Eastertide
May 14, 2018
Scripture Reading: Acts 2:1-21
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. —Acts 2:1-4
Books, written about the Holy Spirit, try to explain it, often like Acts, reporting incidents of its acknowledged presence and work. The Holy Spirit is hard to understand. Perhaps we are to accept it just as it is. Visible when the Holy Spirit deems it necessary, the Holy Spirit is always present but often not noticed except through hindsight.
I got a new smartphone a couple of months ago. I have never used the verbal aid called Siri and chose not to set it up. I do not think Siri liked my choice to ignore it. Routinely it interrupts what I am doing to ask if I would like to set it up. Every time I receive a software update, I get a reminder that I have not yet set up Siri. I wonder if Siri was modeled after the Holy Spirit with its greatest desire to be part of our lives, trying to help us follow the best paths and gigging us when we fail to do the things in our daily plans?
I would probably never make a meeting if my digital calendar did not remind me to go. When I leave my phone at home, I feel uncomfortable. What would I do if I had car trouble? In those moments, I usually remind myself that I lived for some 55 years without a portable telephone, but having one was helpful when my steering wheel got locked while I was Christmas shopping. I sped dialed triple-A and was back in full shopping mode very quickly.
I do not mean to be flippant about the Holy Spirit. I do think we each need to understand that while modern conveniences are helpful, the most important counselor, advocate we have has been with us since our beginning and will always be with us. Seeking the Holy Spirit’s counsel is one thing we should carefully include in our daily list of activities.
Prayer: Holy One, thank you for your constant presence, show me the way I can best be the person I was created to be as a part of God’s great plan. Amen.