What if the Holy Spirit doesn’t just “put up with you,” but actually enjoys you—right now, in all your mess?
In this extended class discussion at Disciples Fellowship, theologian Dr. C. Baxter Kruger unpacks a deeply relational vision of the Holy Spirit, shame, and union with the Father, Son, and Spirit in the ordinary moments of our lives.
Through stories, questions, and conversation, Baxter explores:
Why he describes the Spirit as “like a seasoned nurse in a mental ward” who has seen it all in Jesus and loves the mess
A personal moment on the road to Nashville when he realized the “wave of joy” he felt was actually the Holy Spirit enjoying him
Growing up under total depravity and “born trash, die trash” language—and how the Trinity refuses to call anyone trash
How agreements with darkness become a “beaver dam” in our souls that blocks the river of living water, and how the Spirit gently rattles the logs loose
The difference between our fruit (self-manufactured goodness) and the fruit of the Spirit (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, faith, and self-control)
A very simple “class on evangelism”:
Jesus is in you asking. If you can’t hear him, ask why. Then ask if he brought the Father and the Spirit with him.
How the Spirit exposes sin, righteousness, and judgment not to condemn but to liberate us from trying to manufacture our own righteousness
Why “Christian faith” is not us trying harder to get to God, but our response to Jesus already in our darkness
Seeing the life of the Trinity in garbage collectors, teachers, bakers, grocery workers—ordinary people quietly participating in the Spirit’s care for the world
How real koinonia (communion) and unity become the most powerful evangelism: a fellowship where “you cannot hide relief” when performance and shame drop away
The tender story of Peter, the charcoal fire, and three questions—and how Jesus commissions Peter in his brokenness, not after perfection
Practical stories of listening for the Spirit’s nudge—like tipping garbage workers or serving communion to someone resisting contact—and discovering surprising grace
Why the church’s calling is not to create union, but to bear witness to what already is: the Father, Son, and Spirit present in us and among us
This conversation is for anyone wrestling with shame, performance, harsh images of God, or a sense of spiritual exhaustion—and for those longing to see everyday life as a place where the Trinity is already at work.
📍 Recorded at Disciples Fellowship – Birmingham, Alabama
A community for the spiritually wounded, the curious, and the open-hearted.
🕊️ Connect with Disciples Fellowship:
Sunday gatherings – 10 AM | 3064 Lorna Road, Birmingham, AL
Website: disciplesfellowship.com
YouTube: @dfchurchbham
You are not separate. You are not unloved. You are not alone.
Welcome home.
1
