The Spirit of Pentecost

Apart from the obvious festivals in the Christian calendar (namely Christmas and Easter), Pentecost must be my favourite event - the celebration of God's Spirit descending on his followers and the reminder that God is with us all the time, no matter who we are or where we are.

Acts 2 tells of the event:

The Coming of the Holy Spirit
When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability.

Now there were devout Jews from every nation under heaven living in Jerusalem. And at this sound the crowd gathered and was bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in the native language of each. Amazed and astonished, they asked, ‘Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? And how is it that we hear, each of us, in our own native language? Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabs—in our own languages we hear them speaking about God’s deeds of power.’ All were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, ‘What does this mean?’ But others sneered and said, ‘They are filled with new wine.’ 

Peter Addresses the Crowd
But Peter, standing with the eleven, raised his voice and addressed them: ‘Men of Judea and all who live in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and listen to what I say. Indeed, these are not drunk, as you suppose, for it is only nine o’clock in the morning. No, this is what was spoken through the prophet Joel:
“In the last days it will be, God declares,
that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh,
and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
and your young men shall see visions,
and your old men shall dream dreams.
Even upon my slaves, both men and women,
in those days I will pour out my Spirit;
and they shall prophesy.
And I will show portents in the heaven above
and signs on the earth below,
blood, and fire, and smoky mist.
The sun shall be turned to darkness
and the moon to blood,
before the coming of the Lord’s great and glorious day.
Then everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

I find this very powerful.
God is not far removed. He is not distant. He is right here amongst us!
We just need to turn to him and he will speak to us and through us.

I found this short video, in which different people talk about how they experience Pentecost and God's Spirit.

Change

My daughter has left to go to Bangladesh for three months. Her first time away from home.
Frankly, I don't quite know how to feel. Anxiety, pride, loss and a certain numbness all seemed to be rolled into one.

I will write more another time. For now I am holding on to this thought:

Conflict styles

I have spent a lot of time since the New Year reading about relationships, what makes them work and what
I am recommending "Stop Arguing, Start Talking" by Susan Quillaim, which was written with Relate.
gets in the way.

The books is written as a 10-point plan, which can be worked through individually or as a couple. I am only on point 5, but have already learned much about myself and our relationship.

Firstly, how we deal with conflict depends on how we were taught, what we have observed and how we have been shaped by past relationships etc.
Patterns of behaviour which we have learned can also be unlearned - if we are willing to take responsibility for our own actions and feelings.

I have learned that my first response to conflict is to AVOID at all cost! Comply, agree, go along, get along ... don't rock the boat!

That works okay for a while, but then eventually a sense of resentment sets in: Why do I never get what I want? (Answer: chances are I never mentioned what I want!). The resentment builds and leads to moodiness and spitefulness.
Then the tensions build up, we have an argument ... and to resolve the conflict I revert back to my default response: I comply to avoid further conflict.

It has been really interesting to take this journey, make myself aware of these things and starting to talk about it with my husband.

I am also realising that  avoiding conflict (especially as a woman) may be reinforced through certain Christian thinking/teaching. I am thinking about women being 'submissive to their husbands' and 'husbands being the head of the household'.

And the resentment of not getting my own way is echoed in teachings about 'being persecuted' and 'having to suffer for one's faith'.

I am starting to think that I am none of these things.
I don't have to be submissive or compliant. Just going along with everything does not strengthen a marriage. Being able to talk about ones differences and finding common ground and/or compromises however does!

Equally I am not persecuted or having to suffer for my faith. I may be a Christian married to an atheist and we may not always agree in matters of faith; my husband may even be outspokenly critical of certain things pertaining to religion and church - but that does not make me downtrodden or persecuted.

My husband has to deal with his own fears, feelings and behaviours, but I can take responsibility for my own!

Here is a quote from the book about being aware of our feelings, challenging them and taking responsibility:

So try to acknowledge that while your partner's behaviour may be a trigger, your painful feelings may be because of an event that happened to you years before. Consider the possibility that your painful emotion is leading you to make muddled interpretations. And prepare to accept that you could have a part in what's happening: that what is happening might be due, for instance, to the fact that you can't accept the differences between you, that you're unwilling to settle disagreements, that you aren't fully clear about what you need.

If you can start to take this kind of responsibility for your feelings, you'll immediately find it twice as easy to cope effectively with what is happening. You'll think more clearly, respond more appropriately, act more rationally. And, ironically, you'll then be much more able to resolve the issue and gain more of what you want. 

The idea that I am part of the process and the problem, rather than a helpless victim in a hopeless situation is both challenging and energising.

He is risen! Alleluja!

Today, on Easter Sunday, we heard one of my favourite Bible passages.
Mary Magdalen meets the resurrected Christ.
I love the tenderness and intimacy of this encounter.

But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb; and she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had been lying, one at the head and the other at the feet.
They said to her, ‘Woman, why are you weeping?’ She said to them, ‘They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.’ 

When she had said this, she turned round and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her, ‘Woman, why are you weeping? For whom are you looking?’ Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, ‘Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.’

Jesus said to her, ‘Mary!’ She turned and said to him in Hebrew, ‘Rabbouni!’ (which means Teacher).
Jesus said to her, ‘Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, “I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.” ’ Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, ‘I have seen the Lord’; and she told them that he had said these things to her."
(Luke 20:11-18)

Easter Saturday

Today is Easter Saturday, also referred to as Holy Saturday, Easter Eve, Black Saturday, Bright Saturday or Joyous Saturday.

Interesting to read some of those positive attributes, because it must have been anything but a joyous day for Jesus' followers.
I can only begin to imagine the loss, despair and hopelessness they must have felt with their leader and master, the one they had trusted in and who had given them hope and comfort, gone!

Knowing how the story panned out, it seems easy for us today to sit out today to make it to Easter Sunday. For his disciples and followers it must have been heart-breaking. How could they know that only in a short while they would receive new hope and joy? How could they know that with the Holy Spirit they would rise to new heights and abilities?

I am thinking about the things which lead me to feeling held back and hopeless. The things I feel I cannot

overcome and conquer. 

I pray that I will rise above them and be empowered to be much more than I ever imagined to be. That with God's Spirit I will rise to new heights. That I will not allow fear and hopelessness to imprison me any longer. I pray for a new freedom, a new peace, a new power.

Here I am Lord. Fill me with your spirit and lead me.

Amen.

"Do not be afraid and do not be dismayed, for the Lord God, even my God, is with you. He will not leave you or forsake you, until all the work for the service of the house of the Lord is finished."

(1 Chronicles 28:20)

Holy Week

Holy Week is upon us. Tomorrow is Good Friday, the day when Christians remember the cruel death of Jesus.

I have been very busy this week with making Easter crafts for sale. Today was my deadline. Enough. It is finished!
Time to meditate on the final days of Jesus and to let it sink in.

I am looking forward to the Walk of Witness in our town tomorrow, and the Midnight Vigil on Saturday night.

May you experience something of God this Easter weekend. May you find him in the emerging spring flowers, the freezing snow, the joy of chocolate or the suffering of Jesus. You never know where God may show himself!

Songs of Praise and Justin Welby

Songs of Praise from Canterbury on Palm Sunday, with interview with Justin Welby, newly installed Archbishop of Canterbury.