Be a Rebel. Get Involved.

There is a big discussion taking place in the tribe that I hang with called the Southern Baptist Convention. Honestly, I am not too sure about everything that has taken place. I do have certain convictions about the many things that have been brought up by the Great Commission Resurgence.

Here are my two cents, thanks for reading this mom:

For whatever reason, every generation has an inward desire and passion to rebel against the previous generation. As a third generation preacher in my family, I have loved hearing the stories of men from the past who have stood against the crowd to attempt something great for God. The Southern Baptist Convention has been filled with these stories.

When Christ called me into full-time ministry, I had no idea that church planting was even an option, because I had always viewed it as “church splitting”. As I continued to learn about church planting, I found and continue to find many guys who have turned to church planting because of a drive to rebel against “the man.” On top of this, many church planters have chosen to rebel against their denominational heritage.

Planting a church in Uptown New Orleans was never an act of rebellion for me. Post-Katrina New Orleans is in desperate need of a thousand new churches. I was however influenced by this rebellion to consider the option of abandoning the Southern Baptist Convention. One of my close friends recommended for me to look into the Acts 29 Network. As I pursued them, I had the privilege of talking with Darrin Patrick (Lead Pastor of Journey Church in St. Louis) who is the Vice-President of Acts 29 and a Southern Baptist. God used Darrin in a powerful way to show me the importance of honoring my heritage, moving against the crowd that was jumping ship, and getting involved.

The Southern Baptist Convention has been an amazing blessing in my life. My South African parents sold everything, moved to New Orleans, and began studying at the New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary. They were immediately adopted and equipped to proclaim the Gospel. Today I join my dad, my brother, my uncles, and both grandpas in proclaiming the Gospel through the umbrella of the SBC.

Sure, the SBC has many issues…but so does every church…and so does every church leader. Southern Baptists have been used by God in a mighty way to proclaim the Gospel all over the world. I am proud to continue this cooperative journey into the future.

With so many in my generation turning away from the SBC, I feel like the new rebellion is to get involved. I have really appreciated the work that has gone into the Great Commission Resurgence. There has never been a greater time for us to unite around the Gospel for God’s glory. BE A REBEL. GET INVOLVED.

Lent Lesson #3

By no means did God only teach me three lessons through Lent. My notebook is filled with nuggets of wisdom that I received through discussions, experiences, Scripture, my family, etc. However, these three stick out the most. To review, Lent Lesson #1 was “God is so good”. Lent Lesson #2 was “listen to Jesus and do what He says”. Here is the 3rd:

LENT LESSON #3
GET CONTROL OF YOUR LIFE

Now this might seem a little strange to you because of my second lesson. Why would God teach me to get control of my life when He has called us to listen and surrender to what He has called us to do? Lent Lesson #2 is the preface to #3.

This world is not our home. This life is not our own. For those who have been saved by Christ, the only reason why Christ has saved you is that you might glorify Him with your life.

I Peter 2:9 is by far one of my favorite verses in God’s Word.
9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light.

This is such a great reminder of God’s call upon my life as a believer.

With this truth established, God began to convict me of the fact that I wasn’t being a good steward of what He had called me to be. Every believer has two primary callings in this world. One is to “go and make disciples of all nations”. This isn’t an option. All have been called to reach all. That definitely includes the unreached people groups around the world. The second call is a specific call. Paul was called to the nations, but he specifically served as an apostle traveling the world planting churches. Jesus certainly was called to the nations, but focused on 12 regular dudes. You and I have certainly been called to the nations, but what has God called you to specifically? These two are intertwined.

As I began to ponder that question, I first reflected on what God has placed in my life. I don’t like segmenting my Christ-life, my personal-life, and my work-life. Christ is primary and interwoven throughout my life. Understanding this, here is my specific calling from top priority down:
• To be a husband to the most beautiful woman in the world.

• To be a dad to (NOW) 3 little dudes who are the absolute joy of my life.
• To be a son and brother and grandson to an incredible family.
• To be a pastor to a new church plant called Vintage in the heart of New Orleans. This involves being a leader to an incredible staff, being an influencer to a devoted vision team and community group leaders, and being a faithful servant to a loving church family as we together love God and people.
• To be a preacher of God’s Word each week at Vintage, during camp seasons at MissionLab, and whenever God gives me other opportunities.
• To be a friend to those in my life who care more about me and my family than what I do or don’t do. They just love me and I love them.
• And lastly, to be a student at NOBTS even though I feel like I deserve an honorary MDiv for all the time I have spent on that campus. Hopefully I will done this fall.

That’s my list. As I looked at this list, God convicted that I wasn’t being a good steward of the LIFE THAT HE HAD GIVEN ME. As I shared in the first Lent Lesson post, the last two years have been crazy awesome. But the unpredictable schedules, the lack of definitive office hours, the full access from everyone without boundaries has begun to lead me away from what God has called me to do. Annabeth pleaded with me this spring to put some structure into our lives. I started to receive visions of my sons growing up hating Jesus & the church because daddy cared more about church than them. I NEEDED TO TAKE ACTION.

Let me share what this looks like in my life. During Lent I came across a blog somewhere that talked about “Reclaiming the 9-5”. I wish I could find it. Anyways, this pastor talked about how he hates segmentation and that he loves serving with completely schedule freedom. However, this freedom had begun to spin his life out of control. He wrote about the importance of working, playing, resting, and dating at certain set-aside times. He wrote about reclaiming the 9-5 so that his kids could enjoy daddy time and that he could truly focus on what God had called him to do.

As I read, God smacked me in the face with this third lesson, “GET CONTROL OF YOUR LIFE.” He said, “Rob, I have blessed you with the responsibility of being a husband, dad, son, brother, grandson, preacher, friend, and student in accordance with my plans for my glory.” This isn’t about you; this is about my sovereign plan for this world.

For me taking action looked like this:



• I put together a time budget and weekly schedule where I assessed and planned work, sleep, study, meetings, family time, Sabbath, workout, etc. I also set up an accountability system for sticking with it.
• I led our church in finding a solid office space for us to work. Sure, its ghetto, but that’s how Vintage rolls.
• I set aside a week to go on vacation with my family and worked hard before we left so that I didn’t have to work while I was away.
• I started rejecting meetings and opportunities that didn’t fall under the category of what Christ has called me to do.

Now anyone in ministry knows that ministry isn’t that clean and neat. I completely agree. Ministry should look a lot sloppier than the institutional business-like expressions that we find all over our country. However, if my schedule leads me to neglect my family, cheat on my wife, go into depression, and even kill myself…how effective will that be? Getting control of your life isn’t about making life easier, getting control of your life is about being faithful to God’s call.

I pastor a church filled with young adults. For the most part I am counseling one person after another that is being controlled by their life. From work obligations, to parties, to church duties, to new babies…the busyness of life is killing them. The question that I had to answer is the same question that we all need to answer, “What has God called me to do?” When clarity comes from God, DO IT! That means that you might have to get rid of some things. That means that you might have to say NO to some (even good) things. Prioritize your life around what Christ has called you to do. He wants to use you in a mighty way for His glory!

Lent Lesson #2

As we have planted Vintage Church over the past two years, I have cut-back significantly on my speaking gigs outside of New Orleans. I have strategically focused on preaching in NOLA with Vintage and MissionLab. Occasionally, God leads me to accept one. I traveled over Lent with the Andrew Ogea Band to TN and SC. On the way to these events we went to the Unleash Conference at NewSpring Church in Anderson, SC. This one-day conference was perfect timing for me as I was at a point of exhaustion and even a little confusion. Perry and the NewSpring story is crazy phenomenal. I first met Perry when I was being recruited to play ball at Anderson University. Perry at that time was an RA for one of the dorms and led a bible study on campus. I remember him coming up to my dad to ask advice about God calling him to plant a new church in Anderson. Perry was crazy excited as he shared with us what God had placed in his life. 10 years later, Perry now pastors a church of over 10,000 people. NewSpring puts on this conference once a year to pour into church leaders. It was during this conference that God gave me a second lesson.

Perry got up and reflected about the journey over the past 10 years. Whether controversial or not, risky or not, loud or not; Perry summed up what he had learned over this journey.

LENT LESSON #2
"LISTEN TO JESUS. DO WHAT HE SAYS."

For some this might seem elementary. Even for me, I wasn’t exactly shocked by this truth. But at the moment, Jesus laid the smack down on me. As a new church planter I have been overwhelmed by the amount of resources. Google any subject and you will find thousands of blogs, books, etc. At one conference people are talking about being organic, at another people are talking about being missional, and at another people are talking about being multi-site. Honestly, I am not finding anything out there that has been crazy successful in New Orleans. I believe that I live in one of the most difficult places to plant a church in the world. For those who aren’t from NOLA, you won’t understand.

This simple word of wisdom was exactly what I needed to hear. The most fruitful times of ministry have been times when we least expected it. Vintage isn’t my idea, I didn’t launch Vintage, and I’m ultimately not responsible for Vintage. Jesus is Lord, King, and Senior Pastor of Vintage. True success isn’t what American evangelicals have deemed to be success. True success happens when we are faithful to what Christ has called us to do…even if that means being a persecuted, poor, and unpopular Christ-follower.

There are two keys to this phrase:

LISTEN TO JESUS. If Jesus calls the shots, if Jesus runs the show, if Jesus rules your life…why do you spend more time reading tweets & blogs, watching TV shows, and reading books than listening to Jesus. How do we hear from Jesus? Through prayer and Scripture. As lead pastor I am completely overwhelmed by my responsibility to represent the very Words of Christ to our church. This truth should lead me to read more tweets, it should compel me to my knees in humility to Christ and His Word.

DO WHAT HE SAYS. Now this is where it gets tough. We have been fed an inaccurate picture of what it means to follow Jesus. Somehow we have bought the lie that to follow Jesus means that we will receive all the prosperity we could imagine. In fact, if you are a “full-time” minister you can even become a “superstar” traveling the country signing books or playing an instrument on stage pimping Jesus along the way.

It is true that some followers of Christ have received great wealth and prosperity. But the only reason why they have been blessed is because God intended them to use it for His glory. Period. A true picture of what it means to do what Christ says is found in Matthew 10. Spend some time walking through this passage. I got to preach through this text a couple of weeks ago at Vintage.

Thank you Jesus for this lesson. Give me the strength to listen to you and do what you say.

Lent Lesson #1

New Orleans is filled with traditions. Some good and some not so good. Over the spring, I decided to participate in the Catholic tradition called Lent.

Here is a basic summary of Lent:

Lent is the Christian season of preparation before Easter. In Western Christianity, Ash Wednesday marks the first day, or the start of the season of Lent, which begins 40 days prior to Easter (Sundays are not included in the count).
Lent is a time when many Christians prepare for Easter by observing a period of fasting, repentance, moderation and spiritual discipline. The purpose is to set aside time for reflection on Jesus Christ - his suffering and his sacrifice, his life, death, burial and resurrection.
Taken from http://christianity.about.com/od/holidaytips/qt/whatislent.htm

I have never been one to depend upon pragmatic religious ritual. The grace of Christ has set me free from those chains. But in my preparation over our LIFE SERIES I came across a quote in John Stott’s commentary on the Sermon on the Mount. He presents an old Puritan quote:

The Law sends us to Christ to be Justified. Christ send us to the Law to be Sanctified.

I am at a crazy exciting and unpredictable place in my life. One day I have enough time to take Bolt to the park, play ball at Tulane, and enjoy dinner with Annabeth. The next day I barely have time to use the bathroom. I wouldn’t trade the last two years of planting Vintage Church for anything, but at times it has almost ended me.

Over the spring, Annabeth and I found out that we are expecting identical twins boys in August. When the nurse told us I immediately teared up in silence, but on the inside I was freaking out. How in the world am I going to handle this? I barely have control over the load that I am carrying right now. Some things have got to change. I needed to hear from God for this answer.

As I launched into the Lent Season, I committed to remove and abstain from certain foods and technology in order to spend time with God in preparation for Easter. Any religious practice or accomplishment that doesn’t have this focus as the forefront is (as Paul writes in Philippians 3) trash. Of course I have been praying for God to move in such a way that only He gets the glory in my home, church, and city. However, we don’t fast in order to get something from God, we fast to be with God. He is enough. He is the prize. As I walked with God, he taught me three major lessons. Here is what I learned:

LENT LESSON #1
GOD IS SO GOOD.

Over these forty days I was able to experience a lot. Vintage and my own family continued to grow, we moved into a building that houses our Vintage kids and offices, and I got to preach at a number of really cool places (one being the NOBTS Chapel - which is by far the most intimidating pulpit I have ever preached in). Of course it is easy to recognize the goodness of God during these experiences. But I wasn’t reminded of God’s goodness during these big events. I was reminded in the smaller things. Whether it was through a passage of Scripture in my 1-yr journey, whether it was through witnessing someone’s life being transformed by the Gospel, whether it was through recognizing the simple blessing of food on my table, whether it was feeling the comfort of the Holy Spirit through a rough time…God reminded me of His goodness.

In particular, I was reminded of God’s goodness through two specific times. The first was through the life of a Tulane student named Liz. Instead of writing about this I will share the video that we shot for our Vintage family.




You can find the video online at http://vimeo.com/10463914

God is so good!

The second happened to my family. One Saturday night Annabeth woke up in a panic. Without going into details we thought that she had a miscarriage. I have never felt so helpless in all my life. On the way to the doctor we prayed, quoted Scripture, and listened to some music. After going to the doctor, we found out that the twins boys were okay but that Annabeth had something called “placenta previa”. The doctor told us that her placenta was in a dangerous place and that if it didn’t move we might have to terminate the pregnancy or Annabeth would lose her life.

During this time of uncertainty, we were crazy blessed by our church family. By the time I finished preaching that Sunday morning on 2 hours sleep, meals and prayer meetings had already been lined up. The love and support that we received from Vintage was a total confirmation of the goodness of God. I could have never imagined 5 years ago when Annabeth and I came back to NOLA that I would have the privilege of loving and being loved by such an incredible church. It was honestly through this love that Annabeth and I remained focused on God’s plan and purpose. We thanked God and trusted Him to work out His plan for our lives and these babies. No matter what, we were going to praise Him!

Over the next few weeks we prayed and prayed and prayed. God answered our prayers by moving Annabeth’s placenta. Mama and our twins boys are doing fine. The twins have a thing called Twin-on-Twin Syndrome where one steals from the other. We have to get an ultra-sound every two weeks and still have a long way to go, but God is so good.

Who Dat? Drew Dat - Reflections from the Superbowl

Not sure if you have heard of this guy. His name is Drew Brees. He had a pretty big night last night in Miami. Not only did the New Orleans Saints win the Superbowl (WHO DAT!), but Drew won MVP. The picture above shows Drew with his wife and son, Brittany and Baylen. Drew and his wife moved to New Orleans in 2006 during a time of great uncertainty. Katrina had just destroyed our city and the Saints were one of the worst teams in the NFL. This uncertainty went both ways. Although the Saints weren't a great team, Drew had just come out of a major shoulder injury. Signing him to a large contract was a huge risk.

Last night as the Lombardi trophy was presented to the team, Drew Brees teared up with emotion. That moment represented not just a player's accomplishment on the football field, it represented a player's love and passion for his Lord, his family, his team, and his city.

In the second round of the playoffs, the Saints obliterated the Arizona Cardinals. The 4th quarter was a joke and the commentators were struggling to find things to talk about. I think they even started talking about what they had for dinner the night before. Towards the end of the game they started to talk about the journey of Drew Brees. In an interview following his move to New Orleans, someone asked him why he chose New Orleans over Miami. His response was something like this.

"I believe that God has called me and my family to a great opportunity for impact not only on the football field but off the field throughout the entire New Orleans region." From day one, he has been a man of his word. Superbowl win, the Brees Dream Foundation, etc. When I heard this story I was reminded of the time when I met Drew Brees.

In the spring of 2007, my wife and I went to Audubon Park to roller blade. Yes, I said roller blade. As former college athletes, Annabeth and I are extremely competitive. Some of our biggest arguments have come as the result of a game or a race. We roller blade because there is no option for competition, it is more like survival. On this spring afternoon, we ran into Drew and Brittany Brees walking around the park. They live in Uptown close to Audubon Park. As we passed them, I tried to act cool and gave him a macho nod even though I was a giddy as my little boy when he watches Imagination Movers. Because we were on roller blades, I told Annabeth that we needed to book it so that we could see them again. As we flew around the park (well, as I flew around the park) I brainstormed what I was going to say to him. As I came around a corner I saw him and Brittany still walking. Here was my chance.

As I came alongside him, I did this jump-turn-around-move in order to talk with him face to face while he was still walking. I had never done this move before and I will never do this move again. I can't remember exactly what I said to him, but this is basically the summary.

"Hey Drew and Brittany, my name is Rob and I am a new pastor and Uptown resident. I just wanted to thank you for coming to our city to help rebuild our Saints and our city. I also wanted to thank you for your Christian witness and testimony. I believe God is going to use you in a mighty way for His glory."

He and his wife looked at each other surprised and said, "Thanks, we don't get that kind of compliment often."

By that time Annabeth had caught up with me, I looked at them and said, "Here comes my wife, her name is Annabeth. Hope you guys have a great day." I did another jump-turn-around-move and went on my way.

Now I have always dreamed of becoming good friends with the Brees family. I would love to welcome Drew, Brittany, and Baylen into our home for dinner and friendship. I would love to welcome them into our Vintage Church family. I'm sure they are hungry for some Christian friendship. I'm not sure if that would ever happen. But Annabeth and I will always have a soft spot for this family.

Although we have different backgrounds and experiences, we have a lot in common. Both of us have come to New Orleans around the Katrina catastrophe. Both of us have been active in rebuilding organizations in New Orleans. Both of our us have made the Uptown neighborhood our home. Both of us have celebrated the birth of our first son in the past year. (Maybe Bolt and Baylen will either play on the same team or against each other. Right now my money is on Bolt. He has a crazy good arm.) Most importantly, both of us love and serve Jesus Christ.

We will probably never connect with Drew and his family again. But I am thankful to God for sending both of us to this great city. Even though most of New Orleans doesn't recognize this truth. This Superbowl victory goes way beyond the football field. God is orchestrating His perfect plan for the Gospel of Jesus Christ to be proclaimed in our city and around the world. Join with me in praying for God to continue to enlarge Drew's territory and testimony for His glory.

Churches Helping Churches

This Sunday, we will launch our partnership with a new organization called "Churches Helping Churches". We are going to kick off our partnership by taking up a love offering. Here is a summary of this organization:

Churches Helping Churches was created to address the immediate and long-term needs of churches when disaster befalls a country, region, city, or people in the spirit of Galatians 6:10—“…let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.”

Our help complements the initial waves of humanitarian aid that pour into a country in the wake of a disaster. Many countries have relied on networks of local churches to be a primary conduit for the flow of health care, humanitarian aid, and even education. Rebuilding churches is a means of restoring infrastructure in a country through which aid can flow into local communities which so desperately need it.

Both throughout history and following specific tragedies it is often the local church that cares for widows, orphans, and the poor. It is the church who performs the funerals, grief counseling and spiritual follow up with families of victims. Rebuilding local churches helps address the practical and spiritual needs of a country, one person, one neighborhood, and one community at a time.

When the magnitude of a catastrophe can be described as “biblical,” it is the local church that reminds people that another biblical concept is even more powerful: hope in Jesus Christ.



We are excited about partnering with this organization for two main reasons:

1) The church is the most effective way to make an impact in Haiti.
2) Helping and planting churches in Haiti is a long term commitment. We want to serve our brothers and sisters in Haiti with a marathon perspective, not a sprint. Speaking from our experience in NOLA from Katrina, this is going to be a long journey.

Join us this Sunday for our partnership launch. Come ready to sacrificially give.

Drenched Wk 2

Here is my outline from today's message. I am big time thankful for what Christ is doing through Vintage. Come Holy Spirit!

John 16:7-15
7 Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you. 8 And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment: 9 concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; 10 concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer; 11 concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged. 12 “I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. 13 When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. 14 He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. 15 All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.

Why have we called this series DRENCHED?

We are praying for the Holy Spirit to completely DRENCH us because....
• We are promised it in Scripture.
• We have been called to an impossible mission.
• We have a God who demands all glory and praise.

Last Week
THEOLOGICAL journey through Acts 1&2
• Who He Is
• When He Comes
• What He Does

I am really praying for the Holy Spirit to move throughout our church family. This has to happen within each of you.

Our strategy at Vintage is three-fold:
Individual Expression
Community Group Expression
Gathering Expression

When does He come?
He comes within everyone who is saved by the Gospel and also comes upon the church to display the Glory of God for the salvation of the World through Christ.

From Pentecost till Now –
Works in the Individual
Works in the Church
Works in the World

Let’s look at the 3 ways the Holy Spirit is at work:

INDIVIDUAL
I Corinthians 6:19-20
19 Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, 20 for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.

Can you be filled? You must be born again
John 3:5-7
“Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’

Are you sure you want to be filled? (John 6 “Are you sure you want Him?)
Matthew 10:16-22
16 “Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves. 17 Beware of men, for they will deliver you over to courts and flog you in their synagogues, 18 and you will be dragged before governors and kings for my sake, to bear witness before them and the Gentiles. 19 When they deliver you over, do not be anxious how you are to speak or what you are to say, for what you are to say will be given to you in that hour. 20 For it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you. 21 Brother will deliver brother over to death, and the father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death, 22 and you will be hated by all for my name's sake. But the one who endures to the end will be saved.

For most, this is ALL that you want from God. Christ has become your insurance plan into Heaven. You have no desire to live radically for Christ because your concept of Christianity is social and convenient instead of spiritual and sacrificial.

How are you filled?
• Surrender (Rom 12:1-2 “Offer your bodies as a living sacrifice.”)
• Ask (Luke 11:9-10 “Ask and it will be given; seek and you will find: knock and it will open)
• Obey (Acts 5:32 “And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him.”)
• Believe (Gal 3:2 “Let me ask you only this: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith?”)


CHURCH
Ephesians 2:18-22
18 For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. 19 So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, 20 built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, 21 in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. 22 In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.

Through the Holy Spirit:
We Experience God’s Presence
We Obey God’s Commands
We Fulfill God’s Purpose
-To glorify God by making disciples of all nations.

WORLD
The Holy Spirit:
Empowers the Church for the Gospel
Acts 1:8
8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

Regenerates the lost through the Gospel
Titus 3:3-7
3 For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another. 4 But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, 6 whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.
• The Spirit opens our eyes (sin/separation)
• The Spirit convicts our soul (true repentance)
• The Spirit transforms our life (holistic)

Glorifies God through the Gospel
Ephesians 1:13-14
13 In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.

All of life is about the Glory God. So when the Holy Spirit works in the world, it always magnifies the Trinity (Father, Son, & Spirit).

Knowing how the Holy Spirit works in the individual, upon the church, and throughout the world...I wanted to close giving you some summary thoughts on how you can live a Spirit-filled life.

• The Holy Spirit Life is a DAILY EXPERIENCE.

Daily Walk with the Holy Spirit:
• Cultivate the Person (think about your relationships)
• Glorify Christ (honor, trust, follow, obey)
• Pursue Righteousness (actions & thoughts)
• Meditate on the Word (His Word is Spirit & Life)
• Activate His Power (Believe)