There is More

If you’ve heard my story, then you know I was raised in church. I loved Jesus, attended church faithfully, and believed the Bible. Yet, if I’m honest, I lived in a constant cycle of trying harder, failing, repenting, and repeating the same sins. I wanted freedom, but I didn’t know how to walk in it.

Maybe you’ve been there too.

I knew about victory, but I wasn’t consistently living in it.

Then, at 38 years old, lying in a hospital room, everything changed. God met me in a way I had never experienced before. He spoke to me so clearly that I knew without a doubt it was Him. In that moment, my relationship with Him became more than knowledge—it became living and personal.

From that day forward, I have never been the same.

The power sin once had over my life was broken. The desires that had controlled me no longer controlled me. It wasn’t because I became stronger—it was because the Holy Spirit began empowering me to live the life Jesus had always intended.

Jesus didn’t die only to forgive us. He died so we could be free.

“So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” — John 8:36

The Christian life was never meant to be lived in our own strength.

“Walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.” — Galatians 5:16

Notice Paul didn’t say, “Try harder.” He said, “Walk by the Spirit.”

There is a difference.

So many believers love Jesus but still live exhausted because they’re trying to overcome sin through willpower instead of through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Before Jesus ascended into heaven, He gave His followers a promise:

“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses…” — Acts 1:8

That wasn’t just for the disciples. Peter declared on the Day of Pentecost:

“For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself.” — Acts 2:39

I believe the baptism of the Holy Spirit is one of God’s greatest gifts to His children. John the Baptist himself distinguished his baptism in water from what Jesus would bring:

“I baptize you with water… but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.” — Matthew 3:11

The Holy Spirit isn’t just a doctrine to study. He is our Comforter, our Teacher, our Helper, and the One who gives us power to live a transformed life.

“But the Helper, the Holy Spirit… He will teach you all things.” — John 14:26

My question for you is simple.

Are you walking in victory, or are you trapped in the same cycles you’ve battled for years?

Are you living with the fruit of the Spirit evident in your life—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control?

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace… self-control.” — Galatians 5:22–23

If not, don’t settle for less than what Jesus purchased for you.

Ask the Father for the fullness of His Spirit.

Jesus made this incredible promise:

“How much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!” — Luke 11:13

Can I make you a promise? Your life will never be the same.

Mine certainly hasn’t been.

My life today looks nothing like the first 38 years I lived. For years I was striving—trying to do good, be good, and overcome sin in my own strength. Today, I walk in freedom. Not because I’m perfect, but because the Holy Spirit has transformed me from the inside out.

I genuinely love people in a way I never could before. I have a joy that has never left me, regardless of what life brings.

Yes, storms still come. Jesus told us they would. But now, instead of being defeated by them, the Holy Spirit gives me the strength to stand, to get back up when I’m knocked down, and to come through even stronger than before. His peace guards my heart, His joy strengthens me, and His power carries me every single day.

“The joy of the Lord is your strength.” — Nehemiah 8:10

“Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.” — 2 Corinthians 3:17

“But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles, they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint.” — Isaiah 40:31

Begin asking. Begin listening. Keep a journal nearby and write down what He speaks to your heart through His Word, through prayer, through dreams, or through those quiet moments when His voice becomes unmistakably clear.

Pay attention to the fruit He begins producing in your life and the gifts He desires to activate through you.

There is more.

More freedom.

More intimacy.

More power.

More of His presence.

Don’t spend another day trying to live the Christian life without the One Jesus sent to empower you to live it.

Love you,

Tricia