Confronting the Church’s Confusing Narrative About the Holy Spirit
Navigating the Myths That Keep Us From True Connection
I was sitting in a small, hard chair in a rather cramped room, getting twitchy. Our “small group”— what churches refer to when adults gather to discuss spiritual things — had begun a book study by Francis Chan.
It was a study on the Holy Spirit.
As I listened, I felt my perspective on the Holy Spirit clashing with Chan’s teachings. His words yanked me back to an era I had worked hard to leave behind. The line that stuck with me was, “If God had total control of my life, would I really want to know what He would have me do right now?”
Squirming in my seat and thinking about that line, I wondered, Is it just me, or does this line seem to portray God as some kind of killjoy? Honestly, it conjures up images of God asking me to do things I hate, to teach me some kind of lesson.
Maybe I’m just overly sensitive, while others need a firmer nudge from God to get their attention. But honestly? I respond far better to kindness and love than to veiled threats as if God is bound to ask me to do something I’d dread.
As our small group dug deeper into the book, we listened to Francis Chan’s short video introducing a chapter…
