I downloaded this book two years ago. It has taken me this long to start it, but when I FINALLY did begin reading, I couldn’t stop. That fact alone should be considered a great endorsement of this book! Even more so as I explain why I didn’t begin reading it sooner: I was leery of reading another book about the fire and wind of the Holy Spirit, and bemoaning the fact that I had not experienced it. I thought it would be another holy roller shout out that as a Christian, I must be doing something wrong as I didn’t have what it takes to experience the power of the Holy Spirit. Instead, I found a gentle guide, a gentle explanation of the mystery of the Holy Spirit.

Stan Jantz doesn’t dismiss those of us who aren’t Pentecostal. There is no holy roller shout down. I am impressed by his logical and systematic way of presenting the mystery of the Holy Spirit. The structure he uses is personal. He shares his background and how his journey into the realm of exploring the Holy Spirit came to be. It is more like his personal journey in exploring the joy of experiencing the Holy Spirit. It resonates with me and I am sure many other Christians who love God the Father, God the Son, and the Bible ..l but haven’t much of an understanding as to the purpose of the Holy Spirit nor the power that lies within us through the Holy Spirit. We acknowledge Jesus left us His Spirit; we know the Bible verses that say we won’t be alone, Jesus won’t leave us because He promises to send his spirit to live inside us - to teach us, guide us, comfort us, etc. Yet, experientially, we don’t feel powerful in the Spirit. Mr. Jantz addresses that dilemma and the conundrum so many of us have regarding lack of power, lack of joy- all the characteristics we are SUPPOSED to possess as believers. His understanding of the dilemma endears him to readers who are seeking, searching, but are not Pentecostal. Again, a gentle approach, a careful study of scripture, and a very thorough backstory of great respected men of the faith who did indeed experience the power of the Holy Spirit. I knew of the reputation of these famous evangelists( Moody, Murray, Torrey, Loyd-Jones) but I did not know they attributed the source of their power to a dramatic encounter with and filling of the Holy Spirit. By sharing their testimonies, their quotes and works, Mr, Jantz provides more credibility to this reader. Admittedly, I was skeptical wondering about going down the “holy roller”rabbit hole. Instead, I came away with a clear ( and not scary) understanding of the work of the Holy Spirit. Moreover, through the author’s teaching, I don’t feel like the red haired step-child who missed out on the blessing of His Spirit in me. This book is an EXCELLENT resource with good documentation and sound teaching for any Christian in any denomination. I will be reading it again soon- there is a lot to cull! My loss waiting two years!

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book on exchanges for an honest, unsolicited review.

4.5 stars. This was an intense read that offered a lot of insight. Review to come.

Due to being a high school teacher, I have been falling behind on reviews. Here are my initial thoughts.

This book was really good. I have read many books on the Holy Spirit and loved hearing Jantz's thoughts on the Holy Spirit. He made the theology and orthopraxy of the Holy Spirit very down to earth and put in beautiful layman's terms. I highly recommend it!

Written in an easy to understand and conversational manner, Fire and Wind introduces us to the Holy Spirit, and the work He does in our lives.

Stan Jantz also navigates through some commonly held beliefs regarding the Holy Spirit and puts them into a Biblical perspective while also encouraging the reader to delve more into God's word for themselves.

Worth a read if you are interested in learning more about the person of the Holy Spirit.

This book is harder to read for those who are not into theology. It's not very non-pastor friendly. The author definitely did try, and I appreciate the good effort.

Jantz's father died at a young age. His mother remarried. It wasn't until just recently that Jantz went through a box containing his father's books. They were books by authors who wrote over a hundred years ago: Moody, Murray, Simpson, Torrey, and Tozer. The books were about the Holy Spirit. As Jantz read through his father's books, he was made aware of a new understanding of the person and work of the Spirit. He shares his insights with us.

Many Christians will be able to relate to Jantz's initial understanding of the Spirit, more doctrine than anything else. His understanding of God was intellectual and not experiential. He, like many evangelicals, thought of the Trinity as the Father, the Son, and the Holy Bible. Reading his father's books created in Jantz a hunger to know the Holy Spirit, to experience Him, to rely on Him for daily living.

This is a good book for evangelical Christians who have relegated the Holy Spirit to a place other than indwelling, directing, encouraging, enlightening, and empowering believers. You'll share Jantz's journey to knowing the Spirit is alive and well in believers today, can be experienced and desires to empower believers with gifts.

Food for thought: “A truly spiritual person is someone who is personally led by God through the Holy Spirit.” (Loc 228/1579)

I received a complimentary egalley of this book from the publisher. My comments are an independent and honest review.

If you are looking for what I describe as a beginners guide to the Holy Spirit, Stan Jantz has a well written book giving some insight and personal reflections on his experiences and understandings.

I enjoyed the perspective Jantz has and would say he outlines for his readers a base of exploration into who the Holy Spirit and how we interact with him on a daily basis. But it must be understood this is mostly an introductory level discussion.

Please don’t expect any great theological content, though I don’t believe this to be his intent anyway. In fact in his introduction Jantz explains that he is probably only a little farther along in the journey than some which I took to mean he is simply hoping to give readers an opportunity to grow in their journey and see how the Spirit interacts with us.

I also approached this reading with a theological backing in pentecostalism and 15 years of pastoral practice in the charismatic tradition so there was little new to me with the book. That said “Fire and Wind” is a great book for those looking for a place to begin this relationship with Holy Spirit and an understanding of the gifts. I also appreciate that Jantz mentioned there have been times the Spirit has been overemphasized, I am fully aware of the tendency of some to point to everything as a sign or wonder and the “manipulation” some try to use claiming the Spirits leading.

Well written and decently researched. If you are looking for a book on this topic, you won’t go wrong here.

*I received this book free from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. These are my personal thoughts.

Earc from netgalley.

The best part of this book for me was the spiritual gifts chapter, I thought it was fantastic, but the rest of the book was just okay.

Probably most well-known for “Bruce and Stan’s Guide to” books, Stan Jantz offers readers a new guide to a topic many are curious about— the Holy Spirit. In Fire and Wind, Stan begins by sharing his personal journey of a deepened understanding of who the Holy Spirit is, then he goes on to write about who the Holy Spirit is, how the Holy Spirit works, and how believers can experience more of the Spirit in their lives. Instead of some stuffy, academic book, Jantz offers up a down-to-earth, every-day book for every-day people. It’s easy to read, filled with practical applications, and of course, biblically based. I’ve been a believer for a long time, and still I long for more of the Holy Spirit. In clear, biblical terms, Jantz has helped me see just how to experience more of the Holy Spirit’s power in my life. I also feel better equipped to be able to take others who are curious to the Bible and show them who the Holy Spirit and how He works—and how we can have more of His wonder-working power in our daily lives. Thanks, Stan Jantz, for teaching and equipping me with this excellent guide in your new book, Fire and Wind.

Note: I received a copy of the book from the publisher in exchange for this honest review. The opinions expressed are my own.

I enjoyed this book. It laid out explanations in a logical way and backed up thoughts with biblical citations. It would be a solid resource for someone wanting to know more about the Holy Spirit.

I love getting new perspectives on God, and the way we as Christian's should live.

But, this book only does that a very little bit. I found it very disconcerting the number of times we're told "Tozer said" or "According to Tozer." I enjoyed the book, but it felt disconnected as if the author wanted to tell us about Tozer's opinions.

I will say it is well written and worth reading if you dont mind the many Tozer quotes.

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to review this book.

Fire and Wind is accessible and full of real life examples of spiritual exploration. An enjoyable and well-written book.