Rush: Holy Spirit in Modern Life | A Practical & Prophetic Podcast for Men and Women

It’s so easy, with our strong human desires—desires to be liked, to be loved, to be accepted, to find comfort, to find peace and joy and security—it’s so easy to view God as something that can make us look good to other people, something that can allow us to think well of ourselves . . […]

I am going to be honest. When I hear Holy Spirit, the voice of the Father penetrating the darkness of our world, saying He knows our pain, my heart gets heavy. It brings back all the pain I’ve endured. It reminds me of all the pain the people I love have endured. It reminds me […]

Dry. Hostile. Desolate. In a desert, water is scarce; the environment is harsh and unforgiving; it’s intense in both its heat and its cold. There is little shade, little food, little protection. In a desert we’re exposed, vulnerable, desperate even. And abandoned maybe. Because few people choose to enter a desert. But sometimes we can’t […]

We can be hard on ourselves. After all, we are taught, by this world of ours, to be always looking for ways to improve—because we are never good enough. Get in shape. Be more productive. Get better informed. Most of us are a million miles from imagining that we are ever okay, just as we […]

Jesus encourages us to approach Him with childlike hearts. With hearts that know they are loved. Hearts that trust they are safe. Hearts that are willing to take risks. Unguarded hearts that can grow and learn. When disciples asked Him, “Who is considered to be the greatest in heaven’s kingdom realm?” Jesus told them, “Learn […]

When Solomon became King over Israel, he asked God for wisdom—and God granted it to him. “God gave Solomon wisdom and understanding beyond measure, and breadth of mind like the sand on the seashore, so that Solomon’s wisdom surpassed the wisdom of all the people of the east and all the wisdom of Egypt.” That’s […]

The book of John begins like this: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made. In him was life, and the life was […]

We don’t need to lie. We are safe in God’s care. We are not at risk—not the way we always think we are. We don’t need to twist truth to protect ourselves. We can trust our Father. We can trust our King. We can trust our Friend. The root of our duplicity is something to […]

God, three in one—Father, Jesus, Holy Spirit. He—they—epitomize community. Rich, complete, connection. Nothing is missing. They are never lonely. Father, Jesus, Holy Spirit each uniquely themselves and each uniquely One and the same. There is no enmity between them. There is no resentment. There is no competition. There is no one-upmanship. There is no indifference. […]

I want to live seeing and experiencing the brilliance of God everywhere. Everywhere I look. Everywhere I turn. But I don’t. Not as often as I’d like to, anyway. But I do believe what Holy Spirit says. I believe it’s true. And I believe what the apostle Paul wrote in Ephesians 4:6: that there is […]

Holy Spirit, in this episode, says something pretty amazing: we can be free of shame and fear. How would that feel? Wouldn’t that kind of freedom be amazing? And He also said that it’s not something that we have to do—it’s something that He does. He destroys these things. Not us. All we need to […]

We have everything we need to love, to make a difference in this world. We are not powerless. Our Jesus stands with us, right now, a twinkle in his eyes, saying “Hey, what do you want to do today? What is on your heart? Can we go together? You and Me?” He loves being with […]

Worrying feels bad. Being in a state of worry, feels bad . . . But it can feel kind of good, too, huh? I mean, if there’s something we can’t change, or something we can’t figure out—at least we can worry. When there’s nothing else we can do about a problem, about our hardship or […]

We’ve talked about it before here, but the story of the Prodigal Son is probably Jennifer’s and my favorite of Jesus’ parables. We love it because of how well it captures the depth and breadth and character of our Father God’s love, how well it demonstrates His true heart toward us, his sons and daughters. […]

Holy Spirit said, “The most powerful thing you can ever do in your life, each time you believe the lie that you are orphaned, forgotten, alone and unloved, is to break that agreement.” He says we must break the lies that we are isolated, abandoned by God. Because the truest truth is that we are […]

“The great and terrible clash between the Kingdom of God and the kingdom of darkness continues,” wrote author John Eldredge. “They are fighting for the human heart.” But we can’t see it, can we? This battle that Scripture says we are in the midst of is occurring in the spiritual realm. And we are physical […]

We live in a culture that worships doing, fixing, tweaking, improving. Nothing is ever good enough—fast enough, smart enough, strong enough, beautiful enough. Humankind has made it its business to work and work and worry and worry. We’re inundated with messages—from traditional media and social media—that offer solutions, or encourage us to find solutions, to […]

When we are in relationship with God, there is always an exchange. Many of them, actually. We offer things to Him or surrender them–our time, our attention, our idols, our sin. And He offers us things, in return: His presence, restoration, freedom, righteousness. Though not on the same level, when we are in relationship with […]

It is good to ponder God and His mysteries. The wise King Solomon wrote: “It is the glory of God to conceal things, but the glory of kings is to search things out.” That is from Proverbs chapter 25, verse 2. And there’s so much we don’t know about Him―and so much He wants us […]

This isn’t easy. Addressing pain that’s been pushed down. Acknowledging wounds—the ways we’ve been hurt—whether they’re in the long ago past, or whether they happened just yesterday. But acknowledging pain is important. Not because we’re able to fix any of it—but because God can. He won’t change the past. But He will attend to our […]

One of my and Jennifer’s favorite daily prayers is attributed by ancient tradition to Saint Patrick, who’s also known as the Apostle to Ireland. This prayer is called “The Breastplate of St. Patrick” or “The Deer’s Cry.” And we love it because it’s beautiful and just a great prayer to start a day. Let me […]

Imagine a child getting ready before school. Imagine it’s cold outside—cold and windy and raining. Now imagine that, before she heads off for the day, the girl’s parents give her a brand new jacket. And when she goes outside, she feels warm in it. It’s comfortable, she feels safe in it. Immediately, she loves that […]

It’s easy to assume that Jesus’ disciples were just special, that they were different from us. It’s easy to conclude that they must have had special wisdom or some super abilities—beyond anything we could ever muster. And if we do assume these things, how could we not become resigned to just this: going to church, […]

Our Father God gives us everything we need to live and thrive. We lack nothing—unless, of course, we reject His gifts and His provision. Now, you might respond, “I don’t reject those things! I welcome His help!” But we do reject His gifts and provision. We do it all the time. It’s our nature. It’s […]

And so, very often, we stop doing what we’re made to do. We stop looking for help from Jesus. We try to go it alone by coping alone. We isolate and look for escape. We deny and run and numb ourselves to the pain and fear—when what we’re meant to do is stand in them. […]

To follow Jesus means surrendering the old lives we’ve been living—with all our old belief systems and all our flawed thinking. Because Jesus wants our whole hearts, not just a small part of them. He wants His healing and goodness and love to penetrate and saturate our entire beings and every part of our lives—not […]

Does joy ever feel elusive to you? Do you ever have a hard time getting there and staying there—what with the routine and the distraction and the trouble of everyday life? We do too. But the way Holy Spirit talks about it, it doesn’t sound like it’s actually elusive at all, does it? It sounds […]

The apostle Paul gave us a great picture of trust when he wrote about the church in Macedonia in 2 Corinthians chapter eight. And the picture is striking. And challenging. It sure challenges us. Because Paul kind of called out the Corinthians. No, I shouldn’t say “called out.” He called them up—up into a new […]

Jesus’ love astonishes me. It just . . . astonishes . . . me. Here we are, on this Christmas day, our hearts feeling so many different emotions: We might be full of love and joy and gladness . . . or full of sorrow . . . or loneliness . . . or regret. […]

Scripture says, “Long before he laid down earth’s foundations,” God chose us and “settled on us as the focus of his love.” That’s from Ephesians chapter one. He chose you to be His beloved son, His beloved daughter. He chose me. He “predestined us for adoption to himself.” He gave us “full legal adoption as […]

There is a heaviness in the world we cannot deny. Just look at the news. This heaviness is everywhere. And even if you decided to avoid the news, you can still feel the weight of it, just walking through your everyday life—hurt, injustice, your heart, along with all of creation, aching, longing. Whether we recognize […]

There is much to celebrate at Christmas time—and much to distract us too. It’s a season of goodness and love. But it’s also a season of noise and pressure. And it can be a season of loneliness and sorrow and loss. It’s easy to get caught up in the invitations—or temptations—to go and do and […]

When I was young, my family had two nativity sets. And after Thanksgiving, both would appear somewhere in our house. One was made out of olive wood. Hand-carved camels and wise men, Mary kneeling, baby Jesus in the manger. My grandmother brought that one back from Israel, but it wasn’t delicate. It was solid and […]

Advent marks the season of turning, of leaning our hearts and minds and souls toward the celebration of Jesus’ birth. This time is for appreciating and rejoicing in the Savior who has come—and for noticing our longing for the Savior who is still to come. The word “Advent” comes from the Latin word adventus, meaning […]

When this world fell, so long ago, everything broke. All relationships broke. Our relationships with each other, our relationships with ourselves, and our relationships with God—none of them are what they were . . . or what they will be. All of those relationships will be restored. But because we don’t know Him now as […]

If we try to figure out what leadership should look like by looking at leaders around us—at work, in our government, in our culture—things can get pretty confusing. So many of these “leaders” lead with wrong motives. They lead out of pride and greed, for acclaim and wealth—not for the good of their followers or […]

Holy Spirit just said: “I have something for you to do now. A place to go. A way to see. And it takes looking deeper to find it.” Do you know that place? Your place? Do you want to find it? This place that Jesus created and keeps just for you—just for you and Him […]

Our God is not a faraway God, off busy somewhere else. He’s not a King who lives in some distant castle with high walls. It’s just the opposite, in fact. He is here. And His business is you. What He’s most interested in is relationship with you. Connection with you. Conversation with you. That’s what […]

God wants to help us identify what’s getting in the way of knowing Him more. Specifically, He wants to help us recognize any and all misconceptions we hold about who He is. I love this invitation. Because thinking rightly about God matters—it matters a lot. “The most portentous fact about any man [or any woman],” […]

Holy Spirit gives three things to do when we find ourselves having fallen into sin . . . again. He said we must confess. And we must repent. And then he said something a bit unexpected. He said we must accept His love. We’re all familiar with the first two steps. Confession—being honest and owning […]

What are you going through, my friend? What kind of season is this for you? Is it one of suffering? One of challenge? How hard is life for you in this present season? And how do you feel? Do you ever feel weary or frustrated or angry? Do you ever wish that something about this […]

Holy Spirit says that when we allow Him to love us, it’s like coming Home—coming back home to the loving God we left—either for a short while . . . or a long time. Jesus uses this same idea too, of coming home, when he tells The Parable of the Prodigal Son,” captured by Luke […]

We have a choice, Holy Spirit says: “Let Me in, if you want; Keep Me out if you want. I will love you the same.” Our old selves, the physical parts of us that Scripture calls our “weak flesh,” are what make it difficult for us to let God in, to receive His love. These […]

Jesus’ love for his bride, the church—for you and me, personally—is beyond anything that we can understand or imagine. Here on earth, we’ll never be able to fathom the full nature of it, the full depth and breadth of His love. In fact, our understanding of it will always be wrong. For no matter how […]

The victim mindset is the belief that one’s identity is as a continual victim of bad circumstances, or of bad luck, or of bad genes, or of the bad behavior of other people. People who’ve adopted this mindset typically have been victimized and experienced trauma, on some level, at some point in the past, but […]

When someone we care about doesn’t know Jesus, we might feel concern, confusion, impatience, fear, downright frustration. We might want the situation to change . . . yesterday.  We might feel like trying to push a little—to try ourselves to initiate a change. We might want to try to grab for some control—as we become […]

Jesus reminds us that He knows what it’s like to experience pain, disappointment, and betrayal. He knows because He actually experienced them, as a flesh and blood man. He isn’t some high priest who doesn’t understand what we’re going through. He does understand. So, we can listen to Him. We can trust and follow Him. […]

Our default position is often, “What can I do?” Looking at all the pain in the world, we think, “What difference can I make?” And this position is understandable until we consider this: The most powerful force in the world dwells within us, and that force is a person, and that person has chosen us […]

In the book, The Secret of Lasting Forgiveness, author Bruce Wilkinson addresses the “hidden connection between unforgiveness and torment.” Until we have forgiven the people who have wronged us, Wilkinson explains, we are not free; we are unable to enjoy peace. So, God draws us toward forgiveness because it’s good for the people we need […]

We’re in a battle. Even in the calm. Even on our most peaceful of days. Though we can’t see it, a spiritual battle rages all around us. Our enemy is fighting tooth and nail for our hearts and the hearts of our loved ones. He wants them, and he’ll do anything to have them. And […]

It’s a good and valid desire to want to know God’s will for our lives. A job decision is looming and we wonder what to do; a relationship is hard and we want to know how to respond. A family member is hurting and we wonder how we can help. So we call out to […]

Let’s be honest, the people we care about most can drive us crazy the most. Am I right? They can hurt us. They can frustrate us. They can make bad choices. And all of that can make us want to do whatever it takes to protect them, to change them, to control them . . […]

Our enemy, the great deceiver, the father of lies—he tries to convince us that whatever we’ve done is just so big and so bad, so different and so much worse, that it can never be fixed or forgiven or redeemed. This sin and this shame—and they have to go. Because, when sin remains and shame […]

How well do you love the people in your life? In John chapter 13, Jesus’ gives us a commandment about that: to love each other as He does. He commands us to love just like He loves us and just as much as He loves us. Whoa, right? How’s that going? Well, in our lives, […]

The Apostle Peter told us what’s true about our identities, what’s true about our roles in the Kingdom of God. He wrote, “But you are God’s chosen treasure—priests who are kings, a spiritual “nation” set apart as God’s devoted ones. He called you out of darkness to experience his marvelous light, and now he claims […]

When we’re caught in the rush and charge of everyday life, when we’re putting out fires and checking things off lists, we pray. We’re followers of Jesus, and that’s what His followers do. Sometimes we forget to pray, of course. But not that often and not for very long. Sooner or later, we get there. […]

A conversation with God necessarily involves adoration. Because everything God does He does in adoration. There is just no way around it. He adores us, and he reveals it through His Son, through Jesus’ leadership and sacrifice; through Holy Spirit, through his personal pursuit of relationship with us; through the beauty and majesty of creation; […]

We humans are always looking for more knowledge—as much as we can get. And why not? Knowledge improves our lives. We benefit from breakthroughs in health care. From technological breakthroughs. Humanity, collectively, learns so much more each and every day about ourselves and about this world and how it works—and things improve . . . […]

This world can feel like a maze—and we barely have enough time to find our way through each twist and turn. We think we’re doing the right things. Dealing with all the information coming at us; getting done the things we have to get done; making all the decisions that must be made. We try […]

We live in the physical world. A world with limits, with causes and effects. It’s a world of data and hard science and hard evidence. And we’ve lived here a long time. We’ve seen a lot of things, personally and up close. So, we’ve kinda come to know just what is possible and what is […]

It can be shocking just how asleep we can be to why we do certain things. Most of us are just pretty darn unaware of how our personalities shape our decisions, our habits, our relationships, our lives. What I mean by “personality” is sometimes also called the false self. These are the things—the defense mechanisms, […]

Comparison and envy are brothers . . . and they are thieves. They come and conspire and rob us of peace and joy and energy. And we open the doors. And we let them in. We open our lives to them when we decide to pursue lives of self-glory—rather than ones pursuing more of God. […]

Being pressed on all sides. Crushed. Overwhelmed. These aren’t just ideas. These are realities that we feel. That we live. A marriage falling apart—lack of communication; distrust; wounds that feel impossible to heal. A job lost—fear about making ends meet; discouragement; disappointment of unrealized dreams. Sickness, addiction, loneliness, despair. We are being pressed. Persecuted. We’re […]

In Galatians chapter five, the Apostle Paul wrote, “For freedom Christ has set us free.” He goes on to encourage us, “stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.” We try to live according to the Law just as much as Christians did in Paul’s time. It’s just that our […]

God says, “You are what I love most.” Do you believe that? Do you believe that, in love, He made you? Do you believe that He made you for love? Do you believe that He made you so He would have someone to love? Do you believe that He does indeed love you, despite your […]

Eugene Peterson wrote a book about reading the Bible called Eat this Book: A Conversation in the Art of Spiritual Reading. In it he writes about the tremendous impact the Bible has on us when we read it—not passively, not gingerly—but with expectation, excitement, gusto. The Bible, after all, is not just some set of […]

We each have walls behind which we hide—hide from other people, hide from our true selves, hide from God. We’ve built bunkers over the years, as defenses for ourselves after we’ve made bad choices, or after we’ve had terrible things done to us. We convince ourselves it’s safe behind those walls. And years go by. […]

“The flame of purity is lit . . . in you. You carry it. It burns within you . . . despite your failings, despite how you fall.” “Stay close. I purify you. I purify you. My Son makes you clean.” Wow . . . It’s a bit much to take, isn’t it? Jesus does […]

As we grow and mature in faith, it’s important to, at some point, come to know Holy Spirit, personally. Now, I get it. The prospect of that may seem a bit daunting. Or the process by which we do it may seem a little unclear. You might be saying, “I know He dwells within my […]

When we think about our idols, it’s easier to focus on material things than it is to focus on people. When we consider whether certain people in our lives, certain relationships, might have become idols for us, it can almost feel like we’re being disloyal to them or irresponsible. We’re designed by God to love, […]

The movements of our new hearts are one way God teaches us what is ours. For our new hearts are made and empowered by Him to notice, to care, to move more for certain people and certain needs: and when their needs are met, our hearts are satisfied; and when they aren’t, our hearts hurt […]

Pouring out the love God has poured into us. Back and forth. In and out. Neverending. That’s how we are made to live. That’s how we are made to worship. It’s an exchange. It’s always an exchange. He loves us; we love Him back. He speaks to us, protects us, rescues us, surprises us and […]

Do you trust that God can change you—that He can do something new and good in you? Or do you ever believe you’re just too far gone to be molded by loving hands, shaped by the One who knows you, who adores you? Do you believe in His original plan for your life—that you are […]

We’ve been indoctrinated by the world. We’ve been conditioned by culture to believe that this is all up to us—everything in our worldly lives, everything in our spiritual lives too. It’s all up to us. We’ve been indoctrinated, but we’ve also been deceived. You see, when we simply want more God in our lives, as […]

Abraham and Moses, David, Peter, and Paul. Rahab and Ruth, Esther, Mary Magdalene, and Priscilla. These people lived great stories—and they’re captured in Scripture. But what about you? And what about me? Many of us assume Biblical figures like these are just special—different from us. We assume we cannot live like them—that our stories will […]

Ironically, we try to carry the burdens of the world in order to regain control—as a way to try to limit our pain and fear. But when we shoulder burdens that are not ours to carry—that are too heavy for us to carry as mere men and women—our pain and fear just increase. So, what […]

Though we cannot see him, the true ruler of this world is an enemy hell-bent on our destruction. In First John chapter five, the Apostle John wrote, “the whole world lies in the power of the evil one.” Jesus rules us—you and me—His followers, and He’ll rule the world to come. But, for now, right […]

New life is something we get to do, right now. We don’t have to wait. We don’t need to make complicated something that is actually quite simple. And it is simple and available. But it is not easy. Because getting to new life requires a journey of descent—descent into death. Death to the way we […]

Only when we connect confession with repentance do we complete the process. You see, confession is making our sins known—to God, to spouses, to trusted friends. Repentance, though—repentance involves turning from those sins; turning our backs on our old selves, on the people who committed those sins—so we can change. Repentance is saying, we don’t […]

Confession—real, raw confession—confession that stings—is a critical component of a healthy spiritual life. It’s also an essential element of robust Christian community. We may not like it, we may not want to admit it, but we all need to be known, truly known—and to be accepted by our friends and family still. The culture of […]

Is God’s personality hard or soft? Is He full-time or part-time? Does He know you? Does He know you well or just a little? Is he proud of you, or sometimes disappointed? Does He love you easily or does He tolerate you? Does He like you? Is He a disciplinarian? A judge? Are his expectations […]

We are becoming more, and God is giving us more. With God, there is always more. Even here. Even now. So how do we learn to say yes to that reality—the reality of heaven now—while we’re still yet here in our earthly lives? How do we turn from the things of this world—with their demands […]

Do you have anything in your life that’s hard to get rid of that you got from your family? Is there something that you find yourself doing, or a belief you hold—something that’s negative, something that’s dysfunctional—something that hurts other people, hurts relationships, or hurts you—that was present in your family growing up? Something your […]

We are each made to experience God differently. While He is the same Father, the same King, the same Spirit, the same rock on which we stand, we each hear His voice uniquely. We have experiences with him that are different than anyone else’s. And your saying yes to these unique opportunities can make any […]

The brutal battlegrounds that are our lives can make it feel, sometimes, like hope is lost. Or that hope is a thing for everyone else, but not for us. Not you. It can begin to feel like hoping for something better is something you do in dreams and fairy tales and movies. One of the […]

The way is not easy. These lives of ours. The journey is hard. There are tough climbs and perilous descents. There are confusing treks through thick jungles and dark valleys. There are exhausting marches across arid deserts and bleak wastelands. There is dreariness and fatigue and loss. But there is adventure and majesty and wonder […]

When we make the decision to follow Jesus, when we repent and believe—that’s the point at which we’re washed clean and made new. It’s about that point that Paul said, “if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” (ESV, 2 Corinthians 5:17) This […]

Love makes us feel fragile—and the heartache of loss can feel too great, sometimes, to bear. Going one day at a time, looking to our Father for comfort, for peace, for hope, in the midst of our heartache, is what we must do. And the healing comes, bit by bit. Our Jesus was a man […]

It is often beliefs we hold—beliefs we’ve held for a long time—that prevent us from believing what God says to us. These are usually beliefs about ourselves and our worth, and they run counter to what God says is true. This probably isn’t much of a surprise. You’ve no doubt experienced, at some point, how […]

We live in a world that’s broken. Desperate need is everywhere. He hear people—lots of people—tell us every day how much they need. Our time, our help, our resources. And many of these claims are 100% our responsibility to act upon, like the claims of people to whom we are personally obligated—our family members, our […]

How do we stay close to Jesus, even in the midst of our crazy busy lives? How do we keep from forgetting our Abba Father as we blaze through our lists of things that must get done? How do we find the freedom to find God today? Here’s a place to start: let’s remember what […]

Passivity. Or aggression. Both reveal the states of our hearts . . . and the level of our pride. Because both of these tactics come out of hearts that have hardened. Both approaches reveal how we’re struggling to trust God. Because, whether it’s through self-protection or manipulation or sheer force, what we’re really doing is […]

Trusting people is risky. It makes us vulnerable. And when we’re vulnerable we can be hurt. Trusting people opens us to the richness and goodness of relationship, yes. But it also opens us to the potential for pain. We give the people we trust the opportunity to wound our hearts. And some people will. Some […]

Surrendering our hearts to Jesus is no small thing. No, it is everything. Surrendering will not make our problems go away. The financial pain. The health struggle. The relationship heartache. But it will give us vision, perspective, a new way to see our circumstances. And, as difficult as it might be to imagine, it will […]

When we are overwhelmed, stressed out, maxed out, distraught . . . When we’re brokenhearted, furious, depressed, or just done . . .  it’s hard to be okay with letting ourselves feel, feel all the emotions of the moment. We’d much rather they just stop. We’d rather shut them down, toughen up, fix ourselves, regain […]

How do we keep going when it hurts? When an argument feels bigger than an argument. When someone’s hurt us. When we’ve said things we didn’t mean, or things we did mean, but we regret. When words have cut deep. When we struggle to forgive–forgive ourselves or another. How do we know what to do […]

You, my friend, are being invited to go on an adventure, right now. You’ve been asked some questions: Do you want Holy Spirit to pour himself into your mind so that you experience what you have never imagined before? Do you want him to help you imagine what your eyes cannot yet see? To do […]

We’re desperate for a bit of peace. Aren’t we? Peace seems so scarce these days, in these busy lives of ours, with the pace of our world. But here’s the thing about peace . . . we cannot seek and attain it ourselves. We cannot work and achieve peace on our own. Not the peace […]

We are experts at comparison. We compare our appearance, our jobs, our families, our relationships, our intelligence, our homes . . . Anything that can be measured we measure. And the things that can’t be measured? Well, we find a way to determine their worth too. It is exhausting, this treadmill of comparing ourselves. We […]

Many external things influence how we define beauty. Culture . . . family . . . friends . . . technology. These all have a direct and powerful effect on what we think is beautiful. They’re difficult to ignore, aren’t they? And so these things often shape how we perceive ourselves, and how we interact […]