Recently, I went with friends to see a movie called “The Avengers”- it was three hours of good versus evil! I saw this movie with friends who LOVE popcorn, & by passing it back & forth, we were all covered with it. Before we left, I went to the rest room to wash my hands, & I was drying my hands under an electric hand dryer when I saw a sign attached to the dryer. And you know what it said? “Feel the Power!” Now, the dryer was strong! But “Feel the Power” has been our Christian motto since the 1st Pentecost described in the Acts of Apostles. Yes: it’s clear our God is a sensual God: God communicates through our human senses, so people feel the wind, hear its sound, and see the fiery tongues. God wants to awaken us, so we feel the Spirit’s power, too! So where do we, on our Church Birthday in 2019, know God’s Holy Spirit is active? Here’s a few of them.
I see the Spirit alive when neighbors offer a hand and heart to welcome others. Wasn’t that true on Pentecost, when people joyfully heard the Gospel in words they could understand? Look at our classic welcome gestures: neighbors bring flowers or a cake as a symbol of welcome. One neighbor, seeing the newcomers head for their cars with coffee cups in the morning, went to 7-11 and bought them gift cards! But such a fine gesture, in a world that’s running so fast it can’t seem to catch its breath, requires us to slow down! Then, the Spirit pauses with us & breathes new life into us, just as the Spirit took the scared & divided apostles, and breathed into them the courage to serve Jesus more fully. By the way, the word Scripture uses in Greek, our first church language, for God’s power is dunamis: yes, God Power is at root dynamic, like dynamite.
I also see and feel the Holy Spirit working when there’s a surprise: when something good or unexpected occurs. I always think I know how a day is going to go, because I have a day timer, right? Not always: I was on my way to visit one of my godchildren, taking Route 25A into Route 347 West. I was making very good time … or so I thought! My rear left tire behind me caught a nail, I soon realized I had a flat tire. But I had also just had physical therapy for my back, and was told not to lift heavy things. So, where’d the surprise come from? In less than 2 minutes, a carload of young men saw I was in trouble, and in 5 minutes had changed the tire. When I offered them some cash to thank them for their generosity, one said: “No, that’s alright: it seems this is what we were supposed to do today, & we just did it.” To me, it sounded like a young person’s version of what we heard this past week from our senior D-Day survivors. One of them said: “we had a job to do & we did it, in the midst of bullets and bombs, with loyalty to our country.” They also combatted the Nazi aggressors.
These are CLEAR signs to me that Jesus has NOT forgotten about us & we are NOT orphans. In fact, God’s message is personal & tailored to each of us at the CORE of our being & soul. So today, before you and I consult with God, to identify what our NEXT task of bringing Christ to the world will be, I invite you to close your eyes for the next minute: together, let us both listen to and hear God’s Word, and God’s voice speaking to us, as we culminate this Easter season of grace:
God says: “I KNOW who you are: you are my beloved; YOU carry my creative/unique genius within you.” [pause] God says: “ your soul is filled with my divine gifts, & I place them there, along with my confidence in you, deep within you.” [pause]. God says: “I brought you to life to share your gifts & talents with others with joy, gratitude, and love, because you are my very own.” [pause] Let God’s voice in you be the Holy Spirit, speaking Good News to others. Yes: Happy Birthday, Church!
Fr. Chris
P.S. As you thank God for including in you the gifts of the Holy Spirit, please join me in offering a prayer of thanks for ALL those who have been Confirmed this year: our tweens, teens, young adults and adults: how blessed we are here at St. Louis!
