Let Loose: Catch the Wind

Sermon Notes

Sermon Title: “Catch The Wind”                                                               Pastor Mike Snodgrass

Week 4: “Catch the Wind”

 

Text: Acts 2 / John 3:8

Focus: The move of the Spirit isn’t always predictable—it’s wild, fresh, and requires flexibility and obedience.

Big Idea: You can’t control revival, but you can ride the wind of the Spirit.

• The only thing we can do is be obedient.
• “The greatest hindrance to the next generation’s revival is the previous generation’s revival.” Dr Gary McGee

Texts:

• John 3:8 – “The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”
• Acts 2:1–4 – “Suddenly there came a sound like a mighty rushing wind…”

Overview:

• You don’t direct the Holy Spirit—YOU RESPOND TO HIM.
  • Acts 2:4 – “And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.
  • The 120 spoke the gift of tongues as the Spirit led them.
  • They sought, they were filled, and they responded to the Wind of the Holy Spirit. 

• The Church isn’t called to row in human strength but to raise our sails and catch the wind of God’s power.

Main Points:

1. The Wind Is a Picture of the Spirit

• In both Hebrew (ruach) and Greek (pneuma), the word for “Spirit” means wind or breath.
• The Spirit is unseen but undeniable—you can’t see Him, but you can see the effects.

John 3:8 – “So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”

Thought: If you’re truly born of the Spirit, you don’t just believe in wind—you move when He blows.

Thought: Following Jesus is a journey. It demands movement and change, action and courage!

Thought: The wind of the Spirit is blowing, and IT’S NOT MEANT TO BE OBSERVED BUT CAUGHT. God is stirring our Church to surrender and move with the power, presence, and unpredictability of the Holy Spirit.

2. The Wind of God Brings Power and Movement and Renewal

• Acts 2:2 – “Suddenly there came a sound from heaven like a rushing mighty wind…”
• The Holy Spirit didn’t just fill the upper room—He launched a movement.
• Wind doesn’t just come for sensation—it comes for propulsion.

Thought: If your spiritual life feels stuck, you might be rowing when God is calling you to raise your sail.

Thought: Stop working in your own strength. Start catching what God is sending.

Galatians 5:22-25

The Spirit’s presence is evidenced by transformation and the fruits of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23), which are observable even if the Spirit Himself is not seen.

Thought: Two-fold gift of the fruit to oneself and then to give that blessing to another.

3. Are You Positioned to Catch the Wind?

• Sailboats don’t create wind—they catch it.
• The direction of the Spirit may change—but if your sail is raised (prayer, worship, surrender), you’ll move with Him.

Acts 13:2 – “While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said…”

Thought: They caught the wind because they were positioned in worship.

Thought: You can’t catch what you’re not open to. Keep your sail up.

Thought: A believer in Jesus must be watchful of the weather patterns!

1 Peter 5:6-10 Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, 7 casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. 8 Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. 9 Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world. 10 And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you.

4. Catching the Wind Requires Letting Go of Control

Isaiah 55:8–9 – “My ways are higher than your ways…”

• The wind is WILD, NOT CHAOTIC—LED BY THE SPIRIT, NOT BY YOUR PLANS.
• You may not always know where He’s taking you, but it’s always for God’s purpose.
• Celtic Monks & Coracles –
  • Celtic Monks in the early 400’s to 900’s would build small sailing vessels called coracles.
  • Generally designed for one to two people and was in the shape of a walnut shell.
  • They were rudderless and often the monks would take no oars or paddles.
  • They hoisted their sails and caught the winds and the currents, believing God would take them where they were supposed to go to share the gospel…

Thought: We don’t need more maps. We need more wind.

Thought: Are you anchored to the ground whether intentionally or not that is restricting your ability to move with the Wind of the Spirit?

Quote: “Too many of us have decided to stay on the shore, while the Spirit wants to take us on a ride. We tend to have a preference for the known over the unknown. How much more comfortable it is to play it safe. But what are we missing? We will never reach the new place God has in mind if we don’t hop in and go for a ride!” – Dr. Carolyn Tennant

Altar: Call the church to:

• Lay down self-effort
• Pull in our rudders and throw away our oars!
• Repent of trying to control the Spirit
• Lift their hands as a symbol of willingness to move with the wind-spirit
• Pray: “Holy Spirit, take me where You will.”

DECLARATION (Congregational):

“Holy Spirit, blow through me. I release my plans. I receive Your power. I will not stay stuck—I will move with the wind. Let the wind blow! Let it carry me where revival flows. Let loose the wind of God in me!”