Pentecost (ABC) The Joy of Being with People You Love
Pentecost (ABC) The Joy of Being with People You Love
On the Garrison Keeler, Prairie Home Companion Radio show, Garrison talks about the annual 4th of July exercise of forming a human American flag.
All the citizens of Lake Woebegone, wearing red, white, or blue T-Shirts, arrange themselves into our Red, White and Blue flag. Then in order to let everyone get a “bird’s-eye-view” of the flag, they excuse themselves one-at-a-time, so they can say they saw the human American flag on the 4th of July.
I was reminded of that story when I realized that none of you can see the full effect of the color red in the nave of this church. (Instead of coming up one-at-a-time, I’d like to take your picture and then post it for your enjoyment).
Does the color red insight any special meaning to you? On our liturgical church calendar, the color red is used to remind us of the blood shed by martyrs. Today, the feast of Pentecost, the color red reminds us of the flames of fire that came down on the heads of the Apostles.
Recently I found in a word study, that the color red, insights a lot of meanings; excitement, energy, determination, power, confidence, action, passion, daring, enthusiasm, assertiveness, etc. The list is quite extensive.
ALL of these “red” words relate to the Pentecost story.
“When the day of Pentecost had come, the disciples 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.”
These were the men and women who had spent three years living and learning from their teacher and friend Jesus. They had witnessed the miracles performed by this man with their own eyes and ears. They had a story to tell of their experiences with Jesus that could not be contained. Suddenly, despite their fears, it had to come pouring out with excitement and passion.
People! Wherever you are from, we want you all to know about Jesus and the Godly deeds of power He performed! He not only raised the dead, He raised the hope and self-esteem of every man, woman and child that opened themselves to His kindness and love. And, after His death on a cross we have seen Him alive. He spoke with us! He ate with us! And we felt His breath as He embraced us with His forgiveness and love.
He said, “Peace be with you, my peace, God’s peace, be with you.”
I wonder if you have ever witnessed someone falling in love? It can be very subtle, unique, and life-affirming.
I have had the fun of teaching a number of people how to skipper a sail boat. You start by teaching the parts of the boat; mast, boom rudder, tiller, halyards, sheets, etc. Then continue by teaching all the “jargon” of sailing; jibe, come about, fall off, point up, etc. Next, you let them crew for a time, and then when you think they are ready, you let them take the tiller and the main sheet (sail).
Then there is the moment when you can see it happen. The student feels the connection with the power of the wind, and you watch as their whole being becomes a part of something much bigger than themselves. In that connection, something like “falling in love” happens.
Many summers ago, I made a date with a pretty girl on Hamlin Lake near Ludington Michigan. It was a perfect afternoon for sailing. We were on a racing comet named “The 8 Ball.” It was a glorious day. When we sailed back to her cabin, and before we docked, my date called out to her father who was standing on the beach (who was no-doubt…. looking out for his daughter). in a loud voice she called out, “Dad! I’m in love!....... with sailing!
The same thing can happen with music. I remember one rehearsal when I sang in the boys’ choir back in Winnetka. As we took our places, the choir director began playing something on the grand piano. As we connected with the music, we were transformed. The grand piano came alive, and we were all caught up in the majesty of the music. When he finished, Dr. Whitehouse, our director said, “That, is the power of music.”
Last Friday, when the choir was rehearsing for a Sharon Smith’s memorial service, I experienced again the difficulty of singing around the uninvited emotional lump in my throat. The choir really turned out. Some of our old faithful members came back to pay tribute to a family member we all loved and appreciated.
I have come to believe that the bottom line of our faith journey is belonging to God’s family and knowing that you belong. It reminded me of the Genesis creation story, when God was putting it all together. Remember what it says, “And God saw that it was good.”
Oh, how He must love us!
There is I believe a universal language that connects us with the truth of love’s capacity to heal and generate new life. That’s our story, and everyone fits into that story in one way or another.
Our job as Apostles of Christ is to help those, we pass by on the journey to see how their story is connected to the story of god’s love for us all.
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