The Trinity is so well known to Christians that we can say the words as easily as we can rattle off our phone numbers: the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. There are several Christian books and church podcasts that can be used to learn more about the power, grace, and fruits of the Holy Spirit.
Listen to The Shack Audiobook by William P. Young as an Introduction to the Holy Spirit
Few books use metaphors to explain the Holy Trinity better than The Shack by William P. Young. The book is available as a printed book, an ebook, and an audiobook. The audiobook is about 8 hours and it is narrated by Roger Mueller. The audiobook has particularly high ratings on Audible (4 our of 5 stars) and is enjoyable to listen to during a week of daily Bible study about the Holy Ghost.
In The Shack, the Holy Spirit is presented as a gardener helping tend the gardens of the soul. Sarayu, the gardener, says to the confused MacKenzie, "This garden is your soul. This mess is you! Together, you and I, have been working with a purpose in your heart." This garden has a Biblical connection to Galatians 5:22-23. Saint Paul wrote to the the churches of Galatia and listed the nine fruits of the Holy Spirit, "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith,gentleness, self-control. Against such things there is no law." (HCSB)
Read Forgotten God by Frances Chan to Understand the Holy Spirit
The Forgotten God audiobook has a different subtitle than the ebook, but Forgotten God: Remembering Our Crucial Need for the Holy Spirit (audiobook) is the same as Forgotten God: Reversing Our Tragic Neglect of the Holy Spirit (ebook). It is better to read the ebook than get the audiobook, because there are times in the book when Chan instructs the reader to put down the book and engage in scripture. It is necessary to have a Bible handy when reading Forgotten God.
Francis Chan urges readers to understand that the power of the Holy Spirit is intended to help Christians follow God's will. "It's ridiculous to desire the Holy Spirit for our own purposes...Everyone is called to be led by Him." Author Francis Chan is the founding pastor of Cornerstone Church in California. There is also an accompanying workbook for Forgotten God.
Listen to the Ghost Series Podcast by Craig Groeschel to Grow with the Holy Spirit
The Ghost podcast series comes from Lifechurch.tv's vast library of Christian resources. They offer online church services, audio and video podcasts, and they are the force behind the online Bible Youversion. The Ghost podcast page on Lifechurch.tv has "talknotes" that connect the podcast series to the Youversion mobile Bible app.
The four part series of The Ghost focuses on practical applications based on theological and Biblical principles. Pastor Craig Groeschel encourages people to create a personal connection to the Holy Spirit by:
- recognizing the the Holy Spirit (Part One: "The Presence of the Holy Spirit")
- understanding the roles of the Holy Spirit (Part Two: "The Power of the Holy Spirit")
- embracing the gifts of God offered through the Holy Spirit, (Part Three: "Spiritual Gifts")
- seeking a personal relationship with God through the Holy Spirit (Part Four: "Filled with the Spirit")
One refreshing part of The Ghost podcast series is that Groschel is open about people's perceptions and confusion about the Holy Spirit. He says the "the best evidence of the Spirit filled life is that you live with the fruits of the Spirit." ("Filled with the Spirit)
The Ghost podcast enriches the The Shack's creative metaphors of The Holy Spirit and builds on Forgotten God's lessons. For people who are uncomfortable with creative approaches to presenting the Biblical abstractions, The Shack might feel too far from theological and Biblical presentations of God. For people who are new to Christianity, it might be better to start with The Shack, listen to The Ghost podcasts, and then work through Forgotten God.
Sources:
- Biblical quotations are from Youversion. HCSB is the Holman Christian Standard Bible, which is published by Holman Bible Publishers.
- The Shack by William P. Young was published as an audiobook by Oasis Audio on July 1, 2008. The ISBN is1598594192.
- Forgotten God: Reversing Our Tragic Neglect of the Holy Spirit by Francis Chan was published as an ebook by David C. Cook on August 20, 2009. It is sold by Amazon Digital Services. The ASIN is B002OEBMTS.
- Ghost podcast series by Craig Groeschel was produced as a podcast by Lifechurch.tv. Parts 1 and 2 were released November 2, 2009. Part 3 was released November 9, 2009. Part 3 was released November 16, 2009. They were all accessed through iTunes.
Alex Sharp - Alex Sharp is a teacher who has been keeping Suite101 readers up to date with the latest in audio- and e-book gadgetry since 2008.
