Showing posts with label Holy Spirit. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Holy Spirit. Show all posts
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Genesis Ministries
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For our struggle is not with flesh and blood but with the principalities, with the powers, with the world rulers of this present darkness, with the evil spirits in the heavens. Therefore, put on the armor of God, that you may be able to resist on the evil day and, having done everything, to hold your ground. Ephesians 6:12-13
We talk at great length about the power of God in our lives. In this current culture, though, to talk about the power of the evil one is not as comfortable a topic. No one wants to point the finger at something and claim it to be the work of evil. Yet, if we believe in the Word of God, we know that evil works in the world to separate us from God at every turn. From Adam and Eve in the garden to the present day, there is evil at work in the world. To be able to face our struggles, we have to acknowledge that. Once we acknowledge that evil is present, we are more apt to understand the great necessity to protect ourselves with a firm, solid faith - to understand that God does work for good, but He is not the only one at work. If we are the temple of the Holy Spirit, we must be vigilant in protecting that temple. It should impress upon us the need to call upon the name of Jesus with certainty in the midst of our struggles and hardships, and to do so for those around us we see immersed in the darkness of the world.
To name evil when we see it is not to be intolerant of people in our midst. There is a great fear that we will be labeled as intolerant or some type of "-ist" if we speak the Truth about darkness. We must not fear. Truth must always be spoken in charity and without labeling people as evil, but if we do not call out the darkness and bring it into the light of Christ, then we are likely to be overcome by it. We cannot battle evil on our own - as much as movies may lead us to believe we can. The strength of our spirit is great, but it is Christ's Spirit within us, not our own human strength which gives us the fortitude and wisdom to fight the battle.
Make no mistake, the battle that began in Eden continues to this day. We know the end - we know Christ wins. The question is, are we willing to call on His name and stand our ground against evil in the world today?
Let us pray that we might readily call on the Holy Spirit and bring any darkness in our lives into the light of Christ, calling on the name of Jesus to overcome the struggles and battles we (and those around us) face.
We talk at great length about the power of God in our lives. In this current culture, though, to talk about the power of the evil one is not as comfortable a topic. No one wants to point the finger at something and claim it to be the work of evil. Yet, if we believe in the Word of God, we know that evil works in the world to separate us from God at every turn. From Adam and Eve in the garden to the present day, there is evil at work in the world. To be able to face our struggles, we have to acknowledge that. Once we acknowledge that evil is present, we are more apt to understand the great necessity to protect ourselves with a firm, solid faith - to understand that God does work for good, but He is not the only one at work. If we are the temple of the Holy Spirit, we must be vigilant in protecting that temple. It should impress upon us the need to call upon the name of Jesus with certainty in the midst of our struggles and hardships, and to do so for those around us we see immersed in the darkness of the world.
To name evil when we see it is not to be intolerant of people in our midst. There is a great fear that we will be labeled as intolerant or some type of "-ist" if we speak the Truth about darkness. We must not fear. Truth must always be spoken in charity and without labeling people as evil, but if we do not call out the darkness and bring it into the light of Christ, then we are likely to be overcome by it. We cannot battle evil on our own - as much as movies may lead us to believe we can. The strength of our spirit is great, but it is Christ's Spirit within us, not our own human strength which gives us the fortitude and wisdom to fight the battle.
Make no mistake, the battle that began in Eden continues to this day. We know the end - we know Christ wins. The question is, are we willing to call on His name and stand our ground against evil in the world today?
Let us pray that we might readily call on the Holy Spirit and bring any darkness in our lives into the light of Christ, calling on the name of Jesus to overcome the struggles and battles we (and those around us) face.
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Genesis Ministries
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Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and buffeted the house. But it did not collapse; it had been set solidly on rock. And everyone who listens to these words of mine but does not act on them will be like a fool who built his house on sand. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and buffeted the house. And it collapsed and was completely ruined. Matthew 7:24-27
We continue on our theme of dwelling and building today with this passage from Matthew. Once again, our lives and our bodies are likened to a house. What strikes me in reading this passage is that it is not simply hearing the words of Christ that strengthen us, but acting on them. It is not enough to passively receive Christ - we must actively practice what He has taught us. We all know that what we learn we do not retain if it is not practiced. That is precisely the wisdom Jesus leaves us with here.
If we listen and act on what He teaches us, we begin to grow more firm in our practiced faith. If we merely listen and do nothing, when push comes to shove, there is no guarantee that we will retain what we have heard. To remain strong, we must be active in practicing our faith, and in living out that which Christ has taught us. Our faith community surrounds us to help us in this. We are called to help each other build ourselves up in Christ, to practice a living faith in our daily lives, to create a solid foundation for those times we are under pressure from the world. Are we helping one another to live out the faith we received from Christ?
Today, pray that we might find ways to act on our faith and remain attentive to the ways that the Spirit presents us with those opportunities throughout our week.
Come, Holy Spirit!
We continue on our theme of dwelling and building today with this passage from Matthew. Once again, our lives and our bodies are likened to a house. What strikes me in reading this passage is that it is not simply hearing the words of Christ that strengthen us, but acting on them. It is not enough to passively receive Christ - we must actively practice what He has taught us. We all know that what we learn we do not retain if it is not practiced. That is precisely the wisdom Jesus leaves us with here.
If we listen and act on what He teaches us, we begin to grow more firm in our practiced faith. If we merely listen and do nothing, when push comes to shove, there is no guarantee that we will retain what we have heard. To remain strong, we must be active in practicing our faith, and in living out that which Christ has taught us. Our faith community surrounds us to help us in this. We are called to help each other build ourselves up in Christ, to practice a living faith in our daily lives, to create a solid foundation for those times we are under pressure from the world. Are we helping one another to live out the faith we received from Christ?
Today, pray that we might find ways to act on our faith and remain attentive to the ways that the Spirit presents us with those opportunities throughout our week.
Come, Holy Spirit!
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Genesis Ministries
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Do you not know that you are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? 1 Corinthians 3:16
When we think of a temple or church, what immediately comes to mind? Most likely it is an image of a structure, a building, something external to ourselves. How many of us would readily say that we are worthy to be a house of God? I know I wouldn't. That is, however, exactly what Paul reminds us that we are - a temple of our living God. If we remembered this and really took it to heart, how would we change our lives? Apart from the blatantly physical ramifications (for instance, perhaps God does NOT like McDonald's quite as much as I do), how would our behavior toward others change? How would our churches change?
This verse is at the culmination of Paul's rebuke of some of the early churches who are already in their time creating division by claiming to belong to one or another apostle, acting out of a spirit of jealousy and rivalry. We, as children of God, have one foundation - Jesus Christ. We seek unity in and under Him, and in the one Spirit by which we were baptized. In today's day and age, the divisions are endless. How do we contribute to those divisions?
Let us pray that we might live in complete awareness of the one Spirit of God that dwells within each of us, and draw each other closer to the source of life that is Christ our Lord. May we work to eliminate all division in the body of Christ, calling on the Holy Spirit to remove any trace of jealousy, rivalry, selfishness and pride from our midst, making us truly one Body under Christ once again.
Come, Lord Jesus, come!
When we think of a temple or church, what immediately comes to mind? Most likely it is an image of a structure, a building, something external to ourselves. How many of us would readily say that we are worthy to be a house of God? I know I wouldn't. That is, however, exactly what Paul reminds us that we are - a temple of our living God. If we remembered this and really took it to heart, how would we change our lives? Apart from the blatantly physical ramifications (for instance, perhaps God does NOT like McDonald's quite as much as I do), how would our behavior toward others change? How would our churches change?
This verse is at the culmination of Paul's rebuke of some of the early churches who are already in their time creating division by claiming to belong to one or another apostle, acting out of a spirit of jealousy and rivalry. We, as children of God, have one foundation - Jesus Christ. We seek unity in and under Him, and in the one Spirit by which we were baptized. In today's day and age, the divisions are endless. How do we contribute to those divisions?
Let us pray that we might live in complete awareness of the one Spirit of God that dwells within each of us, and draw each other closer to the source of life that is Christ our Lord. May we work to eliminate all division in the body of Christ, calling on the Holy Spirit to remove any trace of jealousy, rivalry, selfishness and pride from our midst, making us truly one Body under Christ once again.
Come, Lord Jesus, come!
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Genesis Ministries
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“And I tell you, ask and you will receive; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives; and the one who seeks, finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened...If you then, who are wicked, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him?” Luke 11:9-10,13
Ask and you will receive... I think this may be one of the most hopeful and yet disheartening verses of Scripture for many people. Hopeful, because Christ makes us a great promise. Disheartening because we stop reading after two lines and misunderstand him. So many times I've been asked 'why, if we pray and are faithful, do our prayers go unanswered? God promised to answer, that we would receive what we asked for honestly in prayer!'
If we read the full passage here, however, we see that what Jesus promises us, what it is that we should be asking for, is the Holy Spirit. Ask for the Spirit and you will receive. Seek the Spirit and you will find it. Knock at the Spirit's door, and he will answer. Ahhh...that's right, God is not a genie. We don't simply make our wishes and demands known in order to have him grant them. God most certainly answers all our prayers...it's just that he answers them according to His will, not ours, so sometimes the answer is "no"...or at least, "not yet."
The great lesson of this passage for me today is that what we should be asking for with more desire is the Holy Spirit - that is the great gift that God has for us...his own Spirit that lives with us and in us. Through the Holy Spirit, we grow closer to the will of God so that our deepest desires mirror his more closely. After all, what God desires for us is what in the end is most fulfilling. So...what are we waiting for? Ask, seek and find!
Come, Holy Spirit!
Ask and you will receive... I think this may be one of the most hopeful and yet disheartening verses of Scripture for many people. Hopeful, because Christ makes us a great promise. Disheartening because we stop reading after two lines and misunderstand him. So many times I've been asked 'why, if we pray and are faithful, do our prayers go unanswered? God promised to answer, that we would receive what we asked for honestly in prayer!'
If we read the full passage here, however, we see that what Jesus promises us, what it is that we should be asking for, is the Holy Spirit. Ask for the Spirit and you will receive. Seek the Spirit and you will find it. Knock at the Spirit's door, and he will answer. Ahhh...that's right, God is not a genie. We don't simply make our wishes and demands known in order to have him grant them. God most certainly answers all our prayers...it's just that he answers them according to His will, not ours, so sometimes the answer is "no"...or at least, "not yet."
The great lesson of this passage for me today is that what we should be asking for with more desire is the Holy Spirit - that is the great gift that God has for us...his own Spirit that lives with us and in us. Through the Holy Spirit, we grow closer to the will of God so that our deepest desires mirror his more closely. After all, what God desires for us is what in the end is most fulfilling. So...what are we waiting for? Ask, seek and find!
Come, Holy Spirit!
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Genesis Ministries
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Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when he had finished, one of his disciples said to him, "Lord, teach us to pray just as John taught his disciples." Luke 11:1
Of course, if you continue reading this passage, it leads us to Luke's version of what has become known as the staple Christian prayer of the Our Father. Many saints over the years have provided their prayerful guidance in the use of that prayer. Jesus leaves us with great direction in teaching us, through his disciples and the apostles, that prayer. But, what do we do when rote prayer becomes all we can offer? Is that enough?
The beauty of the "rote prayers" of Catholicism is that they are there when that IS all we can offer. It is no mistake that Jesus gave us words to pray, knowing that there would be times when we would be lost, feeling weary and without direction. It is no coincidence that the Church continues in the footsteps of Christ, through the saints and apostles of prayer, to give us other prayers to help us begin our conversation with God when we are at a loss.
Yet, it is not the Our Father or those prayers I wish to focus on today. While they are meaningful and good prayers, it is the question of the disciples in the passage above that peaks my interest. When we are down and out and feeling disconnected, how do we move past that block to prayer? Does pulling out an "oldie but goodie" standard prayer move us? Or do we use it as a crutch to fulfill a perceived obligation to pray?
The question the disciples ask may be the first clue as to the real mode of jumping over any hurdles to prayer - ask God. One theologian, (Richard Rohr, I believe), said something to the effect of 'the more we talk, the less it is prayer.' I think sometimes we fall into the trap of thinking in order to pray, we've got to find the right words. Yet, time and time again in Scripture we are reminded that we are able to connect to the Father and Son by the gift of the Spirit. It is the Spirit moving in us that inspires us into communion with God. When we are struggling, it is the Spirit we invite in to change our hearts, to silence us if we need, or to empower us with words if it be the will of God.
Sometimes, our need to be vocal in prayer is its own hindrance to deeper prayer. Next time you are having trouble praying, simply open yourself and ask the Spirit to pray in and through you, teaching you to pray and converse more closely with God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. May it lead you leaps and bounds beyond whatever prayer obstacle you faced!
Of course, if you continue reading this passage, it leads us to Luke's version of what has become known as the staple Christian prayer of the Our Father. Many saints over the years have provided their prayerful guidance in the use of that prayer. Jesus leaves us with great direction in teaching us, through his disciples and the apostles, that prayer. But, what do we do when rote prayer becomes all we can offer? Is that enough?
The beauty of the "rote prayers" of Catholicism is that they are there when that IS all we can offer. It is no mistake that Jesus gave us words to pray, knowing that there would be times when we would be lost, feeling weary and without direction. It is no coincidence that the Church continues in the footsteps of Christ, through the saints and apostles of prayer, to give us other prayers to help us begin our conversation with God when we are at a loss.
Yet, it is not the Our Father or those prayers I wish to focus on today. While they are meaningful and good prayers, it is the question of the disciples in the passage above that peaks my interest. When we are down and out and feeling disconnected, how do we move past that block to prayer? Does pulling out an "oldie but goodie" standard prayer move us? Or do we use it as a crutch to fulfill a perceived obligation to pray?
The question the disciples ask may be the first clue as to the real mode of jumping over any hurdles to prayer - ask God. One theologian, (Richard Rohr, I believe), said something to the effect of 'the more we talk, the less it is prayer.' I think sometimes we fall into the trap of thinking in order to pray, we've got to find the right words. Yet, time and time again in Scripture we are reminded that we are able to connect to the Father and Son by the gift of the Spirit. It is the Spirit moving in us that inspires us into communion with God. When we are struggling, it is the Spirit we invite in to change our hearts, to silence us if we need, or to empower us with words if it be the will of God.
Sometimes, our need to be vocal in prayer is its own hindrance to deeper prayer. Next time you are having trouble praying, simply open yourself and ask the Spirit to pray in and through you, teaching you to pray and converse more closely with God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. May it lead you leaps and bounds beyond whatever prayer obstacle you faced!
