Monastic Journal - Day 3

1/9

It was a pretty normal day, schedule wise. After breakfast and morning prayer we had two teaching sessions. THen in the afternoon, there was a UCO event, where a bunch of guys came over and we went and played ultimate frisbee in the park. It was cold and snowy, but a lot of fun. Then all those guys came back to the house for dinner, and a "dude movie." It was cool to just relax and have some fun and watch a movie we wouldn't be allowed to watch at HU. Then after night prayer and cleaning up, a few of us stood around in the kitchen and had a really good talk with Tadgh and Kevin, who offered a lot of great insight into our questions, some of which I will be putting down here. First off we talked about living single for the Lord, and I talked to them about my feelings toward it, and it was great to get their perspective.

But the main thing I need to put down is what we talked about in one of our morning sessions, and what has been on my heart and mind all day--the baptism of the Holy Spirit. In our teaching session, Mike (one of the elders) put it in a very eye-opening way. The Holy Spirit is active in all of creation, holding everything together, and since I have been saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit is active in me too. But in Acts 17, the believers had been baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus, but had not yet received the Holy Spirit. In the session we went on to talk about spiritual gifts and how the Holy Spirit manifests the power of God in us through these spiritual gifts. I haven't had much experience or authoritative teaching on spiritual gifts, but I think I've seen hints of them in my life at certain points. But this really opened my eyes to the fact that there is more for me, if I want it. I think that, up to this point in my life, I've been living as a believer in Christ but never having been fully baptized in the Holy Spirit, like the believers in Acts. Maybe that's what my spiritual life has been missing. I've known for a while that there's so much more growth to be had, and so much more that God can do in my life, but have become so frustrated when I can't grasp it. The Holy Spirit will work in me in powerful ways to grow me, to bring the Scriptures to life, and to use my spiritual gifts to bless others. I want this.

The Holy Spirit is the part of the Trinity that always seems to get neglected in protestant churches. That's something that I've really appreciated being here, is the emphasis on the Spirit. It's definitely something that other Christians could benefit from. I think it's because we're scared of it. We're scared that it'll make us look goofy to the rest of the world. Well, it sucks sometimes, but being a follower of Christ is not about the world. It's about God, and what He wants for our lives. I'm hoping that I continue to learn more about this and am able to apply it to my life.

*SDG