The Holy Spirit Told Me to Eat a Pineapple

The Holy Spirit told me to eat a pineapple. Sounds crazy right? I thought so too, but let me back up and share the whole story with you. This really is more about going to the Holy Spirit for guidance and listening…even in the small things.

A couple of weeks ago I had lunch with one of my friends. I always enjoying getting together with good Christian friends. I always walk away feeling so encouraged and uplifted and sometimes even challenged a little, as was the case when I met with Kim. After all, isn’t that how God intended for Christian community to work?

“As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend.” Proverbs 27:17 (NLT)

“So encourage each other and build each other up, just as you are already doing.” 1 Thessalonians 5:11 (NLT)

Anyhow, Kim was sharing some things with me about how God has been working in her life and about some projects that she’s working on. Something that stuck out to me was how she kept mentioning her reliance on the Holy Spirit, for EVERYTHING.

I had to ask myself, “Do I rely on the Holy Spirit as much as I should? Do I go to him or listen for guidance on even the small stuff?” If I’m answering honestly, it’s “No”, at least not as often as I should.

I DO listen to God and speak with him regularly. Also, I DO listen to the Holy Spirit’s voice. Fortunately, he’s a familiar friend that I do recognize. I think where I was missing the mark was in seeking guidance, on purpose, for even small things in my life. Things where I think, “I’ve got this” or things that seem too trivial to bother God with. Things like minor stomach discomfort or acid-reflux.

Stomach issues, the Daniel Fast, and then more stomach issues

For 21 days during the month of January I did a Daniel Fast. For those not familiar with a Daniel Fast, it’s basically a vegan diet with some additional restrictions…water, vegetables, fruits, whole grains, legumes, nuts, no meat, no dairy, no sugar, no caffeine, and no processed/refined foods. Prior to my fast, I had been dealing with some stomach issues along with a few other minor health frustrations (and I do mean frustrations because typically I’m an extremely healthy person). During the fast, all of my issues cleared up 100%!

After my fast was over, I slowly reintroduced some of the restricted foods back into my diet. I still kept a lot of the vegetarian/vegan habits though because I found that I really enjoyed a lot of the food (except for those nasty veggie meatballs…bleh!).

One evening, I started noticing some minor stomach discomfort and a tiny bit of acid reflux again. Good grief! I REALLY did not want to go back to a vegan diet again. Nor did I want to take medications—I prefer to deal with things naturally when possible, leaving medication as a last resort. I knew I could probably fix the problem without medicine because I had JUST experienced that food could do that.

The Holy Spirit and pineapples

I started to remember my conversations with Kim and looking to the Holy Spirit for direction and steps. So I prayed for direction, “God, what’s going on? What do I need to do? Give me a step.” As I laid in bed thinking and listening for anything to come to mind, I had the words “digestive enzymes” come to mind.

Throughout my 3 week fast, I was also reading (listening via audiobook) Rick Warren’s The Daniel Plan: 40 Days to a Healthier Life. I remembered from the book (which was chock-full of excellent, research-based health information) that it mentioned digestive enzymes being an integral part of the digestive process, thus affecting our health when foods aren’t properly digested. The book noted that as we age our body’s ability to produce its own digestive enzymes slows down. It also mentioned that we can supplement with food (and/or all-natural, over-the-counter supplements).

Again, I knew I could supplement with food because I didn’t take any supplements (other than a multivitamin) when I was on my fast, and the issues cleared up. Then I thought to myself, “I wonder what foods contain digestive enzymes?” All of a sudden the word “Pineapple” came into my mind.

“OK, did the Holy Spirit just tell me that I need to eat a pineapple? Do pineapples really have digestive enzymes?” I decided to grab my phone to google it. I typed in “foods that have digestive enzymes.” “Pineapple” was the very first thing that popped up! It really was the Holy Spirit! He told me to eat a pineapple to help fix my current issues (which was apparently a reduced amount of digestive enzymes). It totally worked (both asking the Holy Spirit for a step AND the pineapples)!

Challenge

As I went back and looked through my journal notes from my fast, I noticed that during the first week of my fast I wrote, “Focus more on prayer. Talk to God more often. Seek wisdom and advice throughout the day…ask even about the little things…involve God in everything.” I wrote this before I ever had lunch with Kim, who in essence was saying the same thing.

I shared my Holy Spirit pineapple story this past week with the women I teach at Glory House. I challenged and encouraged them to try seeking guidance and direction from the Holy Spirit this week, even if it’s just for something small or seemingly trivial. Therefore I’m going to challenge each of you to do the same! 

Take Some Practical Steps to Seek and Hear the Holy Spirit (even in the small things):

• First, realize that God wants to help you with anything and everything. He will order your steps if you seek him, let him and listen.

You are not alone. God has given you the Holy Spirit as your helper. We can rely on this power of God that is already inside of us to help in our moments of weakness. We don’t have to rely solely on ourselves because He already has the answers for anything and everything.

“The LORD directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives.” Psalm 37:23 (NLT)

“We can make our plans, but the LORD determines our steps.” Proverbs 16:9 (NLT)

“But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.” John 14:16 (ESV)

• Secondly, focus more on prayer for ALL things big or small—Ask God to give you direction and guidance via the Holy Spirit.

Seek God’s wisdom and advice throughout the day. Ask even about the little things. Involve God in everything. What have you encountered or struggled with recently that you haven’t even thought about asking God about? Pray about that this week. Ask the Holy Spirit to give you a step or some direction.

“Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. “ Jeremiah 29:12 (NIV)

“Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.” Jeremiah 33:3 (NIV)

“Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete.” John 16:24 (NLT)

“You may ask me for anything in my name, and I will do it.” John 14:14 (NIV)

• Then listen for the Holy Spirit to answer and to give you a step or some direction or guidance.

You may just hear a word or a phrase, but don’t ignore it. Write it down or go check it out (like I went and googled about the pineapples).

“But when the Father sends the Advocate as my representative–that is, the Holy Spirit–he will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I have told you.” John 14:26 (NLT)

“But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.” John 16:13 (NIV)

“But God has revealed those things to us by his Spirit. For the Spirit searches everything, even the deep things of God.” 1 Corinthians 2:10 (ISV)

• Finally, learn more about hearing the voice and God and the Holy Spirit in these posts:

How to Recognize God’s Voice

What Does God’s Voice Sound Like?

Recognizing Prompts of the Holy Spirit

Stop and Take Time to Listen to God

God Talks Like Bumblebee the Transformer

Have you had a “Holy Spirit pineapple moment”? Tell us about it by leaving a comment below.

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