The lessons of Pentecost

It is week # ? (I forgot how many weeks I have been social distancing with my family. Send help soon!). I never would have imagined that I would be working at my kitchen table for as long as I have. Tracy has given the boys and me at least three COVID haircuts. The novelty of wearing T-shirts and sweatpants has worn off. The boys are missing their teachers because their old man is more demanding than their teachers. At least once a week, someone ends up at the end of the kitchen table crying out of frustration. (I am not too proud to admit that this is usually me.)

I am eating all the wrong type of snacks and sweets. Comfort food is on the menu every day of the week. Unfortunately, we are finding the pounds that were lost these past few years. We are constantly looking for new TV series to stream. My hands are severely dry from all the hand washing. We are constantly taking stock of toilet paper. Our weekly trips to Costco have decreased to biweekly.

There is an anxiousness that accompanies the news. Death tolls and infection rates are posted every day. It appears that we can't even come to a consensus as to what the truth is these days.

These are uneasy times. We feel trapped and caged. This is unprecedented; and we have never seen days like these before. We miss our everyday life. We also realize that the life we miss will most likely not return. Masks and social distancing, that were once concepts in a science fiction novel, have become our new reality. It seems that the whole world is waiting for direction on where to go next. We are sitting at home wondering what is next.

May 31st, we will be celebrating Pentecost. The Pentecost story in Acts paints an interesting picture of what the disciples were going through. The disciples had just witnessed the ascension of Christ. They were told not to leave Jerusalem. The disciples started waiting for the promised Holy Spirit. I am sure they were nervous. They stayed in one place. They sought out God's will and often stayed together in upper rooms. This state of limbo lasted for 50 days. They did not know what was coming next. (Sounds familiar doesn't it?)

We now know that on day 50, God fulfilled his promise and gave them and us the gift of the Holy Spirit. God suddenly sent wind and tongues of fire down from heaven. He gave us and those disciples guidance as to what to do next. (We celebrate it as the birthday of the Church).

In these times, we know that God is with us. The Holy Spirit is still guiding us and our decisions.

We are not alone and these times will not last. Like the disciples waiting for the Holy Spirit to give guidance, we, too, must wait. We may not know where God is leading us, but we do have the luxury of already having the Holy Spirit with us. There are several examples of God leading us through dark times within the Bible. We have all witnessed times in our Church history when we did not know where God was leading us, but our church was blessed in ways we could have never imagined.

These times are tough, but we are not alone. We are loved; and the Holy Spirit is with us. Good things and times are on the way.

God bless,

Doyll