I was reading through Proverbs when a prompting to instead read Galatians chapter five came to my mind. I acted on the prompting. As I read the chapter, the words on the page prompted these thoughts in my heart. True love must be Spirit-prompted.

Who is prompting you most of the time, yourself and your desires, or God’s Spirit? Spirit-promptings are contrary to your desires. You can’t be self-prompted and Spirit-prompted at the same moment.

To wait by the Spirit, focus your attention on God and trust His love to bring you “a hope of righteousness” by inwardly prompting you to take a Spirit-led action. Since faith works through love, the more love we allow in our heart the more faith grows in us and empowers us to wait for and expect a Spirit-prompting–a hope of righteousness. A truly righteous act must be Spirit-prompted, not self-prompted.

A hope of righteousness can’t come from me because Isaiah says that all of my righteousness is “as filthy rags.” It can’t come from other people because Romans says, “There is none righteous, no not one.” Therefore, a hope of righteousness can only come from God working in me and prompting me by His Spirit.

To walk in the Spirit, begin to take Spirit-prompted steps. You can’t be led by the Spirit if you are unwilling to obey His inner promptings. To live in the Spirit, embrace a lifestyle of Spirit-prompted steps.

People who are continually prompted by their own will and desires refuse to submit to the kingdom of God (which is their obedience to the Spirit’s promptings within them). People who belong to Christ give up their own will and desires so that they can follow and obey the promptings of the living Jesus Christ working inside their heart.

Modern Christians have embraced the joy of sects and divided the body of Christ into more than 40,000 denominations (according to a Google search). We have separated from each other because we enjoy organizing Christianity the way that we like it and want it to be. It’s so much easier to follow our self-promptings instead of laying down our own desires and organizations and following the promptings of the Spirit, Thus, we have refused the Spirit’s promptings for unity.