The wind of the Spirit is blowing, but the church is stripped and locked down like the blades of a windmill. It refuses to move in response to the Holy Spirit, preferring the rigidity of religion instead of the roaring wind of revival.
There is a 250 year old windmill from the Netherlands on Windmill Island, a city park in Holland, Michigan. It even has a name, De Zwaan, which means in Dutch, Graceful Bird.
As I was walking through the park on a visit to Holland, the Holy Spirit began to speak to me. I was reminded of Jesus’ teaching that the Holy Spirit is like the wind. He said: “The wind blows wherever it pleases, you hear its sound but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”
As a looked at the windmill I suddenly realized that although the windmill cannot direct the wind, it can yield to it in three ways. The blades can be unlocked so that the wind can move them. The frame of the blades can be covered with sales so that the wind can turn them. And the blades can be rotated to face the wind so the wind can have a powerful impact on them.
The same three principles apply to us and the Holy Spirit. We need to be unlocked from tradition and from the fear of what people will think about us, so that the Holy Spirit can freely move us. We need to be clothed with humility so that God’s wind can turn us where He wills. And we need to face the wind; to focus on, be attentive to, obey, and seek to live in the direct presence of the Holy Spirit.
We must make a continual effort to yield to and respond to the Holy Spirit. If we refuse to and/or neglect to intentionally yield to the Spirit, then we will find that we are resisting the Spirit and disobeying the New Testament Scripture that says: “Quench not the Spirit.”
If we break out of the box of tradition; clothe ourself in humility; and focus on, listen to, and obey the Holy Spirit, we will be God’s graceful bird soaring in the wind of the Spirit.
Learn more about soaring in the Spirit here.
More Original Organic Church Thoughts
Organic church is a term used to describe church that is based on spiritual life, personal relationships, heart-felt love, Spirit-led worship, and open participation, rather than on institutional structure or man-led meetings. It is also known as simple church and/or house church. However, it doesn’t necessarily have to meet in a house.
I am constantly seeking to describe organic church and have written several original comments about it. Here are some of my most recent. Most of them were originally posted as tweets @CSteveSimms.
Perhaps church would be more effective if those stirred by the Spirit spoke, rather than a professional.
Organic church is taught in kindergarten; show and tell. It is that simple. Give people the opportunity and the freedom to show and tell what God has done.
Church is believers who seek to take an active role in God’s field; not spectators sitting down to watch a religious service.
It is a rare church meeting where Christians are given the opportunity to publicly minister to one another.
Church is one anothers one anothering one another.
Organic church is ministry of one to another, rather than the professional ministry of one to others.
Free, open, and honest sharing in a church meeting makes God real. It creates caring and community. And it builds beautiful spiritual growth in people.
Organic church is Holy Spirit rivers flooding individual souls and freely spilling out into a body of believers. When the Holy Spirit is freely flowing in a group of people, lecture on theological conjecture is superfluous.
Organic church is spontaneous joy, life, & enthusiasm, shared from around the room, rather than a planned program run from the front.
A typical Sunday church meeting is an instrument full of beautiful human strings, that generally only lets one string sound out
When we meet with family and friends, we don’t program our time. So why do we program time with God in church?
Why is I Corinthians 14:26 (the only verse I can find in the New Testament that tells us what to do in a church meeting) almost completely ignored?