Podcasts about holy spirit it

Practicing the Way with John Mark ComerThe start of a new year prompts the reflection that if we are not intentionally modeling our life after Jesus, we are likely being formed by something or someone else. Adrift in the cultural current, we're likely to be carried to places we never consciously chose and wonder how we got there.In Practicing the Way, John Mark Comer explores what it means in our times to be a disciple of Jesus -- to be with him, to become like him, and to do as he did:“ It seems to me that the telos of the spiritual journey in the Christian way is becoming a person of love through deepening union with the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit…It's the two greatest commandments: love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself, that Jesus put at the center of apprenticeship to him.” - John Mark ComerWe hope this conversation encourages you to move slowly as you abide with Jesus this year, and by his grace are transformed into a person of deeper love, joy, and peace.This podcast is an edited version of a conversation recorded in 2024. Learn more about John Mark Comer.Episode outline00:00 Introduction to Practicing the Way01:00 Formation is Inevitable02:26 John Mark Comer's Background and Influences05:21 Evangelical Discipleship and the Influence of Dallas Willard08:05 From Burnout to the Inner Journey11:26 Being Christian and Being an Apprentice of Jesus21:04 The Destructive Power of Hurry, and the Pace of Love26:13 The Practice of Contemplation and Abiding33:17 Final Thoughts and PrayerAuthors and books mentioned in the conversation:The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry, Live No Lies, God Has a Name, Garden City, Practicing the Way, all by John Mark ComerDivine Conspiracy, by Dallas WillardJacques PhilippeSt. ThereseN.T. WrightGary HaugenRobert BellahMother TeresaDorothy DayFrancis ChanJohn StottThree Mile an Hour God, Kosuki KoyamaMary Oliver Marjorie ThompsonKurt ThompsonBrennan ManningRelated Trinity Forum Readings:Augustine's Confessions, with an introduction by James K. A. SmithBright Evening Star, by Madeleine L'EngleA Practical View of Real Christianity, by William WilberforceWrestling with God, by Simone WeilPilgrim's Progress, by John BunyanPilgrim at Tinker Creek, by Annie DillardWhy God Became Man, by St. AnselmRelated Conversations:Making as a Spiritual Practice with Mako FujimuraWriting as a Spiritual Practice with Jonathan Rogers, Tish Harrison Warren, and Doug McKelveyWalking as a Spiritual Practice with Mark BuchananTo listen to this or any of our episodes in full, visit ttf.org/podcast and to help make content like this possible, join the Trinity Forum SocietySpecial thanks to Ned Bustard for our podcast artwork.

As we end John's Gospel, we ask on question: What now? What do we do with it? What we need most is to see that discipleship, this following Jesus, this being sent in the Holy Spirit… It is not something that we can use our cultural measures of success and failure to understand. It is not like choosing a career path. This life found in Christ alone is not all about focusing on your work, or about figuring out your calling… It is about seeing who Jesus really is, recognizing Him as Lord, and listening to Him and obeying Him because He has proven faithful and just and good and full of love.. It is about finding, continually, that He brings peace, He brings forgiveness, He brings mercy… It is about attuning our attention to Him always and following Him…learning to be faithful when you can't see the end… Because He says this is life for us. Doing what He did - Glorifying God by showing others what He is like. Humbly serving the interest of others before our own…Even laying ourselves down for others… Whether that means simply helping someone at work, Tenderly caring for your spouse and children, Sending flowers when someone is grieving, Buying groceries for one in need, Serving in church to teach kids, lead a Bible study, preach a sermon, play music, make coffee, run sound, Or if it means stepping in the way death for another, The call is to follow not the measures of the world for a life well lived, but to be faithful where Jesus has you, and to continue to find life in Him day by day, forever, because in Him is life everlasting.

As we end John's Gospel, we ask on question: What now? What do we do with it? What we need most is to see that discipleship, this following Jesus, this being sent in the Holy Spirit… It is not something that we can use our cultural measures of success and failure to understand. It is not like choosing a career path. This life found in Christ alone is not all about focusing on your work, or about figuring out your calling… It is about seeing who Jesus really is, recognizing Him as Lord, and listening to Him and obeying Him because He has proven faithful and just and good and full of love.. It is about finding, continually, that He brings peace, He brings forgiveness, He brings mercy… It is about attuning our attention to Him always and following Him…learning to be faithful when you can't see the end… Because He says this is life for us. Doing what He did - Glorifying God by showing others what He is like. Humbly serving the interest of others before our own…Even laying ourselves down for others… Whether that means simply helping someone at work, Tenderly caring for your spouse and children, Sending flowers when someone is grieving, Buying groceries for one in need, Serving in church to teach kids, lead a Bible study, preach a sermon, play music, make coffee, run sound, Or if it means stepping in the way death for another, The call is to follow not the measures of the world for a life well lived, but to be faithful where Jesus has you, and to continue to find life in Him day by day, forever, because in Him is life everlasting.

RATE! SHARE! SUBSCRIBE! Email me your thoughts, comments or questions: caniberealpodcast@gmail.com Show Notes: ○ Galatians 5:22-23 ○ Definitions of Joy: § Dictionary- "the emotion evoked by well-being, success, or good fortune, or by the prospect of possessing what one desires; delight; to experience great pleasure or delight" § Bible Project- "biblical joy is more than a happy feeling. It's a lasting emotion that comes from the choice to trust that God will fulfill His promises." ○ Joy is a fruit and gift of the Holy Spirit § It is hard if not impossible to experience true joy apart from God □ Joy comes when we are aware of God's grace and relish His favor § Read Romans 15:13- " I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit." § Read James 1:2-4 ○ Jesus promised Joy § Read John 15:7-11 § Read Psalm 4:6-7-"Many people will say, 'Who will show us better times?' Let your face smile on us, LORD. You have given me greater joy than those who have abundant harvests of grain and new wine." § Read Psalms 126:5- "Those who plant in tears will harvest with shouts of joy." ○ Our salvation is the root of our Joy in Christ § When you are feeling like you are lacking joy, always go back to what Jesus did on the cross! □ Think of the Joy of your Salvation ® Read Isaiah: 61:10- I am overwhelmed with joy in the LORD my God? For he has dressed me with the clothing of salvation and draped me in the a robe of righteousness. I am like a bridegroom dressed for his wedding or a bride with her jewels." ® Read Psalms 70:4-"But may all who search for you be filled with joy and gladness in you. May those who love your salvation repeatedly shout, 'God is great!'" ® Read Romans 4:5-8 □ Express your Gratitude to God for all that he has done ® Read 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18- "Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you who belong to Christ Jesus." ○ Remember that Joy is a powerful source of strength that we all need to carry on the good work that God has called us to. The Joy of the Lord is your strength! ○ I leave you with this verse from 1 Peter 1:6- "So be truly glad, there is wonderful joy ahead, even though you must endure trials for a little while." --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/rachel398/message

podcast descrption As believers, we can gather in church on Sundays, but we are called to be the church every day of the week. The anointing of the Holy Spirit equips us to not just proclaim the Gospel, but to demonstrate its life-changing power to the world. Here are five amazing attributes of the Holy Spirit: It brings the power of God It is tangible (something you can feel and experience) It brings joy (not happiness) It brings breakthrough It is transferable Although the anointing may be on your life, but it is not just for your life!

Greetings and welcome- This is our daily devotional for February 14, 2023. Today we start a new study on the Acts of the Apostles. Or should it be called the Acts of the Holy Spirit-- It doesn't matter what you call the book of Acts, its message is as pertinent to us today as it was to the early church some 2000 years ago. Thanks for joining us-

Roles of the Holy Spirit: It takes faith (10/2/22) by Pastor Aaron Wallace

Is your church or ministry being lead by the Holy Spirit- It is easy to grieve or quench the Holy Spirit through our ministry. Does he want us to get a new building, or fix things while removing funds from missions. We are to be lead by and trusting the Holy Spirit especially in ministry.

The Holy Spirit: It's through the Holy Spirit that we experience the presence of God.

In this episode, you'll also hear:How false beliefs about her own worth manifested physically for Mimi – and how an encounter with the Holy Spirit brought her the healing she neededThe life-changing healing power of Rhema words from GodMimi strategy to write every day, even when she was busy or wanted to be doing other things insteadWhat Mimi learned through the process of writing, publishing, and finding writer communities along the wayHow dieting traps people in cycles of guilt – and how to break freeBe sure to read all the way to the end for important links and information!There's no question that relationships are important. In fact, relationships may be one of the most important things in our lives. And as Christians, we know that our relationship with God is essential. But did you know that having a relationship with the Holy Spirit is just as important? When you think about it, we talk about God a lot. We talk about Jesus a lot. But we don't talk as much about the Holy Spirit. Yet the Holy Spirit can impact our lives in such amazing ways. He is a triune of the Godhead, and empowers us to live a life of victory. The Holy Spirit teaches us how to live and how to become more like Christ, and He can even be a partner in our journey to health and wholeness, filling us with God's healing power. Mimi Kroger can attest to this truth. She had an encounter with the Holy Spirit that changed her life, and now she's on a mission to make sure everyone else knows just how powerful the Holy Spirit is. Whether your focus right now is on your health and wholeness or on the journey to getting your book published, let Mimi inspire you to keep going – not only in what God has called you to, but in getting deeper in your relationship with the Holy Spirit. Physical Disease, but a Spiritual CauseMimi is a great example of the common saying, “you don't look like what you've been through.” She grew up as the daughter of immigrants and amidst a lot of turmoil: navigating a new culture and dealing with more restrictions and harsher discipline than many of her peers. “Although my parents loved me, literally almost too much,” Mimi explains, “it did affect my soul.” The toll all this turmoil took on Mimi manifested in an eating disorder and body issues, on top of struggles with lupus, an autoimmune disease. It wasn't until she started getting deeper in her relationship with God and experiencing His healing power, that Mimi realized her physical ailments were actually the result of wounds to her soul. “I often tell people that there are times where we can see things that are happening in the natural, and they're actually indicative of what's going on in the spiritual,” she says. “For me, I had lupus, which is an overactive immune system. And so I actually had a lot of self-hatred, a lot of things that I believed about myself that weren't true. And I felt like my immune system was just responding to what I believed about myself.” Mimi is quick to add that this isn't always the case. Sometimes, physical diseases or issues have completely natural causes. But for Mimi, the root cause was spiritual, and was related to both lies she believed about herself and a hesitancy to trust others. As the Holy Spirit helped Mimi learn to overcome those beliefs, she found physical healing as well. When her lupus necessitated a kidney transplant, Mimi was amazed at people's willingness to help. “I had these belief systems that I really couldn't trust people,” Mimi recalls. “And God uses everything for good, so even with the kidney transplant, the Lord ended up using that to teach me about who I was – that I was loved – and that people could be trusted.”The Holy Spirit: Rhema Words & Healing Power Mimi says it was a long journey for her to really understand the role of the Holy Spirit in the healing process. While many people know that the Holy Spirit exists, and that it's important for us as Christians to spend time reading the Word of God, Mimi has learned that we can only receive a revelation from that Word through the Holy Spirit breathing life into it. Mimi explains that these words are called Rhema words, and they're a little different from logos, the other term the Bible uses to describe the words of God. “The Logos is really the written word of God, the words that you read on a page,” she says. “But a Rhema is a spoken word to you. And it has to be done through the Spirit – it has to be from Spirit to spirit.” As Mimi has learned from experience, these Rhema words can come from anything – a kidney transplant, a movie, while reading the Bible – and they have healing power to cause actual change. That's why Mimi believes it's so important for us to understand that the Holy Spirit is “our direct line of communication with the Father,” and also our counselor. And that's why Mimi knew from the beginning that her book's title would have to reference the Holy Spirit: because as she started to develop a true relationship with God, her life truly started to change. What Is the Lord Leading You To Do?For many people, becoming an author is a lifelong dream. But for Mimi, it wasn't even something she thought about until God impressed it on her heart. And when He did, her first instinct was to resist. As a very active personal trainer, the last thing Mimi wanted to do every day was sit down and write. But she knew God wanted her to write, and so she disciplined herself and obeyed. “I set my timer every day,” she recalls. “I gave myself an hour a day, and whether I wrote one sentence, or a whole paragraph, or a whole page, or two pages – or whatever it was – it was good enough as long as I put my time in.”Now, Mimi enjoys writing, but that joy might never have emerged if she hadn't made a commitment to do it every day. That's why she says, “One of the best tips I could give is just to do what the Lord is leading you to do.” Why did Mimi make such a commitment, when at the time she didn't even enjoy the thought of writing every day? Because she cared about the message she had been given, and she knew people needed to read it. Ultimately, it came down to a desire to honor God and share His healing power with everyone she could. “Their destiny has become part of mine,” she says now. “It's my joy to see people be free. Jesus paid a high price for us to be able to benefit from everything that He did on our behalf, and so I always want Him to get the full measure, the full price, of his suffering – which is every person that I meet being able to accomplish what He has purposed for them.” Teaching Moments from GodNow, as a certified behavior change specialist – which she says is essentially a life coach using biblical principles – Mimi helps people find healing through life-changing activations with the Holy Spirit. As an example, she shares the story of a time when she went through a soul-healing session of her own. While asking God why she still felt as though she weren't enough, a memory was brought to her mind: as a young child, she had her first taste of mango. It was so good that she went back for a second piece, only to be scolded because it was intended to be shared by everyone. “In that moment, unbeknownst to me, I created or accepted some belief systems,” Mimi explains. “That maybe I wasn't worth it, that I wasn't worth another piece of mango, or that there wasn't enough – that I wasn't enough – and that there wasn't enough to go around.” Following that memory, Mimi then saw a different scene: Jesus sitting with her at a child's table, smiling at her and offering her all the mango she could want. That encounter was a Rhema word for Mimi, assuring her that she was – and is – enough, and that God's supply would not run out. Mimi's story is evidence that revelations from the Holy Spirit can and do have healing power to replace our false belief systems about ourselves with the truth of how God sees us. God Always ProvidesAlthough there were days when Mimi would only write a few sentences, as she worked on her book, she found herself wanting to include too much and having to cut out a lot of content that simply didn't fit. Initially, Mimi's plan had been for her book to address healing power for the spirit, soul, and body. But when she hit 250 pages and hadn't even started writing about bodily healing yet, she knew it wouldn't be possible. So, instead of trying to cram everything in, Mimi stuck to the most important parts – soul and spirit – and later wrote an ebook to cover what she wanted to say about bodily healing, especially related to issues of overeating and diet culture. . But choosing what to include and what to cut out wasn't the only obstacle Mimi faced while writing her book and getting it published. She says the hardest part was finding the right people to work with – editor, proofreader, cover designer, etc. – and making sure she took care of all the little details. Fortunately, she didn't have to do it all alone. Through a self-publishing school, Mimi was able to form a relationship with other authors for mutual encouragement and support. At the same time, she also learned to give herself grace when life got in the way and her goals and plans had to be changed. As Mimi has learned, God provides, even if it's not quite within the timeframe we set for ourselves. The C.A.N. Tour: Bringing Everything TogetherAfter Mimi's book was published – and became a best-seller, at that – she eventually found her way into our Christian Authors Network community, where she joined the Christian Authors Network Podcast Tour to get her message in front of even more audiences. While exposure was a big factor in Mimi's decision to join the C.A.N. Tour, she says that through the process, she also learned a lot, from getting her marketing materials organized to meeting strict deadlines. “The people that God brings into our lives are there for a reason,” she says now. “And they have wisdom, and they have experience that we don't have. And so we can kind of think that we know which direction to go, but we have to listen to the people that God puts in front of us to help us, so that we can grow.” For Mimi, part of this process was putting together her ebook, which serves as a great tool to help people even beyond her first book. While the book focuses on soul and spirit healing, the ebook focuses on being set free from cycles of legalism and guilt that stem from diet culture – but both point to the healing power of the Holy Spirit.“It's just like your house,” Mimi says of watching everything come together. “When it's in chaos, and you've got something over here and something over there, it just doesn't feel good. But now I'm kind of organized, and everything's under one nice umbrella.”Mimi's journey shows us the importance of clarity – of having everything connected in one pretty package so it's clear to your audience what your central message is and how you can serve them. Not Perfect; Just AnointedMaybe you, like Mimi, have a message that you know God has placed in your heart to share with the world. But there are obstacles – either internal or external – that are stopping you from moving forward and getting that message out. Maybe you need to experience the Holy Spirit's healing power before you can put your message into words, or maybe you've already received healing and need to share it with others so they can heal, too. Whatever is holding you back, Mimi shares a word of encouragement that she received directly from the Holy Spirit: “It doesn't have to be perfect. It just has to be anointed.” If God has called you to share this message, then God will equip and empower you to do so. Rather striving to meet impossible standards of perfection, Mimi reminds us that all we have to do is follow God's lead and let Him provide. “You actually don't have to be perfect,” Mimi concludes. “We know the One who was, and He is for you, and He's in you through the Holy Spirit.”  BIO:Mimi Kroger is a powerful Health & Weight Loss Coach with a heart for helping others heal through Biblical principles. After healing from an eating disorder, body image issues, lupus, and other life traumas with God's help, Mimi started Healthy Happy & Heavenly to guide her clients to health and wholeness rooted in a relationship with the Holy Spirit.Her mission is to bring others into the same freedom she's received through faith-based coaching, nutritional guidance, and discovering the root causes of emotions. As a bestselling author, speaker, nationally certified personal trainer, nutrition guide, and behavior change specialist, Mimi empowers her clients to become the healthiest versions of themselves - mind, body, and spirit.Mimi is a mom to an awesome adult son, and she resides in Colorado with her loving husband, Ben. They have one tenacious Yorkie named Hugs! GET CONNECTED:Website: healthyhappyandheavenly.comInstagram: https://instagram.com/healthyhappyandheavenlyTwitter: https://twitter.com/krogermimiFacebook: https://facebook.com/healthyhappyandheavenly Connect with Fellow Authors and Learn about the Podcast Tour: http://christianauthors.net/fbgroup

To support this ministry financially, visit: https://www.oneplace.com/donate/616/29 We are born with a twisted concept of freedom. We have difficulty understanding what freedom in Christ really means. This is why the Apostle Paul gives us this admonition under the supernatural inspiration of the Holy Spirit: It is for freedom that Christ has set us free.Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery (Galatians 5:1). The world rebels at God's provision of freedom because it is deluded in its thinking that to be free FROM God is real freedom. Believers have found that it is just the opposite. Our prayer is that more and more people will come to realize that God indeed has done all he can. And our prayer is that they will look to Jesus to receive what God has done.

Have you ever heard of the witness protection program? Well, this morning I want to talk to you about the witness PROJECTION program. Rather than hiding and concealing a witness from the world, that's where God projects a witness into the world based on what they've seen, heard, and experienced in Jesus Christ—God takes them and projects them into the world. (Acts 1:8) Last week we talked about the power of the Holy Spirit in the lives of Jesus' followers. Without that power there is no mission and there is no witness. 1) A Witness Emphasizes What They've Seen, Heard, and Experienced In the Bible, Jesus followers are supposed to bear witness to what they have seen, heard, and experienced. (Acts 4:18-20) (Acts 22:14-15) One of the most basic things that a Jesus follower should be able to do is to share what he or she has seen, heard, and experienced in Jesus Christ. That's what we call a “testimony.” 2) A Witness Verbalizes the Gospel Through the Power of the Holy Spirit It's true that we can have a witness through our lifestyle choices but don't kid yourself into thinking that your witness is complete without a verbalization of the Gospel. Jesus followers must speak to others about Jesus . . . otherwise, how in the world will people repent, believe, and follow him? (Romans 10:13-14) Why do we struggle to talk to others about Jesus Christ and persuade them to also follow Jesus? I'll tell you why. MOST Jesus followers are not filled with the Holy Spirit. Oh, they've received the Spirit and they were baptized with the Spirit at conversion. But they are not presently filled with the Holy Spirit—remember the glass of chocolate milk illustration from last week's teaching. The bottom line is that when the Spirit of God fills your heart, the Word of God comes out of your mouth with confidence and boldness. It's one of the chief pieces of evidence that someone is filled with the Spirit. 3) A Witness Recognizes that Everybody Needs Jesus We all recognize that God that God wants everyone to be saved. (1 Timothy 2:3-4) But do we really believe that each and every man, woman, boy, and girl we personally meet and interact with needs Jesus? Michael Catt – “It simplifies everything when you realize that every person you meet is either saved or lost.” 4) A Witness Maximizes Every Opportunity Every time you speak with someone and every time you interact with someone, you have an opportunity in some way to have what we call a “Gospel conversation.” I challenge you to view everyone you meet as an eternal being who will spend eternity in one of two destinations. In closing, If God miraculously said an immediate “YES” to every prayer you prayed this past week, how many new people would be in the Kingdom? And when was the last time you talked to someone about their relationship with Jesus Christ?

On a wall near the main entrance to the Alamo in San Antonio, Texas, is a portrait with the following inscription: "James Butler Bonham--no picture of him exists. This portrait is of his nephew, Major James Bonham, deceased, who greatly resembled his uncle. It is placed here by the family that people may know the appearance of the man who died for freedom." Today there are no literal photographs of Jesus. The technology did not exist in the first century.  But, while we don't know what his physical appearance looked like, the likeness of Jesus can be seen in the lives of His true followers. This is the goal of the Christian life. We are to be like Jesus. We are to live as he did in character, integrity, godliness, and mission. When people spend time with us, there should be a noticeable difference from the unbelieving world. Christians do not live by the values of the world, we live by the values of scripture.How would it impact your life if you prayed each morning, “Jesus, help me to be more like you today?”1 John 2:6 - “Those who say they live in God should live their lives as Jesus did.”All of us tonight are works-in-progress.  We are not finished.  We are not glorified.  We are not perfect.  We are not completed.  We are all under construction.  Construction sites are noisy and messy.  Is your life noisy and messy?  Sometimes it's hard to image what the final outcome will be.  We are responsible though, to cooperate with the Holy Spirit.  God's work in our lives is usually a steady, lifelong progress toward godliness.  But we are responsible to discipline ourselves for the purpose of godliness.1 Timothy 4:7 – “Train yourself to be godly.”  It's not just praying and asking God to change us.  It's yielding to the what the Spirit of God is saying to us.  You have to participate with God.  You have to work at it!  As you consider what it means to be more like Jesus, here are some things that are important to know…•It will not happen by accident•It does not happen overnight•It cannot happen without us cooperating with the Holy Spirit•It happens when we make personal commitments•It happens with the godly encouragement of other Christians (the right friends make it easier for you to grow in the Lord and the wrong friends make it much harder)•It happens as we become what God made us to beSometimes as Christians we struggle with the idea of God's will for our lives. We ask, “How can we know God's will?”  The scripture is clear that it is God's will for you to be like Jesus.Romans 8:29 - “For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son.”My wife and I recently visited the Billy Graham Library in Charlotte, North Carolina. Billy and his wife Ruth are buried on the property. On Ruth Graham's grave are etched these words: End of construction. Thank you for your patience.”You and I will be under construction until we meet the Lord. He is patiently at work in each of our lives to make us like Jesus.God has promised that the work he has begun in us will be completed. Let's walk in step with Jesus everyday and become more like him. Today's Challenge: Let's decide to cooperate with the Holy Spirit 

On Sunday, February 14, Pastor Daniel Choi delivered the seventh installment of Unstoppable Work of the Holy Spirit: "It's a Matter of the Heart" - Acts 5:1-11

“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit…” It’s the Great Commission and its central to the instruction is to “baptize.” Is it a surprise that an Elementary Principle of Messiah then would be “instructions about washings?” No, but how much do we actually understand even the basics of this process? It’s not what you might think.

What in the world is going on in the world today? A greater question than that is what is going on in the church today? Have we adulterated the gospel until it has lost its power to bring about salvation? Have we grieved the Holy Spirit? It seems we have made the majority of our messages focus on helping our members become a better version of themselves when in reality the gospel is all about transforming us from glory to glory into the image of Christ. This transformation is a work of God working within us and will cause us to suffer for the name of Christ and the sanctification without which none of us will be saved. The one who endures to the end will be saved. God is faithful to finish the work He started but it will not be a walk in the park. Our salvation is a free gift of God but to follow after Jesus Christ will cost you.Men have flocked to teachers that are tickling their ears with a gospel that is all about them and the life they want to live and not about the life that Christ has called us to. If we try to save our lives we will lose that life but if we lose our lives for the sake of Christ and the gospel we will find it!That's the GOSPEL!

How do you know you're following the Holy Spirit? It's an important question to know the answer to and one we're covering in today's episode. These 5 ways aren't the only ways to know you're following the Holy Spirit but they're foundational and important for all aspects of our lives. I mentioned 5 different podcast episodes today and you can find them below. Also, the verses I asked you to look at can be found here. Once you've read them, answer this question: How could regular time in prayer help you follow the Holy Spirit? Until next time, meditate on Proverbs 20:27 "The spirit of man is the lamp of the Lord, searching all his innermost parts." Episodes Mentioned 30 Meaningful Ways to Help Others Pray Without Ceasing ~ Your what, why, & how-to guide How to Pray Scripture During Hard Times (well, all the times) 5 Practical Ways to Meditate on God's Word Meditating on God's Word ~ A walk through Psalm 119 --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/boughtataprice/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/boughtataprice/support

A Pentecost Meditation Novena is designed to help you delve deeper into the central mysteries of the Holy Spirit. Who is the Holy Spirit for me? How do I relate and experience his presence? How has the Holy Spirit impacted my life? What advice would I share to help someone grow in a relationship with the Holy Spirit? It will be a powerful opportunity to ponder the mystery of God’s action in the events of our lives and to ask for the light, strength, and love we so sorely need as Christians. Join Janet Lees as he shares a personal testimony reflecting on how we the Holy Spirit desires unity with us and with all people.

A Pentecost Meditation Novena is designed to help you delve deeper into the central mysteries of the Holy Spirit. Who is the Holy Spirit for me? How do I relate and experience his presence? How has the Holy Spirit impacted my life? What advice would I share to help someone grow in a relationship with the Holy Spirit? It will be a powerful opportunity to ponder the mystery of God’s action in the events of our lives and to ask for the light, strength, and love we so sorely need as Christians. Join Fr. Daniel Brandenburg, LC as he shares a personal testimony reflecting on the Gift of the Holy Spirit: Goodness.

A Pentecost Meditation Novena is designed to help you delve deeper into the central mysteries of the Holy Spirit. Who is the Holy Spirit for me? How do I relate and experience his presence? How has the Holy Spirit impacted my life? What advice would I share to help someone grow in a relationship with the Holy Spirit? It will be a powerful opportunity to ponder the mystery of God’s action in the events of our lives and to ask for the light, strength, and love we so sorely need as Christians. Join Jennifer Ristine, CRC as she reflects upon "The Domestic Church and the Holy Spirit".

A Pentecost Meditation Novena is designed to help you delve deeper into the central mysteries of the Holy Spirit. Who is the Holy Spirit for me? How do I relate and experience his presence? How has the Holy Spirit impacted my life? What advice would I share to help someone grow in a relationship with the Holy Spirit? It will be a powerful opportunity to ponder the mystery of God’s action in the events of our lives and to ask for the light, strength, and love we so sorely need as Christians. Join Cindi Carter as she shares a personal testimony reflecting on Experiencing the Living God in the Holy Spirit.

A Pentecost Meditation Novena is designed to help you delve deeper into the central mysteries of the Holy Spirit. Who is the Holy Spirit for me? How do I relate and experience his presence? How has the Holy Spirit impacted my life? What advice would I share to help someone grow in a relationship with the Holy Spirit? It will be a powerful opportunity to ponder the mystery of God’s action in the events of our lives and to ask for the light, strength, and love we so sorely need as Christians. Join Fr. Mark Haydu, LC as he shares a personal testimony reflecting on how we live following the inspirations of the Holy Spirit (Part I).

A Pentecost Meditation Novena is designed to help you delve deeper into the central mysteries of the Holy Spirit. Who is the Holy Spirit for me? How do I relate and experience his presence? How has the Holy Spirit impacted my life? What advice would I share to help someone grow in a relationship with the Holy Spirit? It will be a powerful opportunity to ponder the mystery of God’s action in the events of our lives and to ask for the light, strength, and love we so sorely need as Christians. Join Fr. Mark Haydu, LC as he shares a personal testimony reflecting on how we live following the inspirations of the Holy Spirit (Part II).

A Pentecost Meditation Novena is designed to help you delve deeper into the central mysteries of the Holy Spirit. Who is the Holy Spirit for me? How do I relate and experience his presence? How has the Holy Spirit impacted my life? What advice would I share to help someone grow in a relationship with the Holy Spirit? It will be a powerful opportunity to ponder the mystery of God’s action in the events of our lives and to ask for the light, strength, and love we so sorely need as Christians. Join Melissa Foley as she shares a personal testimony reflecting on "Praying with the Holy Spirit".

A Pentecost Meditation Novena is designed to help you delve deeper into the central mysteries of the Holy Spirit. Who is the Holy Spirit for me? How do I relate and experience his presence? How has the Holy Spirit impacted my life? What advice would I share to help someone grow in a relationship with the Holy Spirit? It will be a powerful opportunity to ponder the mystery of God’s action in the events of our lives and to ask for the light, strength, and love we so sorely need as Christians. Join Lauren Hawkesworth as he shares a personal testimony reflecting on growing in love with the Holy Spirit and his patience.

A Pentecost Meditation Novena is designed to help you delve deeper into the central mysteries of the Holy Spirit. Who is the Holy Spirit for me? How do I relate and experience his presence? How has the Holy Spirit impacted my life? What advice would I share to help someone grow in a relationship with the Holy Spirit? It will be a powerful opportunity to ponder the mystery of God’s action in the events of our lives and to ask for the light, strength, and love we so sorely need as Christians. Join Fr. Jason Brooks, LC as he reflects upon how we need to ask more from the Holy Spirit!

A Pentecost Meditation Novena is designed to help you delve deeper into the central mysteries of the Holy Spirit. Who is the Holy Spirit for me? How do I relate and experience his presence? How has the Holy Spirit impacted my life? What advice would I share to help someone grow in a relationship with the Holy Spirit? It will be a powerful opportunity to ponder the mystery of God’s action in the events of our lives and to ask for the light, strength, and love we so sorely need as Christians. Join Matt Williams as he shares a personal testimony reflecting on John 3:4-8 on how "The Spirit Blows Where He Wills".

A Pentecost Meditation Novena is designed to help you delve deeper into the central mysteries of the Holy Spirit. Who is the Holy Spirit for me? How do I relate and experience his presence? How has the Holy Spirit impacted my life? What advice would I share to help someone grow in a relationship with the Holy Spirit? It will be a powerful opportunity to ponder the mystery of God’s action in the events of our lives and to ask for the light, strength, and love we so sorely need as Christians. Join Lisa Small, CRC as he shares a personal testimony reflecting on how we can know the voice of the Holy Spirit.

The Bible reveals that God works by the Holy Spirit in the lives of those who believe, providing day-by-day guidance, comfort, wisdom, and insight for even the smallest detail of life. Who is the Holy Spirit? It’s vital for us to know.  Click here to listen (Duration 25:02)

Episode 3 - The Role of the Holy Spirit - It explains the role the Holy Spirit plays in our lives in this world. She is our Comforter, Healer and our Guide. It is with her guidance and help that we can find our way back to our Creator. The Holy Spirit is the direct link to God. Once we understand and have faith in this guidance, the way back is found. Each of the episodes in this series assigns daily tasks to help us find our way back to our spirit mind.

We must all come to that place where we will no longer compromise with darkness in any way and stand fully on the promises of God. Are you there yet or are you willing to be jettisoned there by the Holy Spirit? It's time to stand!

What You'll Hear: Bill surrendered his life after hitting a low point in Florida and living with ex-cons and being kicked out by his parents for drug and alcohol issues He moved back to Massachucetts and witnessed to his old party buddies, 9-10 took to heart what he shared and attended a Bible class, he also made some impact witnessing to his siblings Bill has had 23 jobs and worked with the highs and lows and can now relate to many different types of people and have empathy with those who have difficulties He studied engineering at NC State God gave Bill a vision and he sold everything to study the word in Kansas He moved to California then back to NC and met his wife Ana They bought some land and raised their 4 boys He wrote a book "Revelation Unraveled" He hears God by being still and praying in the Holy Spirit It takes a lot of effort to write a book, stay away from publishers that make promises and fail to deliver, focus on self publishing Bill met Rayburn Hall and his wife who were doing prison ministry at age 96 and that got Bill interested and took over that ministry and then Chuck Powers got other churches involved For a great marriage, be great friends first and work hard together, figure out who does what best doing things at home, discuss and be on the same page with spending money, husbands should listen more than talk Raising kids, teach your kids how to work and don't give them everything, encourage them, set a good example of what it is to live the Christian faith, apologize when you're wrong so they can see you're human At work, be honest and humble when dealing with leadership, show a good work ethic without complaint, he doesn't wear his Christianity on his sleeve at work Don't buy into what the world says is success If you're not happy with your work or any part of your life, you have options to do something different, don't spend time doing things that have no benefit Success is at work is having people enjoy being around you, you've earned your pay 2 Cor 9:8 "And God is able to make all grace abound toward you..." During his commute he listens to Personal Pension Radio, Mike Rowe's "That's the Way I Heard It" for entertainment, Twin Cities Church out of Winston-Salem, Daystar Church out of Winston-Salem Contact Bill at newvillage@embarqmail.com

Did you know that God wants to visit this generation with the Gifts of the Holy Spirit? It’s true, one way God wants to reveal Himself to our generation is through the Gifts of the Spirit mentioned in 1st Corinthians chapters 12 & 14. In these chapters the Apostle Paul told Christians to desire Spiritual Gifts and to covet to prophesy. Join me for today’s message entitled “Supernatural Christianity.”

Remember the Call The mission remained But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come on you, and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” It Comes Naturally Not a special calling or leading of Holy Spirit It was second nature to share…

Part 5 - Jesus Christ' Resurrection and the Holy Spirit If you look at the principles on which the Movement is built (which I referred to in lesson 4) you will notice a very important fact. With all their teaching, not once do they go directly to the Bible! With every statement they make they first refer to their own books and the Watchtower in particular. What they do in fact is to come to their own conclusions and then back them up from the Bible rather than the other way round! What does this reveal to us? Especially when they say they adhere closely to the Bible but do not accept all of its teaching. Please keep that point in mind as we continue to study the Person and work of Jesus Christ and when we come to see what they say concerning the Person of The Holy Spirit. Yes, I said Person not energy source which they call it. We shall see clearly from Scripture that The Holy Spirit is a Person. A He not an it. 1. What do Jehovah Witnesses believe about the Resurrection of Jesus Christ? "There was no bodily resurrection of Christ. He was raised only as a spirit creature. No one knows what happened to his body. The post resurrection appearances of Christ were materialisations in 'different bodies' ""(Reasoning from the Scriptures p334 & 335.) Note the title of their book "Reasoning from the Scriptures". So if we find verses of Holy Scripture that conflict with their 'reasoning' ,which takes preference? Are they not saying that all that is in the Bible is not God's Holy Word to be accepted by faith? Only if it is reasonable to our way of thinking is it to be accepted? Please bear that in mind as we continue. Resurrection of Jesus Christ There is clear testimony of Jesus appearing in human form after his resurrection. Jesus came to his fearful disciples after his resurrection and appears to them. Initially they first could not believe their eyes and supposed they were seeing a ghost. But Jesus assured them he was not a spectre. He said to them "See my hands and my feet that it is I myself, touch me and see, for a spirit (spectre) does not have flesh and bones as you see I have" (Luke 24:39-40) You cannot touch a ghost but you can a physical body. Much earlier in his ministry Jesus had forecast that He would die and then rise from the dead. Speaking to his enemies who wanted him dead he said "Destroy this temple(body) and I will raise it up" (John 2:12;) If you are saying he was speaking about the physical temple Jesus knew people would think that way so he added these words to clarify what he meant. "But The Temple he spoke of was His body" (John 2:21;) The Bible teaches that the atoning death of Christ and the bodily resurrection of Christ are the two main pillars on which the Christian faith stands. We read in Romans 4:25; "Jesus Christ was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised again for our justification." Again in 1 Corinthians chapter 15 verses 1-5 (the great resurrection chapter), a very long chapter ,where Paul makes it abundantly clear that Jesus was raised from the dead and not only Him but all shall be raised from the dead. There in that chapter Paul makes a special point of saying that these two major doctrines are of first importance (verse 3) "That Christ died for our sins. He was buried. He was raised on the third day. He appeared to Peter and to the twelve and to five hundred on one occasion!!! Jehovah Witnesses say it is not important what happened to the body of Jesus after His resurrection yet the Apostle Paul went to such lengths to prove the resurrection of Jesus Christ. In John chapter 21 Jesus , following his death and resurrection not only appeared to his disciples by the sea of Tiberius but also provided breakfast for them. Is The Bible true? Every word of it. So why do Jehovah Witnesses deny such clear evidence? Because it conflicts with what they are taught by Jehovah Witness Leaders. And for good measure the resurrected Jesus performed another miracle in causing a great number of fish to come into the nets of Peter and his other fishermen friends. Finally on the day He ascended into Heaven his disciples witnessed the event and were told by two angels as you see Jesus taken up into heaven so one day people will see His descent from heaven in similar fashion. (Acts 1:9-11;) 2. What do Jehovah Witnesses say about The Holy Spirit? It is a very short statement. "The holy spirit is not a person but the invisible force of God, which moves people to do God's will."The Person of The Holy Spirit In Acts 5:1-3 we read the account of a man and wife who lie about a business transaction concerning the sale of some land. Peter having received from God the gift of discernment rebukes them saying "How is it that Satan has so filled your hearts that you have lied to The Holy Spirit...you have not lied to men but to GOD." Further on in the book of Acts in 8:29; The Holy Spirit SPEAKS to Philip giving him instructions and directions in his work as an evangelist as he is brought into contact with the Ethiopian Eunuch. In chapter 13 The Holy Spirit is instrumental in setting apart Barnabas and Saul for a special work of ministry. In Acts 16:17; The Holy Spirit actually prevents Paul and Silas going in one direction and re-routing them in the direction of Europe and Macedonia. Paul then says and these words are so important as to Who The Holy Spirit is.."We concluded that God had called us to preach the gospel unto them" May I again say we are each one responsible to study to show ourselves approved unto God so search The Scriptures and see if not what I have put to you is true. I am a mere mortal but God is immortal and always speaks The Truth. Search the Word diligently and it will reward you with understanding that will bring you great joy , satisfaction and peace. Jesus is God and The Holy Spirit is God and they are joined to a loving Heavenly Father, blessed Trinity. Next time we shall look more closely at the Jehovah Witness translation of the New World Translation and see why it cannot be trusted. Click or Tap here to listen to or save this as an audio mp3 file ~ You can now purchase our Partakers books! Please do click or tap here to visit our Amazon site! Click or tap on the appropriate link below to subscribe, share or download our iPhone App!

How does a leader become a friend of the Holy Spirit? It's simple. Listen to avoid your inner chaos as author and minister David Hernandez shares from his book "Carriers of the Glory" to learn how powerful it is for you to spend time with the Holy Spirit and acknowledge Him daily in your life.

Did you know that God wants to visit this generation with the Gifts of the Holy Spirit? It’s true, one way God wants to reveal Himself to our generation is through the Gifts of the Spirit mentioned in 1st Corinthians chapters 12 & 14. In these chapters the Apostle Paul told Christians to desire Spiritual Gifts and to covet to prophesy. Join me for today’s message entitled “Supernatural Christianity.”

Brad Sullivan Christmas Eve, Year A December 24, 2016 Emmanuel, Houston Luke 2:1-14(15-20) Becoming Human On A Lark And that’s what Christmas is all about, Charlie Brown. Every time I hear Luke’s telling of Jesus’ birth, I hear Linus telling the Christmas story to Charlie Brown, letting him know what Christmas is really all about. Christmas is about the joy of God becoming human and how fantastic it is that God thinks highly enough of us, love us enough, that he actually wanted to be one of us. How crazy is that? How great, but is God just totally nuts? Maybe. Now, rumor has it that becoming human: living, dying, being resurrected for our sake, was always part of God’s plan, but what if it started on a lark, kind of just a crazy, whimsical idea? Imagine Jesus, before becoming human, saying to his Father: Jesus: Dad, you know how much we love those humans? Father: Yeah, Son. I do. Jesus: Have you ever thought about how great it would be to actually be one of them? Father: What do you mean, Son? Jesus: Well, we love them so much, I’d really like to be one of them, like how people share their lives and experiences with each other, and they draw nearer to each other through sharing their lives together. You know how you’re always wanting humans to draw nearer to you? Well, how much nearer can you get? We become one of them. Father: (considers for a moment) You know, that’s really not a bad idea. Let’s see what the Spirit says. You’ve been listening, I take it? Holy Spirit: Of course I have, and I think it’s a lovely idea. Connect with them, show them how much we care. You know, it may even be a chance to redeem them. Jesus: Hey. Father: Hmm, you know that’s a heck of an idea, something I’ve been thinking about for a long time. Holy Spirit: I know you have. Father: They separated themselves from us in the Garden. Jesus: So we join ourselves back to them by becoming one of them. Father: Hmm…except there’s still that sin problem. Holy Spirit: Oh, there you go again. Father: Well, it’s a big problem. Holy Spirit: I know it is. Father: They keep hurting each other, hurting themselves, putting up barriers between each other, barriers between them and us. Holy Spirit: Uh huh. (kind of patronizing) Father: We are love. We don’t have any barriers between us. It’s not like we can have Jesus go out there and sin. Holy Spirit: I know. Father: (sigh, exasperated) All I ever wanted was for them to love each other like we love our-self, like we love them. It gets very frustrating. Holy Spirit: Well you know, if he becomes human, Jesus could join with all of their sins in his death. Jesus: Wait, what? Father: Oh, now you’re talking. We could somehow pour all of humanity’s sins onto him so even their sins won’t separate them from us. Jesus: Um…guys, I’m not so sure… Holy Spirit: It’d have to be a memorable death, too, something gruesome… Jesus: Ok guys, hold it. I was thinking of something simple, like a little weekend tryst… Father: Oh, no that wouldn’t do. You’d need to do the whole thing, you know, grow up, be born… Jesus: Ewe! You’re joking, right? You’ve seen how that whole birth thing happens? Father: You said you love them. Jesus: Oye! They are awfully cute. Ok, full deal. When do you think I should be born? The 1970s had really good music, Star Wars…no, late 1940s, early 50s England. I‘ll grow up with David Bowie. It’ll be awesome. Father: Oh Son, I’ve got just the place. Ok, so lest I lead us all into heresy forever, I pretty sure that conversation never took place, but I love the idea of God becoming human, of Jesus being born, on a lark, as someone who really loves someone else and simply wants to spend more time with them. That’s what Christmas is all about. God saying to humanity, “I love you, and I’d really like to spend more time with you.” That may seem awfully simple, but I believe nothing in creation has greater healing power than relationship and love. In Eden, we walked with God, naked and unashamed. There were no barriers to our relationships with God and no barriers to our relationships with one another. Over time then, we kept on and keep on putting up more and more barriers to each other. Initially, we decided that we wanted knowledge: Adam and Even ate from the tree of knowledge. There was much unknown in creation and the fear of the unknown began gnawing at us, eroding our trust in God, until we decided that we desired knowledge more that trust, and the first barrier to relationship was raised. Then we felt ashamed for what we had done and so we hid, and we covered ourselves with fig leaves, and the next barrier to relationship went up. Then God came and found us and asked what had happened, and we lied, passing the buck onto the serpent, passing the buck onto Eve, rather than fessing up to our fears and our lack of trust, and so another barrier to relationship went up. We went from naked and unashamed to hidden and full of shame, and ever since then, we’ve continued to put up barriers to relationships, as broken people raising defense mechanisms to protect ourselves from harm. The result of course, is that we end up harming our relationships with God and with each other…wars, murders, fights, broken friendships, all because we choose not to trust but seek instead to protect ourselves from harm, when the risk and trust of relationship is really the only thing that can heal us. So in order to heal us, God gives us the very risk and trust of relationship that we so desperately need. God gives us himself, naked and unashamed, vulnerable as a newborn baby: Jesus, born in Bethlehem to Mary and Joseph, a young couple, faithful and kind. They were not great rulers. They had no great power to offer God any great protection once he became human. God decided to trust us with the vulnerability of his human life, offering us his vulnerable, naked, and unashamed self, trusting in nothing more than the care of two loving and faithful parents. See, God wants us to love and trust him and so God chose to love and trust us. God also knows that life is hard, and knows we’re not always great at trusting anyone, especially someone who hasn’t walked in our shoes. So, God became human to say, “I love you, and I think you humans are pretty fantastic. So I am going to show up in your life, naked and unashamed, so that you can trust me, and if you will allow it, I will take down all of the barriers that you have put up.” That’s what Christmas is all about. That’s a pretty serious deal, God healing humanity by becoming one of us. At the same time, I have to think that for the creator of everything to become human, he’s got to be kind of crazy, whimsical, fun too. Imagine God as a toddler walking around in his creation, living amongst his beloved humans, constantly delighted by what’s around him. Imagine 2 year old Jesus running around constantly thinking, “This place is great! Look at that tree; I love that tree. Ooh, a lake! I think I’ll go swimming or maybe walking.” The very fact of the incarnation, God’s crazy notion to become human and live here with us shows us just how fantastic it is to be living here on this earth and that in God’s eyes, we really are pretty fantastic. We also need to remember of course, that life is also not always fantastic, that life is sometimes rather terrible, that we are sometimes rather terrible, and on Christmas we celebrate that Jesus came to live that part of our life too. God gets the messy parts of our lives, the times in our lives and world when things are far from fantastic. Jesus claimed even those bad times and those bad parts of our lives as his own when he became human. That’s what Christmas is all about. The greatest gift God ever gave us was the gift of God’s-self. God gave us the gift of being naked and unashamed with us, loving and trusting us so that we might once again be naked and unashamed with him and with each other. The greatest gift we can give each other, then, is the gift of ourselves, fully living, loving and trusting one another. Jesus became human so that we could love each other in and through the bad times and the good times, and then see each other and see this world and think, “this is fantastic.” Jesus became human so that we could remove our barriers, trust each other and trust God, and then love fully, love with whimsy, love on a lark. That’s what Christmas is all about. Amen.

Brad Sullivan Christmas Eve, Year A December 24, 2016 Emmanuel, Houston Luke 2:1-14(15-20) Becoming Human On A Lark And that’s what Christmas is all about, Charlie Brown. Every time I hear Luke’s telling of Jesus’ birth, I hear Linus telling the Christmas story to Charlie Brown, letting him know what Christmas is really all about. Christmas is about the joy of God becoming human and how fantastic it is that God thinks highly enough of us, love us enough, that he actually wanted to be one of us. How crazy is that? How great, but is God just totally nuts? Maybe. Now, rumor has it that becoming human: living, dying, being resurrected for our sake, was always part of God’s plan, but what if it started on a lark, kind of just a crazy, whimsical idea? Imagine Jesus, before becoming human, saying to his Father: Jesus: Dad, you know how much we love those humans? Father: Yeah, Son. I do. Jesus: Have you ever thought about how great it would be to actually be one of them? Father: What do you mean, Son? Jesus: Well, we love them so much, I’d really like to be one of them, like how people share their lives and experiences with each other, and they draw nearer to each other through sharing their lives together. You know how you’re always wanting humans to draw nearer to you? Well, how much nearer can you get? We become one of them. Father: (considers for a moment) You know, that’s really not a bad idea. Let’s see what the Spirit says. You’ve been listening, I take it? Holy Spirit: Of course I have, and I think it’s a lovely idea. Connect with them, show them how much we care. You know, it may even be a chance to redeem them. Jesus: Hey. Father: Hmm, you know that’s a heck of an idea, something I’ve been thinking about for a long time. Holy Spirit: I know you have. Father: They separated themselves from us in the Garden. Jesus: So we join ourselves back to them by becoming one of them. Father: Hmm…except there’s still that sin problem. Holy Spirit: Oh, there you go again. Father: Well, it’s a big problem. Holy Spirit: I know it is. Father: They keep hurting each other, hurting themselves, putting up barriers between each other, barriers between them and us. Holy Spirit: Uh huh. (kind of patronizing) Father: We are love. We don’t have any barriers between us. It’s not like we can have Jesus go out there and sin. Holy Spirit: I know. Father: (sigh, exasperated) All I ever wanted was for them to love each other like we love our-self, like we love them. It gets very frustrating. Holy Spirit: Well you know, if he becomes human, Jesus could join with all of their sins in his death. Jesus: Wait, what? Father: Oh, now you’re talking. We could somehow pour all of humanity’s sins onto him so even their sins won’t separate them from us. Jesus: Um…guys, I’m not so sure… Holy Spirit: It’d have to be a memorable death, too, something gruesome… Jesus: Ok guys, hold it. I was thinking of something simple, like a little weekend tryst… Father: Oh, no that wouldn’t do. You’d need to do the whole thing, you know, grow up, be born… Jesus: Ewe! You’re joking, right? You’ve seen how that whole birth thing happens? Father: You said you love them. Jesus: Oye! They are awfully cute. Ok, full deal. When do you think I should be born? The 1970s had really good music, Star Wars…no, late 1940s, early 50s England. I‘ll grow up with David Bowie. It’ll be awesome. Father: Oh Son, I’ve got just the place. Ok, so lest I lead us all into heresy forever, I pretty sure that conversation never took place, but I love the idea of God becoming human, of Jesus being born, on a lark, as someone who really loves someone else and simply wants to spend more time with them. That’s what Christmas is all about. God saying to humanity, “I love you, and I’d really like to spend more time with you.” That may seem awfully simple, but I believe nothing in creation has greater healing power than relationship and love. In Eden, we walked with God, naked and unashamed. There were no barriers to our relationships with God and no barriers to our relationships with one another. Over time then, we kept on and keep on putting up more and more barriers to each other. Initially, we decided that we wanted knowledge: Adam and Even ate from the tree of knowledge. There was much unknown in creation and the fear of the unknown began gnawing at us, eroding our trust in God, until we decided that we desired knowledge more that trust, and the first barrier to relationship was raised. Then we felt ashamed for what we had done and so we hid, and we covered ourselves with fig leaves, and the next barrier to relationship went up. Then God came and found us and asked what had happened, and we lied, passing the buck onto the serpent, passing the buck onto Eve, rather than fessing up to our fears and our lack of trust, and so another barrier to relationship went up. We went from naked and unashamed to hidden and full of shame, and ever since then, we’ve continued to put up barriers to relationships, as broken people raising defense mechanisms to protect ourselves from harm. The result of course, is that we end up harming our relationships with God and with each other…wars, murders, fights, broken friendships, all because we choose not to trust but seek instead to protect ourselves from harm, when the risk and trust of relationship is really the only thing that can heal us. So in order to heal us, God gives us the very risk and trust of relationship that we so desperately need. God gives us himself, naked and unashamed, vulnerable as a newborn baby: Jesus, born in Bethlehem to Mary and Joseph, a young couple, faithful and kind. They were not great rulers. They had no great power to offer God any great protection once he became human. God decided to trust us with the vulnerability of his human life, offering us his vulnerable, naked, and unashamed self, trusting in nothing more than the care of two loving and faithful parents. See, God wants us to love and trust him and so God chose to love and trust us. God also knows that life is hard, and knows we’re not always great at trusting anyone, especially someone who hasn’t walked in our shoes. So, God became human to say, “I love you, and I think you humans are pretty fantastic. So I am going to show up in your life, naked and unashamed, so that you can trust me, and if you will allow it, I will take down all of the barriers that you have put up.” That’s what Christmas is all about. That’s a pretty serious deal, God healing humanity by becoming one of us. At the same time, I have to think that for the creator of everything to become human, he’s got to be kind of crazy, whimsical, fun too. Imagine God as a toddler walking around in his creation, living amongst his beloved humans, constantly delighted by what’s around him. Imagine 2 year old Jesus running around constantly thinking, “This place is great! Look at that tree; I love that tree. Ooh, a lake! I think I’ll go swimming or maybe walking.” The very fact of the incarnation, God’s crazy notion to become human and live here with us shows us just how fantastic it is to be living here on this earth and that in God’s eyes, we really are pretty fantastic. We also need to remember of course, that life is also not always fantastic, that life is sometimes rather terrible, that we are sometimes rather terrible, and on Christmas we celebrate that Jesus came to live that part of our life too. God gets the messy parts of our lives, the times in our lives and world when things are far from fantastic. Jesus claimed even those bad times and those bad parts of our lives as his own when he became human. That’s what Christmas is all about. The greatest gift God ever gave us was the gift of God’s-self. God gave us the gift of being naked and unashamed with us, loving and trusting us so that we might once again be naked and unashamed with him and with each other. The greatest gift we can give each other, then, is the gift of ourselves, fully living, loving and trusting one another. Jesus became human so that we could love each other in and through the bad times and the good times, and then see each other and see this world and think, “this is fantastic.” Jesus became human so that we could remove our barriers, trust each other and trust God, and then love fully, love with whimsy, love on a lark. That’s what Christmas is all about. Amen.

The Holy Spirit - It, a thing, a ghost, a person? Pastor Tom begins a series looking at the mysterious member of the trinity who is really not so mysterious. Today on Pentecost Sunday - what was Pentecost and who is the person of the Holy Spirit?

The Holy Spirit - It, a thing, a ghost, a person? Pastor Tom begins a series looking at the mysterious member of the trinity who is really not so mysterious. Today on Pentecost Sunday - what was Pentecost and who is the person of the Holy Spirit?

Are you living in the fullness of the Holy Spirit? It may be time to receive the power of His strength.