A Post of Many Subjects

How is that I can go for days, or even weeks, without even one idea for a blog post...and then I get too many ideas all at once???

First, happy Mother's Day to all the mothers out there. And for those who long to be mothers, my prayers are with you. May God fill your day with thankfulness for all His blessings.

Second, I have to share a new photo of "my" Isaiah. He's growing up so fast! In this pic, he's "helping" his grandpa with the mower. Isn't he just too, too cute?! (Don't worry. The mower was not running!)

Third, tomorrow is Pentecost Sunday, too. This is something God is reminding me to really focus on.

You see, I grew up in the Assemblies of God. Our "distinctive" was the "pentecostal experience": speaking in tongues. Yet it seemed that every year, Pentecost Sunday mostly just got a mention in the church bulletin, without there being much focus on why we had Pentecost Sunday, the history of the day in the church, or even a time spent seeking the Holy Spirit's outpouring in our midst. To be fair, we had many sermons on the Holy Spirit, and many services dedicated to that aspect of our faith. Still, I feel like I sort of missed out on what should have been the "day of days" in our movement.

So now coming at this from a Catholic perspective, I see the day in a bit of a different light. It is, truly, the crowning and inauguration of the Church's new life after Christ's ascension. The Spirit came upon the believers in the upper room, showed Himself in wind, fire, and through the speaking of different languages...and in Peter's new boldness to preach the message of Christ, no matter what the consequences. It is truly a glorious day in the history of the Church. But it really is NOT about speaking in tongues. It is about the Giver of the gifts, not the gifts themselves, right? It is about Him making us into the people (and the Church) He wants and needs us to be to reach the world with the truth of the Gospel. It is about "being empowered" by the Spirit of "Him who raised Christ from the dead". It is about being full of Him and spilling Him forth into the lives of everyone around us.

Happy Pentecost Sunday!

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