Thanks to The Work of the People...
Visit their site at: The Work of the People
Sunday, May 31, 2020
Pentecost...open the gifts!
"And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in different tongues, as the Spirit enabled them to proclaim."
Acts 2:4
Today is the feast of Pentecost and as I sat in the treehouse, this morning, I wondered what Pentecost has to teach us after this very difficult week in our country. What are the lessons of Pentecost that can help us now? I listened to Pray-As-You-Go and loved how they defined the language of Pentecost: Forgiveness, Love and Understanding. These are gifts that all humans can appreciate, and, indeed, desperately need right now. And the really nice thing about it is that these gifts are given to us in advance, so we can "re-gift" them to others. We don't have to come up with our own forgiveness, love and understanding at all! The Holy Spirit gives us the gifts first. Think about when you receive a gift--let's say someone leaves a wrapped present by your doorstep. The gift just sits there, not really helping you at all. You need to open your door and receive the gift, unwrap it and put it to use. The Holy Spirit gifts us with forgiveness, love and understanding, but if we just leave the gift on our doorstep, nothing within us will change. We need to recognize the spiritual gifts, open them within our hearts and re-gift them to others. I was doing Centering Prayer in the treehouse, after listening to this reading. The calm, still morning was startled by a breeze through the tree. I imagined it as the Holy Spirit coming to drop off a beautiful present for me to take in, open, and put to good use in my life. The gifts of forgiveness, love and understanding are invaluable gifts right now, as we are going through such difficult times. As far as I can see it, the Holy Spirit is coming none-too-soon! Let's all take a minute or two and breathe in the gifts of the Spirit in our own hearts. Accept the gifts and unwrap them. And, since the gifts are not just for us alone, let's pass them onto others in our hurting world. Come, Holy Spirit! Love, heidi
Acts 2:4
Today is the feast of Pentecost and as I sat in the treehouse, this morning, I wondered what Pentecost has to teach us after this very difficult week in our country. What are the lessons of Pentecost that can help us now? I listened to Pray-As-You-Go and loved how they defined the language of Pentecost: Forgiveness, Love and Understanding. These are gifts that all humans can appreciate, and, indeed, desperately need right now. And the really nice thing about it is that these gifts are given to us in advance, so we can "re-gift" them to others. We don't have to come up with our own forgiveness, love and understanding at all! The Holy Spirit gives us the gifts first. Think about when you receive a gift--let's say someone leaves a wrapped present by your doorstep. The gift just sits there, not really helping you at all. You need to open your door and receive the gift, unwrap it and put it to use. The Holy Spirit gifts us with forgiveness, love and understanding, but if we just leave the gift on our doorstep, nothing within us will change. We need to recognize the spiritual gifts, open them within our hearts and re-gift them to others. I was doing Centering Prayer in the treehouse, after listening to this reading. The calm, still morning was startled by a breeze through the tree. I imagined it as the Holy Spirit coming to drop off a beautiful present for me to take in, open, and put to good use in my life. The gifts of forgiveness, love and understanding are invaluable gifts right now, as we are going through such difficult times. As far as I can see it, the Holy Spirit is coming none-too-soon! Let's all take a minute or two and breathe in the gifts of the Spirit in our own hearts. Accept the gifts and unwrap them. And, since the gifts are not just for us alone, let's pass them onto others in our hurting world. Come, Holy Spirit! Love, heidi
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)