One thing I notice while traveling in countries such as India, Sri Lanka, Kenya, Zimbabwe, the Philippines, and many other countries where Israel has left its mark, is the obvious lack of maintenance of building services and roads.

The reflection of neglect is everywhere. In many cases, it makes life more difficult where poverty is rampant.

What about us in God’s Church? Do we have areas that need daily maintenance that we neglect, specifically in our spiritual lives?

1 Thessalonians 5:19 states, “Quench not the Spirit.” Could you, then, quench the Spirit through neglect?

The answer is a clear yes!

We must keep the Holy Spirit burning brightly in our lives.

One way to extinguish a fire is to stop feeding it fuel; in time it will burn itself out!

According to the Old Testament law of the burnt offerings, the priests were to keep the fire of the altar from going out: “And the fire upon the altar shall be burning in it; it shall not be put out: and the priest shall burn wood on it every morning, and lay the burnt offering in order upon it; and he shall burn thereon the fat of the peace offerings. The fire shall ever be burning upon the altar; it shall never go out” (Leviticus 6:12-13).

To keep the fire burning, the priests had to be attentive. They had to put wood on it daily, and they had to ensure that nothing happened to cause the fire to go out.

The same kind of constant attention and daily effort is required to keep the light of God’s Holy Spirit alive in your own heart and mind. A fire left to itself will eventually go out.

And, true to human nature, Israel’s priests did eventually fail in their duty, and the fire went out.

One of the surest ways to quench is through neglect. Neglect the Spirit, and it will first become dormant. Then it will eventually go out altogether.

If you are to keep the Spirit alive and active, producing light like a fire, you must work at it, just as the priests had to work at keeping the fire burning at the altar.

The two most important keys to keeping the fire of the Holy Spirit alive are prayer and Bible study.

Why is prayer important to the maintenance of God’s Spirit?

It is in prayer that you develop the close personal relationship with God that makes His Spirit a power in your life.

It is in prayer that you repent before God, and repentance is a prerequisite to having and maintaining the gift of God’s Holy Spirit (Proverbs 1:23; Psalm 51:2-3, 10-11).

It is in prayer that you labor for the physical and spiritual well-being of others.

Paul spoke to the Colossians about Epaphras, who was “always labouring fervently for you in prayers, that ye may stand perfect and complete in all the will of God” (Colossians 4:12).

It is in prayer that you make supplication to God for those things you need, including His Spirit.

In short, prayer is essential to your spiritual vitality. You cannot retain God’s Spirit without it. Unless you pray, and pray often, you will quench God’s Spirit.

Wholehearted, humble, faithful, frequent prayer will lead to God’s Spirit burning brightly in your heart and mind.

The second key to keeping the light of God’s Spirit burning in your life is the study of His Word.

How much time do you spend studying God’s Word?

What attitude do you take toward study? David said God desires truth in our inward parts (Psalm 51:6). The source of truth is God’s Word (John 17:17). You must approach Bible study, then, as a seeker of truth.

Jesus said that he who seeks shall find (Matthew 7:7-11).

Paul wrote in 1 Thessalonians 5:21: “Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.”

Brethren, it doesn’t take any effort to be deceived. It does, however, take effort to prove the truth. God will have no one in His Kingdom who is not deeply convicted of His truth.

Note 2 Thessalonians 2:13: We are chosen for salvation “through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth.” God inspired the Scriptures, and through them He teaches us the way to salvation (2 Timothy 3:14-17).

The Word of God and God’s Spirit are inseparably linked.

Jesus Christ said, “[T]he words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life” (John 6:63).

God’s Spirit abides in us to the extent that His Word abides in us and we obey it (John 14:23; Acts 5:32). God’s Word will abide in you if you study it diligently every day (Acts 17:11).

There is danger in neglecting prayer and Bible study.

Brethren, let us be sure in the last hour we neglect not the Spirit, that we grow in grace and knowledge, and “stir up the gift of God” daily (2 Timothy 1:6).

Prayer and Bible study are vital tools, along with meditation and fasting, to fight this last-hour spiritual battle.

Think on these things.