Holy Outreach

A couple of exciting things are going on right now at HSCC that I get to share with you.  

1.  We’re just starting our Summer series, Summer in the Spirit!

We’re spending the whole Summer focusing on God, the Holy Spirit, as the divine person we can know and be changed by through the scriptures and through His presence in our daily lives.

I had the joy of teaching on the Holy Spirit in the Old Testament last Sunday, and it was so refreshing and reorienting to remember some important things about the Holy Spirit.

Here’s a reminder of the Person of the Holy Spirit in the Old Testament:

• God the Holy Spirit was co-creating with God the Father in Genesis 1! (Genesis 1.1-2
  

• The breath of life that filled Adam and Eve was the breath of God, the Holy Spirit. (Genesis 1.26-27)
  

• When Adam and Eve hid from God, it specified they were hiding from His presence, which is a picture of the Holy Spirit. (Genesis 3:6-9)

• When God sought to restore His presence with His people, He chose Moses to lead Israel, and Moses was a man of the Presence. (Genesis 33:7-11)
  

• Moses mentored Joshua who, “wouldn’t leave the Tent [of Meeting]”, lingering in the Presence of God. (Genesis 33:7-11)
  

• God created Israel to be a People of His Presence, they even centered all their nomadic tents around the tabernacle—a picture of God’s Presence being at the center of their life and culture.
  

• The Kings and leaders of Israel were all anointed, a picture of the Holy Spirit coming upon an individual for a certain purpose or work in the Kingdom. (1 Samuel 10:1-26)

• Jesus was called the Messiah, the anointed one, and brought the Kingdom to us and, in His glory, released the Holy Spirit on earth to anoint all who have faith in Him for His restorative work in the world.

It’s amazing to think of how active the Holy Spirit is in making a way for God’s Presence to be experienced among His people in us, the church.

One of the main ways we can engage with the Holy Spirit, is to notice where He’s already active in our lives—maybe it ways we haven’t yet seen.

And then, to partner with Him in those things, growing closer to Him and learning about Him in the process.

To help us with this, I’ve created a fun way to remember who the Holy Spirit is—a crossword puzzled! You can download the Cross, Word & Holy Spirit Crossword puzzle below.

Spend some time considering who the Holy Spirit is in the scriptures, and ponder how He might want to move similarly in your life.

2. The Outreach Team just launched a prayer-card movement this summer (see the Sunday service video if you missed it here!).

These prayer cards are the culmination of research, prayer, and some action steps.

And, as we’ve sought the Lord’s heart, we’ve discerned that it’s time to invite HSCC into this prayer-process.

We need God, and God often moves through the power of prayer.  

As you may be aware, there are 4 areas of Outreach the Pastoral Leadership Team decided to focus on.

So take a moment and consider one or two that stand out to you:

1)    UCSC – undergrads, grads, faculty, staff, etc.

2)    Westside Households – families, retirees, students, professionals, etc.

3)    Christian Leaders – nonprofits, parachurch ministries, local missionaries

4)    The Untethered – those broken and hurting in relation to God and others

Then click on one of the buttons below each card to open up the Prayer Card for that group.

The Prayer Card also includes our Outreach Team Prayer that we strongly recommend praying before you begin to read through the card.

As you spend some time praying for these groups and individuals, know that the Lord will organically move your heart into conversations, ideas, verses, and stories that are relevant to these needs.

We already have some amazing testimonies of how God is moving drawing folks to HSCC and shifting our already-active ministries toward outreach!

And, as you pray, you’re welcome to use the link provided on the card to share with us some insights God is giving you—we’ll consider these as the Outreach Team over the next month (you can also find the link here, if needed) 

In August, we’re going to revisit these Outreach areas as a church and share more about the action steps we’ll be taking to reach our community under the leadership of the Holy Spirit.

May the Lord use you, your time with Him, your investment in prayer, to organically multiply the power and resources He has for His Kingdom at HSCC!.

And may the next steps be anointed by Him for His work in our world.