Day 10 - Fruit: Longsuffering

This is a genuine Christian quality, no one can show a longsuffering attitude if they aren't involved with the Holy Spirit, because being longsuffering means ENDURING OFFENSES.

It's not a self control from our human nature that makes us be longsuffering (patient), the revelation of this fruit is not this way, but the direct actions of the Holy Spirit inside a person that's makes them produce a patience to tolerate aggressions that society imposes on us, because with don't mingle with it corruption... only those who've been through the new birth have this ability. Let's meditate on the importance of this fruit:

The Lord Jesus what put through fire of those who hated Him, trying to provoke him to react in the same manner, which is what those people to do those, who because of love, strive to win them for eternal life.

There lies the true meaning of longsuffering. Meanwhile the world succeeds, it strives  and fights with all its might to destroy us, we struggle with all our might to save it.

Non-Christians cannot handle offenses with patience, only if there's a reason for them in their yes... but the Christian is able to handle ALL and whatever kind of injustice and still, he remains strong and longsuffering.

The race is not always of the fastest, nor the battle of the strongest. The race is won through patience, by learning to walk with God, step by step. 

It's been 2 years since I follow your blog...

Hi Mrs. Graciele,

I couldn't wait to send you this email... I finally got the chance!

I want to share with you and everyone else the big change that happened within me since I started following your blog a little over a year ago.

Before following your blog, there were things about me (inside and out), that still needed to change. I couldn't interact with others and I always looked serious; at church, there were a lot of assistants that I didn't speak to and I wasn't responsible, with the things placed in my care; at my house, only complaints, I was very lazy and didn't clean my room.

One day I heard two assistants speaking about "The Diary of a Pastor's Wife", so, I decided to go and see it out of curiosity. I became a follower and during 2 years I began to put in practice everything I'd read, and also practice what the pastor would preach but overall what God would say to me. 

The first change I noticed in me, was the purpose of friends. I participated in both purposes that took place, one in 2011 and the other one this year.

The results of that purpose was very good, I conquered my first goal. Cynthia, was the fruit of last year and Nadia the fruit of this year. Today we're very blessed friends, we're here for one another 

The second change (even though it should've been the first) was inside of me. I began taking care of my communion with God, praying more, fasting more. When we had to decorate our Bible, I realized the importance that it was to read the word of God, ever since that day, not a day goes by without me reading the Bible.

Being good spiritually with God and not having problems with my friends immediately brought a change in my home. Today I'm a testimony of the Lord Jesus in my home. I'm no longer lazy; I wake up early to go to work, but before that I make sure I leave everything organized to avoid problems. I have fixed my room, decorating and moving furniture (something I wouldn't do), I even helped paint the living room.

At church I've also changed, I've grown in all the groups that God has placed me at and today I'm a responsible Servant. 

Taking the opportunity I want to take advantage and share my testimony from this Fast of Daniel. I began living each day at a time, making sure each day I grew. I stopped watching TV, going on Facebook, listening to the radio, etc. I decided to fill those empty slots, and implementing them in my daily life which turned into a habit. In the past months because of the cold, I had stopped sports and sadly :( gained weight, but in these 21 days I decided to take care of the temple of the Holy Spirit... I'm getting up early to walk, I drink almost 2 liters of water daily and, I have added many fruits to my diet... soon the result will come :)

In the spiritual side, I decided to dedicate more of myself (Saturday and Sunday), going to evangelize and winning souls for the Kingdom of God and, I'm also helping two new assistant teachers. In my spare time I make lessons, books and other items for the kids zone.

I thank God for changing this inside of me. Today I am a new woman of God, dedicated, responsible... I learned not to get comfortable in any situation.

I'm thankful to you Mrs, because I know God used you to help me with your experiences and purposes.

God bless you very much,

Yamila, Buenos Aires, Argentina

Dear Yamila,

I'm very happy with you testimony... but even with the comment you added, you didn't depend on my posts but instead, you added them to the word the Holy Spirit used that pastor in your church to tell you overall! You looked for answers in the Word of God! That for me friend, has no pirce! It's my salary!

It's good to hear when people use the experiences I had and will have to learn to depend on God. Thank you for sharing your testimony... It's good to know that even with mistakes, God can use us in some way for Him to be Glorified ;-)

God Bless... Graci

Day 9 - How are your 21 days?

Before we continue with the study of the Holy Spirit book I'd like to do something different today. I want to know how these days have gone for you. What have you done? Or stopped doing to be in communion with God?

You will be enticing others to do the same when you leave your comment.... so, I'll begin, okay?

In these 21 days I've been in the purpose of leading people to desire the baptism in the Holy Spirit... through the studies in the book of Bp Macedo, through counseling, conversations, praying with you over the phone and also through the kids zone through visual items. In my spiritual life, I'm not accessing Facebook, I'm praying in all the times for our purpose of prayer, studying English, organizing things to have easier access, helping the work of God by drinking more water, I need it to become a habit in my life to have good health and preserve the temple of the Holy Spirit, which is my healthy that serves God.

Here are some pictures :-)

Day 8 - Fruit: Peace

The same way the the world confuses love and joy, it has also confused the real meaning of peace. The world wants peace and no more wars... but, even if all the atomic weapons are banned on the face of the earth, even if all the countries were to get along, even then, there would not be peace that humans need and crave.

It's not acquired through a simple sensation of well-being among people, but through a deep stillness in the soul, and is only possible when God, in the Person of His Son Jesus, through the Holy Spirit, passes to reign through your soul.

Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. (John 14:27) There are two kinds of peace: The peace that comes from God and the peace from the world. The first reaches the depths of a person when the peace of the world only reaches the exterior.

Everything that affects our interior lasts permanently, as it creates inside of us a different world totally independent and private. Exterior peace is subject to and also dependent on others.

You can receive this power of peace that comes from God... open your soul and pour it before the Lord Jesus through a sincere prayer. The Holy Spirit will take care of the rest. Don't waste time! Do it now!

Day 7 - Fruits: Joy

Joy is a fruit of the Holy Spirit that is very different from the joy the world gives. It's not born by jokes, drunkenness or anything like that, neither does it have a time limit... Joy that comes from the Holy Spirit is powerful! It sprouts from the deepest part of our hearts to remain eternally.

This joy is the result of our salvation, the manifestation of an inner well being. The planting is usually always done with tears, but the harvest is done with joy (Psalm 126:5-6). Who ever is filled with the Holy Spirit overflows with joy even when persecutions or difficulties arise.

Day 6 - Fruits: Love

God is love. In order to understand the real meaning of love, it is essential that we know God, and for this, the first thing to do is accept His ultimate expression of love for us, that is, His Son Jesus Christ (John 3:16).

Upon acceptance of this divine love, we begin to see the magnitude, scope and extent of this fruit that is - Love.

This love of which I speak, doesn't lose its temper; it seeks to be constructive. Its not envious, doesn't seek to impress, doesn't exaggerate ideas about his own importance. Love has good manners and does not seek its own interest. It's not irascible. Doesn't look with evil, neither rejoices with the weakness of others. Rather, it rejoices with good, when the truth prevails.

Love has no limits on what it can stand, it is infinite in its confidence and hope and will not wilt. It's really the only thing that lasts when everything else finishes. Love never loses hope, it stands against everything with faith, hope and patience. (1 Corinthians 13:1-8,13).

The love that comes from God gives without expecting to receive ... and only those who have this understand this, so I usually say that the fruits of the Holy Spirit are Super Powers within us... This is the love that we must cultivate in our hearts, allowing it to flow from our lives others, this is the true love, you cannot confuse it with a passion.

The Kingdom of God can only exist on the basis of deep and pure love and can only be brought forth to those who love God above all things... one can only love God above all things when you have the Spirit of God within you, and it happens when we see the Lord Jesus as the only Lord and personal Savior.

The beauty of the fruit of the Spirit is that it is like a bushel of grapes. The are many parts but, they form but only one fruit. Look for a beautiful bushel of grapes, each grape is nice, juicy and perfect. Likewise, in love we find patience, kindness, gentleness, kindness,  self-control, faith - because each is part of the fruit, and each form the whole.

Note: I wonder if this study of the Book of Bp.Macedo here on the blog has helped you in these 21 days... :-)

Day 5 - The Fruit of the Holy Spirit

This is a topic simpler to understand, but the hardest to achieve… it's not easy to access but many begin worrying more about the gifts of the Holy Spirit and leave aside the constant exercise of a life that reflects the Character of God.

And also, it's much easier to manifest the spiritual fruits with people from a distance, that you don't see much than with those whom you're always close to and witness your every move. For these people it's much harder, even impossible.

The fruits of the Spirit are given naturally… have you ever seen a tree struggling to give fruit? Of course not!

We know that the fruits are the result of what is planted… let's understand this better: if someone desires to get a certain kind of fruit, they must first plant the seed of that fruit to harvest it, right?

But what happens the majority of times is that many forget to plant (attitudes) or they get tired of planting. They then are surprised when the harvest they wanted doesn't come (baptism in the Holy Spirit). Many want the fruits of the Holy Spirit but many don't begin to plant with attitudes… they wait, expecting that the Holy Spirit come over them to later on bear fruits, it's not like this.

If I want to have the fruits of the Holy Spirit, I first need to be a good farmer, prepare the proper soil (prepare my life, clean my heart and begin practicing these fruits, show that I want! That I desire Him!) If something happens that my emotions make me want to be sad, I'm going to act with happiness because I want to have this fruit in difficulties, believe that God is with me… If my friend disappoints me, the normal thing for this world is to hate her… but I know I can choose to love her because I also am not perfect… any situation that you go through you can choose (sacrifice) and practice a fruit of the Holy Spirit, you begin showing what you want.

Also, sometimes the farmer plants and the rain is not enough for a good harvest… he plants, but the storm carries away the seeds. Sometimes he plants, but insects come and devour the crop. Even when that happens he doesn't stop. He's persistent because he knows that at the given time, the harvest will come (Those who want to be baptized with the Holy Spirit don't give up! They don't lose heart! They fight until the end, until they get to… Oh, what a day!)

Day 4 - Symbols of the Holy Spirit

The same way that different names identify the Holy Spirit in the lives of those regenerated by faith through His Holy Son Jesus, He's able to represent Himself through several symbols.

If, in case, God would allow people to use images to adore Him, then, they wouldn't live by faith but by their senses.

"Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." (Hebrews 11:1) If it's the substance of things hoped for, how can a person have faith in something they see right in front of them? How will they believe in something they don't see, if in front of them is a graven image? Read Isaiah 40:18-23.

Symbols are used by God because no one will desire to adore water for example, wind, rain or fire. These elements help people to express their faith which is normally hidden inside of them. The simplest objects were used by God to deliver people, which should not be objects of adoration because this should only be done in spirt and in truth.

Let's see and meditate in a few symbols of the Holy Spirit:

River of living water (John 7:38)
Wind (John 20:22)
Fire (Exodus 13:21)
Oil (Exodus 29:07)
Tongues (Acts 2:8)
Dew (Psalm 133:3)
Dove (Matthew 3:16)
Sky (2 Corinthians 1:22)
Rain (Hosea 6:03)

Day 3 - Attracting Him to you

"...and the Spirit of the Lord came upon David..." (1 Samuel 16:13)

We've learned that the Holy Spirit is the same temple — God, father and son, who was, is and will always be inside of the heart of those who have been chosen by God for His purposes.

The story of David clearly shows when the Holy Spirit manifests Himself. When the Holy Spirit took hold of David, all his weaknesses became strengths and  power... in that moment the people didn't see a change in his life, his appearance stayed the same, humanly speaking, nothing happened... but inside, David obtained everything from God!

From that moment on, all that David couldn't do before because of his inabilities, he received the conditions to do, because inside of him was now the Spirit of God. And this way, the fruits, his attitudes, began showing what was inside of him. Like David, all the other men and women who make room in their life for the Holy Spirit, were used exclusively and extraordinary.

When one has the Holy Spirit, there is nothing impossible! The confidence inside of you is so strong that the world could be ending before your eyes, yet you strongly believe God is there with you. You can be going through an unexplainable situation, difficulties, but there is an assurance that you will overcome this for God.

Many want the Holy Spirit, but many have not tried to find out about the power in being baptized. There is not a complete surrender from their part, no sacrifice, they may even begin well, but they don't go to the end. Understand this, you need to want this first! There's no point in asking for something that you don't know, have you tried to understand that perhaps that's what is lacking inside of you?

David still being a kid, in front of men was insignificant, but inside of him, there was a big desire to know God, much bigger! This desire attracted God to him.

Do you want to be baptized with the Holy Spirit? So then, learn about Him through His word (the Bible)... the more you read about Him, through His word (the Bible), the more you'll desire Him inside of you, your attitudes will be determined (without emotions) to leave your old life, things that are against God... That's it!!! You will attract the Holy Spirit and say, "Ah, What a Day!" 

Day 2 - Names of the Holy Spirit

Let's see the other names used by the Holy Spirit to more easily identify the followers of His son the Lord Jesus... let's meditate? Stop whatever you're doing, if you can't right now, separate some time later on... Read each verse patiently, attentively, with thirst and meditating on each word understanding what identifies Him.

The multiple acts of the Spirit of God in our lives:


The Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of might, the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the Lord. (Isaiah 11:02)

Good Spirit (Psalm 143:10)

Counselor (John 14:16)

Spirit (Ephesians 5:18)

Spirit of adoption (Romans 8:15)

Spirit of Love (2 Timothy 1:7)

Spirit of God, Spirit of Christ (Romans 8:9)

Spirit of Glory (2 Chronicles 7:3)

Spirit of Grace (Zechariah 12:10)

Spirit of judgement and burning (Isaiah 4:4)

Spirit of a Sound Mind (2 Timothy 1:7)

Spirit of Promise (Ephesians 1:13)

Spirit of Holiness (Romans 1:4)

Spirit of Truth (John 14:17)

My Spirit (Genesis 6:3)

Now, after meditating on each verse… stop for a moment… seek the Holy Spirit. If you believe, you'll receive Him right now in your life!

Day 1 - The Holy Trinity

The Holy Trinity is perfect. We know that it is revealed only when we come before the Throne of Grace. But, an apparent example of this Trinity was the baptism of the Lord Jesus.

When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him. And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” (Matthew 3:16-17)

The Son, having been baptized in the water... The Holy Spirit, descending upon the Son like a dove... and the Father, identifying from heaven His beloved Jesus.

God the father sacrificed His son whilst being God... God the son having a Spiritual nature sacrificed Himself by not calling on His Spiritual nature... God the Holy Spirit is God — Father and son, who is willing to live in the lives of those who allow Him. Many want to have this miracle inside of them, but they aren't willing to pay the price.

What is the price to pay? The total surrender of YOUR WILL AND 100% OF YOUR ALL for everything God has!

What do you gain with this? SUPERPOWERS! The Holy Spirit inside of you, you become a power person in the Spiritual world. You receive The Spirit to recognize God's voice... He makes you reason, He guides you! Typically, you use these super powers in difficulties and trials.

Why is the Baptism in the Holy Spirit necessary? It's necessary for the survival of faith in this world, every day it's much harder to dwell in it. It's impossible to be a Christian in this world without the seal of the Holy Spirit.

Being a Christian without the baptism of the Holy Spirit is the same thing as hearing about a delicious plate of special food and staying hungry wishing one day being able to eat it. The baptism in the Holy Spirit enables us to personally know the Lord Jesus, it takes us to have personal experiences with God, it guarantees our salvation and it impedes us from being deceived or mislead by our weaknesses, emotions, and feelings by motivating us towards a constant spiritual growth.

The Holy Spirit is the Flame that impedes our faith from going out. Only those who have been sealed by Him have stayed firm.

21 days - Meditation

During the Fast of Daniel, I will be meditating with a few youth in the church over the book of Bishop Macedo The Holy Spirit... Starting on Monday (August 13th), I will be posting on this blog a bit of what we'll be meditating during these 21 days (everyday). If you want, come here starting the 13th... let's be in that faith of fasting :-)

Willing to Compromise (Testimony of a Pastor's wife)

I've wanted to share an experience I had with God in order to help someone out for a while now but, I was always leaving it for later, I didn't have time. Actually, it's not that I didn't have time but I didn't know how to say it. In the end I got the courage to overcome this challenge.

It's been two years since I've been doing the Work of God on the altar. My husband and I had only been married 4 months and were then transferred to assist a more experienced pastor. In the beginning it was very difficult for me, being away from my family, my pride wouldn't allow me to compromise in my marriage resulting in many arguments and nights of crying. When I was an assistant, I thought I was so strong until I came across a problem much bigger than any other I had overcome as an assistant: overcoming myself, my ego. It took me time to recognize that I had to change because I was very spoiled, I wanted to compare my marriage to that of my parents. There was no point to this because the more I criticized him the less he changed.

He worked exhaustively winning souls and when he got home, besides than the bad food (lol), he had to hear my complaints and comparisons, and whatever he said I took it as an offense. If he said that I had to learn to make bread like his mom or his favorite dessert, it led to an automatic argument. I kept grinding it between my teeth feeling inferior every time. Do you think I did something to change this? No. I thought the problem was on his behalf, he was expecting too much of me.

All he wanted was to have peace and dinner on the table (lol). And I in a bad mood just wanted to compare everything to my old life as a single woman. I was on MSN wasting too much time chatting with my single friends that I didn't have time to hear the voice of God. Only until the time that I managed to disconnect from all those (which deep down I knew was taking up the time I was supposed to be serving God) things of no help, I then started reading books on marriage, participating in meetings that the main pastor's wife of the state had with those that had been married for 3 years or less and God started showing me how selfish I was being and how I wasn't valuing the man God had given me to help.

I had prayed so much when I was single and now had to face the truth. I needed to compromise, I needed to mature, I needed to be humble and recognize that my husband's life could not revolve only around me but in the suffering souls because, that is what God had called us for. I began to realize that if I didn't become the helper he needed, he'd never be the man of my dreams and that's when everything began to change. I began reading cooking books and making those recipes (lol), he got so happy that he began complementing me and I began feeling more secure about helping more around the church, organizing more my time. Many times, he was in need of a shirt and it wasn't ironed or cleaned, it wasn't the lack of time but lack of organization and willingness, I'll talk more about this another time.

Summarizing, my marriage began changing once I took the first step, without waiting to receive anything in return, that's where I learned what true love is, and that the stage of adaptation lasts for a short amount of time when we are willing to compromise. 

Daniela Garces - Paraná, Brazil