August 5

 "My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit's power, so that your faith might not rest on men's wisdom, but on God's power' 1 Cor. 2:4-5

The Spirit's Power… makes me think of the gifts of the Holy Spirit: knowledge, wisdom, prophecy, faith, healings, miracles, discerning of spirits, speaking in tongues, interpretation of tongues. (1 Cor. 12:7-11) I can't help but think, how much more efficient spreading the message of the Gospel would be if right away people would witness some incredible miracle or healing or some supernatural event. 

The other day I had dinner with a group of friends.  Somehow, we got to talk about a church in Greenwich. Someone was saying that her mom didn't like that church because people there, believed in speaking in tongues. That statement got everybody excited. Some never heard of speaking in tongues. One friend started to look up YouTube videos to show what speaking in tongues meant. I was trying to explain the topic of the gifts of the Holy Spirit and the fact that YouTube might not be the best illustration for it. My husband completely intrigued and almost scared told me- God forbid you start speaking in tongues! Hilarious scene. It was funny to see us all, a group of Romanians raised in communism and in a strict religion trying to make sense of speaking in tongues.

Reflecting on the passage two things came to mind.

-My own story, my testimony, what God has done in my own life is a demonstration of the Holy Spirit's power. The fact that I was completely lost, completely at a rock bottom, completely hopeless, yet God gave me a hope and a future, it's the biggest miracle of all. I might not know how to speak in tongues, but I know very well what God has done in and for me. Our testimony is a power tool always at our disposal.

-We might know beautiful theological facts and explanations but without the power of the Holy Spirit, we just rely on human wisdom. My mentors always reminded me to pray for the hearts to be opened, to invite the Holy Spirit in, before speaking to someone about Jesus.

I read somewhere that: "We don't own our power. We align with it. The power is already there". Holy Spirit help us to align with you, always and in everything we do!