阅读经文 

我记得艾琳。她全心全意地渴望经历圣灵的能力。但她经常给自己负面的评价，说自己是多么的丑陋、愚蠢和有罪。她消极的自我形象使她无法完全接受神在圣灵中赐下生命的应许。

不过，神的灵是了不起的鼓励者。祂不断地在我们的意识中低声说着肯定的话。圣灵与我们的灵一起见证我们是神的孩子——这意味着我们是神的后嗣，我们与基督同为后嗣。

在罗马书第8章这令人惊奇的一章中，我们了解到 “那些在基督耶稣里的，就不定罪了。”（参罗 8:1）我们已经被生命之灵的律从罪和死亡的律法中释放出来。（参罗 8:2）透过基督，律法的公义要求已经得到了完全的满足，所以我们可以靠圣灵而行。（参罗 8:4）

圣灵在我们心灵深处注入一种新的态度。因着耶稣的生命、死亡和复活，以及圣灵中新生命的浇灌，我们认识到神对我们的爱远超过我们的想像。（参约 3:16；罗 5:8-11；弗 3:16-21）而神已经藉着圣灵将祂的爱浇灌到我们心里。（参罗 5:5）

让我们牢记，神的灵是我们最好最亲密的朋友。

I remember Eileen. With her whole heart she desired to experience the power of the Holy Spirit. But she often wrote negative letters to herself about how ugly, stupid, and sinful she was. Her negative self-image led her to hold back from fully embracing God's promise of life in the Holy Spirit.

The Spirit of God, though, is the great encourager. He is constantly whispering words of affirmation into our consciousness. The Spirit bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God—and that means we are heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ.

Already in the amazing chapter of Romans 8 we have learned that there is "no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus" (8:1). We have been set free from the law of sin and death by the law of the Spirit of life (8:2). The righteous requirement of the law has already been fully met, through Christ, so that we can walk by the Spirit (8:4).

The Spirit instills a new attitude deep in our spirit. We learn, through the life and death and resurrection of Jesus and in the outpouring of new life in the Spirit, that God loves us even more than we can imagine (John 3:16; Romans 5:8-11; Ephesians 3:16-21). And God has poured his love into our hearts through the Holy Spirit (Romans 5:5).

Let us always remember that the Spirit of God is our best and closest friend.