\n\t\t\t\t\t\tDownload Audio\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/a>\n\tby Garry Floyd<\/p>\n
Text: <\/strong>Proverbs 11:24-31<\/p>\nTheme “Wind” Week-3 Focus – “Empty”: <\/strong>Without God, life becomes a chase after the wind. But when we are born of the Spirit and centered on God, our lives gain weight, direction, and eternal significance.<\/p>\nIntroduction- When Life Feels Like a Strange World<\/h2>\n
The animated film “Spirited Away”<\/strong> tells the story of a girl named Chihiro who suddenly finds herself in a strange and chaotic spirit world. At the beginning, she is fearful, confused, and self-centered. But over time, she grows into someone who is courageous, compassionate, and responsible. The story is about finding identity and purpose in a confusing world.<\/strong><\/p>\nMany people today feel the same way. (Perhaps thinking back to when you became a Christian) – Life often feels like we’ve been dropped into a strange world where values shift, truth is debated, and success feels empty. The writer of Ecclesiastes described this feeling perfectly:<\/p>\n
\n- Ecclesiastes 5:15-16 – Life can feel like “chasing after the wind.”<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
But the Bible gives us a different path.<\/p>\n
Jesus told Nicodemus, “Unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.” – John 3:2-5<\/p>\n
The answer to a wind-chasing empty <\/em>life is a Spirit-filled life.<\/strong><\/p>\nThe Foundation: A Life Born of the Spirit<\/h2>\n
Nicodemus noticed something unique about Jesus. “No one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him.” The presence of God produces visible evidence. When a person is filled with the Spirit, their thinking changes, their priorities shift, and their character deepens.<\/p>\n
Proverbs 11:24-25 describes what that looks like. “One gives freely, yet grows all the richer.” (Prov. 11:24) The Spirit gives substance<\/strong> to a life that would otherwise drift. From this foundation, we\u00a0move from\u00a0wind-chasing<\/strong>\u00a0to\u00a0kingdom-building<\/strong>.<\/strong><\/p>\nFour Shifts from Wind Chasing to Spirit Living<\/h2>\nShift #1 – Reorient Life Around God<\/h3>\n
Scripture<\/strong><\/p>\nEcclesiastes 12:13<\/p>\n
“Fear God and keep His commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.<\/em>“<\/p><\/blockquote>\nAfter examining wealth, pleasure, work, and success, Solomon concludes that life only gains substance when God becomes the center. <\/strong>Without that center, success feels empty, pleasure fades quickly, and achievements lose meaning. BUT, when God becomes the center, everything finds its proper place.<\/p>\nThe Spirit-filled life begins with spiritual reorientation. <\/strong>Not God as a part of life. But God as the center of life.<\/strong><\/p>\nShift #2 – Anchor Our Inner Life in Truth<\/h3>\n
Romans 12:2 – “Be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”<\/p>\n
Wind-chasing often begins inside the mind. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n- wrong beliefs<\/li>\n
- distorted values<\/li>\n
- cultural pressure<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Transformation begins when God reshapes how we think. The Spirit works from the inside out<\/strong>. Just as Chihiro had to rediscover who she was in the spirit world, believers must rediscover their identity in Christ. The renewed mind leads to:<\/p>\n\n- clarity of purpose<\/li>\n
- spiritual stability<\/li>\n
- wise decisions<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Shift #3 – Invest in What Outlasts the Wind<\/h3>\n\n- Matthew 6:19-21 – Jesus said, “Lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven.”<\/li>\n
- Colossians 3:2 – “Set your mind on things that are above.”<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Shift #4 – Let God Give Weight to Our Work<\/h3>\n
I Corinthians 15:58 – “Your labor in the Lord is not in vain.”<\/p>\n
Without God, work can feel repetitive and meaningless. But when work is offered to God, even ordinary things gain eternal significance.<\/p>\n
\n- Parenting becomes discipleship<\/li>\n
- Kindness becomes ministry<\/li>\n
- Daily work becomes worship<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Ecclesiastes 5:18-20 – Godly contentment far exceeds the dark realities of human existence. Thus keeping His divinely bestowed blessings ever before us. The Spirit gives weight<\/strong> to ordinary life. Nothing done for God is wasted.<\/p>\nConclusion – From Wind Chasers to Kingdom Builders<\/h2>\n
Ecclesiastes tells us something uncomfortable. Without God, life often becomes a chase after the wind.<\/strong><\/p>\nBut the Spirit-filled life changes everything. With God:<\/p>\n
\n- Thoughts gain clarity<\/strong><\/li>\n
- Choices gain direction<\/strong><\/li>\n
- Work gains meaning<\/strong><\/li>\n
- Life gains eternal purpose<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
The real question becomes, Are we chasing the wind…or building something that eternity will keep?<\/strong><\/p>\nJesus said, “Unless one is born of the Spirit…”That is where the transformation begins.<\/p>\n
Final Thought:<\/strong><\/p>\n“The world chases the wind, but the Spirit teaches us to build for eternity.”<\/strong><\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Download Audio by Garry Floyd Text: Proverbs 11:24-31 Theme “Wind” Week-3 Focus – “Empty”: Without God, life becomes a chase after the wind. But when we are born of the Spirit and centered on God, our lives gain weight, direction, and eternal significance. Introduction- When Life Feels Like a Strange World The animated film “Spirited…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[119,32],"tags":[471],"class_list":["post-94591","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-audio","category-sermon","tag-spirit"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":94584,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wind-chasers\/","url_meta":{"origin":94591,"position":0},"title":"Wind Chasers","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"March 15, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Download Audio by Garry Floyd How & Why We Inherit Wind's Emptiness - and What We Can Do About It Text: Ecclesiastes 5:16 \"Exactly as a man is born, thus will he die. So what is the advantage to him who toils for the wind?\" The Problem: Humanity Becomes Wind\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Audio"","block_context":{"text":"Audio","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/audio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":88939,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-first-beatitude-in-psalms\/","url_meta":{"origin":94591,"position":1},"title":"The First Beatitude in Psalms","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"July 26, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"by Warren E. Berkley The book of Psalms opens with a beatitude. \"Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful,\" (Psalms 1:1). This is a description of a life centered\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":41843,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/subjective-spirit-leading\/","url_meta":{"origin":94591,"position":2},"title":"Subjective Spirit Leading","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"February 12, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"by Terry Wane Benton Subjective \"Spirit Leading\" is when one is moved by imagined nudging and impulses, then attributes that imagination to the \"leading of the Spirit.\" It often never is in complete harmony with the Spirit's \"revelation\" in the Bible. It is sometimes outright contrary to Spirit guidance through\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":9557,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/do-you-have-pictures-of-the-eight-symbols-of-the-holy-spirit\/","url_meta":{"origin":94591,"position":3},"title":"Do you have pictures of the eight symbols of the Holy Spirit?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"April 24, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Do you have pictures of the eight symbols of the Holy Spirit? Answer: The Bible does symbolically represent the Holy Spirit at times. For example, the Holy Spirit descended upon Jesus\u00a0like\u00a0a dove at Jesus' baptism. \"When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":28758,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/hearing-the-spirit\/","url_meta":{"origin":94591,"position":4},"title":"Hearing the Spirit","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"November 18, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Proverbs 30:5-6 \u00a0 I.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Many people are convinced that the Holy Spirit directly speaks to them \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Yet, these same people will claim things contrary to the teachings of the Bible \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0B.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0And they rarely agree with each other II.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The Bible is the product of the Spirit \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0It\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Audio"","block_context":{"text":"Audio","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/audio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":94982,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/im-not-sure-jesus-is-talking-about-actual-water-in-john-35\/","url_meta":{"origin":94591,"position":5},"title":"I’m not sure Jesus is talking about actual water in John 3:5","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"April 9, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Hello, I just had some questions about John 3:5. I am not sure whether Jesus is referring to literal water here. The reason I say that is that later in the book of John, Jesus attributes the Holy Spirit and calls it \"Living Water\" when talking to the woman\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/94591","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=94591"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/94591\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=94591"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=94591"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=94591"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}