Seasons of the Spirit
Since last Sunday’s Sermon on the Emmaus Road (Luke 24) , I’ve had a handful of conversations.
Some folks resonated with the experience of the Hiddenness of God.
God can sometimes be hard to find.
I’ve also connected with others who long for or remember a season of a “burning heart” (Luke 24:32).
At other times, God can be found everywhere.
Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us on the road, while he opened to us the Scriptures?”
Luke 24:32
Isn’t strange that, just as God leads the earth through seasons, and allows our lives to flow through seasons of need and plenty, want and abundance: He also leads us through various seasons of His Spirit…
What season are you in currently?
How is your connection with God going?
If you’re interested in understanding how Jesus cares for the Soul, listen to my first sermon at HSCC, click the below titled, What is Soul-Care? (An Emmaus Road Sermon)
On the long, winding course of our journey towards spiritual maturity in Christ we will pass through seasons of life where we encounter blessings and hardships…God wisely turns up the heat of his refiner’s fire when he sees gold worth purifying…
The unsettling seasons we encounter on the journey are here both for our trans-formation in Christ and for gaining the wisdom to guide others on their homeward journeys”
-Bruce A. Demarest, Seasons of the Soul
The ancient Christian thinkers considered the ebb and flow of God’s presence as something that refined our connection to Him.
Just like a marriage or a friendship—our relationship with God is not static—it’s living. And a living relationship means that, based on the persons involved and the circumstances each is in, the connection is dynamic, participatory, and layered.
Rarely can we comprehend, let alone accurately label the quality of a human relationship in real time. It takes reflection, intentionality, and sometimes forgiveness or healing to really understand the quality of a human relationship. Well, how much more so with a divine relationship!
Though God our Father is infinite and transcendent, He has come close to us in His Holy Spirit. Jesus even previewed this on the Road to Emmaus as he counseled and cared for the two disciples while incognito.
The Bible says that the Holy Spirit groans within us when we don’t even have the language yet to put words to our season, our struggle, our longing for restoration, our longing for God.
What is it that comes up for you and your relationship with God as you reflect on this?
How has the Holy Spirit felt near or far to you this week?
What is something you can say or pray to God about that living dynamic right now?
Remember…
He who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. - Romans 8:27 (ESV)
Take a moment and let the Spirit do some intercession (prayer) over you, in you…and maybe even through you!