Life-Giving Words of Hope & Encouragement

Pentecost still lingers in my bones. Yesterday we celebrated Pentecost Sunday, and I watched the Holy Spirit pour Himself out on thirsty people. It took me back to the day He baptized me—a day I will never forget. From that moment on, something shifted. A river began to rise in me—power, clarity, courage—and it carried me into a new plan and destiny. God’s Word became the true north of my life, the standard by which everything else is measured.

When Jesus ascended, He sent the Helper—the Comforter—to be with us. So why pursue a degree if the Holy Spirit teaches us? Because God, in His wisdom, gives both Spirit and means. The Spirit strengthens, nurtures, and illuminates; He also uses teachers, study, and sacrificial preparation to shape us. The same Spirit who inspired the Scriptures also trains us to handle them faithfully. “But know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation… but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.” (2 Peter 1:20–21) “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness….” (2 Timothy 3:16–17)

The Spirit works in us, on us, and through us. When He filled me, my “river” overflowed. Desire replaced duty; reverence replaced restlessness. I wanted nothing more than to live under God’s Word and let it govern every decision.

That’s why I’m pursuing Christian education. It’s not about another credential; it’s about being formed into a shepherd who looks like Jesus—one who can feed, protect, and rescue His sheep with truth and love. I’ve been down the other road: a secular business degree is useful, but my calling is pastoral. I want to learn from men and women of God, to practice real-life, transparent, in-your-face application that helps a hurting world. Refusing the tools God provides is not humility; it’s neglect. Scripture warns us: “Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before stumbling.” (Proverbs 16:18)

Just as God gives doctors and medicine for our bodies, He gives leaders for our souls: “He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers.” (Ephesians 4:11) I love Bob Deffinbaugh’s insight: “It is the Holy Spirit Who in His sovereignty bestows gifts on men; it is the Lord Who directs men to their ministry; and it is God Who determines the success of a ministry.” I sense a call, even if I don’t yet know every detail. My part is to submit, to step in where needed, and to let the Spirit guide. As Donald Gee said, “An educated preacher is good; an inspired preacher is better; an inspired, educated preacher is best.”

People don’t only need our verses; they need our scars. God never wastes pain. I could study restoration, but until I walked through it, I didn’t really know the God who restores. I used to obsess over outcomes; God was after transformation in the process. If we want to reach people, we must be relatable, real, and rooted. Three verses and a poem won’t cut it. The Holy Spirit empowers us to translate eternal truth into today’s broken scenarios.

Like loving parents who warn their children from lived experience, God meets us in our pain to lead us into triumph. But transformation requires surrender: “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind….” (Romans 12:2) Life’s lessons teach us compassion and dependence—on Him, not on ourselves.

Even with the Spirit in me, my understanding is partial. He is my compass—convicting, correcting, and comforting. His role is to prepare and equip us, but we still must choose sensitivity, boldness, and courage. Early on, I feared I was one mistake from disqualification. I praise God that this never crossed His mind. The Spirit convicts to restore, not to condemn.

Jesus promised this Helper: “The Helper, the Holy Spirit… He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.” (John 14:26) When we don’t know how to pray, “the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.” (Romans 8:26) He searches the deep things of God and makes them known: “For to us God revealed them through the Spirit… even the depths of God.” (1 Corinthians 2:10–11) He also confronts and convinces: “When He comes, He will convict the world concerning sin, and righteousness, and judgment.” (John 16:8) Invite Him, and He brings peace, courage, and clarity.

The Spirit also empowers witness. “God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power… for God was with Him.” (Acts 10:38) He transforms Sauls into Pauls, cowards into heralds, wanderers into shepherds. He reveals glory and opens our eyes to things “no eye has seen and no ear has heard.”

And yes, the Spirit teaches us directly. “The anointing which you received from Him abides in you… and as His anointing teaches you about all things… you abide in Him.” (1 John 2:27) But that truth doesn’t cancel classrooms, mentors, or rigorous study; it animates them. The same passage that spoke one way last year may cut differently today. Our seasons change; God’s Word is living. As one of my instructors loved to say, “Every revolution is a new revelation.”

Here’s where I’ve landed: anything good that comes from my life is the Spirit’s power at work through surrendered clay. To insist that we can only learn by the Spirit and never through Spirit-led study is to limit the God who refuses to be limited. He is omnipresent, omnipotent, omniscient—and endlessly creative in how He grows us. Sometimes He meets us on a mountaintop; sometimes He forms us in the wilderness. My journey has been a long walk between the two, learning to trust Him with both the thrill of Pentecost and the training of perseverance.

If there’s one lesson I keep relearning, it’s this: when I feel most stranded, He is doing His deepest work. Pentecost is not just a date on the church calendar; it is a daily invitation to live led—Spirit-taught, Scripture-anchored, church-formed, and Jesus-shaped. May our lives preach what our lips proclaim: Spirit and truth, fire and formation, calling and character—together.