October 8th, 2024
by Pastor Luke
by Pastor Luke
Welcome to Grain & Embers.
The vision for this blog came to me years ago when I realized that 40 minutes on a Sunday morning is simply not enough time to communicate the deep riches of the Bible and all the aspects of the text that are presented on any given Sunday morning.
Grain & Embers seeks to fill in the blanks surrounding the text Salt & Light steeps in each week. Our Church just committed to a 28 week Sermon Series in the book of Acts. This means that now is the perfect time to compliment Sunday’s presentation with a blog every Monday that serves as 50% informational and 50% inspirational and takes you to a depth that a 40 minute sermon would never allow for.
Thanks for reading. If it touches your heart, please share it using the arrow above.
Devotion—
The Holy Spirit is the most ignored person in the Church. This is largely because He is misunderstood, mis-taught, or is associated with a bad experience one may have had at a Church that abused the power of the Holy Spirit. Jesus told His disciples that it would be better for them if He left. How could this be? What is better than fellowship with Jesus? Well, if Jesus were still here in the flesh, we would need to get on a flight to Tel-Aviv — find His address — get into a long line — wait to talk to talk to Him for the few minutes He could offer — imagine the immense pressure Jesus would be under to get through such a line in an eight hour work day! Phew!
By this description, Jesus is starting to sound like Santa Claus. The Holy Spirit however, can carry on ten million conversations simultaneously, never tires or needs to stop for a lunch break. He doesn’t ever turn his phone on do not disturb, and he doesn’t have working hours. He is always at work, AND He never fatigues. His power is infinite and everlasting. Jesus was right. It is better that He stands at the right hand of the Father and co-reigns for all eternity.
Reflection: Have you ever evoked the name of the Holy Spirit? He manifests Himself when you talk ABOUT Him and talk TO Him. He takes on many other names, but don’t be mistaken, when you are speaking to the Holy Spirit in prayer, you are speaking with God almighty — the very Spirit of Jesus, as scripture says.
Application: Pray to the Holy Spirit today. Tell Him what you hope your day will be like. Tell Him about the burdens that seem to be unresolved in your heart. Ask Him to fill you with new strength and a daily portion of power to take on whatever your day brings to you!
"Spell this out in capital letters: THE HOLY SPIRIT IS A PERSON. He is not enthusiasm. He is not courage. He is not energy. He is not the personification of all good qualities and, like Jack Frost, He is not the personification of cold weather. Actually, the Holy Spirit is not the personification of anything … He has individuality. He is one being and not another. He has will and intelligence. He has hearing. He has knowledge and sympathy and the ability to love and see and think. He can hear, speak, desire, grieve and rejoice. He is a Person" -A.W. Tozer
-Pastor Luke
The vision for this blog came to me years ago when I realized that 40 minutes on a Sunday morning is simply not enough time to communicate the deep riches of the Bible and all the aspects of the text that are presented on any given Sunday morning.
Grain & Embers seeks to fill in the blanks surrounding the text Salt & Light steeps in each week. Our Church just committed to a 28 week Sermon Series in the book of Acts. This means that now is the perfect time to compliment Sunday’s presentation with a blog every Monday that serves as 50% informational and 50% inspirational and takes you to a depth that a 40 minute sermon would never allow for.
Thanks for reading. If it touches your heart, please share it using the arrow above.
Devotion—
The Holy Spirit is the most ignored person in the Church. This is largely because He is misunderstood, mis-taught, or is associated with a bad experience one may have had at a Church that abused the power of the Holy Spirit. Jesus told His disciples that it would be better for them if He left. How could this be? What is better than fellowship with Jesus? Well, if Jesus were still here in the flesh, we would need to get on a flight to Tel-Aviv — find His address — get into a long line — wait to talk to talk to Him for the few minutes He could offer — imagine the immense pressure Jesus would be under to get through such a line in an eight hour work day! Phew!
By this description, Jesus is starting to sound like Santa Claus. The Holy Spirit however, can carry on ten million conversations simultaneously, never tires or needs to stop for a lunch break. He doesn’t ever turn his phone on do not disturb, and he doesn’t have working hours. He is always at work, AND He never fatigues. His power is infinite and everlasting. Jesus was right. It is better that He stands at the right hand of the Father and co-reigns for all eternity.
Reflection: Have you ever evoked the name of the Holy Spirit? He manifests Himself when you talk ABOUT Him and talk TO Him. He takes on many other names, but don’t be mistaken, when you are speaking to the Holy Spirit in prayer, you are speaking with God almighty — the very Spirit of Jesus, as scripture says.
Application: Pray to the Holy Spirit today. Tell Him what you hope your day will be like. Tell Him about the burdens that seem to be unresolved in your heart. Ask Him to fill you with new strength and a daily portion of power to take on whatever your day brings to you!
"Spell this out in capital letters: THE HOLY SPIRIT IS A PERSON. He is not enthusiasm. He is not courage. He is not energy. He is not the personification of all good qualities and, like Jack Frost, He is not the personification of cold weather. Actually, the Holy Spirit is not the personification of anything … He has individuality. He is one being and not another. He has will and intelligence. He has hearing. He has knowledge and sympathy and the ability to love and see and think. He can hear, speak, desire, grieve and rejoice. He is a Person" -A.W. Tozer
-Pastor Luke
1 Comment
Thank you, Luke, for bringing the Holy Spirit to the forefront!