Francesca Battistelli – Reaching Hurting Women Ministries

REACHING HURTING WOMEN MINISTRIES OFFERS FOUR THEMES FOR CONTEMPLATION EVERY MONTH OF THE YEAR.

EACH OF THE FOUR POWER-PACKED THEMES ARE A 12-MONTH STUDY SERIES ASSIGNED TO A SPECIFIC FRIDAY OF EVERY MONTH. IN MONTHS WITH FIVE FRIDAYS I’LL BE REVIEWING TOUCHING INSPIRATIONAL MUSIC.

On the second Friday of each month in 2021 we’re studying the Holy Spirit. We will learn who the Holy Spirit is, about His gifts and fruit given to us as believers and how to walk those out in our life each day. This is the third column in The Holy Spirit Study series.

The Gifts of the Holy Spirit are meant to strengthen the body of Christ, bring about unity and expand the ministry of evangelism. These nine gifts are available to every believer but are distributed by the Holy Spirit as He chooses. We should look for and welcome them in our lives . Today we focus on the gifts of Wisdom and Knowledge.

The Spirit gives one person the ability to speak with wisdom. And the same Spirit gives another the ability to speak with knowledge. ~ 1 Corinthians 12:8

The Holy Spirit gives the spiritual gift of wisdom not only to bring about holiness and worship among His people and around the world, but to share truth and understanding to the body of Christ. The Greek word for wisdom is Sophia which refers to the intimate understanding of God’s Word and results in holy living.

The wisdom from above is always pure, filled with peace, considerate and teachable. It is filled with love and never displays prejudice or hypocrisy in any form and it always bears the beautiful harvest of righteousness! ~ James 3:17

The Word of Wisdom:

A divine revelation, declaration or insight.
A spiritual utterance given through the Holy Spirit for a specific moment.
A divinely given power that enables a spiritual intuition to solve a problem.
A divine sense of direction to act in a certain situation.

Like the gift of wisdom, the Holy Spirit give the gift of knowledge to help believers have greater understanding and to inform individuals as well as the Church body as a whole. The gift of knowledge connects every circumstance and situation to the truth of the Gospel and the reality of Christ.

The Word of Knowledge

A supernatural revelation of divine will and plan usually for a specific need.
A supernatural insight or divine understanding of a specific circumstance.
A moral wisdom for right relationships and living.
A deeper understanding of God and His communicated acts.

The gifts of the word of wisdom and the word of knowledge may be mysterious to many but they are vitally important to individual people and the church body as as whole. Look to God. Actively seek after and welcome the gifts of the Holy Spirit in your life today.

Contemplate God’s gifts in your life today as you are blessed with this beautiful song by Francesca Battistelli.

References: The Spirit Filled Life Bible; Various online articles.

The fifth step of humility is that we do not conceal from our spiritual advisor any sinful thoughts entering our hearts, or any wrongs committed in secret, but rather confess them humbly. ~ The Rule of Benedict

Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. ~ James 5:16

We are not designed to carry our heavy emotional burdens alone. Whether it’s concerning past mistakes or current struggles; we need to share our burdens with another person.

God put us in a community of like minded people who can help us. Our challenge is to be radically honest with ourselves and recognize when we need to reach out to a trusted friend or counselor.

Sometimes we shy from confessing our problems to others. We think that if we open up to another person and they see the “real me” that they won’t like us any more. If we have carefully chosen a trusted friend, counselor or minister we can be sure they will use godly love and wisdom to help us.

Often answers and even healing comes as we are sharing. I’ve found on more than one occasion that as I was sharing my problem with someone the needed answer quickened to my spirit and after the session ended I felt physically lightened of that burden.

Saint Benedict knew the path to humility requires pure honesty. Humility calls us to truthfully bring to light whatever is hidden deep in our heart. These may be things that we’re even in denial to ourselves about. This is where a Christian counselor or minister can help. They can talk, pray and work us through these challenging areas to bring about the needed healing and restoration.

If you are struggling with any serious burdens or emotional wounds don’t hesitate to reach out to your local church or Christian counseling center.

Take a few moments to contemplate issues you may need to work through with a trusted friend or counselor as you listen to this beautiful song by Francesca Battistelli.