Discovering the Spirit’s Call

By Andrew Gale, Executive Director of Global Strategy

The history of the global Church of God is a varied tapestry of the move of the Spirit. There are countries where the Church of God started because of missionaries who left the comfort of their homes and traveled to serve in new lands. There are other places where it expanded as a response to natural disasters, earthquakes and famines, and the church grew from supporting those communities in crisis. There were still other places where immigrants to the United States moved back to their home countries, taking the message and foundations of the Church of God with them. The Gospel Trumpet played an outsized role in global expansion, giving a dedicated location for people to connect and hear from one another. But more than anything, the thread that truly weaves and binds these stories together is the Holy Spirit. The Spirit moved in the hearts of people who desired to see their communities transformed by the healing hope of Christ. The Spirit inspired people around the world to live as visible expressions of holiness and unity to the broken and hurting world around them. And the Spirit is not done with us yet!

The Church of God has been, and is even today, a global community. With churches in nearly 90 countries, the work of the church is expansive and growing. New churches are being planted in countries that, at this point, there is no Church of God presence. New leaders are being raised up, mobilized, and trained to serve as leaders in their communities and missionaries to new lands. Churches are being a light to their communities as they walk through the devastation left by natural and human-made disasters. Churches are exploring new ways to share the hope of Jesus within their communities, across their nation, and around the world. The good news is that God is on the move – the Spirit is moving, and we are called to join!

Our work is not done! The Church of God in the United States and Canada is called to walk alongside these churches as they follow the move of the Spirit in their midst. We need passionate, dedicated followers of Jesus to invest their lives in this work. Have you felt the Spirit urge you on to the next step in your calling? Have you thought about traveling and engaging with the global church firsthand? Maybe it’s time to discover your call again.

In the fictional small-town of Harmony, Indiana, author Philip Gulley introduces us to a cast of characters revolving around Pastor Sam Gardner and his church. Gulley has written a number of books set in this quaint community and each offers a healthy mixture of humor and candor. In Home to Harmony, this important nugget of truth is offered:

“It’s a dangerous thing to ask the Spirit to lead you. You never know what might happen. But it doesn’t mean we should stop asking. Even though we get our wires crossed, we need to keep at it. Because someday someone might grow tired of sin and walk right in. And when they do, we need to be here for them.”