Daily Devotional October 20 - Get To Know Your Inner Man

"Wherefore I desire that ye faint not at my tribulations for you, which is your glory. For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might by His Spirit in the inner man." Ephesians 3:13-16

I want you to get to know your inner man better. It is the inner man that holds the key to all right decisions, wisdom, knowledge, godly actions. Your mind and your body will both fight you all the way. Oh, you think I'm exaggerating. Tell me that you have not believed one way and yet did something another way. Tell me that you haven't made up your mind about something but your body wanted something different and your mind could not stave it off. Tell me that you didn't know what to do, but did something else anyway. Your body is at war with your mind and they are both at war with your spirit and your soul is suffering the consequences.

I said I want you to get to know your inner man better. Think of your inner man as the inner court; that place called the holy of holies, the inner most chamber of the tabernacle, the place where only purity and heart consecration can survive, that place where God resides, and you enter. That's the inner man. Get to know your inner man better and you will get to know God better, because that is where the Holy Spirit resides.

If you are really trying to figure out where to attend church, or who to marry, or who to go into business with or how to respond when your daughter comes home telling you about her boyfriend, any real issue in life, go to the inner man; the depths of your soul, all the way to that part of you that has not been conditioned by the world or spoiled by philosophy or damaged by unhealthy habits or destroyed by drugs or alcohol. You are more than the results of your life/lifestyle.

• You are more than the outcome of a particular event like bankruptcy or business failure, divorce, misjudgments or even willful acts of disobedience. 
• You are greater than the sum of your thoughts. 
• You are more beautiful than your body, even if you have abused it for years and it looks like there is no hope, inside the inner man is a rejuvenated perspective, driven by the power of God within. 
• You are more spiritual than you allow yourself to be on the outside. 
• You are probably still stroking your ego, trying to make light of the things you do against God and not taking very seriously the things you do for God.

The inner man is that part of you that:

• Can get the job done
• Will make necessary adjustments, even if they are not popular, even if they require discipline
• Is able to stop taking in what is killing you
• Won't be bullied by satan or anyone and just roll over when approached to compromise principal
• Does seek higher ground
• Will take back lost territory
• Won't continue blaming others
• Will draw closer to God
• Can live life in the will of God

Get to know your inner man and you will be very pleased. That's where God meets you to strengthen you and fit you to be in His image and likeness. Re-read the verse above and see if you agree that God is speaking to your inner man right now.