Acts 20:17-24 Our current District Superintendent has a saying that challenges the pastors on our district always to “have your ‘yes’ ready.”  I’ve become convinced over the years that the life seeking after holiness is one that consistently says “yes” to the leading of God. In fact, I think one of the characteristics of the […]

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Acts 16:6-10 Do you know what the voice of the Holy Spirit sounds like? For me, I refer to it as having “God’s thumb in my back.” It’s that feeling when you’re standing in line at the store, and instead of giving the cashier grief because of the long lines, you feel prompted to thank […]

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Acts 2:31-41 I think sometimes I am a little like Peter in Acts 10 . . . and not in a good way. Here’s the very same person who preached the sermon at Pentecost in Acts 2. You know, the one where all kinds of people from all over the known world received the Holy […]

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Acts 2:31-41 Inheritances can be fickle things. Sometimes it’s a simple, handwritten will that says, “The kid gets it all.” Sometimes it’s more complex. Sometimes family members become divisive, fight, and even litigate over the riches of a parent. Most of the time those fights are ugly, and don’t end well. Throughout the Scriptures, God’s […]

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Acts 2:14-21 I am married to a pastor. That statement is a challenge for some folks, because I am male, and my pastor-spouse is female. I remember one church board member in one of the churches we co-pastored. During a pastoral review, she said to the District Superintendent, “When I heard we were getting a […]

The post On All People first appeared on Reflecting God - Embrace Holy Living.

Acts 2:1-13 As “Spirit” people, Acts 2 is pretty important to us. When the Holy Spirit falls on the day of Pentecost, the Spirit comes bearing gifts. I am reminded the Spirit did not come bringing gifts of healing or discernment, nor were they gifts of apologetics or rhetoric.  No, the first gift of the […]

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1 John 5:1-9 The blessed assurance we find in Jesus Christ is knowing Him as Savior and Lord. The One who conquered sin and death is the same One whose Spirit lives within each of us as we accept Him into our lives. There is no greater truth than Jesus.  Living into the fullness of […]

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2 Timothy 1:6-14 The work of the Spirit of God in our lives is truly remarkable and transformational. In his letter to Timothy, the apostle Paul reminds young Timothy just what this work of the Spirit provides. Yet the notions of “power,” “love,” and “self-discipline” must be considered carefully, through the lens of God. New […]

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1 Corinthians 12:1-11 When we truly consider the work of the Spirit among us and the gifts the Spirit has given us, a remarkable image forms. We are all fulfilling our God-given purpose in bringing forth God’s kingdom on earth as it is in heaven. When I think of the various gifts we are called […]

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1 Corinthians 6:12-20 In 1 Corinthians 6, Paul is trying to help the people of Corinth understand the fact that their bodies are the temple of the God, for within them dwells the Holy Spirit. As followers of Jesus, we belong to One much greater than ourselves. We’ve embraced a high and holy calling to […]

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