"The Holy Spirit Gives Us Wisdom and Understanding"

Here's an instant replay of what happened in worship:

We thought about how the Spirit lives in us and knows us inside and out. But the Spirit is also God and knows God inside and out. This makes the Spirit the perfect one to communicate between us and God.
We read Mark 13:9-11 where Jesus tells the disciples that, when they are arrested, the Holy Spirit will give them words to speak. This is true for us when it comes to talking about our faith or even writing notes of encouragement to others. If we ask, the Spirit will give us the right words to say. In the legend of Gregory the Great, the Spirit even came to him as a dove and literally put words in his mouth!
We realized that the Spirit can help us understand and hear what God wants to say to us. When we read Scripture, the Spirit will illuminate our reading if we ask, giving us a word, phrase or story that connects to our lives - that speaks God's word to us. The Spirit will also speak whenever we quiet ourselves to listen. For many people, this happens in worship each Sunday.
We heard how the Spirit spoke to Simeon in Luke 2:25-29 and to Philip in Acts 8:27-31. Does the Holy Spirit still speak to people like that today? Absolutely! We read a story from author and Bible study teacher Beth Moore about a time when the Spirit told her to reach out to a stranger at the airport and what a profound experience it was.
We listened for the Spirit to speak to us and prayed that our ears would remain open.
We celebrated communion at the table of forgiveness and new life.