// Spiritual Mind – Wayne's Blog

Spiritual Mind

Experiencing the Gifts of the Holy Spirit

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During my recent mission trip to Jember, I had an incredible encounter with the Holy Spirit. It felt like a surge of power rushing through me, much like the experiences of faith heroes such as Samson, Saul, and David.

In that moment, I felt like Shazam, with multiple spiritual gifts activated during ministering.

This experience deepened my understanding that the gifts of the Holy Spirit are given entirely by God’s grace (Romans 12:6). We don’t earn or practice to receive these gifts; they are distributed by the Lord as He wills (1 Corinthians 12:11).

These gifts are for doing the Lord’s work, and when there’s a need, the Holy Spirit equips us to fulfill that purpose.

It would be limiting to believe we’re confined to specific gifts of the Spirit. We were told to desire spiritual gifts (1 Corinthians 14:1) especially to prophesy.

If God was willing to give up His Son (Romans 8:32) for us, what would He withhold? His gifts are perfect, constant, and unchanging (James 1:17).

We are called to do greater works than even Jesus (John 14:12), who operated in all the spiritual gifts in both his divine and human nature.

These gifts themselves are flawless. You can’t improve them, but you can improve how you use them — like a perfect hammer you’re given, you don’t modify it, but your skill in using it can grow.

Likewise, spiritual gifts function through our faith in God and our ability to be sensitive to and understand how the Holy Spirit connects and guides us from within.

True repentance transcends outward actions

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Whatever we do, God is always interested in our heart more than anything else.

David, who committed both murder and adultery, was not rejected as king of Israel, while Saul, who did not commit such grave sins, was rejected. The difference lies in their hearts. Saul made excuses for his sins, revealing a heart that wasn’t right before God. In contrast, David was truly sorry for his sins, acknowledging his wrongs without excuses, and seeking genuine restoration with God.

Getting our heart right before God is crucial because everything flows from it (Proverbs 4:23). If our heart isn’t right, our sacrifices, restitutions, or compensations will mean nothing to God as we won’t be able to change for the better in a way that leads to salvation (2 Corinthians 7:10).

True repentance, rooted in a sincere and contrite heart, is what God desires from us, as it opens the door to His grace and transformative power.

Sharing the Gospel is Like Sharing the Best E-Commerce Find

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To feel rejected just because someone rejects you for the gospel.

It’s like saying we are feeling rejected just because someone decline an offer we got for a steal on the Internet.

It sounds funny and silly, isn’t it? We can overcome the fear of rejection by not taking rejection too personally when sharing the gospel.

Remember, you are just the messenger, not the Messiah.

As the world is blinded by power, possessions, and prestige, we need to train ourselves harder to appeal to them that everyone needs the gospel.

The art of sharing the gospel is to understand the needs of the people and the value of the gospel can bring.

That’s why Jesus said it will be hard for the rich to enter the kingdom of God because people who are usually rich has not much needs. This also applies to those who think they are self-sufficient and make things happen on their own.

The Parable of the Dinner shows us how to share the gospel. The poor, disabled, blind, and limping all have one thing in common: they have a need.

  • The poor: those who have lack.
  • The disabled: those who cannot depend on themselves.
  • The blind: those without purpose.
  • The limping: those who are hurt

Everyone will have needs in their lives at some stage. Hence, I believe why Jesus pointed out that harvest is plentiful but the laborers are few.

As for the rich, it may seem hard, but Jesus said with God all things are possible. He will help you reach out to especially those who are difficult by identifying their needs.