Loading...Spirit of God, rain down upon us!
Spirit of God, blow through us!
Spirit of God, burn hot and strong in our lives!
Pentecost Sunday is such a wild and crazy day.
Some folks call it the “birthday of the church” and even have cake.
Others wrassle with the whole “what is the Spirit” question.
Many do, as we did today, some of the readings in other languages.
All of these things, and more, help us to connect with and imagine what’s going on.
•the flames of fire appearing over the heads of the apostles.
•the “church” and it’s mission to people beyond and outside of the original followers gets going,
•the breath of God enlivens the people,
•and the sharing of the message of the Good News of Great Joy is not bound by language or culture or even time, but is spread.
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Today we’re celebrating Pentecost Sunday with lots of red,
the sacrament of Baptism, stories, songs, Eucharist. And pancakes.
Kian, a beloved child of God, will, in baptism, be welcomed into the communion of saints and family of God to be filled with the life-giving hope in Christ.
He will -- as many, if not most, of the rest of us have been -- be washed in the waters of baptism, and blessed with oil,
the outward signs of the inward grace of God.
We will hear again and declare again as a group the covenant that we’ve entered into with God.
•to gather together in worship to hear the good news of Jesus Christ and celebrate the presence of God with us;
•to trust in the forgiveness and grace of God enough to turn back to God even when we’ve made mistakes (really big doozies of mistakes)
•to work toward reconciliation and justice in the world
•to share the good news which we know
•to care for people near and far with kindness and compassion
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We gather around the font for a Baptism of water and
a Baptism of the Spirit.
We will hear about and experience the gifts of the Spirit given to Kian, to you – all y’all – and to me.
We hear and experience
deep love, life-giving forgiving love,
redemptive love, reconciling love;
We live deeply into our baptisms when we use in a multiplicity of languages to talk about this deep and abiding love.
Yes, in German, Spanish, French, and English, or whatever.
But also in other “languages” –
music, non-verbal communication, action
generational or regional vocabulary
non-church lingo
words to address family life, single life;
retired status, or still working.
We can even speak about God’s love using political language!
And through the work of the Spirit
our words and actions are heard as a “miracle of the word”
but also as a “miracle of the ear” –
that others hear the Good News in a way that makes sense and is life giving for them.
Then the good news spreads
like wildfire – or maybe embers
like a windstorm – or maybe a light breeze
like a bird on the wing – or a land-bound, ground bird.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The truth of it, though, is more complicated than just words on a page or words spoken aloud. At least, that’s been my experience and I’d not be surprised to learn that that is true for you as well.
Living as baptized, beloved people of God,
following the loving, redemptive Way of Jesus,
and even with the gifts of the Spirit –
is hard.
You think you’ve just got it all figured out ---
and then the wheels fall off.
Problems arise left and right.
You might even begin to wonder if you’re at a carnival playing whack-a-mole (either as the mole, or as the one with the mallet).
Sometimes that might “just” be because work, family or community life goes awry,
but it may also be because you experience difficulty
because of what the Spirit gives you to do or to say,
or because following Jesus is so very counter cultural.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Did anyone here watch Presiding Bishop Curry’s sermon at THE wedding at St. George’s Chapel yesterday? If you’ve heard him preach before, then what he said is classic, straight-up Curry-style:
passionate, fiery, impish, demonstrative, and filled with the Spirit.
But the crowd seemed ... shocked, surprised, and even unsure of how to react. I think I can say without any doubt that Presiding Bishop Curry is not the norm for the Church of England folks, nor the royals!
But, there in that Chapel, or here in this room; in your life or in the world, the Spirit of God,
the breath of God,
breathes life and hope and possibility.
The Spirit of God – the breath of God – is life giving
even when, especially when,
feeling dried up
listless
desolate
abandoned.
The people of Israel who were in exile experienced renewal and the life-giving breath after Ezekiel shared is vision from God and the story of the dried bones brought back.
The apostle, huddled together in an upstairs room,
felt the winds of the Spirit and breath of God fill them with hope.
What both the early Israelites and apostles (and you) learned, however, is that the Spirit doesn’t necessarily solve a problem (as a magician would) but invites us into a new way of seeing
-- and to see a new way.
The Spirit doesn’t remove fear (or the things that prompt fear in you),
but gives you courage and resilience to face your fears.
The Spirit doesn’t remove turbulence or tremors,
but gives you firmer footing and stability in the midst of them.
The Spirit doesn’t promise safety,
but promises presence.
(from Rev. Dr. David Lose)
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On this Pentecost Day, we pull out all the stops:
with visual, musical, and sacramental reminders of the Spirit.
The truth is, regardless of what day it is,
for Kian, for you, and for me,
the Spirit is present in all kinds of ways everyday as
helper, encourager, counselor, voice of conscience, advocate, guide, and the One who is alongside of you.
The breath of life, the renewal of the Spirit, is blowing in and through you today and every day.
Amen
