On Pentecost Sunday,
We celebrate the birthday of the church
When the Holy Spirit made itself known, just as Jesus promised
Blowing into a locked room of Jesus’ people
waiting for something to happen.
The tongues of fire sent them barreling into the streets,
Where people from the known world were going about their days,
Shopping and meeting and making their way from one place to the next.
How weird it must have been
When everyone from everywhere
Could hear the news of God’s power and blessing in their own language –
the miracles of Jesus’s life and love made available to everyone
no matter who they are
or where they come from
or what their lives were like before.
 |
| Pentecost Icon, Meteora, Greece |
No, they were not drunk with wine so early in the day,
But drunk with the overwhelming message
of love contained in the words of those who spoke.
On this day, the divisive events of Babel were reversed,
And now people are united,
The children of God, one people again.
And then comes the long season of green –
the season after Pentecost
lasting almost half of the year.
We come down from the excitement and
high of being bathed in the Spirit’s presence,
on fire for God and Jesus
and center ourselves on the reality of everyday life.
But our lives are not really the same as before
Because now we have new knowledge
New relationships
New marching orders
A new way of life.
We call this discipleship,
The growing season
Two steps forward
One step back
Planting seeds of faith in ourselves and others
Always believing that God will be loving and faithful in the process
And calls us to that same love
Extravagant, generous, hospitable, gracious, unbounded
LOVE!
A lifetime's work...
More difficult than we ever imagined...
When done right, it turns the world on its axis and paves a new way forward.
The real question is...
are we brave enough to go?
(c) Deb Luther Teagan
May 30, 2023
