Pentecost

"When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability."
Acts 2: 1-4 NSRV

Pentecost, the celebration of the Spirit, the birthday of the church,is my
favorite Sunday of the church year. One reason I look so forward to Pentecost is that the Holy Spirit operates on this day as something of a wild card,descending upon us in unexpected ways. It is Holy Spirit after all...a Holy Chaos that embraces and stirs a contagious energy.

I am so drawn to Pentecost by the way the Holy Spirit fills me with such joy and hope over and over again.

We celebrate the birthday of the church,yet the festivities are not aimed at celebrating us, our efforts or our accomplishments. We celebrate God who chose to birth the church out of the chaos and despair of those early days after Jesus’death. Each Pentecost I feel that is what we do. We let go off the stuff that weighs us down, to really do God's work. We trust in the movement of the Spirit. It is kind of like the Holy Spirit's coming out party.

So, Pentecost is a birthday party, and the present God always brings is new life. For us today at service, how wonderful it was to share in the baptism of a new baby, new life, the newest member of our community, on the very same day that God breathes new life into all of us.

We are anointed with the gifts of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. These are freely given to us, we are blessed with them so we can go out in the world, be disciples and bless others.

This anointing, this fire from above, is for us to move forward to proclaim the Word and live the gospel,in our lives, in our homes, in our work, in our community and in the world; with a renewed passion and "spirit" that we have been blessed with through the resurrection and suffering of Jesus.

God wants to release Pentecost on us, giving us the Holy Spirit to guide us and keep us on the path.

"Wherever you go, I am going with you. I'm giving you all authority. Go into the world and I will confirm My Word with signs, wonders, and miracles."

That's what it is about, don't you think? Stepping out in faith with trust in the power of the Holy Spirit to guide us, revealing the mystery that can and will bring transformation.

Barbara Brown Taylor has a wonderful way of describing that event. She writes: " He commissioned them by breathing on them, opening his mouth and pouring what was inside of him into them so that their bangs flew and their eyelashes fluttered and they could smell where he had come from -- not just Golgotha and Galilee, but way before that -- back when the world itself was being born. Anyone standing there that evening with any memory at all could smell Eden on his breath: salt brine, river mud, calla lilies. They could feel their own lungs fill as they brought back to life. It was Genesis reborn, as they were created all over again by the power of the Spirit that was coming out of his mouth."

Taylor and others tell us there are two distinctly different models of church that emerge from these stories. One is the Pentecostal model, the church that receives the Spirit in dramatic fashion and shares that gift just as dramatically. The other is the Johannine model, which receives the Spirit more as a gentle gift. Obviously, whether one is a gentle breath type or a mighty wind type, the church has but one purpose. Taylor says, "the church has received the Holy Spirit, the world has not, and it is the church's job to bring the Spirit into the world."

Are you up to the job? The Holy Spirit challenge.

Who are you in the world today at this moment?

Are you living and dreaming God's dream for your life?

How is the Spirit moving in your life?

Will you let the movement of the spirit ignite your own renewed Pentecost?

God continues to send the Holy Spirit to soothe us, His anxious disciples, who are
made by God but unmade by our own fears, doubts and brokenness. The Spirit ignites us over and over again, firing us up until we stop thinking so much about what we are or are not doing; and worrying so much about what might or might not happen. We come to just trust and have faith to be led by the Spirit and just do what feels right,what we know is right and let happen whatever God intends, living the life God dreams for us.

So you see, whenever God plays the wild card of the Holy Spirit,whether it is with Holy Chaos or a gentle nudge, the future of Christ’s body gets lifted right out of the hands of disciples and transplanted right firmly in the heart of God,in the church and in each and everyone of us in the world.

I often feel the presence of the Holy Spirit through others in my life and as I continue my adventure in spiritual growth and in my spiritual journey. When the Spirit came to the disciples huddled in their locked room, he changed their world. The Holy Spirit speaks to me and is constantly changing my world, challenging me and filling me with joy.

How are you going to share the story beyond your locked room?

Holy Spirit, in and beyond me,
keep and extend me among strangers and friends.
Let me see clearly and reach deep.
Open me to feel and live your gospel,proclaiming your word
with my voice as I never have before
with my actions
with my love
with your guidance
Let me hear the music of your glory before me.
Let love move me.
Awaken me again,again and again.


Namaste'
Maureen