Umc Darlington

John 3:1-17  &  1 Kings 19:3-13  &  Galatians 5:16-25 We have prepared and set out on a journey inward.  We have faced the wilderness in our hearts (3.1.17).  We have encountered our temptations (3.5.17). Now we consider Spiritual Birth.  We are inviting the Spirit to speak and lead us, but are we ready for what we may hear... or where we may be called to go? We turn to a strange encounter in our 4th Gospel Jesus has with a Pharisee named Nicodemus.  This well-educated and well-meaning man comes to Jesus to learn, but he has limits on what he is open to hearing.  He walks away from Jesus' description of the mystery of the Spirit/Breath/Wind of God remaining in the dark about the meaning.  Later in the Gospel he sees the Light, but he resists early in the story. Don't we all? We come to God, we pray to Jesus, and we listen for the Spirit with a half willing heart.  We want blessing, but stall when it comes to living sacrificially.  We want to change the world for God, but we set limits on where we will