting. (Esther 5:9)  Yet later his happiness was usurped by fury when the Jew, Mordecai refused to bow to him.  Paul the apostle recounted the observable happiness of his friend Titus who upon his return reported how refreshing it had been to spend time with the church at Corinth. (2 Corinthians 7:13)  As sick as it may sound to us, the Psalmist indicated that anyone who bashed in the skulls of Babylonian children would be happy. (Psalm 137: 8-9)  We know it is possible for this sort of happiness because we have seen it ourselves that miserable people can find happiness by bringing misery to others.

The challenge facing happiness seekers is how to sustain happiness.  It is fleeting in most cases; usually dependent on everything breaking the right way.  Some have a personality that tends toward happiness but unfortunately not everyone is so disposed.  Many have a tough time finding happiness even in normal circumstances, let alone when times are tough.  Is there any hope for the majority of us who find it difficult being happy, especially when we can’t find a good reason for being happy?

Joy is usually considered a synonym of happiness but there is a distinct difference between the two terms, particularly in the way the Bible applies them.  Joy often is no different than happiness.  It is simply the reaction to some sort of pleasure and joy means no more than the celebration of the soul over some accomplishment, acquisition or change in circumstances.  But there is another way joy is mentioned in the Bible and how this usage differs from the normal discussion of joy is the source of it and that is what we must examine now.

Nehemiah hints at the difference in the Bible’s use of the terms joy and happiness. 

Nehemiah said, "Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is sacred to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength." (Nehemiah 8:10 NIV)  The reason Nehemiah needed to prod the Jews in Jerusalem to celebrate was because many of them were upset over how terribly they and their descendants had acted and the extent to which they all had violated God’s law as found in the Scriptures.  Instead, Nehemiah encouraged celebration and feasting because of God’s mercy and generosity.  He then made a critical observation.  “The joy of the Lord is your strength.”  God’s joy is your strength.  Not your joy, but His joy.  Notice also that joy is not due to circumstances as we normally think of it.  The joy is found in the existence of God.

Later in the book of Nehemiah is found this statement.  And on that day they offered great sacrifices, rejoicing because God had given them great joy. The women and children also rejoiced. The sound of rejoicing in Jerusalem could be heard far away. (Nehemiah 12:43 NIV)  The people of Jerusalem rejoiced because God had given them great joy.  The subtlety of this should not be ignored.  It was not because God had made their city safe that they rejoiced nor that their hard work had paid dividends or even that now they were prospering after all the difficulties they overcame.  The cause of rejoicing was as simple and complex as this.  God had given them great joy.

The prophet Habakkuk was a pioneer when it came to joy and how to gain it.  As he considered the coming onslaught of the Babylonian army and the leveling of Judah and Jerusalem, he made a determination.  Even if there was nothing left of the land and all forms of income were gone, he decided, “I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior.” (Habakkuk 3:18 NIV) Note carefully the wording.  He is not saying he will rejoice because of the Lord or due to anything God was doing for him.  He was not going to be joyful as a result of some outcome he hoped would occur.  His joy was not about the Lord; his joy was through the Lord.  The source of joy was neither his situation nor his impression of God.  Habakkuk’s joy came directly from God like a pitcher pouring its contents into a cup.

Jesus declared this very means of gaining joy, was not only realistic, it was His promise to us that we could have joy this way.  I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. (John 15:11-12 NIV)  It is so imbedded in our approach to life that we must somehow find an accomplishment, a purchase or a relationship to have joy that it seems almost absurd that we can have joy simply by being connected to Jesus Christ.  But He reiterated this later that same evening.  "I am coming to you now, but I say these things while I am still in the world, so that they may have the full measure of my joy within them. (John 17:13-14 NIV)  This is certainly not a logical approach to happiness and joy.  We dig in our heels at this point.  If I get a new car or a boat, or if my wife stops arguing with me or if my husband would finally treat me affectionately or if my finances improved or if my test scores got better or if I have a great time on my date, I will have joy but if something turns sour, I am left bummed and frustrated. Paul completely flipped the normal joy equation around when he explained, For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and approved by men. (Romans 14:17-18 NIV)  Not only is joy not determined by what we do or gain, it is ours as a result of God giving it to us freely.  May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. (Romans 15:13 NIV)

Let me use a story Jesus told to illustrate the difference between typical happiness and the joy that is infused from God.  There were two brothers who had completely different life goals.  They shared the same father, the same upbringing and the same advantages in life.  One decided to kill the golden goose and get his inheritance early.  He spent all his father gave him and wound up impoverished and in despair.  The other brother remained a hard-working productive person who never placed any demands upon his rich father.  When the younger brother returned home a beggar, to the older brother’s shock and great displeasure, the father threw a lavish party to welcome the younger brother back into the family.  The older brother stomped around and bitterly denounced his father for his actions.  The father had never thrown him a party!  He had worked faithfully in the family business and he never got so much as a barbecue.  Looking at this story from the outside, you wonder how the older son could have been so upset.  Why did he not realize that all the father had was his too?

Here is the great issue of joy.  Just as the older son forgot that the source of his true happiness was not in what the father doled out but it was the father himself, so we too err greatly here.  We fail to see that all true joy comes from Christ through the Holy Spirit and if we would keep our eyes on Him, we would have enough joy to fill the entire world.  It is when we look away from the goodness and mercy found in God and turn to all the things we wish we had or hate we now have or might have, we lose the joy that is ours at any moment.  The typical reaction when discovering that Jesus turned the water into wine is that a big deal is made out of that act as if that were the great miracle.  That was not and still is not the miracle, but rather just the sign of the miracle.  The miracle is that Jesus Christ can and will infuse us with Himself at any moment and the water transformed into wine is the sign of what Jesus can do within us if we are ready for His joy to overflow throughout our total personality.  What sort of home might we develop if the joy of the Lord entered it, what sort of work environment could we help develop with the joy of the Lord there, how could we change the way our churches operate if we had the joy of the Lord invading them?  There is plenty of joy in Christ for us to be happy if we would simply turn to Him in prayer at any moment we feel overwhelmed or disappointed or scared or angry or frustrated and just like the water was turned into wine, Jesus Christ can turn the mood of our personality to joy.