Re-Release: "Cultivating a Spirit-Led Holiday Season" with Rebekah Hargraves

This week on the show I am re-releasing a previously-recorded episode on cultivating a Spirit-led holiday season. I hope it is an encouragement to your heart this week!

What I Cover on this Episode:

~How to go from the holiday season being a stressful, hurried time to one of peace as you are led by the Spirit and walking in step with Him

~Listening to God rather than man this holiday season

~Prayer as the first step in walking by the Spirit

~God’s desire to be our help this Christmas

~The importance of considering only the glory of God, the unique needs and desires of your own family, and the good of others in your community whom you could minister to this season when deciding what to plan for your holidays this year

~Getting in the Word as the second step in walking by the Spirit

~Reading the Word and being in prayer as being the only surefire ways we can go about assessing our true priorities and responsibilities this season

~Reading the OT Messianic prophecies as a great way to grow our Christmas spirit this season

~Priotizing what makes Christmas special for our own unique families and letting everything else go

~The importance of staying in our own lane this Christmas

~What our mission this Christmas is - and what it isn’t

~7 steps for walking by the Spirit in the midst of family disagreements during holiday get-togethers

~The importance of being teachable and the power of humility, love, and kindness when seeking to win hearts to Christ

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Quotes to Remember:

“So many of us are used to the holiday season being a time of stress, extreme busyness, and overwhelm. We wonder how any other option would be possible. How would we put an end to the stress and overwhelm of the season? The answer comes neither through just getting a good planner or simply not filling December’s calendar with anything at all. There is only one sure-fire way to reach this goal, and that is by listening to the Lord rather than man during the holiday season.”

“The first step in cultivating a Spirit-led holiday season is taking time for prayer. Instead of scouring Pinterest for the best Christmas ideas or seeking the advice of Google’s experts on how to have a peaceful season, there is truly one answer to the restlessness faced by many of us this time of year: to walk by the Spirit, communing with the Lord in prayer and listening for His answers.”

“The truth is that our loving, compassionate Father God is intimately intimately involved in our daily lives, even down to the most minute of details, and He wants to be our help today and everyday. So as we are in the busiest time of the year, we can get our holiday season off to a great start by seeking the Lord’s wisdom and direction for the weeks ahead.”

“Only consider the glory of God, the unique needs and desires of your own family, and the good of others in your community whom you could minister to this season when deciding what to plan for your holidays this year. In other words, do not worry about impressing others, stuffing the calendar, scouring Pinterest tirelessly, or trying to top everyone else’s Christmas plans. Instead, walk by the Spirit.”

“The second step is to get in the Word. I’m not talking about devotional books or Bible studies. Those are great, and they do serve a purpose. But we have more important business to attend to first - and that is that we need to dig our noses deep into the actual Word of God itself. Reading the Word and being in prayer are the only surefire ways we can go about assessing our true priorities and responsibilities this season.”

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“Reminding yourself of the Messianic prophecies in the Old Testament is a great way to grow your Christmas spirit this season. Discover the hope, joy, peace, and love that are brought to us by the long-awaited fulfillment of those prophecies. Read of Elizabeth’s joy, Mary’s praise, the shepherds’ amazement, the wise mens’ gifts. Think on the actual reason for the beautiful Christmas holiday. Doing so can go a long way towards being able to exchange a hurried and harried, overly busy, stressed out, overwhelming holiday season for a more restful, joyful, peaceful, purposeful, and Spirit-filled one.”

“To cut down on the stress and overwhelm and yet still cultivate a truly meaningful Christmas, ask your family what events or practices mean the most to them. If you prioritize those things and let everything else go, your holiday will become both more peaceful and more special.”

“Stay in your own lane. God never once called us to be cookie-cutter versions of one another. And He doesn't want us to run ourselves ragged attempting to imitate each other. He has only ever called us to imitate Him. So, it doesn’t matter what other women are doing this Christmas. Do what He has called you to do.”

“Our mission this Christmas is not to impress our neighbors or do all the things. It is to keep our eyes fixed on Christ, to commemorate and remember the incarnation of Christ and the implications of that incarnation, and to love our families and others around us really well. In doing so, we point them to Christ - and that is what this season is all about.”

“If you want to be a breath of fresh air this holiday season, if you want to truly walk by the Spirit when dealing with extended family members with whom you disagree, you are going to have to purpose to be - by God’s strength - slow to speak, quick to listen, and slow to become angry.”

“Snark and sarcasm are not fruits of the Spirit. It is love, humility, and kindness that change hearts and inspire repentance.”

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