The Importance of Your Spirit

Daniel 6:3

Then this Daniel was preferred above the presidents and princes, because an excellent spirit was in him; and the king thought to set him over the whole realm.

Twice in the book of Daniel, Daniel was described as having an excellent spirit. Daniel 5:12 says, Forasmuch as an excellent spirit, and knowledge, and understanding, interpreting of dreams, and shewing of hard sentences, and dissolving of doubts, were found in the same Daniel…. It says in the verse above, Then this Daniel was preferred above the presidents and princes, because an excellent spirit was in him…. Daniel excelled in life partly because he had an excellent spirit. Daniel was certainly a wise man, but his wisdom would not have been used had his spirit not been an excellent spirit. Daniel was a man of position, but had he not had an excellent period, the power of his position could not have been used for the glory of God. The reason Daniel excelled was because he had an excellent spirit.

You will never rise above your spirit. Having an excellent spirit is critical to you excelling in life and to God using you mightily. I have seen many smart people go nowhere in life because their spirit is terrible. People don't want to be around them because they are constantly negative or are hard to get along with. Your spirit is critical to your future. It is sad that so many people work on their outward appearance, but they never work on their spirit. You can dress right and look sharp, but if your spirit is terrible, how you dress will only make a temporary impact. You can work on gaining education to have the answer for many of life’s problems, but you will never be able to help people with those problems if people don't want to be around you because of your spirit.

Many people have struggled in their ministry for God because their spirit is terrible. Having a spirit of pride and arrogance will never help anybody build their ministry. Having a negative spirit that nothing can happen because it is too hard will always destroy the possibility of God doing something through you. Having a spirit of fear has kept many from pursuing a life of faith to their detriment. Your spirit in the ministry is critical to how much God can use you.

Paul says in Romans 1:9, For God is my witness, whom I serve with my spirit in the gospel… You will notice that Paul said he served God with his spirit. Paul understood the importance of having an excellent spirit because, without having an excellent spirit, the Gospel would have no effect on those to whom he gave it. Your ability to having an excellent spirit is critical to the Gospel being spread to the lost world. Nobody in the lost world will want to hear from someone who has an inferior spirit, is negative, or arrogant. One of the great revivals that we need amongst God’s people is a revival of having an excellent spirit.

My friend, you can have an excellent spirit because having one is a choice. I choose to be negative or I choose to be positive. I choose to be humble, or I choose to be arrogant. I choose to have courage, or I choose to live in fear. My spirit is a choice that I make. Nobody gives me a negative spirit; I choose to have one. Nobody makes me arrogant; I choose to be arrogant. Likewise, nobody makes me have an excellent spirit; I choose to have an excellent spirit. Always remember this: your spirit will determine how much the Holy Spirit can work through you.