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Men of Integrity, Nov/Dec 2001
Catching the Wind
Theme for the Week: Holiness and the Spirit
Thursday, November 15
Key Bible Verse: Put into action God's saving work in your lives. … For God is working in you, giving you the desire to obey him and the power to do what pleases him (Philippians 2:12-13).
Bonus Reading: John 3:8
In [our Key Bible Verse], Paul suggests that we have a role to play but aren't in control. Some things we can control. We can make a phone call, drive a car, run an errand. But some things we can do nothing about, like the weather—only God can change the weather.
But there's a third category. Think about going to sleep. You can't make yourself go to sleep. But you can get in a dark room, lie down on a soft mattress, turn out the lights, and sleep will come.
Take the difference between a motor boat and a sailboat. In a motor boat I'm in control. I start the engine, control the speed, and go wherever I want. Sailing is different. When I'm sailing, I have a role to play—I hoist the sails and steer with the rudder—but if the wind doesn't blow, I'm dead in the water. When the wind blows, on the other hand, amazing things can happen.
The sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit is powerful and mysterious. We can't manufacture it. It's not about us coming up with a program with predictable results we control. On the other hand, we're not passive. Our job is to discern where the wind of the Spirit is blowing and know how to catch it.
—John Ortberg in Preaching Today
My Response:
I think I'm beginning to catch the Spirit's wind in the area of . …
Thought to Apply:
Holiness is not the end of progress, but deliverance from standing still.
—G.Campbell Morgan
Adapted from: Preaching Today (190).
Copyright © 2001 by the author or Christianity Today, Inc./Men of Integrity magazine.
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November/December 2001, Vol. 4, No. 6
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Prayer for the Week |
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Father, motivate me to cooperate with your Spirit to build holiness into my life.
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